Breakdown of É possível que eles tenham depositado o cheque.
ser
to be
eles
they (m)
ter
to have
que
that (conjunction)
possível
possible
depositar
to deposit
o cheque
the cheque
Questions & Answers about É possível que eles tenham depositado o cheque.
Why do we use tenham depositado here instead of the normal past tense depositaram?
The expression É possível que (It is possible that) introduces uncertainty, which requires the subjunctive mood. Because the action of depositing the cheque already happened, we use the Perfect Subjunctive (tenham depositado) to express a past action wrapped in present doubt.
How exactly is tenham depositado built in this sentence?
It uses the Present Subjunctive of the helper verb ter — which is tenham to match eles — followed by the past participle of the main verb depositar, which is depositado.
Does the word depositado need to be plural (depositados) because the subject is eles?
No. In compound tenses formed with the auxiliary verb ter, the past participle never changes to match the subject. It always stays in the default masculine singular form, which is depositado.
If the sentence were about a certainty, like "I know they deposited the cheque", how would the verb change?
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