Module 09 · Moods and participles · Izteiksmes un divdabji · Level B1

Conditional Mood

Vēlējuma izteiksme

One form, -tu, for all persons — the simplest mood in the language, and the most useful for politeness.

Present

Infinitive minus -t + -tu: gribēt → gribētu, varēt → varētu, būt → būtu, iet → ietu, dot → dotu, ēst → ēstu. Reflexive verbs: -tos: mācīties → mācītos, tikties → tiktos.

Person is shown only by the subject: Es gribētu… (I would like), Mēs gribētu… (we would like), Viņi gribētu… (they would like).

Three main uses

1. Polite request and wish: Es gribētu kafiju. (I would like a coffee.) Vai jūs varētu man palīdzēt? (Could you help me?) Es vēlētos rezervēt galdiņu. (I'd like to book a table.)
2. Condition: Ja man būtu laiks, es ceļotu. — If I had time, I would travel. Both clauses take -tu.
3. Advice: Tev vajadzētu atpūsties. — You should rest. Tu varētu pamēģināt. (You could try.)

Past (vēlējuma izteiksme pagātnē)

būtu + the participle in -is/-usi: Es būtu atnācis, ja tu būtu zvanījis. — I would have come if you had called (but you didn't call). Used for an unreal condition in the past.

With lai — "so that"

Purpose clauses: Es mācos, lai runātu latviski. — I study so that I can speak Latvian. Viņa strādā, lai bērniem būtu viss. (She works so that the children have everything.) After lai, the verb is always -tu.

Compare with English

The English conditional "would" + verb corresponds to the Latvian -tu form: I would go — es ietu; it would be nice — būtu labi; I would like — gribētos.

Exercise

1) I would like a ticket to Riga. 2) Could you repeat that? 3) If it were warm, we would go to the beach. 4) I'm studying so that I can find a job.

Open the lesson in the trainer — with exercises and a “done” mark →Module test 09