Temporal conjunctions locate one event relative to another: at the same time, before it, after it, up to its endpoint, or immediately when it happens. The crucial Catalan contrast is not simply “present versus future.” The indicative presents an occurrence as habitual or established; the subjunctive presents it as anticipated, pending, or otherwise not asserted as a realized fact.
Decision table
| Connector | Relation | Indicative typically means | Subjunctive typically means |
|---|---|---|---|
| quan | when | habit or realized event | future/pending event |
| mentre | while / as long as | simultaneous fact | projected duration or restrictive condition |
| abans que | before | rare in the core temporal use | event not realized at reference time |
| després que | after | event treated as completed/factual | possible when completion is projected |
| fins que | until | reached endpoint or repeated fact | pending endpoint |
| tan bon punt | as soon as | realized/repeated sequence | future sequence |
Quan: habit, realized event, or pending event
Use quan + indicative for habits and for events the speaker presents as realized. Use quan + subjunctive when the event is still ahead and its realization is pending. Unlike English, Catalan overtly marks this difference through mood.
Quan treballo des de casa, dino més d'hora.
When I work from home, I have lunch earlier. — habitual, indicative.
Quan vaig arribar a l'estació, el tren ja havia sortit.
When I arrived at the station, the train had already left. — realized past, indicative.
Quan arribis a l'estació, envia'm un missatge.
When you get to the station, send me a message. — pending future, subjunctive.
The future is expressed in the main clause or inferred from context; standard Catalan does not normally use the future indicative after temporal quan for this pending meaning.
Quan s'acabi la reunió, anirem a sopar.
When the meeting ends, we'll go for dinner.
Quan s'acabava la reunió, sempre anàvem al bar de la cantonada.
When the meeting ended, we always went to the bar on the corner. — repeated past.
Mentre: simultaneous time and conditional duration
Mentre + indicative describes two factual or habitual situations unfolding together. Mentre + subjunctive can place a duration in a projected scenario, and mentre can also approach provided that / as long as, where the subjunctive marks a condition.
Mentre jo preparava el sopar, la Berta parava taula.
While I was making dinner, Berta was setting the table.
Mentre esperes el teu torn, pots omplir aquest formulari.
While you're waiting for your turn, you can fill in this form. — actual current situation.
Mentre siguis fora, et regaré les plantes.
While you're away, I'll water your plants. — projected period.
Pots quedar-te el cotxe mentre me'l tornis amb el dipòsit ple.
You can keep the car as long as you return it to me with a full tank. — conditional reading.
Do not confuse mentre with mentrestant, an adverb meaning meanwhile. Mentrestant does not introduce a subordinate clause by itself.
Abans que and abans de
Use abans de + infinitive when no separate finite subject is needed, and abans que + subjunctive for a finite clause. The event after abans que has not occurred at the relevant reference point, which motivates the subjunctive.
Tanca totes les pestanyes abans de reiniciar l'ordinador.
Close all the tabs before restarting the computer. — understood same subject.
Tanca totes les pestanyes abans que el tècnic reiniciï l'ordinador.
Close all the tabs before the technician restarts the computer. — separate finite subject.
Vam marxar abans que comencés la tempesta.
We left before the storm began.
The imperfect subjunctive comencés depends on the past reference vam marxar. Full paradigms belong on the imperfect subjunctive dependency page.
Després que: completion and stance
Després que introduces an event prior to the main event. The indicative is the unmarked choice when the earlier event is presented as completed fact. The subjunctive is possible when that completion is still projected, especially in careful language. It can also occur with an already realized event, particularly in journalistic prose, where it backgrounds that event; learners can safely use the indicative for a straightforward past fact. In everyday Catalan, després de + infinitive is often simpler when the subject continues.
Després que vam signar el contracte, ens van donar les claus.
After we signed the contract, they gave us the keys. — completed fact.
En parlarem després que hagis llegit l'informe sencer.
We'll discuss it after you've read the full report. — projected completion.
Després de llegir l'informe, truca'm.
After reading the report, call me. — compact same-subject option.
Fins que: whether the endpoint was reached
With fins que, mood distinguishes a reached or repeated endpoint from one still awaited. Negation belongs inside the clause and does not change the connector.
Ahir vam esperar fins que va parar de ploure.
Yesterday we waited until it stopped raining. — endpoint reached.
Esperarem aquí fins que pari de ploure.
We'll wait here until it stops raining. — endpoint pending.
No apaguis la pantalla fins que s'hagi desat el fitxer.
Don't turn off the screen until the file has been saved.
The clitic in s'hagi desat stays before the finite verb. English until it will have saved is not a model for Catalan: the future meaning comes from the whole construction, not from future indicative inside the temporal clause.
Tan bon punt: immediate sequence
Tan bon punt means as soon as. It is neutral and common in both careful speech and writing. Indicative marks realized or repeated sequences; subjunctive marks the next occurrence as pending.
Tan bon punt va sonar el timbre, els nens van sortir al pati.
As soon as the bell rang, the children went out into the playground.
Tan bon punt tingui les entrades, te les enviaré.
As soon as I have the tickets, I'll send them to you.
The more colloquial així que may also have a temporal “as soon as” use in some contexts, but it often expresses result. Tan bon punt is clearer when immediate succession is the intended relation.
Reordering, embedding, and punctuation
An initial temporal clause normally takes a comma; a short final clause usually does not. Long embedded clauses may contain another temporal frame:
La coordinadora ha confirmat que, quan els proveïdors hagin enviat el pressupost revisat, el comitè prendrà una decisió.
The coordinator has confirmed that, when the suppliers have sent the revised quote, the committee will make a decision.
The commas mark the inserted temporal frame. They do not change which mood is required.
A natural dialogue
—Quan em portaràs la bicicleta? —Tan bon punt surti de la feina. —Doncs avisa'm abans que arribis, perquè mentre dutxo el nen no sentiré el timbre.
—When will you bring me the bicycle? —As soon as I leave work. —Then let me know before you arrive, because while I'm bathing the child I won't hear the bell.
Regional and register guidance
The core mood pattern is standard across Central, Valencian, Balearic, Northwestern, Northern, and Alguerese Catalan. Verb morphology varies: formal Valencian may use forms such as tinga where Central Catalan has tingui. Tot d'una que or other immediate-time expressions can have regional distributions, but tan bon punt is a safe pan-Catalan standard. Ans que is (archaic/literary); modern neutral prose uses abans que.
Short correction task
- Quan arribaràs, truca'm.
- No sortirem fins que acabarà el concert.
- Abans que obrir la porta, mira per l'espiell.
Quan arribis, truca'm.
When you arrive, call me. — pending event, present subjunctive.
No sortirem fins que s'acabi el concert.
We won't leave until the concert ends. — pending endpoint.
Abans d'obrir la porta, mira per l'espiell.
Before opening the door, look through the peephole. — de plus infinitive.
Common Mistakes
❌ Quan tindré temps, t'ajudaré.
Incorrect in the neutral future-time pattern — do not copy English will after when.
✅ Quan tingui temps, t'ajudaré.
When I have time, I'll help you.
❌ Espera aquí fins que torno.
Incorrect for a return that is still pending.
✅ Espera aquí fins que torni.
Wait here until I come back.
❌ Mentre que cuinava, escoltava la ràdio.
Unnatural transfer — temporal mentre does not need que here.
✅ Mentre cuinava, escoltava la ràdio.
While I was cooking, I listened to the radio.
❌ Després que acabar la classe, vam anar a fer un cafè.
Incorrect — que needs a finite clause; an infinitive follows de.
✅ Després d'acabar la classe, vam anar a fer un cafè.
After finishing class, we went for a coffee.
Key Takeaways
- Use the indicative when the temporal event is habitual or presented as realized, and the subjunctive when it is pending or projected.
- After future-oriented quan, fins que, and tan bon punt, Catalan normally uses the present subjunctive rather than the future indicative.
- Contrast abans de / després de + infinitive with abans que / després que + finite clause.
- An initial temporal clause normally takes a comma; moving it changes information structure, not its mood requirements.
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Start learning Catalan →Related Topics
- Future Time Clauses and the SubjunctiveB1 — Present pending future events after quan, fins que, tan bon punt, and abans que with the appropriate Catalan mood and tense.
- Past-Time Subjunctive in Dependent ClausesB1 — Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes, emotions, evaluations, doubts, and influence while preserving time relations and assertion contrasts.
- Indicative or Subjunctive?B1 — Choose Catalan indicative or subjunctive by deciding whether a clause is asserted or placed inside desire, evaluation, nonidentification, or another nonassertive frame.
- Conditional ConjunctionsA2 — Build open and restrictive conditions with si, sempre que, a condició que, tret que, and llevat que while matching mood to the speaker's stance.
- Catalan Punctuation and SpacingA2 — Apply Catalan commas, colons, semicolons, quotation marks, dashes, sentence marks, and word-internal spacing conventions.