1. A preserved form with a present-day function
Subjunctive names a grammatical mood, not a separate tense. Some fixed English expressions preserve a base verb where an ordinary statement would use another form: be rather than is, suffice rather than suffices. Learn each expression together with its meaning and word order.
Their historical origin does not make all these expressions outdated or unsuitable for conversation. Some sound formal; others naturally convey candour or acceptance. There is no need to make the whole text sound archaic: an ordinary modern sentence can contain one such formula.
fixed expression + clause in the tense appropriate to its own meaning
- clause —
- A construction with a verb, often with its own subject: when I arrived. A non-finite clause may leave the subject unspoken: to get home.
Come what may, I will keep my promise.
Come what may, I will keep my promise.
Come belongs to the fixed expression; will keep expresses the speaker's future action.
Suffice it to say that the interview was brief.
Suffice it to say that the interview was brief.
Suffice does not become sufficed because the following message uses past-tense was.
2. Be that as it may: acknowledging a point without changing the conclusion
Be that as it may roughly means 'even so' or 'nevertheless'. The speaker sets aside a preceding argument and proceeds to a conclusion that the argument does not overturn. The expression alone means neither 'that is false' nor complete agreement with everything said.
Merriam-Webster labels the expression formal. In a workplace disagreement, it can sound distant; suitability depends on relationships and intonation. Nevertheless or even so can express a similar connection, but do not practise this preserved formula. Make clear which conclusion still stands after it.
preceding point. Be that as it may, unchanged conclusion.
The design is elegant. Be that as it may, it does not meet the brief.
The design is elegant. Be that as it may, it does not meet the brief.
The design's elegance is not denied. The conclusion concerns whether it meets the brief.
Your estimate may be accurate, but, be that as it may, we need written confirmation.
Your estimate may be accurate, but, be that as it may, we need written confirmation.
The speaker preserves the possibility that the estimate is accurate without presenting its accuracy as proven.
3. Come what may: regardless of what happens
Come what may means 'whatever happens'. It often strengthens a promise or determination, but does not identify an obstacle that will actually occur. Do not invent a disaster, cause or guaranteed success: the formula simply makes the stated commitment independent of circumstances.
The expression can precede or follow the main clause. It retains come, whereas ordinary whatever comes next uses comes with subject agreement. These are different constructions, not a universal ban on -s after words expressing uncertainty.
Come what may, we will publish the full report.
Come what may, we will publish the full report.
The determination concerns publishing the complete report. No particular future problem is named.
I will stand by you, come what may.
I will stand by you, come what may.
Final position is equally natural. The expression's internal structure remains fixed.
Whatever comes next, we will discuss it together.
Whatever comes next, we will discuss it together.
This is a grammatical modern paraphrase with comes, not an incorrect version of the fixed formula.
4. Suffice (it) to say: one summary is enough
Suffice it to say introduces a brief statement that the speaker considers sufficient for the current purpose, leaving details aside. It does not mean 'I am certain' or 'it is safe to assume': it limits the account rather than establishing its reliability.
Both suffice it to say and suffice to say occur in modern usage. Say can be followed by a that-clause or a clause without that. Unless the task specifies one form, versions with and without it are acceptable. Do not add -s to suffice inside the formula. It suffices to say… is a separate grammatical sentence using ordinary word order.
Suffice (it) to say (that) + brief summary
Suffice it to say that neither candidate accepted the offer.
Suffice it to say that neither candidate accepted the offer.
The sentence summarises the outcome without explaining the refusals. Neither preserves the meaning that both candidates declined.
Suffice to say, the repair took longer than expected.
Suffice to say, the repair took longer than expected.
The version without it is also established. Do not correct it merely because it is absent.
5. A wish is not a factual assertion
In the quoted ceremonial formula God save the Queen, save expresses a wish that God protect the queen. This is an example of language form, not a claim about the current monarch or the learner's beliefs. An exercise can use an imagined scene in a fictional play.
Compare God save the Queen! with God saves the Queen. The second is also grammatical, but asserts an action instead of expressing a wish. May God save the Queen! is a natural wish with modal may. It conveys the same basic intent, but does not reproduce the formula without may. These differences are not grammatical errors.
God save the Queen!
God save the Queen!
The quoted formula uses base-form save to express a wish, not report a completed event.
May God save the Queen!
May God save the Queen!
A modal wish is an acceptable meaning-based paraphrase when the task does not specifically require the form without may.
God saves the Queen.
God saves the Queen.
This is a grammatical assertion within an imagined story. It does not fulfil a task asking for a wish.
6. So be it: accepting the outcome
So be it expresses acceptance of a situation or consequence, often without enthusiasm. The speaker accepts leaving matters as they are or may turn out. It does not necessarily approve the decision or promise to change it actively.
The expression can stand alone as a reply. Preserve the order so + be + it. Compare be that as it may: that expression maintains another conclusion, while so be it accepts the stated outcome. If context permits either reaction, choose the intended message instead of calling one formula ungrammatical.
If we have to wait until Monday, so be it.
If we have to wait until Monday, so be it.
The speaker accepts waiting as a possible necessity without presenting it as desirable.
The decision cannot be changed. So be it.
The decision cannot be changed. So be it.
The short formula completes the reaction. It adds no reason why the decision cannot change.
7. Truth be told / known: stating the real situation candidly
Truth be told and truth be known introduce a candid account of how things really are. Both are established forms, not a correct/incorrect pair. The speaker need not have lied earlier; they may simply be expressing their view for the first time.
Truth be told retains be followed by the past participle told, not tell. The alternative uses known. The expression comments on the following proposition; it does not replace that proposition's tense or negation.
Truth be told, I preferred the first proposal.
Truth be told, I preferred the first proposal.
A candid admission of a past preference. Be in the formula does not require preferred to change.
Truth be known, I have not read the final chapter.
Truth be known, I have not read the final chapter.
Known is an accepted variant. The negative concerns reading, not the candour formula.
8. Boundaries: not every base form is a fixed remnant
I recommend that she be present contains the productive mandative subjunctive after a recommendation. This is related, but is not a memorised formula such as so be it. Knowing several fixed expressions does not permit removing -s from any ordinary sentence.
Check three things: what intention you want to express, whether the expression's fixed form is intact, and whether the rest of the sentence preserves your facts. Do not add a formula just to sound complex. Neutral paraphrases include no matter what happens, even so and to be honest. In a task requiring a particular expression, such a paraphrase may be grammatical but fail the learning requirement.
I recommend that she be present.
I recommend that she be present.
This recommendation is formed productively. It is not one of the separate fixed expressions in this lesson.
She is present at every rehearsal.
She is present at every rehearsal.
An ordinary statement requires is. Be is not a universal marker of formal style.
The journey may be difficult. Come what may, I will go.
The journey may be difficult. Come what may, I will go.
Possible difficulties remain a possibility rather than an asserted fact. The decision is stated independently of circumstances.
Common mistakes
Incorrect:Suffices it to say that the trial failed.
Correct:Suffice it to say that the trial failed.
The fixed introductory formula uses suffice without -s. The rest of the statement stays unchanged.
Incorrect:Comes what may, we will keep the archive open.
Correct:Come what may, we will keep the archive open.
The fixed formula begins with come, not third-person comes.
Incorrect:Truth be tell, I disliked the ending.
Correct:Truth be told, I disliked the ending.
The passive structure of this expression requires past participle told after be, not base-form tell.
Incorrect:If the date cannot change, so be it is.
Correct:If the date cannot change, so be it.
Do not add a second verb, is, to the complete formula so be it.
Sources
- Merriam-Webster — Getting in the (Subjunctive) Mood
- Merriam-Webster — On ‘Suffice It to Say’ (both variants)
- Merriam-Webster — be that as it may (meaning and formal register)
- Merriam-Webster — come what may
- Merriam-Webster — so be it
- Merriam-Webster — truth be told/known (both variants)
- University of Ottawa / Language Portal of Canada — Using verb moods (the quoted wish formula)