How to conjugate Merecer in Spanish
To deserve, to merit, to be worth Irregular Verb
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Indicative tenses of Merecer
- Merecer in the Indicative Present
- Merecer in the Indicative Preterite
- Merecer in the Indicative Imperfect
- Merecer in the Indicative Present Continuous
- Merecer in the Indicative Informal Future
- Merecer in the Indicative Future
- Merecer in the Indicative Conditional
- Merecer in the Indicative Present Perfect
- Merecer in the Indicative Past Perfect
- Merecer in the Indicative Future Perfect
- Merecer in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
- Subjunctive tenses of Merecer
- Imperative tenses of Merecer
- Downloadable cheat sheet (PDF)
- Practice Merecer conjugations (free mobile app)
Introduction
Merecer is the Spanish verb for "to deserve, to merit, to be worth". It is an irregular verb. Read on below to see how it is conjugated in the 18 major Spanish tenses!
Similar verbs to merecer include: ameritar, merecerse, valer.
| Item | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | merecer | to deserve, to merit, to be worth |
| Past participle | merecido | deserved |
| Gerund | mereciendo | deserving |
Indicative Tenses of Merecer
Merecer in the Indicative Present
The Indicative Present of merecer 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, "merezco", meaning "I deserve".
In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | merezco | I deserve |
| Tú | mereces | you deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | merece | s/he deserves, you (formal) deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | merecemos | we deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | merecéis | you (plural) deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecen | they deserve, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Merecer in the Indicative Preterite
The Indicative Preterite of merecer is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, "merecí", meaning "I deserved".
In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | merecí | I deserved |
| Tú | mereciste | you deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | mereció | s/he deserved, you (formal) deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | merecimos | we deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | merecisteis | you (plural) deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecieron | they deserved, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Imperfect
The Indicative Imperfect of merecer is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, "merecía", meaning "I used to deserve".
In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | merecía | I used to deserve |
| Tú | merecías | you used to deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | merecía | s/he used to deserve, you (formal) used to deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | merecíamos | we used to deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | merecíais | you (plural) used to deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecían | they used to deserve, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Present Continuous
The Indicative Present Continuous of merecer is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, "estoy mereciendo", meaning "I am deserving".
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | estoy mereciendo | I am deserving |
| Tú | estás mereciendo | you are deserving |
| Ella / Él / Usted | está mereciendo | s/he is deserving, you (formal) are deserving |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | estamos mereciendo | we are deserving |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | estáis mereciendo | you (plural) are deserving |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | están mereciendo | they are deserving, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Informal Future
The Indicative Informal Future of merecer is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, "voy a merecer", meaning "I am going to deserve".
In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | voy a merecer | I am going to deserve |
| Tú | vas a merecer | you are going to deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | va a merecer | s/he is going to deserve, you (formal) are going to deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | vamos a merecer | we are going to deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | vais a merecer | you (plural) are going to deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | van a merecer | they are going to deserve, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Future
The Indicative Future of merecer is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, "mereceré", meaning "I will deserve".
In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | mereceré | I will deserve |
| Tú | merecerás | you will deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | merecerá | s/he will deserve, you (formal) will deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | mereceremos | we will deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | mereceréis | you (plural) will deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecerán | they will deserve, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Conditional
The Indicative Conditional of merecer is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, "merecería", meaning "I would deserve".
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | merecería | I would deserve |
| Tú | merecerías | you would deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | merecería | s/he would deserve, you (formal) would deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | mereceríamos | we would deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | mereceríais | you (plural) would deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecerían | they would deserve, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Present Perfect
The Indicative Present Perfect of merecer 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, "he merecido", meaning "I have deserved".
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | he merecido | I have deserved |
| Tú | has merecido | you have deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | ha merecido | s/he has deserved, you (formal) have deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hemos merecido | we have deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habéis merecido | you (plural) have deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | han merecido | they have deserved, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Past Perfect
The Indicative Past Perfect of merecer is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, "había merecido", meaning "I had deserved".
In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | había merecido | I had deserved |
| Tú | habías merecido | you had deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | había merecido | s/he had deserved, you (formal) had deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habíamos merecido | we had deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habíais merecido | you (plural) had deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habían merecido | they had deserved, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Future Perfect
The Indicative Future Perfect of merecer is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, "habré merecido", meaning "I will have deserved".
In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habré merecido | I will have deserved |
| Tú | habrás merecido | you will have deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habrá merecido | s/he will have deserved, you (formal) will have deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habremos merecido | we will have deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habréis merecido | you (plural) will have deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrán merecido | they will have deserved, |
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Merecer in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
The Indicative Conditional Perfect of merecer is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, "habría merecido", meaning "I would have deserved".
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habría merecido | I would have deserved |
| Tú | habrías merecido | you would have deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habría merecido | s/he would have deserved, you (formal) would have deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habríamos merecido | we would have deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habríais merecido | you (plural) would have deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrían merecido | they would have deserved, |
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Subjunctive Tenses of Merecer
Merecer 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, "merezca", meaning "I deserve".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | merezca | I deserve |
| Tú | merezcas | you deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | merezca | s/he deserves, you (formal) deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | merezcamos | we deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | merezcáis | you (plural) deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merezcan | they deserve, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Merecer 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, "mereciera", meaning "I deserved".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | mereciera | I deserved |
| Tú | merecieras | you deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | mereciera | s/he deserved, you (formal) deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | mereciéramos | we deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | merecierais | you (plural) deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecieran | they deserved, |
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Merecer 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, "mereciere", meaning "I will deserve".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | mereciere | I will deserve |
| Tú | merecieres | you will deserve |
| Ella / Él / Usted | mereciere | s/he will deserve, you (formal) will deserve |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | mereciéremos | we will deserve |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | mereciereis | you (plural) will deserve |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merecieren | they will deserve, |
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Merecer 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, "haya merecido", meaning "I have deserved".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | haya merecido | I have deserved |
| Tú | hayas merecido | you have deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | haya merecido | s/he has deserved, you (formal) have deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hayamos merecido | we have deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hayáis merecido | you (plural) have deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hayan merecido | they have deserved, |
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Merecer 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, "hubiera merecido", meaning "I had deserved".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiera merecido | I had deserved |
| Tú | hubieras merecido | you had deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiera merecido | s/he had deserved, you (formal) had deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéramos merecido | we had deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubierais merecido | you (plural) had deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieran merecido | they had deserved, |
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Merecer 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, "hubiere merecido", meaning "I will have deserved".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiere merecido | I will have deserved |
| Tú | hubieres merecido | you will have deserved |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiere merecido | s/he will have deserved, you (formal) will have deserved |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéremos merecido | we will have deserved |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubiereis merecido | you (plural) will have deserved |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieren merecido | they will have deserved, |
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Imperative Tenses of Merecer
Merecer in the Imperative Affirmative
The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, "merezca", meaning "(to you formal) deserve!".
In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | merece | (to you) deserve! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | merezca | (to you formal) deserve! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | merezcamos | let's deserve! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | mereced | (to you plural) deserve! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | merezcan | (to you plural formal) deserve! |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Merecer in the Imperative Negative
The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, "no merezca", meaning "(to you formal) don't deserve!".
In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | no merezcas | (to you) don't deserve! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | no merezca | (to you formal) don't deserve! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | no merezcamos | let's not deserve! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | no merezcáis | (to you plural) don't deserve! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | no merezcan | (to you plural formal) don't deserve! |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Downloadable cheat sheets
Download and print a cheat sheet of Merecer Spanish conjugation tables in image or PDF format:
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Want to explore other verb conjugations?
Why not check out Merendar – to snack or see the complete list of verbs here.
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Merecer: to deserve, to merit, to be worth
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