The Subjunctive Mood of Cortar is used to express wishes, desires, or uncertainty, for example: Espero que cortes el césped mañana. (I hope you cut the grass tomorrow.)

Cortar is a regular -ar verb, so its conjugations in the Present Subjunctive follow the regular pattern by dropping the -o from the yo form of the present tense and adding the corresponding subjunctive endings.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cortar (to cut) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Castilian Spanish):

Cortar generally means to cut or sever something, but has several different meanings in the Subjunctive Mood, some of which might surprise you.

To cut or sever: For example, Espero que cortes el césped esta tarde (I hope you cut the grass this afternoon).

To interrupt: For example, No me cortes cuando esté hablando (Don’t interrupt me when I’m speaking).

To stop or end: For example, Que cortes con esos malos hábitos (That you stop those bad habits).

To stop a flow: For example, Que cortes el agua cuando te bañes (That you turn off the water when you shower).

To leave abruptly (colloquial): For example, Que cortes y te vayas sin decir nada (That you just leave without saying anything).

To fart (vulgar): For example, ¡Que no cortas en público! (Don’t fart in public!)

Examples

Examples of Cortar in the Subjunctive Mood

Es importante que cortes las verduras en trozos pequeños. (It’s important that you cut the vegetables into small pieces.)

Mamá quiere que cortemos el césped este fin de semana. (Mom wants us to mow the lawn this weekend.)

El chef recomienda que corten la carne en tiras delgadas. (The chef recommends that they cut the meat into thin strips.)

Ojalá que corte el cable con cuidado para no lastimarse. (I hope he cuts the wire carefully so as not to hurt himself.)

Para hacer la manualidad, necesitamos que corten el papel en tiras. (To make the craft, we need you all to cut the paper into strips.)

Sugiero que cortéis la torta en porciones iguales para que alcance para todos. (I suggest you cut the cake into equal portions so there’s enough for everyone.)

Aunque no quieras, es necesario que cortes las amarras para liberarte. (Even if you don’t want to, it’s necessary that you cut the ties to free yourself.)

Tal vez sería mejor que corte su cabello antes de la entrevista de trabajo. (Maybe it would be better if he cuts his hair before the job interview.)

Dudo que corten la electricidad esta noche, a pesar del aviso. (I doubt they’ll cut the electricity tonight, despite the notice.)

Me temo que si no cortas esos gastos, te quedarás sin ahorros. (I’m afraid that if you don’t cut those expenses, you’ll run out of savings.)

Insisto en que corten las naranjas por la mitad para exprimir mejor el jugo. (I insist that they cut the oranges in half to better squeeze out the juice.)

Quizás cortemos camino por el parque para llegar más rápido. (Maybe we should cut through the park to get there faster.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cortar (to cut) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Subjunctive mood is also known as the Simple Subjunctive, Subjunctive Present, or Present Subjunctive Mood in English, and as Presente de Subjuntivo, Subjuntivo Presente, Presente del Modo Subjuntivo, or Tiempo Presente del Subjuntivo in Spanish.