Breakdown of Es necesario que descanses en cuanto termine esta jornada larga.
ser
to be
en
in / on / at
largo
long
descansar
to rest
terminar
to finish / to end
que
that / than
esta
this (feminine)
necesario
necessary
cuanto
all that / as much as (relative) / the more/less (in proportional comparisons)
la jornada
the working day
Questions & Answers about Es necesario que descanses en cuanto termine esta jornada larga.
Why is termine in the subjunctive here?
The phrase en cuanto (as soon as) introduces an action that hasn't happened yet (the workday finishing). When temporal phrases like en cuanto, apenas, or tan pronto como refer to an anticipated future event, they require the subjunctive. If it were a habitual action, like 'whenever the workday finishes', you would use the indicative.
Why is descanses also in the subjunctive? Is that because of en cuanto too?
No, descanses is triggered by the impersonal expression es necesario que (it is necessary that) at the beginning of the sentence. Expressions of necessity, desire, or influence followed by que require the subjunctive because they express a subjective expectation rather than declaring an objective fact.
What exactly does jornada mean in this context? Why not just use día?
Why does the verb termine come before its subject, esta jornada larga?
In Spanish, it is very common to place the subject after the verb in subordinate clauses (clauses that depend on the main sentence). This is especially true when the subject is a bit long or heavy, like esta jornada larga. While en cuanto esta jornada larga termine is grammatically correct, placing the verb first flows much more naturally.
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