In Spanish, the conditional tense is used to express what would happen in a hypothetical situation, to make polite requests, or to talk about the future from a past perspective.
Forming the Conditional
To form the conditional tense, add the conditional endings to the infinitive form of the verb:
- yo: -ía
- tú: -ías
- él/ella/usted: -ía
- nosotros/nosotras: -íamos
- vosotros/vosotras: -íais
- ellos/ellas/ustedes: -ían
This applies to -ar, -er, and -ir verbs.
Examples
- hablar (to speak): hablaría, hablarías, hablaría, hablaríamos, hablaríais, hablarían
- comer (to eat): comería, comerías, comería, comeríamos, comeríais, comerían
- vivir (to live): viviría, vivirías, viviría, viviríamos, viviríais, vivirían
Uses of the Conditional
- Hypothetical situations: Si tuviera dinero, viajaría por el mundo. (If I had money, I would travel the world.)
- Polite requests: ¿Podrías ayudarme? (Could you help me?)
- Future in the past: Dijo que llegaría tarde. (He said he would arrive late.)
The conditional is a key tense for expressing possibilities and politeness in Spanish.
B1
Table of Contents
- Simple Conditional
The Simple Conditional is a verb form in Spanish used to express hypothetical actions, polite requests, or future events from a past perspective.
- Perfect Conditional
Spanish verb tense for expressing what would have happened in the past using "haber" + past participle.
Last updated: Wed Jun 18, 2025
