щоб (непрямий наказ)

This pattern is essential for reporting volition (wishes) and imperatives (commands) indirectly. It uses the conjunction щоб (or its variant щоби), which is a contraction of the conjunction що and the subjunctive particle б/би.

1. The Subjunctive/Conditional Mood:
The verb in the 'щоб' clause uses standard past tense forms, but functions as a subjunctive. It must agree with the subject of the clause:

• Masculine: -в or stem (щоб він зробив / щоб він приніс)
• Feminine: -ла (щоб вона зробила)
• Neuter: -ло (щоб воно було)
• Plural: -ли (щоб вони зробили)

2. Punctuation:
In Ukrainian, a comma is mandatory before the conjunction щоб (or щоби) when it introduces a subordinate clause (e.g., 'Він хоче, щоб ми прийшли').

3. When to use it:
Use this pattern with verbs of 'will' such as хотіти (to want), просити (to ask), наказати (to order), радити (to advise), or сказати (to tell/say).

4. The Subject Rule and Case Government:
If the subject of the main verb and the action is the same, use the infinitive (e.g., 'Я хочу піти' - 'I want to go') and drop the conjunction щоб entirely. Note: 'щоб + infinitive' is used for purpose clauses ('in order to') when the subject is the same, which is different from indirect commands. If the subjects are different, the construction depends on the verb:

• Хотіти: Requires щоб + past tense (Я хочу, щоб ти пішов - I want you to go).
• Наказати / Радити / Сказати: Can use щоб + past tense or an object in the Dative + infinitive (Він наказав мені прийти - He ordered me to come / Він наказав, щоб я прийшов - He ordered that I come).
• Просити: Can use щоб + past tense or an object in the Accusative + infinitive (Він просив мене прийти - He asked me to come / Він просив, щоб я прийшов - He asked that I come).

5. Aspect and Meaning:
Indirect commands usually use the perfective aspect because they focus on a specific result. Use the imperfective aspect for habitual or ongoing actions, as well as for deliberate negative indirect commands (prohibitions, e.g., 'щоб не запізнювалися'). However, if the negative command is a warning against an accidental action, Ukrainian uses the perfective aspect (e.g., 'Я прошу, щоб ти не забув').

6. Tense Independence:
Unlike English sequence of tenses, the tense of the main verb (past, present, or future) does not change the tense in the 'щоб' clause. The verb in the 'щоб' clause always remains in the past tense (e.g., 'Я хочу, щоб ти зробив' vs 'Я хотів, щоб ти зробив').

7. Contrast with 'що':
Do not confuse this with indirect speech using що. Use що for facts ('Він сказав, що він тут') and щоб for commands/desires ('Він сказав, щоб я прийшов').

8. Negation:
In negative indirect commands, the negative particle не is placed immediately before the verb in the subordinate clause: щоб + [subject] + не + past tense (e.g., 'Я хочу, щоб ти не йшов').