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Butt and Benjamin provide a number of common combinations of tenses: if the main clause is in the present tense, one has to use the present subjunctive for the dependent clause, but the present perfect subjunctive if the comment made is about a past event – the imperfect subjunctive may be used as well, replacing the latter; if the main ...
The present subjunctive is also used in purpose clauses with ut such as the following: [324] oportet ēsse [325] ut vīvās, nōn vīvere ut edās (Rhētorica ad Herennium) [326] 'you should eat so that you can live, not live so that you can eat' The present subjunctive may also be used in consecutive clauses following a present tense verb:
Latin example English translation Comment relative perfect in imperfect future in future in past 'present subjunctive' nisī dēcēdat atque exercitum dēdūcat, sēsē illum prō hoste habitūrum (Caesar) [57] '(Ariovistus told Caesar that,) if he did not retreat and withdraw his army, he would treat him as an enemy' did in English
A negative order can also use the perfect subjunctive: [8] dē mē nihil timuerīs [9] 'do not be afraid on my account' In later Latin, nē plus the present subjunctive became more common, for example in the Vulgate Bible. In the following example the first three verbs use the present subjunctive, and the third the perfect subjunctive:
The present subjunctive edim, edīs, edit etc. is found mostly in early Latin. In writing, there is a possibility of confusion between the forms of this verb and those of sum "I am" and ēdō "I give out, put forth"; for example, ēsse "to eat" vs. esse "to be"; edit "he eats" vs. ēdit "he gives out".
In an unreal conditional, the imperfect subjunctive refers to a situation contrary to fact at the present time or at the time of the story, while in a past ideal conditional, the imperfect subjunctive refers prospectively to a situation that might have occurred at a later time than the time of the narrative.
After the word forsitan 'perhaps' and occasionally after fortasse 'perhaps', the present subjunctive can mean 'may' or 'could', expressing a possibility. The first example below uses the present subjunctive, and the second the perfect: [44] dūrum hoc fortasse videātur (Cicero) [45] 'this may perhaps seem harsh' forsitan temerē fēcerim ...
Latin is a heavily inflected language with largely free word order. Nouns are inflected for number and case; pronouns and adjectives (including participles) are inflected for number, case, and gender; and verbs are inflected for person, number, tense, aspect, voice, and mood.