perseguir Present Subjunctive Conjugation
perseguir — to chase
The present subjunctive uses the 'persig-' stem: persiga, persigas, persiga...
perseguir Present Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Present Subjunctive
Use this after expressions of doubt, desire, or emotion (e.g., 'I want you to pursue your dreams' or 'It's unlikely they will chase him').
Notes on perseguir in the Present Subjunctive
The stem comes from the 'yo' form of the present indicative (persig-). Because of this, the 'e' changes to 'i' and the 'u' is dropped in ALL forms of the subjunctive.
Example Sentences
Espero que persigas tus metas este año.
I hope you pursue your goals this year.
tú
Dudo que la policía lo persiga sin pruebas.
I doubt the police will pursue him without evidence.
él/ella/usted
Es importante que todos persigamos la justicia.
It is important that we all pursue justice.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: persiguas
Correct: persigas
Why: Adding a 'u' after the 'g' would change the pronunciation. In the subjunctive, we drop the 'u' to maintain the hard 'g' sound before 'a'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: persigo
Perseguir has an 'e > i' stem change in all forms except nosotros and vosotros, plus a 'go' ending in the 'yo' form.
Preterite
yo: perseguí
Perseguir has a third-person stem change (e > i) in the preterite: persiguió and persiguieron.
Imperfect
yo: perseguía
Perseguir is regular in the imperfect: perseguía, perseguías, perseguía...
Future
yo: perseguiré
Perseguir is regular in the future tense: just add endings to the full infinitive.
Conditional
yo: perseguiría
The conditional of perseguir is regular: add -ía endings to the infinitive.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: persiguiera
The imperfect subjunctive is based on the third-person preterite stem: persiguiera.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: persigue
Use 'persigue' (tú) or 'persiga' (usted) to tell someone to go after something.
Negative Imperative
yo: no persigas
Negative commands always use the present subjunctive: no persigas, no persiga.