Breakdown of Nós não faríamos isso, nem que a ameaça fosse verdadeira.
ser
to be
isso
that
não
not / no
nós
we
a
to / at (direction)
fazer
to do
que
that (conjunction)
nem
nor, not even
verdadeiro
true, real, genuine
a ameaça
the threat
Questions & Answers about Nós não faríamos isso, nem que a ameaça fosse verdadeira.
Why does nem que trigger the imperfect subjunctive (fosse) here rather than the present subjunctive?
The phrase nem que introduces an extreme, hypothetical condition. Because the main verb (faríamos) is in the conditional tense, the condition must match it in the past/hypothetical realm. We use fosse to show that the threat isn't actually true, but we are imagining a world where it was.
Can nem que ever be followed by the present subjunctive instead?
Yes, if the main clause is in the present or future tense. For example, if you said não faremos isso, nem que a ameaça seja verdadeira (we will not do that, even if the threat is true), you would use the present subjunctive (seja). Because our example sentence uses the conditional (faríamos), it forces the imperfect subjunctive (fosse).
Could I use mesmo se instead of nem que in this sentence?
I often hear native speakers use the imperfect indicative for hypotheticals. Could I say nós não fazíamos isso here?
Yes! In spoken, everyday Portuguese, it is extremely common to replace the conditional (faríamos) with the imperfect indicative (fazíamos). However, the sentence as written uses the formal conditional, which is the grammatical standard for writing and careful speech when setting up a hypothetical scenario.
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