The Conditional Tense

1
The Conditional Tense

• The conditional tense can be thought of as the
  would tense. Use the conditional to describe
  things that would or could be I would
  call him, but Im shy. If I were rich, I would
  buy a Porsche. Could I have a napkin, please?
  I wouldnt do that! She could leave, if she had
  a ride.

2
Here are the correct endings for the conditional
tense. Notice that the endings are the same for
all three kinds of verbs!
Subject -AR, -ER, -IR Verbs
Yo -ía
Tú - ías
Él, Ella, Usted -ía
Nosotros - íamos
Vosotros -íais
Ellos, Ellas, Ustedes -ían
3
The conditional tense conjugates in the same
fashion as the future tense - dont remove the
AR, -ER, or IR! Just add the subject ending
right onto the end of the verb!
4
Heres an an example of the conjugation process.
Well use the yo form for this example.
Simply attach the ending which matches the
subject. Thats it!
CANTAR To sing
ÍA
I would sing
TOSING
5
-ER and -IR verbs work the same way as -AR verbs.
COMER To eat
Just add the correct ending.
ÍAS
You would eat
To livee
VIVIR To live
ÍAN
They would live
To livee
6
Heres a full conjugation chart for all 3 verb
types.
Subject Cantar to sing Comer to eat Vivir to live
Yo Cantaría I would sing Comería I would eat Viviría I would live
Tú Cantarías You (inf) would sing Comerías You (inf) would eat Vivirías You (inf) would live
Él, Ella, Usted Cantaría He/She would sing You (for) would sing Comería He/She would eat You (for) would eat Viviría He/She would live You (for) would live
Nosotros Cantaríamos We would sing Comeríamos We would eat Viviríamos We would live
Vosotros Cantaríais You (in pl) would sing Comeríais You (in pl) would eat Viviríais You (in pl) would live
Ellos, Ellas, Ustedes Cantarían They would sing You (f pl) would sing Comerían They would eat You (f pl) would eat Vivirían They would live You (f pl) would live
7
Now you try it! On a piece of paper, or in your
head, conjugate the following and then click for
the correct answer.
He would ask. (Preguntar) I would study.
(Estudiar) They would run. (Correr) You (inf)
would write. (Escribir)
Él preguntaría.
Yo estudiaría.
Ellos correrían.
Tú escribirías.
8
Irregulars

• Irregular verbs in the conditional tense have
  the same stem as they do in the future tense.
  To conjugate them, just add the regular
  conditional tense ending to these stems.
  Remember, any verb which contains one of these
  irregular verbs will inherit its stem in the
  conditional.
• For example proponer propondr-.

Verb New stem
Salir Saldr-
Tener Tendr-
Poder Podr-
Poner Pondr-
Saber Sabr-
Querer Querr-
Venir Vendr-
Hacer Har-
Haber Habr-
Decir Dir-
9
Here are some examples as well as the other two
common irregular verbs in the future and the
conditional
Subject Caber To fit Valer To be worth, cost
Yo CabríaI would fit Valdría I would be worth
Tú CabríasYou (inf) would fit Valdrías You (inf) would be worth
Él, Ella, Usted Cabría He/ She would fitYou (for) would fit Valdría He/She would be worth You (for) would be worth
Nosotros CabríamosWe would fit ValdríamosWe would be worth
Vosotros CabríaisYou (inf pl) would fit Valdríais You (inf pl) would be worth
Ellos, Ellas, Ustedes Cabrían They would fitYou (for pl) would fit Valdrían They would be worth You (for pl) would be worth
10

• Finally, note the following
• Although the conditional tense is usually
  translated as would its not the only tense
  that can mean would. When would is used to refer
  to something that was habitual in the past, you
  should use the imperfect past tense . For
  example We would always lose.
• Because the conditional can translate as could,
  this tense is often used to make polite
  requests.For example Could I please borrow a
  pencil?
• There are no stem changers in the conditional
  tense.
• Estar, Ser, and Ir are regular in the conditional
  tense.
• Just as the future tense may be used to express
  probability in the present, the conditional may
  be used to express it in the past. For example
  Shes probably at home (present) Estará en
  casa. (future)She was probably at home (past)
  Estaría en casa. (cond.)

11
El Fin!