How to conjugate Poder in Spanish
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Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Indicative tenses of Poder
- Poder in the Indicative Present
- Poder in the Indicative Preterite
- Poder in the Indicative Imperfect
- Poder in the Indicative Present Continuous
- Poder in the Indicative Informal Future
- Poder in the Indicative Future
- Poder in the Indicative Conditional
- Poder in the Indicative Present Perfect
- Poder in the Indicative Past Perfect
- Poder in the Indicative Future Perfect
- Poder in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
- Subjunctive tenses of Poder
- Imperative tenses of Poder
- Example sentences and usage
- Downloadable cheat sheet (PDF)
- Practice Poder conjugations (free mobile app)
Introduction
Poder is the Spanish verb meaning "to be able to / to can". This verb can be used to ask for permission, e.g. ¿Podría usar el baño?, or to to express tolerance for something "No puedo más", meaning "I can't do any more". In it's purist form, it is used to express capability to do something. For example: "Mi hermano puede nadar 1 kilómetro sin parar" - "My brother can swim 1km without stopping".
Similar verbs to poder include: ser capaz (to be competent), lograr (to be able to).
Item | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Infinitive | poder | to be able to |
Past participle | podido | been able to |
Gerund | pudiendo | being able to |
Indicative Tenses of Poder
Poder in the Indicative Present
The Indicative Present of poder 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, "puedo hablar español", meaning "I am able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | puedo | I am able to |
Tú | puedes | you are able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | puede | s/he is able to, you (formal) are able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | podemos | we are able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | podéis | you (plural) are able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | pueden | they are able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder in the Indicative Preterite
The Indicative Preterite of poder is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, "pude hablar español", meaning "I was able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | pude | I was able to |
Tú | pudiste | you were able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | pudo | s/he was able to, you (formal) was able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | pudimos | we were able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | pudisteis | you (plural) were able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | pudieron | they were able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder in the Indicative Imperfect
The Indicative Imperfect of poder is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, "podía hablar español", meaning "I used to be able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | podía | I used to be able to |
Tú | podías | you used to be able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | podía | s/he used to be able to, you (formal) used to be able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | podíamos | we used to be able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | podíais | you (plural) used to be able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | podían | they used to be able to, |
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Poder in the Indicative Present Continuous
The Indicative Present Continuous of poder is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, "estoy pudiendo hablar español", meaning "I am being able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | estoy pudiendo | I am being able to |
Tú | estás pudiendo | you are being able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | está pudiendo | s/he is being able to, you (formal) are being able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | estamos pudiendo | we are being able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | estáis pudiendo | you (plural) are being able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | están pudiendo | they are being able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder in the Indicative Informal Future
The Indicative Informal Future of poder is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, "voy a poder hablar español", meaning "I am going to be able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | voy a poder | I am going to be able to |
Tú | vas a poder | you are going to be able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | va a poder | s/he is going to be able to, you (formal) are going to be able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | vamos a poder | we are going to be able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | vais a poder | you (plural) are going to be able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | van a poder | they are going to be able to, |
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Poder in the Indicative Future
The Indicative Future of poder is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, "podré hablar español", meaning "I will be able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | podré | I will be able to |
Tú | podrás | you will be able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | podrá | s/he will be able to, you (formal) will be able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | podremos | we will be able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | podréis | you (plural) will be able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | podrán | they will be able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder in the Indicative Conditional
The Indicative Conditional of poder is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, "podría hablar español", meaning "I would be able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | podría | I would be able to |
Tú | podrías | you would be able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | podría | s/he would be able to, you (formal) would be able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | podríamos | we would be able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | podríais | you (plural) would be able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | podrían | they would be able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder in the Indicative Present Perfect
The Indicative Present Perfect of poder 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 podido hablar español", meaning "I have been able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | he podido | I have been able to |
Tú | has podido | you have been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | ha podido | s/he has been able to, you (formal) have been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | hemos podido | we have been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | habéis podido | you (plural) have been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | han podido | they have been able to, |
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Poder in the Indicative Past Perfect
The Indicative Past Perfect of poder is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, "había podido hablar español", meaning "I had been able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | había podido | I had been able to |
Tú | habías podido | you had been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | había podido | s/he had been able to, you (formal) had been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | habíamos podido | we had been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | habíais podido | you (plural) had been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habían podido | they had been able to, |
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Poder in the Indicative Future Perfect
The Indicative Future Perfect of poder is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, "habré podido hablar español", meaning "I will have been able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | habré podido | I will have been able to |
Tú | habrás podido | you will have been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | habrá podido | s/he will have been able to, you (formal) will have been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | habremos podido | we will have been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | habréis podido | you (plural) will have been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrán podido | they will have been able to, |
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Poder in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
The Indicative Conditional Perfect of poder is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, "habría podido hablar español", meaning "I would have been able to speak Spanish".
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | habría podido | I would have been able to |
Tú | habrías podido | you would have been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | habría podido | s/he would have been able to, you (formal) would have been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | habríamos podido | we would have been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | habríais podido | you (plural) would have been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrían podido | they would have been able to, |
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Subjunctive Tenses of Poder
Poder 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, "pueda", meaning "I am able to".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | pueda | I am able to |
Tú | puedas | you are able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | pueda | s/he is able to, you (formal) are able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | podamos | we are able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | podáis | you (plural) are able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | puedan | they are able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder 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, "pudiera", meaning "I were able to".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | pudiera | I were able to |
Tú | pudieras | you were able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | pudiera | s/he were able to, you (formal) were able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | pudiéramos | we were able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | pudierais | you (plural) were able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | pudieran | they were able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder 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, "pudiere", meaning "I will be able to".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | pudiere | I will be able to |
Tú | pudieres | you will be able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | pudiere | s/he will be able to, you (formal) will be able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | pudiéremos | we will be able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | pudiereis | you (plural) will be able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | pudieren | they will be able to, |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder 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 podido", meaning "I have been able to".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | haya podido | I have been able to |
Tú | hayas podido | you have been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | haya podido | s/he has been able to, you (formal) have been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | hayamos podido | we have been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | hayáis podido | you (plural) have been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hayan podido | they have been able to, |
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Poder 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 podido", meaning "I had been able to".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | hubiera podido | I had been able to |
Tú | hubieras podido | you had been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | hubiera podido | s/he had been able to, you (formal) had been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéramos podido | we had been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | hubierais podido | you (plural) had been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieran podido | they had been able to, |
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Poder 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 podido", meaning "I will have been able to".
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | hubiere podido | I will have been able to |
Tú | hubieres podido | you will have been able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | hubiere podido | s/he will have been able to, you (formal) will have been able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéremos podido | we will have been able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | hubiereis podido | you (plural) will have been able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieren podido | they will have been able to, |
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Imperative Tenses of Poder
Poder in the Imperative Affirmative
The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, "pueda", meaning "(to you formal) be! able to".
In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | - | - |
Tú | puede | (to you) be! able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | pueda | (to you formal) be! able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | podamos | let's be! able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | poded | (to you plural) be! able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | puedan | (to you plural formal) be! able to |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Poder in the Imperative Negative
The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, "no pueda", meaning "(to you formal) don't be! able to".
In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".
Pronoun | Spanish | English |
---|---|---|
Yo | - | - |
Tú | no puedas | (to you) don't be! able to |
Ella / Él / Usted | no pueda | (to you formal) don't be! able to |
Nosotras / Nosotros | no podamos | let's not be! able to |
Vosotras / Vosotros | no podáis | (to you plural) don't be! able to |
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | no puedan | (to you plural formal) don't be! able to |
The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.
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Example sentences and usage
- A veces él puede ser un chico raro. Sometimes he can be a strange guy.
- Algunas veces no puedo evitar mostrar mis sentimientos. Sometimes I can't help showing emotions.
- Te sorprendería lo que puedes aprender en una semana. You'd be surprised what you can learn in a week.
- No podemos dormir por el ruido. We can't sleep because of the noise.
- Cuando no puedas hacer lo que quieras, haz lo que puedas. When you can't do what you want, you do what you can.
- Puedes terminar tu ensayo ahora. You can finish your essay now.
- ¿Cuándo se puede decir que una persona tiene problemas con el alcohol? When can one say that a person has alcohol issues?
- "¿Alguien puede ayudarme?" "Yo lo haré". Can somebody help me?" "I will.
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Downloadable cheat sheets
Download and print a cheat sheet of Poder Spanish conjugation tables in image or PDF format:
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Practice Poder conjugations (free mobile & web app)
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Want to explore other verb conjugations?
Why not check out Poner – to put, to place or see the complete list of verbs here.
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Poder: to be able to
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