Subjunctive vs Infinitive | Portuguese (Portugal) Grammar

Portuguese has a choice that Spanish, Italian, and French do not: between que + conjuntivo and the infinitive. In many contexts where Spanish forces you to say quiero que vayas or es importante que vengas, Portuguese lets you — and often requires you — to use an infinitive instead: quero ir, é importante vires. And because Portuguese has a personal infinitive (an infinitive that conjugates for person), this is not just a shortcut for same-subject sentences; it is a full parallel system that competes with the subjunctive at every turn.

Learning when to reach for the infinitive versus the subjunctive is the single biggest step up from B1 to B2 Portuguese. This page lays out the rules, the choices, and the cases where both are possible — with enough examples that you stop having to think through it.

The core rule: same subject takes the infinitive

The foundational rule is simple and well-behaved: when the subject of the main verb and the subject of the dependent verb are the same person, Portuguese does not use que + conjuntivo. It uses an infinitive.

Same subject → infinitive	Different subjects → subjunctive
Quero sair. (I want to leave.)	Quero que saias. (I want you to leave.)
Espero chegar a tempo. (I hope to arrive on time.)	Espero que cheguem a tempo. (I hope they arrive on time.)
Prefiro ficar em casa. (I prefer to stay home.)	Prefiro que fiques em casa. (I prefer you stay home.)
Tenho medo de cair. (I'm afraid of falling.)	Tenho medo que ele caia. (I'm afraid he'll fall.)

This rule is absolute for volition and emotion verbs. Quero que eu vá is not a real Portuguese sentence — and the same is true in Spanish, where same-subject clauses after querer require the infinitive (quiero ir, not quiero que yo vaya). Portuguese shares this behavior with the rest of Romance: same-subject wish/emotion clauses collapse into the infinitive every time.

Gostava de viajar mais, mas não tenho tempo.

I'd like to travel more, but I don't have time.

O João quer aprender alemão antes de ir para Berlim.

João wants to learn German before going to Berlin.

Nós preferimos ficar em casa esta noite.

We'd rather stay home tonight.

Each of these sentences has one subject doing both things. Portuguese refuses to double it up with a que + conjuntivo structure.

The killer feature: the personal infinitive

Here is where Portuguese leaves the rest of Romance behind. Portuguese has an infinitive that conjugates for person — called the infinitivo pessoal (personal infinitive). It looks like this for sair (to leave):

Person	Personal infinitive of sair
eu	sair
tu	saíres
ele / ela / você	sair
nós	sairmos
eles / elas / vocês	saírem

For regular verbs, the personal infinitive is built by adding the endings -es, -mos, -em to the plain infinitive (with no change for eu, ele/ela/você). The 1sg and 3sg forms look identical to the impersonal infinitive, but the 2sg, 1pl, and 3pl forms are marked.

This gives Portuguese an option that Spanish simply does not have: an infinitive that keeps track of who the subject is. That means Portuguese can often express with an infinitive what other languages must express with a conjugated clause.

É importante saírmos cedo para apanhar o comboio.

It's important that we leave early to catch the train.

É melhor eles não virem hoje.

It's better they don't come today.

Não é fácil tu perceberes, eu sei.

It's not easy for you to understand, I know.

Each of these sentences has a different subject in the main clause (impersonal é) and the dependent clause (nós, eles, tu). Spanish would force a subjunctive here: es importante que salgamos, es mejor que no vengan, no es fácil que entiendas. Portuguese allows — and often prefers — the personal infinitive.

For the deeper mechanics of the personal infinitive, see the dedicated page in the non-finite verb forms section. What matters here is that the personal infinitive gives Portuguese a way to avoid the subjunctive even when subjects differ.

Impersonal expressions: the big choice

The most interesting territory is impersonal expressions — é importante, é melhor, é necessário, é preciso, convém, é bom, é pena. With these, Portuguese gives you a real choice: personal infinitive, or que + conjuntivo. Both are grammatical; both sound native; both mean the same thing.

Personal infinitive	Que + conjuntivo
É importante tu estudares.	É importante que tu estudes.
É melhor nós irmos já.	É melhor que nós vamos já.
É preciso eles saberem a verdade.	É preciso que eles saibam a verdade.
Convém saíres antes das oito.	Convém que saias antes das oito.

É importante chegarmos a horas à reunião.

It's important for us to arrive on time at the meeting.

É importante que cheguemos a horas à reunião.

It's important that we arrive on time at the meeting.

Both sentences mean the same thing. The first sounds slightly lighter and is the more colloquial choice in Portugal; the second is marginally more formal or emphatic. If the subject is an unexpressed "you / one" — a generic reader or listener — the impersonal infinitive (no person marking) is often preferred over the subjunctive:

É importante beber muita água.

It's important to drink a lot of water.

É necessário ter paciência.

It's necessary to have patience.

These generic statements about "how one should live" use the bare impersonal infinitive. Switching to é importante que bebas would specifically target your listener; the bare infinitive keeps it universal. Spanish would use hay que beber, es necesario tener — the same impersonal strategy, but without the flexibility to switch to a personal infinitive when a subject does emerge.

💡

A useful heuristic: if the impersonal expression is making a general statement (true for anyone), use the impersonal infinitive. If it is targeting a specific subject you want to name, use either the personal infinitive (lighter, more common in speech) or que + conjuntivo (slightly heavier, sometimes more emphatic). Both of the latter are correct.

Prepositions + infinitive vs conjunctions + conjuntivo

A subtler and very Portuguese pattern: when a preposition could join two clauses, Portuguese tends to prefer preposition + infinitive over conjunction + conjuntivo, even when the subject changes. This is where the personal infinitive really earns its keep.

para (in order to) vs para que (so that)

Ligo-te para te avisar.

I'll call you to warn you.

Ligo-te para me avisares.

I'll call you so that you warn me. (personal infinitive — different subject)

Ligo-te para que me avises.

I'll call you so that you warn me. (conjunction + subjunctive)

All three are correct. The second sentence shows the personal infinitive carrying the subject shift on its own — avisares tells you the subject is tu. The third sentence uses the conjunction para que, which triggers the subjunctive. Portuguese speakers routinely pick the second option, because the personal infinitive is lighter and flows better.

antes de (before) vs antes que (before)

Vou ao supermercado antes de fechar.

I'll go to the supermarket before it closes. (impersonal — subject understood from context)

Vou ao supermercado antes de fecharem.

I'll go to the supermarket before they close. (personal infinitive)

Vou ao supermercado antes que feche.

I'll go to the supermarket before it closes. (antes que + subjunctive)

The personal infinitive form antes de fecharem is the most typical European Portuguese choice. Antes que + subjunctive is also correct but sounds slightly more formal or written.

depois de (after) vs depois que (after)

Depois de chegarmos, vamos jantar.

After we arrive, we'll have dinner.

Depois que cheguei, fui logo para a cama.

After I arrived, I went straight to bed. (depois que takes indicative, not subjunctive)

Note: depois que takes the indicative (for past actions that really happened) or the future subjunctive (for future actions — depois que chegares). Only antes que is a subjunctive-only trigger among the temporal conjunctions. This is why the depois de + personal infinitive option is so widely used — it avoids the tense question entirely.

sem (without) vs sem que (without)

Saí sem fazer barulho.

I left without making any noise. (same subject)

Saí sem os miúdos acordarem.

I left without the kids waking up. (personal infinitive — subject change)

Saí sem que os miúdos acordassem.

I left without the kids waking up. (sem que + imperfect subjunctive)

All three work. The first is same-subject, so there is no subjunctive option. The second and third are two ways to render the subject change; both are grammatical, and the personal infinitive version is slightly more natural in speech.

💡

When you have a preposition-based alternative to a conjunction (para ~ para que, antes de ~ antes que, sem ~ sem que, depois de ~ depois que, até ~ até que), European Portuguese usually prefers the preposition + (personal) infinitive. It is lighter and closer to how the language moves. Reach for the conjunction + conjuntivo when you specifically want to emphasize the subject change or sound more formal.

Volition and emotion verbs: no choice — subject rule is strict

For volition verbs (querer, desejar, esperar, pedir, preferir) and emotion verbs (gostar de, lamentar, ter pena, ter medo), the same-subject vs different-subject rule is strict. You do not choose between the infinitive and que + conjuntivo — the subject relation makes the choice for you.

Quero sair.

I want to leave. (I leave)

Quero que saias.

I want you to leave. (you leave)

Lamento não poder ir.

I'm sorry I can't go. (same subject — infinitive)

Lamento que não possas ir.

I'm sorry you can't go. (different subject — subjunctive)

Tenho medo de chegar atrasada.

I'm afraid of being late. (I'm the subject of both)

Tenho medo que chegues atrasada.

I'm afraid you'll be late. (different subject — subjunctive)

Notice how emotion verbs often take de + infinitive when same-subject (tenho medo de cair, gosto de dormir a sesta). That de is the preposition that the verb expects; it is not optional. Different-subject uses drop the de and move to que.

Verbs that require de + infinitive

A small set of emotion-type verbs take de + infinitive (never a personal infinitive — the preposition blocks it) when same-subject:

gostar de + infinitive — to like (doing)
ter medo de + infinitive — to be afraid of (doing)
ter vergonha de + infinitive — to be embarrassed about
ter pena de + infinitive — to regret, feel sorry about (Portugal also uses lamentar + infinitive without de)

Gostas de passear à beira-mar?

Do you like walking by the sea?

Tenho vergonha de lhe perguntar.

I'm embarrassed to ask him.

Lamento ter-te incomodado.

I'm sorry to have bothered you.

When the subject changes, these shift to que + conjuntivo:

Gosto que a minha mãe me ligue ao fim de semana.

I like that my mother calls me on the weekend.

Tenho vergonha que me vejas assim.

I'm embarrassed that you see me like this.

The special case of "é + adjective + que"

Impersonal evaluative constructions — é importante, é estranho, é pena, é bom, é óbvio, é verdade — behave in two different ways depending on whether they evaluate or assert.

Evaluative (trigger the subjunctive, or allow personal infinitive):

É importante teres paciência.

It's important for you to have patience.

É importante que tenhas paciência.

It's important that you have patience.

É estranho ela não ter ligado.

It's strange she hasn't called. (literary / stylistic — uses infinitive with subject)

É estranho que ela não tenha ligado.

It's strange she hasn't called. (more standard, present perfect subjunctive)

Assertive (take the indicative only — no personal infinitive alternative):

É verdade que ele mora em Évora.

It's true he lives in Évora.

É óbvio que estamos cansados.

It's obvious we're tired.

The asymmetry: evaluative impersonals give you the infinitive-or-subjunctive choice, because they trigger irrealis. Assertive impersonals do not, because they are making a factual claim and stay anchored in the indicative.

A side-by-side reference

Here is a quick reference for the most common cases, side by side:

Context	Same subject	Different subjects
quero / querer	Quero sair.	Quero que saias.
espero / esperar	Espero chegar cedo.	Espero que cheguem cedo.
gosto de / gostar de	Gosto de ler.	Gosto que me leias.
tenho medo de / ter medo de	Tenho medo de cair.	Tenho medo que caias.
lamento / lamentar	Lamento não poder ir.	Lamento que não possas ir.
é importante	É importante chegar a horas. / É importante chegares a horas.	É importante que chegues a horas.
é melhor	É melhor sair já. / É melhor saírmos já.	É melhor que saiam já.
para (in order to)	Ligo para avisar.	Ligo para avisares. / Ligo para que avises.
antes de	Vou antes de sair.	Vou antes de saírem. / Vou antes que saiam.
sem	Saio sem fazer barulho.	Saio sem fazerem barulho. / Saio sem que façam barulho.
depois de	Janto depois de chegar.	Janto depois de chegarem.

Why Portuguese developed this system

The personal infinitive is one of the unique features of Portuguese — not just compared to English but compared to the rest of Romance. Spanish, French, and Italian all lost the inflected infinitive that medieval Romance languages had; Portuguese kept it and expanded its use. The result is a grammar that often reaches for the infinitive + subject structure where sister languages reach for the subjunctive.

This is why Portuguese learners coming from Spanish find the subjunctive "less scary" than they expected — huge swaths of Spanish subjunctive territory are covered in Portuguese by infinitives. But there is a catch: knowing when the infinitive is the right choice, and when you must shift to que + conjuntivo, is itself a new skill. Spanish speakers sometimes overuse que + subjuntivo constructions in Portuguese because they translate directly from Spanish. The result is grammatically correct but stylistically heavier than what a native speaker would produce.

💡

As a rule of thumb: if there is a preposition or impersonal expression that would allow an infinitive construction, a native Portuguese speaker will often prefer the infinitive. Native speakers do not avoid the subjunctive — they use it constantly — but they also use infinitives where Spanish would force a subjunctive. Training your ear for this choice is a B2 milestone.

Common Mistakes

❌ Quero que eu vá ao cinema.

Incorrect — same-subject wish must use the infinitive.

✅ Quero ir ao cinema.

I want to go to the cinema.

This is a common source of trouble for English-speaking learners, who may be tempted to translate "I want to go" word-for-word and insert a que clause. Portuguese does not allow this structure: same subject → infinitive, always.

❌ É importante que nós chegarmos a horas.

Incorrect — mixing que with a personal infinitive. Pick one or the other.

✅ É importante que cheguemos a horas.

It's important that we arrive on time.

✅ É importante chegarmos a horas.

It's important for us to arrive on time.

You cannot have que and the personal infinitive in the same dependent clause. Either use que + subjunctive, or drop the que and use the personal infinitive. Never both.

❌ Espero que chegar a tempo.

Incorrect — after esperar que, the embedded verb must be subjunctive, not an infinitive.

✅ Espero chegar a tempo.

I hope to arrive on time. (same subject)

✅ Espero que cheguem a tempo.

I hope they arrive on time. (different subject)

Esperar que is a subjunctive trigger. The infinitive can only appear without que, in same-subject constructions.

❌ Quero que eles irem ao supermercado.

Incorrect — mixing que with a personal infinitive is not allowed.

✅ Quero que eles vão ao supermercado.

I want them to go to the supermarket.

After querer que (a volition trigger), the embedded verb must be in the subjunctive (vão), not the personal infinitive (irem). With volition verbs, the personal infinitive is blocked entirely when there is a subject change — querer que forces the subjunctive. This is different from impersonal expressions like é importante, where both options are grammatical.

❌ Antes que eu sair, preciso de me despedir.

Incorrect — same subject, so an infinitive is required, not antes que + subjunctive.

✅ Antes de sair, preciso de me despedir.

Before leaving, I need to say goodbye.

Antes que (subjunctive) is for different-subject situations. Same-subject uses antes de + infinitive.

Key takeaways

Same subject in both clauses → infinitive (never que + conjuntivo).
Different subjects → either que + conjuntivo or, with impersonal and prepositional expressions, the personal infinitive.
The personal infinitive (saíres, sairmos, saírem) conjugates for person — a feature unique to Portuguese in the Romance family.
After impersonal expressions (é importante, é melhor, convém), both the personal infinitive and que + conjuntivo are correct. The infinitive is lighter and often preferred in speech.
After prepositions like para, antes de, depois de, sem, the infinitive option is usually preferred over the conjunction version with que.
Volition and emotion verbs with a subject change still require que + conjuntivo — the infinitive is blocked.
Spanish-speaking learners tend to overuse que + conjuntivo; English-speaking learners tend to misuse it. The correct choice is a B2 milestone worth drilling.

Next: see the present subjunctive overview to cement the subjunctive side, or jump to the imperfect subjunctive overview to learn the tense that covers past and hypothetical territory.