VERBS AND MOODS
Ancient language teachers and theorists grouped verbs into moods, based on the feelings the subject is supposed to have towards an action. So the indicative mood is the mood of fact, and all the verbs you learn initially will be in this mood: I walked. There is also the imperative mood, the mood of ordering people about, which you may already be familiar with. And then there is the subjunctive mood, for actions that are willed, potential, or even unreal: in the English phrase “Wish you were here”, for example, were is a subjunctive form. The subjunctive has a number of important roles in Latin, which you’ll learn in time. One of the most famous subjunctives in Latin occurs near the start of the Bible, and you can see it in lesson two.
You can carry on with grammar to delve more deeply into these and other topics, or you can go back to the normal lessons. Whichever you choose, don’t attempt to memorise everything you’ve just read. Visit the grammar notes after every couple of lessons. They will make more sense every time.