Breakdown of Pourvu que je gagne le gros lot à la loterie !
je
I
à
at / to / in (general locations) / about (what one thinks about / reacts to)
gagner
to earn / to win
pourvu que
provided that / let's hope that (expressing a wish)
le gros lot
the grand prize
la loterie
the lottery
Questions & Answers about Pourvu que je gagne le gros lot à la loterie !
Doesn't pourvu que usually mean provided that? Why does it mean let's hope that here?
In a complex sentence, pourvu que means provided that or as long as. However, when it is used at the beginning of a standalone exclamation like this one, it translates to let's hope that or if only. In both cases, it must be followed by the subjunctive.
Is gagne really in the subjunctive here? It looks exactly like the present indicative.
Yes, it is the subjunctive! For regular -er verbs like gagner, the singular forms and the third-person plural form are identical in both the present indicative and the present subjunctive. We know it is subjunctive here because the conjunction pourvu que strictly requires it.
What exactly does lot mean in the phrase le gros lot?
Could I say Espérons que je gagne instead of using Pourvu que?
Yes, Espérons que je gagne is a perfectly natural alternative. Just keep in mind a tricky grammar rule: espérer que usually takes the indicative mood in affirmative statements, while pourvu que always takes the subjunctive! Because gagne looks identical in both moods, the spelling doesn't change here, but the underlying grammar does.
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