The present subjunctive mood of tocar is used to express desires, doubts, or uncertainties about the action of touching, as well as in certain dependent clauses. For example, Es importante que toquen la puerta antes de entrar. (It’s important that they knock on the door before entering.)

Tocar is a spelling-changing verb that follows the -car to -que conjugation pattern in the present subjunctive. The stem vowel changes from o to ue in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Tocar (to play) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Latin American Spanish):

The present subjunctive of tocar is used to express wishes, desires, demands, doubts, or uncertainty about an action or situation.

To touch or make contact with something: For example, Espero que no toquen mi comida. (I hope they don’t touch my food.) This usage can also have a sexual connotation, as in No me toques sin permiso. (Don’t touch me without permission.)

To play an instrument: For example, Es importante que toquen la guitarra con pasión. (It’s important that they play the guitar with passion.)

To knock or ring a doorbell: For example, Toquen la puerta antes de entrar. (Knock on the door before entering.)

To deal with or discuss a topic: For example, Espero que toquen el tema de la corrupción en la reunión. (I hope they touch on the topic of corruption in the meeting.)

To be someone’s turn (colloquial): For example, A mí me toca lavar los platos hoy. (It’s my turn to wash the dishes today.)

Examples

Examples of Tocar in the Subjunctive Mood

Espero que toquen una canción alegre en la fiesta. (I hope they play a lively song at the party.)

Es importante que toquemos el tema de la seguridad en nuestra próxima reunión. (It’s important that we discuss the topic of safety in our next meeting.)

Aunque no toque un instrumento, me encanta escuchar música. (Even though I don’t play an instrument, I love listening to music.)

Ojalá que el equipo toque con pasión en el partido de hoy. (I hope the team plays with passion in today’s game.)

Preferiría que toques la guitarra en lugar de ver televisión. (I’d prefer that you play the guitar instead of watching TV.)

Es una lástima que no toque el piano, es un instrumento hermoso. (It’s a shame that he doesn’t play the piano, it’s a beautiful instrument.)

Tal vez toquemos algunos juegos de mesa después de la cena. (Maybe we’ll play some board games after dinner.)

Sería genial que toquen música en vivo en el restaurante. (It would be great if they played live music at the restaurant.)

Aunque toque la batería, mi verdadera pasión es la pintura. (Even though I play the drums, my true passion is painting.)

Es necesario que toquemos el tema de los horarios en la próxima junta. (It’s necessary that we discuss the topic of schedules in the next meeting.)

Ojalá que toquen mi canción favorita en el concierto. (I hope they play my favorite song at the concert.)

Aunque no toque ningún instrumento, me gusta cantar en la ducha. (Even though I don’t play any instrument, I like to sing in the shower.)

Sería bueno que toques el violín más seguido, tienes mucho talento. (It would be good if you played the violin more often, you have a lot of talent.)

Es importante que toquen el tema de la diversidad en el trabajo. (It’s important that they address the topic of diversity at work.)

Tal vez toquemos un juego de cartas después del trabajo. (Maybe we’ll play a card game after work.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Tocar (to play) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian 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.