Verbs: Subjunctive Pluperfect
Eu gostaria que…
Use expressions like Eu gostaria que…, Eu esperava que…, and Eu pensei que… to talk about past wishes and impressions.
Eu pensei que você tivesse ido pra casa.
I thought you had gone home.
Eu gostaria que ele tivesse falado.
I wish he had spoken.
And remember that, unlike the word that in English, que is not optional in this kind of sentences in Portuguese.
Eu esperava que ela já tivesse voltado.
I hoped (that) she had already come back.
E se eu tivesse feito algo?
We've just seen that to talk about past wishes and impressions, you can use expressions like Eu gostaria que... or Eu esperava que....
But what verb forms should I use after que?
But what verb forms should I use after que?
Good question! You should use verbs like tivesse and tivéssemos plus a ‑do verb.
Eu achei que nada tivesse acontecido.
I thought (that) nothing had happened.
Eu gostaria que nós tivéssemos conversado antes.
I wish we had talked before.
E se eu tivesse tido tempo?
We've already seen that the ‑do form for the verbs ter and fazer change a lot. Here's what they look like with tivesse and tivéssemos.
Eu teria feito melhor se eu tivesse tido tempo.
I would have done it better if I had had time.
Ela dorme como se nunca tivesse feito isso antes.
She sleeps as if she had never done that before.