Spanish B2.12 Listening Practice: Mood As Next-Verb Signal
Listen to a B2 Spanish dialogue about mood as next-verb signal, with audio, transcript, and grammar notes for language learning.
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Level
B2.12
Audio
Segmented audio
Transcript
12 segments
A short Spanish listening chapter with transcript.
Unit 8: add subjunctive as requested or uncertain action to what you already control, then say one short answer that reuses earlier Spanish instead of starting from a memorized phrase.
Read while you listen.
1. Carmen · Teacher
¡Hola a todos! Welcome back to our B2 Spanish podcast. I'm Carmen. Today, we're exploring how verbs of desire and request act as a signal for the subjunctive mood in the next verb—such as in 'quiero que hables despacio'. Let's listen to Álvaro and Lucía preparing for an important meeting.
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2. Álvaro · Native Speaker 1
Oye, Lucía, quiero que hables con el nuevo director sobre el proyecto esta tarde.
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3. Lucía · Native Speaker 2
Vale, pero prefiero que tú me acompañes a la reunión para tener más apoyo.
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4. Álvaro · Native Speaker 1
De acuerdo, aunque necesito que me prepares un borrador del informe antes de entrar.
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5. Lucía · Native Speaker 2
Sin problema, solo te pido que hables despacio cuando expliques las cifras.
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6. Álvaro · Native Speaker 1
Trato hecho, y también quiero que hable con nosotros tranquilamente.
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7. Carmen · Teacher
Let's break down what happened. In the first sentence, Álvaro said: 'Quiero que hables con el nuevo director'. He uses 'quiero que' followed by 'hables' in the subjunctive because he is influencing someone else's action.
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8. Diego · Student
Why do we use the subjunctive 'hables' instead of the standard indicative 'hablas' here?
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9. Carmen · Teacher
Because whenever you express a desire, request, or order for another person to do something, the main verb acts as a trigger that signals the subjunctive for the next verb.
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10. Carmen · Teacher
Later, Lucía said: 'Solo te pido que hables despacio', meaning 'I only ask that you speak slowly'. Here, 'te pido que' works just like 'quiero que'.
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11. Diego · Student
So verbs like 'pedir', 'necesitar', and 'querer' all trigger the subjunctive when followed by 'que' and a new subject?
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12. Carmen · Teacher
Exactly, Diego! As long as there is a change of subject after 'que', these verbs of influence will always switch the next verb into the subjunctive.
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