Question 1

How do we form hiciera from hacer?

Accepted Answer

To form the imperfect subjunctive, you always start with the they/them form of the past tense (preterite). For hacer, that is hicieron. You drop the -ron at the end and add the new subjunctive ending. For the he/she/it form used here, you add -ra, giving us hiciera.

Question 2

Why are we using the past subjunctive (hiciera) instead of the present subjunctive (haga)?

Accepted Answer

When you use ojalá with the past (imperfect) subjunctive, it expresses a wish that is unlikely or impossible right now, like saying 'If only the genie made a potion.' If you used the present subjunctive (haga), it would mean 'Hopefully the genie makes a potion,' which treats it as a real, likely possibility.

Question 3

Is it possible to use hiciese here instead of hiciera?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The imperfect subjunctive actually has two sets of endings: -ra and -se. Ojalá el genio hiciese una poción is grammatically correct, but the -ra endings are much more common in Latin America, especially in everyday conversation.

Question 4

Does genio have other meanings besides 'genie'?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Besides a magical genie, genio is the normal word for a 'genius' (a brilliant person). It is also used to talk about someone's temper or mood, like saying someone has mal genio (a bad temper).

Ojalá el genio hiciera una poción.

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