Ella VerbsHow to conjugate Recibir in Spanish
recibir to receive Regular IR Verb Top 100
At a glance: Recibir (to receive) is one of the most common regular -IR verbs in Spanish. In the present tense: recibo, recibes, recibe, recibimos, recibís, reciben. Because it is fully regular, its endings apply directly to hundreds of other -IR verbs.
- Past participle
- recibido received
- Gerund
- recibiendo receiving
Table of contents
- Indicative tenses of Recibir
- Recibir in the Indicative Present
- Recibir in the Indicative Preterite
- Recibir in the Indicative Imperfect
- Recibir in the Indicative Present Continuous
- Recibir in the Indicative Informal Future
- Recibir in the Indicative Future
- Recibir in the Indicative Conditional
- Recibir in the Indicative Present Perfect
- Recibir in the Indicative Past Perfect
- Recibir in the Indicative Future Perfect
- Recibir in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
- Subjunctive tenses of Recibir
- Imperative tenses of Recibir
- Verbs that follow the same patterns
- Example sentences and usage
- Frequently asked questions
- Downloadable cheat sheet (PDF)
- Practise Recibir conjugations (free mobile app)
Recibir conjugation tables as a PDF
A printable two-page cheat sheet, sent to your inbox.
Indicative tenses of Recibir
Recibir in the Indicative Present
The Indicative Present of recibir 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, “recibo un regalo”, meaning “I receive a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibo | I receive |
| Tú | recibes | you receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibe | s/he receives |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibimos | we receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibís | you (plural) receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | reciben | they receive |
How it’s built: Regular: stem recib- plus the -ir endings.
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Recibir in the Indicative Preterite
The Indicative Preterite of recibir is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, “recibí un regalo”, meaning “I received a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibí | I received |
| Tú | recibiste | you received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibió | s/he received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibimos | we received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibisteis | you (plural) received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | recibieron | they received |
How it’s built: Regular: stem recib- plus the -ir endings.
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Recibir in the Indicative Imperfect
The Indicative Imperfect of recibir is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, “recibía un regalo”, meaning “I used to receive a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibía | I used to receive |
| Tú | recibías | you used to receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibía | s/he used to receive |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibíamos | we used to receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibíais | you (plural) used to receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | recibían | they used to receive |
How it’s built: Regular: stem recib- plus the -ir endings.
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Recibir in the Indicative Present Continuous
The Indicative Present Continuous of recibir is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, “estoy recibiendo un regalo”, meaning “I am receiving a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | estoy recibiendo | I am receiving |
| Tú | estás recibiendo | you are receiving |
| Ella / Él / Usted | está recibiendo | s/he is receiving |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | estamos recibiendo | we are receiving |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | estáis recibiendo | you (plural) are receiving |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | están recibiendo | they are receiving |
How it’s built: Estar in the present (estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están) plus the gerund recibiendo.
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Recibir in the Indicative Informal Future
The Indicative Informal Future of recibir is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, “voy a recibir un regalo”, meaning “I am going to receive a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | voy a recibir | I am going to receive |
| Tú | vas a recibir | you are going to receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | va a recibir | s/he is going to receive |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | vamos a recibir | we are going to receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | vais a recibir | you (plural) are going to receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | van a recibir | they are going to receive |
How it’s built: Ir in the present (voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van), then a, then the infinitive recibir.
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Recibir in the Indicative Future
The Indicative Future of recibir is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, “recibiré un regalo”, meaning “I will receive a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibiré | I will receive |
| Tú | recibirás | you will receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibirá | s/he will receive |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibiremos | we will receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibiréis | you (plural) will receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | recibirán | they will receive |
How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive recibir plus the future endings.
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Recibir in the Indicative Conditional
The Indicative Conditional of recibir is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, “recibiría un regalo”, meaning “I would receive a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibiría | I would receive |
| Tú | recibirías | you would receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibiría | s/he would receive |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibiríamos | we would receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibiríais | you (plural) would receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | recibirían | they would receive |
How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive recibir plus the conditional endings.
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Recibir in the Indicative Present Perfect
The Indicative Present Perfect of recibir 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 recibido un regalo”, meaning “I have received a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | he recibido | I have received |
| Tú | has recibido | you have received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | ha recibido | s/he has received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hemos recibido | we have received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habéis recibido | you (plural) have received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | han recibido | they have received |
How it’s built: Haber in the present (he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han) plus the past participle recibido.
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Recibir in the Indicative Past Perfect
The Indicative Past Perfect of recibir is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, “había recibido un regalo”, meaning “I had received a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | había recibido | I had received |
| Tú | habías recibido | you had received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | había recibido | s/he had received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habíamos recibido | we had received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habíais recibido | you (plural) had received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habían recibido | they had received |
How it’s built: Haber in the imperfect (había, habías, había, habíamos, habíais, habían) plus the past participle recibido.
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Recibir in the Indicative Future Perfect
The Indicative Future Perfect of recibir is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, “habré recibido un regalo”, meaning “I will have received a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habré recibido | I will have received |
| Tú | habrás recibido | you will have received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habrá recibido | s/he will have received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habremos recibido | we will have received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habréis recibido | you (plural) will have received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrán recibido | they will have received |
How it’s built: Haber in the future (habré, habrás, habrá, habremos, habréis, habrán) plus the past participle recibido.
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Recibir in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
The Indicative Conditional Perfect of recibir is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, “habría recibido un regalo”, meaning “I would have received a present”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habría recibido | I would have received |
| Tú | habrías recibido | you would have received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habría recibido | s/he would have received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habríamos recibido | we would have received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habríais recibido | you (plural) would have received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrían recibido | they would have received |
How it’s built: Haber in the conditional (habría, habrías, habría, habríamos, habríais, habrían) plus the past participle recibido.
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Subjunctive tenses of Recibir
Recibir 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, “reciba”, meaning “I receive”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | reciba | I receive |
| Tú | recibas | you receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | reciba | s/he receives |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibamos | we receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibáis | you (plural) receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | reciban | they receive |
How it’s built: Regular: stem recib- plus the -ir subjunctive endings.
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Recibir 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, “recibiera”, meaning “I received”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibiera | I received |
| Tú | recibieras | you received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibiera | s/he received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibiéramos | we received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibierais | you (plural) received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | recibieran | they received |
How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, recibieron, without -ron, plus the -ra endings; nosotros adds an accent (recibiéramos).
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Recibir 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, “recibiere”, meaning “I will receive”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | recibiere | I will receive |
| Tú | recibieres | you will receive |
| Ella / Él / Usted | recibiere | s/he will receive |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibiéremos | we will receive |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibiereis | you (plural) will receive |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | recibieren | they will receive |
How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, recibieron, without -ron, plus the -re endings; nosotros adds an accent (recibiéremos).
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Recibir 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 recibido”, meaning “I have received”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | haya recibido | I have received |
| Tú | hayas recibido | you have received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | haya recibido | s/he has received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hayamos recibido | we have received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hayáis recibido | you (plural) have received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hayan recibido | they have received |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive present (haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan) plus the past participle recibido.
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Recibir 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 recibido”, meaning “I had received”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiera recibido | I had received |
| Tú | hubieras recibido | you had received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiera recibido | s/he had received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéramos recibido | we had received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubierais recibido | you (plural) had received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieran recibido | they had received |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive imperfect (hubiera, hubieras, hubiera, hubiéramos, hubierais, hubieran) plus the past participle recibido.
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Recibir 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 recibido”, meaning “I will have received”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiere recibido | I will have received |
| Tú | hubieres recibido | you will have received |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiere recibido | s/he will have received |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéremos recibido | we will have received |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubiereis recibido | you (plural) will have received |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieren recibido | they will have received |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive future (hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren) plus the past participle recibido.
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Imperative tenses of Recibir
Recibir in the Imperative Affirmative
The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, “reciba”, meaning “(to you formal) receive!”.
In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | recibe | (to you) receive! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | reciba | (to you formal) receive! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | recibamos | let's receive! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | recibid | (to you plural) receive! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | reciban | (to you plural formal) receive! |
How it’s built: Tú takes the ella/él present (recibe); usted, nosotros and ustedes take the subjunctive present (reciba, recibamos, reciban); vosotros swaps the final r of the infinitive for a d (recibid).
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Recibir in the Imperative Negative
The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, “no reciba”, meaning “(to you formal) don't receive!”.
In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | no recibas | (to you) don't receive! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | no reciba | (to you formal) don't receive! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | no recibamos | let's not receive! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | no recibáis | (to you plural) don't receive! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | no reciban | (to you plural formal) don't receive! |
How it’s built: No plus the subjunctive present: no recibas, no reciba, no recibamos, no recibáis, no reciban.
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Example sentences and usage
- El pueblo recibía un aluvión de turistas en verano. The town was deluged with tourists in summer.
- Recibirás una bicicleta para tu cumpleaños. You shall have a bicycle for your birthday.
- Kioto recibe muchos turistas de todo el mundo. Kyoto gets lots of visitors from all over the world.
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Frequently asked questions about Recibir
Is recibir a regular or irregular verb?
Recibir is a fully regular -IR verb. It follows the standard -IR conjugation pattern in every tense and mood without any stem changes, spelling changes, or irregular forms. This makes it a model verb for learning the -IR conjugation system.
How do you conjugate recibir in the present tense (presente)?
In the present tense (presente), recibir is conjugated as: yo recibo, tú recibes, él/ella/usted recibe, nosotros recibimos, vosotros recibís, ellos/ellas/ustedes reciben. 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 recibir in the preterite (pretérito indefinido)?
In the preterite (pretérito indefinido), recibir is conjugated as: yo recibí, tú recibiste, él/ella/usted recibió, nosotros recibimos, vosotros recibisteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes recibieron. The preterite is used To talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time.
How do you conjugate recibir in the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto)?
In the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto), recibir is conjugated as: yo recibía, tú recibías, él/ella/usted recibía, nosotros recibíamos, vosotros recibíais, ellos/ellas/ustedes recibían. 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 recibir in the future tense (futuro simple)?
In the future tense (futuro simple), recibir is conjugated as: yo recibiré, tú recibirás, él/ella/usted recibirá, nosotros recibiremos, vosotros recibiréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes recibirán. The future tense is used To talk about something that will happen in the future.
How do you conjugate recibir in the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente)?
In the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente), recibir is conjugated as: yo reciba, tú recibas, él/ella/usted reciba, nosotros recibamos, vosotros recibáis, ellos/ellas/ustedes reciban. 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 are some common example sentences using recibir?
Here are everyday sentences using recibir: El pueblo recibía un aluvión de turistas en verano. (The town was deluged with tourists in summer.) Recibirás una bicicleta para tu cumpleaños. (You shall have a bicycle for your birthday.) Kioto recibe muchos turistas de todo el mundo. (Kyoto gets lots of visitors from all over the world.)
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Downloadable cheat sheets
Download and print a cheat sheet of Recibir Spanish conjugation tables in image or PDF format:
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Practise Recibir conjugations (free mobile & web app)
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About Ella Verbs
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Want to explore other verb conjugations?
Why not check out Reclamar – to claim, to reclaim or see the complete list of verbs here.
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