The Present Subjunctive of responder is used to express desires, doubts, or uncertainty about responding or answering something. For example, Es importante que respondas con sinceridad. (It’s important that you respond with sincerity.)

Responder is a regular -er verb, so its Present Subjunctive conjugations follow the typical pattern for this verb type.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Responder (to respond) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Castilian Spanish):

Responder generally means “to answer” or “to respond”, but has several different meanings in the Subjunctive Mood, some of which might surprise you.

To answer: For example, Es importante que respondas con sinceridad (It’s important that you answer sincerely).

To respond: For example, Espero que respondas pronto a mi mensaje (I hope you respond to my message soon).

To react: For example, No sé cómo responderá ante esa noticia (I don’t know how he/she will react to that news).

To be responsible: For example, Tendrás que responder por tus actos (You’ll have to be responsible for your actions).

To correspond (to something): For example, Su comportamiento no responde a lo que esperábamos (His/her behavior doesn’t correspond to what we expected).

To stand up (to someone) (colloquial): For example, ¿Crees que responderá al jefe cuando le reclame? (Do you think he/she will stand up to the boss when he/she complains?)

Examples

Examples of Responder in the Subjunctive Mood

Es importante que responda con honestidad en la entrevista de trabajo. (It’s important that you respond honestly in the job interview.)

Ojalá que respondas pronto a mi mensaje de texto. (I hope you respond soon to my text message.)

El profesor exige que cada alumno responda a las preguntas del examen. (The teacher requires that each student answer the exam questions.)

Mamá quiere que respondamos con la verdad cuando nos pregunte. (Mom wants us to respond with the truth when she asks us.)

Para aprobar el curso, es necesario que respondáis correctamente las preguntas del examen final. (To pass the course, it’s necessary that you all answer the final exam questions correctly.)

El juez ordenó que los acusados respondan a todas las preguntas del fiscal. (The judge ordered that the accused respond to all of the prosecutor’s questions.)

Aunque no quieras, es mejor que respondas al mensaje de tu jefe. (Even if you don’t want to, it’s better that you respond to your boss’s message.)

Independientemente de lo que pienses, es importante que respondas con respeto. (Regardless of what you think, it’s important that you respond respectfully.)

Tal vez respondamos con un chiste para aliviar la tensión. (Maybe we should respond with a joke to ease the tension.)

El instructor sugirió que respondamos las preguntas del examen en orden. (The instructor suggested that we answer the exam questions in order.)

Es una buena idea que respondáis con ejemplos cuando expliquen un concepto nuevo. (It’s a good idea that you all respond with examples when explaining a new concept.)

El capitán del equipo exigió que todos respondan honestamente en la encuesta. (The team captain demanded that everyone respond honestly on the survey.)

Quizás respondas con un chiste para romper el hielo en la reunión. (Maybe you should respond with a joke to break the ice in the meeting.)

Es fundamental que respondamos de manera profesional a los clientes, sin importar la situación. (It’s essential that we respond professionally to clients, regardless of the situation.)

El moderador pidió que los participantes respondan con respeto durante el debate. (The moderator asked that the participants respond respectfully during the debate.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Responder (to respond) 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.