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How to say 'would' in Spanish (conditional tense)

Ask politely, give advice, and say what you'd do — with -ía endings, out loud.

GRAMMAR PACK · 5 LESSONS · A2

Spanish says would with the conditional tense: add -ía endings to the full infinitivehablaría, comería, viviría — and the endings are the same for -ar, -er and -ir verbs. Don't confuse it with the imperfect: the conditional keeps the infinitive's r (comería, I would eat), the imperfect drops it (comía, I used to eat). The real payoff is politeness: me gustaría un café where quiero sounds blunt, ¿podría ayudarme? where ¿puede? sounds flat, and deberías estudiar más for gentle advice. A dozen common verbs use irregular stems — haría, tendría, diría, saldría — the same stems as the future tense.

Below: the phrases the conditional unlocks, the slips that give learners away, and a way to practise it in a real spoken exchange — no conjugation drills, no fill-in-the-blanks.

Say this

The phrases that carry the conversation

Conditional formation (-ía endings)

  • Yo hablaría con ella, pero no tengo su número.I would talk to her, but I don't have her number.
  • ¿Qué comerías en un restaurante mexicano?What would you eat at a Mexican restaurant?
  • Viviría en la playa si pudiera.I would live on the beach if I could.
  • Ella viajaría a Japón. Nosotros viajaríamos a Italia.She would travel to Japan. We would travel to Italy.

Me gustaría + infinitive (polite requests)

  • Me gustaría reservar una mesa para dos.I would like to reserve a table for two.
  • Me gustaría un café, por favor.I would like a coffee, please. (more polite than quiero)
  • ¿Te gustaría ir al cine esta noche?Would you like to go to the movies tonight?
  • Nos gustaría saber más información.We would like to know more information.

Podría and Debería (could and should)

  • ¿Podría hablar más despacio?Could you speak more slowly?
  • Podríamos ir al parque mañana.We could go to the park tomorrow.
  • Deberías estudiar más para el examen.You should study more for the exam.
  • Deberíamos salir temprano.We should leave early.

Regional Spanish

What locals actually say

Textbooks teach one word. Locals use several — pick your region's and stay consistent.

Watch out

Mistakes that mark you as a textbook speaker

  1. Confusing conditional endings with imperfect -ER/-IR endings (comería vs comía)The conditional adds -ía to the FULL infinitive (comer-ía), while the imperfect drops the infinitive ending (com-ía). The infinitive 'r' is always present in conditional forms.
  2. Using present tense for polite requests (¿Puede ayudarme? instead of ¿Podría ayudarme?)While present works, conditional is more polite — ¿Podría...? is softer and more respectful than ¿Puede...?
  3. Forgetting irregular stems (decir → diría, not deciría)About 12 common verbs have irregular conditional stems — they are the same stems as the irregular future tense. Start with the most common: haría, tendría, podría, diría.

The part no drill site can do

No flashcards. You learn it by using it

Carla, &Be grammar teacher

Carla

Your grammar teacher for this pack

In the I Wish lessons there's nothing to memorise from a table — you talk, and Carla keeps setting up moments where only the conditional fits. She plays the polite restaurant beat: order with me gustaría and ask ¿podría traerme la cuenta?. She brings you a problem and you hand back advice with deberías dormir más, deberías hablar con ella. Then she asks what you'd do with a free weekend, and you reach for viajaría, iría, comería — out loud, until would stops needing a second of thought.

Blank mid-sentence and nothing bad happens — she waits. That's the practice, without unnecessary judgement.

Finish the 5 lessons and I Wish is yours — earned, not given.

Download on the App Store First 10 lessons free · 10-minute spoken lessons · your AI coaching team remembers you

Quick answers

Questions people ask

How do you form the conditional tense in Spanish?

Take the full infinitive and add the -ía endings: hablaría, hablarías, hablaríamos, hablarían. The same endings work for every regular verb — comería, viviría — so one pattern covers thousands of verbs.

What's the difference between comería and comía?

Comería is conditional (I would eat); comía is imperfect (I used to eat). The tell is the infinitive's r: the conditional keeps it (comer-ía), the imperfect drops it (com-ía).

Is 'me gustaría' more polite than 'quiero'?

Yes — me gustaría un café, por favor is the gracious version of quiero un café. Use it for requests and bookings: me gustaría reservar una mesa para dos. Quisiera… is equally polite.

What's the difference between podría and debería?

Podría = could, for polite requests and suggestions: ¿Podría hablar más despacio? Debería = should, for advice: Deberías estudiar más para el examen.

Which verbs are irregular in the Spanish conditional?

About twelve common verbs change their stem — the same stems as the irregular future: haría (hacer), tendría (tener), podría (poder), diría (decir), saldría (salir), vendría (venir). So it's diría, never deciría.