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How to conjugate Despedirse in Spanish

despedirse to say goodbye Irregular Verb

At a glance: Despedirse (to say goodbye) is a widely used reflexive irregular verbs in Spanish. In the present tense: me despido, te despides, se despide, nos despedimos, os despedís, se despiden. Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change e to i (despido, despides, despide, despiden); nosotros and vosotros are regular. It is also irregular in the preterite (se despidió), subjunctive and gerund (despidiendo).

Past participle
despedido said goodbye
Gerund
despidiendo saying goodbye

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Indicative tenses of Despedirse

Despedirse in the Indicative Present

The Indicative Present of despedirse is used to talk about situations, events or thoughts that are happening now or in the near future. It is also used to talk about facts and truths. For example, “me despido”, meaning “I say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despidoI say goodbye
Túte despidesyou say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despides/he says goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despedimoswe say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despedísyou (plural) say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despidenthey say goodbye

How it’s built: Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change e to i (despido, despides, despide, despiden); nosotros and vosotros are regular. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Preterite

The Indicative Preterite of despedirse is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, “me despedí”, meaning “I said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despedíI said goodbye
Túte despedisteyou said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despidiós/he said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despedimoswe said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despedisteisyou (plural) said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despidieronthey said goodbye

How it’s built: Ella/Él and ellas/ellos change e to i (despidió, despidieron); the other forms are regular. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Imperfect

The Indicative Imperfect of despedirse is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, “me despedía”, meaning “I used to say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despedíaI used to say goodbye
Túte despedíasyou used to say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despedías/he used to say goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despedíamoswe used to say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despedíaisyou (plural) used to say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despedíanthey used to say goodbye

How it’s built: Regular: stem desped- plus the -ir endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Present Continuous

The Indicative Present Continuous of despedirse is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, “me estoy despidiendo”, meaning “I am saying goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome estoy despidiendoI am saying goodbye
Túte estás despidiendoyou are saying goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse está despidiendos/he is saying goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos estamos despidiendowe are saying goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos estáis despidiendoyou (plural) are saying goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse están despidiendothey are saying goodbye

How it’s built: Estar in the present (estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están) plus the irregular gerund despidiendo. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Informal Future

The Indicative Informal Future of despedirse is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, “me voy a despedir”, meaning “I am going to say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome voy a despedirI am going to say goodbye
Túte vas a despediryou are going to say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse va a despedirs/he is going to say goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos vamos a despedirwe are going to say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos vais a despediryou (plural) are going to say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse van a despedirthey are going to say goodbye

How it’s built: Ir in the present (voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van), then a, then the infinitive despedir. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Future

The Indicative Future of despedirse is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, “me despediré”, meaning “I will say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despediréI will say goodbye
Túte despedirásyou will say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despedirás/he will say goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despediremoswe will say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despediréisyou (plural) will say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despediránthey will say goodbye

How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive despedir plus the future endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Conditional

The Indicative Conditional of despedirse is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, “me despediría”, meaning “I would say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despediríaI would say goodbye
Túte despediríasyou would say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despedirías/he would say goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despediríamoswe would say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despediríaisyou (plural) would say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despediríanthey would say goodbye

How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive despedir plus the conditional endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Present Perfect

The Indicative Present Perfect of despedirse is used to describe actions that started recently (in the past) and are still happening now or things that have been done recently. For example, “me he despedido”, meaning “I have said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome he despedidoI have said goodbye
Túte has despedidoyou have said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse ha despedidos/he has said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hemos despedidowe have said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habéis despedidoyou (plural) have said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse han despedidothey have said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the present (he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Past Perfect

The Indicative Past Perfect of despedirse is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, “me había despedido”, meaning “I had said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome había despedidoI had said goodbye
Túte habías despedidoyou had said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse había despedidos/he had said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos habíamos despedidowe had said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habíais despedidoyou (plural) had said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse habían despedidothey had said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the imperfect (había, habías, había, habíamos, habíais, habían) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Future Perfect

The Indicative Future Perfect of despedirse is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, “me habré despedido”, meaning “I will have said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome habré despedidoI will have said goodbye
Túte habrás despedidoyou will have said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse habrá despedidos/he will have said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos habremos despedidowe will have said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habréis despedidoyou (plural) will have said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse habrán despedidothey will have said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the future (habré, habrás, habrá, habremos, habréis, habrán) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Indicative Conditional Perfect

The Indicative Conditional Perfect of despedirse is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, “me habría despedido”, meaning “I would have said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome habría despedidoI would have said goodbye
Túte habrías despedidoyou would have said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse habría despedidos/he would have said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos habríamos despedidowe would have said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habríais despedidoyou (plural) would have said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse habrían despedidothey would have said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the conditional (habría, habrías, habría, habríamos, habríais, habrían) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Subjunctive tenses of Despedirse

Despedirse in the Subjunctive Present

The Subjunctive Present is used to talk about situations of uncertainty, or emotions such as wishes, desires and hopes. It differs from the indicative mood due to the uncertainty of the events which are being spoken about. For example, “me despida”, meaning “I say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despidaI say goodbye
Túte despidasyou say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despidas/he says goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despidamoswe say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despidáisyou (plural) say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despidanthey say goodbye

How it’s built: Every form follows the yo present, despido (despida, despidas, despida, despidamos, despidáis, despidan). The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Subjunctive Imperfect

The Subjunctive Imperfect is used to speak about unlikely or uncertain events in the past or to cast an opinion (emotional) about something that happened in the past. For example, “me despidiera”, meaning “I said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despidieraI said goodbye
Túte despidierasyou said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despidieras/he said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despidiéramoswe said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despidieraisyou (plural) said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despidieranthey said goodbye

How it’s built: Built on the irregular ellas/ellos preterite, despidieron: drop -ron and add the -ra endings; nosotros adds an accent (despidiéramos). The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Despedirse in the Subjunctive Future

The Subjunctive Future is used to speak about hypothetical situations, and actions/events that may happen in the future. For example, “me despidiere”, meaning “I will say goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome despidiereI will say goodbye
Túte despidieresyou will say goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse despidieres/he will say goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos despidiéremoswe will say goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos despidiereisyou (plural) will say goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse despidierenthey will say goodbye

How it’s built: Built on the irregular ellas/ellos preterite, despidieron: drop -ron and add the -re endings; nosotros adds an accent (despidiéremos). The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Despedirse in the Subjunctive Present Perfect

The Subjunctive Present Perfect is used to describe past actions or events that are still connected to the present day and to speak about an action that will have happened by a certain time in the future. For example, “me haya despedido”, meaning “I have said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome haya despedidoI have said goodbye
Túte hayas despedidoyou have said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse haya despedidos/he has said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hayamos despedidowe have said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos hayáis despedidoyou (plural) have said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse hayan despedidothey have said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive present (haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Subjunctive Past Perfect

The Subjunctive Past Perfect is used to speak about hypothetical situations, and actions/events that occurred before other actions/events in the past. For example, “me hubiera despedido”, meaning “I had said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome hubiera despedidoI had said goodbye
Túte hubieras despedidoyou had said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse hubiera despedidos/he had said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hubiéramos despedidowe had said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos hubierais despedidoyou (plural) had said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse hubieran despedidothey had said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive imperfect (hubiera, hubieras, hubiera, hubiéramos, hubierais, hubieran) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Despedirse in the Subjunctive Future Perfect

The Subjunctive Future Perfect is used to speak about something that will have happened if a hypothetical situations occurs in the future. For example, “me hubiere despedido”, meaning “I will have said goodbye”.

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome hubiere despedidoI will have said goodbye
Túte hubieres despedidoyou will have said goodbye
Ella / Él / Ustedse hubiere despedidos/he will have said goodbye
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hubiéremos despedidowe will have said goodbye
Vosotras / Vosotrosos hubiereis despedidoyou (plural) will have said goodbye
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse hubieren despedidothey will have said goodbye

How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive future (hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren) plus the past participle despedido. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Imperative tenses of Despedirse

Despedirse in the Imperative Affirmative

The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, “despídase”, meaning “(to you formal) say goodbye!”.

In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yo--
Túdespídete(to you) say goodbye!
Ella / Él / Usteddespídase(to you formal) say goodbye!
Nosotras / Nosotrosdespidámonoslet's say goodbye!
Vosotras / Vosotrosdespedíos(to you plural) say goodbye!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesdespídanse(to you plural formal) say goodbye!

How it’s built: Tú takes the ella/él present and attaches te (despídete); usted and ustedes take the subjunctive present and attach se (despídase, despídanse); nosotros takes the subjunctive present, drops the s and attaches nos (despidámonos); vosotros drops the final r of the infinitive and attaches os (despedíos).

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Despedirse in the Imperative Negative

The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, “no se despida”, meaning “(to you formal) don't say goodbye!”.

In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yo--
Túno te despidas(to you) don't say goodbye!
Ella / Él / Ustedno se despida(to you formal) don't say goodbye!
Nosotras / Nosotrosno nos despidamoslet's not say goodbye!
Vosotras / Vosotrosno os despidáis(to you plural) don't say goodbye!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesno se despidan(to you plural formal) don't say goodbye!

How it’s built: No plus the subjunctive present: no te despidas, no se despida, no nos despidamos, no os despidáis, no se despidan.

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Frequently asked questions about Despedirse

Is despedirse a regular or irregular verb?

Despedirse is an irregular Spanish verb. In the present tense: yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change e to i (despido, despides, despide, despiden); nosotros and vosotros are regular. It is also irregular in the preterite (se despidió), subjunctive and gerund (despidiendo).

How do you conjugate despedirse in the present tense (presente)?

In the present tense (presente), despedirse is conjugated as: yo me despido, tú te despides, él/ella/usted se despide, nosotros nos despedimos, vosotros os despedís, ellos/ellas/ustedes se despiden. The present tense is used To talk about situations, events or thoughts that are happening now or in the near future. It is also used to talk about facts and truths.

How do you conjugate despedirse in the preterite (pretérito indefinido)?

In the preterite (pretérito indefinido), despedirse is conjugated as: yo me despedí, tú te despediste, él/ella/usted se despidió, nosotros nos despedimos, vosotros os despedisteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se despidieron. The preterite is used To talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time.

How do you conjugate despedirse in the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto)?

In the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto), despedirse is conjugated as: yo me despedía, tú te despedías, él/ella/usted se despedía, nosotros nos despedíamos, vosotros os despedíais, ellos/ellas/ustedes se despedían. The imperfect is used To describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do.

How do you conjugate despedirse in the future tense (futuro simple)?

In the future tense (futuro simple), despedirse is conjugated as: yo me despediré, tú te despedirás, él/ella/usted se despedirá, nosotros nos despediremos, vosotros os despediréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se despedirán. The future tense is used To talk about something that will happen in the future.

How do you conjugate despedirse in the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente)?

In the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente), despedirse is conjugated as: yo me despida, tú te despidas, él/ella/usted se despida, nosotros nos despidamos, vosotros os despidáis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se despidan. The present subjunctive is used To talk about situations of uncertainty, or emotions such as wishes, desires and hopes. It differs from the indicative mood due to the uncertainty of the events which are being spoken about.

What’s the difference between despedir and despedirse?

Despedir means ‘to dismiss, to fire (e.g. an employee)’ and despedirse means ‘to say goodbye’. Despedirse is the reflexive form of despedir, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun – me, te, se, nos, os or se – that matches the subject. The verb itself is conjugated the same way: in the present tense, yo despido becomes me despido. In the affirmative tú imperative the pronoun attaches to the end of the verb, so despide becomes despídete.


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