El pájaro salvaje podrá volar cuando esté sano.
The wild bird will be able to fly when it is healthy.
Breakdown of El pájaro salvaje podrá volar cuando esté sano.
el pájaro
the bird
estar
to be (location/state)
poder
to be able to / can
cuando
when (statement)
Questions & Answers about El pájaro salvaje podrá volar cuando esté sano.
Why do we use the subjunctive esté instead of the indicative está after cuando?
We use the subjunctive because the bird's recovery hasn't happened yet. In Spanish, when cuando introduces an action or state that is in the future, it must be followed by the present subjunctive. If we used the indicative está, it would mean the bird usually flies whenever it is healthy, as a general routine.
Why use estar instead of ser with sano here?
Why does poder change to podrá in the future tense?
poder (to be able to / can) is irregular in the future tense. Instead of adding the future ending to the full infinitive, we drop the e to make the stem podr-, and then add the ending -á for the he/she/it form. This gives us podrá (it will be able to).
Why does the adjective salvaje go after pájaro?
In Spanish, descriptive adjectives that categorize or distinguish a noun from others usually go after the noun. Placing salvaje after pájaro simply tells us what specific kind of bird it is (a wild one, rather than a domestic one).