Word
El jefe exige que el empleado trabaje hoy.
Meaning
The boss demands that the employee work today.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of El jefe exige que el empleado trabaje hoy.
trabajar
to work
hoy
today
que
that / than
el jefe
the boss
Questions & Answers about El jefe exige que el empleado trabaje hoy.
Why do we use trabaje instead of trabaja here?
Because of the verb exige (demands). Exigir is a verb of influence because the boss is trying to influence the employee's actions. When you have a verb of influence in the main clause, a change of subject (from boss to employee), and the word que, the second verb must be in the subjunctive mood. That is why trabajar becomes trabaje.
Would it be wrong to say El jefe exige al empleado trabajar?
Yes, that sounds unnatural in Spanish. English often uses an infinitive for requests, like 'demands the employee to work'. But in Spanish, when the person doing the demanding is different from the person doing the working, you must use a new clause with que plus the subjunctive.
Why does the English translation say 'work' instead of 'works' for 'the employee'?
Believe it or not, English is also using the subjunctive here! After verbs like demand, insist, or recommend, formal English drops the 's' for third-person subjects (for example, 'I demand that he work'). Recognizing this English pattern can help you remember when to use the Spanish subjunctive.
What is the infinitive of exige, and are there any spelling tricks with it?