The simple conditional tense in Spanish is used to describe a hypothetical situation, express wishes, give advice, or make a polite request. It is similar in its use to the simple conditional tense in English, e.g., βI would do the laundry if I had time.β
Conjugation
The regular verb conjugation is the same for all verb endings and is formed by adding the conjugation ending to the infinitive rather than to the stem.
-ar ending hablar | -er ending comer | -ir ending vivir | |
yo | hablarΓa | comerΓa | vivirΓa |
tΓΊ | hablarΓas | comerΓas | vivirΓas |
Γ©l/ella/usted | hablarΓa | comerΓa | vivirΓa |
nosotros/-as | hablarΓamos | comerΓamos | vivirΓamos |
vosotros/-as | hablarΓais | comerΓais | vivirΓais |
ellos/ellas/ustedes | hablarΓan | comerΓan | vivirΓan |
Irregular Verbs in the Simple Conditional Tense
There are a few irregular verbs in the simple conditional tense; twelve are commonly used and will be discussed here.
1. Some verbs ending in β-erβ and β-irβ drop the βeβ or βiβ from the infinitive ending and replace it with a βd.β There are five common verbs in this category: βtenerβ (to have), βponerβ (to put), βvalerβ (to valueor to be worth), βvenirβ (to come), and βsalirβ (to go outor to exit).
tener tendr- | poner pondr- | venir vendr- | salir sladr- | |
yo | tendrΓa | pondrΓa | vendrΓa | saldrΓa |
tΓΊ | tendrΓas | pondrΓas | vendrΓas | saldrΓas |
Γ©l/ella/usted | tendrΓa | pondrΓa | vendrΓa | saldrΓa |
nosotros/-as | tendrΓamos | pondrΓamos | vendrΓamos | saldrΓamos |
vosotros/-as | tendrΓais | pondrΓais | vendrΓais | saldrΓais |
ellos/ellas/ustedes | tendrΓan | pondrΓan | vendrΓan | saldrΓan |
2. Some verbs ending in β-erβ simply drop the βeβ from the infinitive ending. There are also five common verbs in this category: βsaberβ (to know), βpoderβ (can), βcaberβ (to fit), βquererβ (to want), and βhaber,β which is an auxiliary verb equivalent to the English auxiliary verb βhave.β
saber sabr- | poder podr- | querer querr- | haber habr- | |
yo | sabrΓa | podrΓa | querrΓa | habrΓa |
tΓΊ | sabrΓas | podrΓas | querrΓas | habrΓas |
Γ©l/ella/usted | sabrΓa | podrΓa | querrΓa | habrΓa |
nosotros/-as | sabrΓamos | podrΓamos | querrΓamos | habrΓamos |
vosotros/-as | sabrΓais | podrΓais | querrΓais | habrΓais |
ellos/ellas/ustedes | sabrΓan | podrΓan | querrΓan | habrΓan |
3. The verbs βdecirβ (to say) and βhacerβ (to do) change their stem to βdir-β and βhar-β to form the simple conditional tense conjugation. These two verbs are irregular and must be memorized.
decir dir- | hacer har- | |
yo | dirΓa | harΓa |
tΓΊ | dirΓas | harΓas |
Γ©l/ella/usted | dirΓa | harΓa |
nosotros/-as | dirΓamos | harΓamos |
vosotros/-as | dirΓais | harΓais |
ellos/ellas/ustedes | dirΓan | harΓan |
Examples
Below are some examples in Spanish that use the simple conditional tense.
ViajarΓa cada aΓ±o si tuviera dinero. | I would travel every year if I had money. |
Si yo fuera tΓΊ, no irΓa al gimnasio hoy. | If I were you, I wouldnβt go to the gym today. |
Si tuviera mucho dinero, comprarΓa un palacio. | If I had a lot of money, I would buy a palace. |
PodrΓas estudiar mΓ‘s horas para el examen. | You could study more hours for the exam. |
ΒΏPodrΓas pasarme la pimienta? | Could you pass me the pepper? |
ΒΏVivirΓamos en una ciudad pequeΓ±a? | Would we live in a small city? |
DormirΓan todo el dΓa si no tuvieran trabajo. | They would sleep all day if they didnβt have work. |
DirΓa la verdad si me preguntaran. | I would tell the truth if they asked me. |
Quiz: Conditional Tenses in Spanish
Next: Present Subjunctive Tense II
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