Breakdown of Ella fue al bosque. ¡Ojalá trajera la varita mágica!
ella
she
ir
to go
al
to the
traer
to bring
el bosque
the forest
la
the (feminine)
ojalá
hopefully / I hope
la varita
the wand
mágico
magical
Questions & Answers about Ella fue al bosque. ¡Ojalá trajera la varita mágica!
How is the word trajera formed?
Trajera is the imperfect (past) subjunctive of traer (to bring). To form it, you start with the ellos/ellas form in the preterite tense. Because traer has an irregular preterite stem, that form is trajeron. You drop the -ron and add the imperfect subjunctive ending -ra, giving you trajera.
Why do we use the past subjunctive (trajera) when the English translation is 'I wish she brought'?
When you use ojalá with the imperfect (past) subjunctive, it expresses an unlikely or impossible wish in the present, similar to 'If only she brought' or 'I wish she were bringing.' If you used the present subjunctive (ojalá traiga), it would mean 'I hope she brings,' which feels like a real, likely possibility.
Why is the first verb fue in the indicative, but trajera is in the subjunctive?
Ella fue al bosque states a real, completed fact in the past, so it uses the preterite indicative. The second sentence is a wish or hypothetical desire triggered by ojalá, so it requires the subjunctive mode.
Could I use trajese instead of trajera here?
Yes! The imperfect subjunctive has two sets of endings: -ra and -se. Trajera and trajese mean the exact same thing and are both perfectly correct. However, in Latin America, the -ra endings are much more common.
Learn Ella fue al bosque. ¡Ojalá trajera la varita mágica and more in Spanish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free