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referirse

How to conjugate Referirse in Spanish

referirse to refer to, to talk about, to mean (e.g. what do you mean?) Irregular Verb

At a glance: Referirse (to refer to, to talk about, to mean (e.g. what do you mean?)) is a widely used reflexive irregular verbs in Spanish. In the present tense: me refiero, te refieres, se refiere, nos referimos, os referís, se refieren. Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change e to ie (refiero, refieres, refiere, refieren); nosotros and vosotros are regular. It is also irregular in the preterite (se refirió), subjunctive and gerund (refiriendo).

Past participle: referido referred to
Gerund: refiriendo referring to
Similar: remitirse

Indicative tenses of Referirse
Subjunctive tenses of Referirse
Imperative tenses of Referirse
- Referirse in the Imperative Affirmative
- Referirse in the Imperative Negative
Verbs that follow the same patterns
Frequently asked questions
Downloadable cheat sheet (PDF)
Practise Referirse conjugations (free mobile app)

Referirse conjugation tables as a PDF

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Indicative tenses of Referirse

Referirse in the Indicative Present

The Indicative Present of referirse 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 refiero”, meaning “I refer to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me refiero	I refer to
Tú	te refieres	you refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se refiere	s/he refers to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos referimos	we refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os referís	you (plural) refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se refieren	they refer to

How it’s built: Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change e to ie (refiero, refieres, refiere, refieren); 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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Referirse in the Indicative Preterite

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me referí	I referred to
Tú	te referiste	you referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se refirió	s/he referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos referimos	we referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os referisteis	you (plural) referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se refirieron	they referred to

How it’s built: Ella/Él and ellas/ellos change e to i (refirió, refirieron); 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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Referirse in the Indicative Imperfect

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me refería	I used to refer to
Tú	te referías	you used to refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se refería	s/he used to refer to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos referíamos	we used to refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os referíais	you (plural) used to refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se referían	they used to refer to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Present Continuous

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me estoy refiriendo	I am referring to
Tú	te estás refiriendo	you are referring to
Ella / Él / Usted	se está refiriendo	s/he is referring to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos estamos refiriendo	we are referring to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os estáis refiriendo	you (plural) are referring to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se están refiriendo	they are referring to

How it’s built: Estar in the present (estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están) plus the irregular gerund refiriendo. 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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Referirse in the Indicative Informal Future

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me voy a referir	I am going to refer to
Tú	te vas a referir	you are going to refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se va a referir	s/he is going to refer to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos vamos a referir	we are going to refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os vais a referir	you (plural) are going to refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se van a referir	they are going to refer to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Future

The Indicative Future of referirse is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, “me referiré”, meaning “I will refer to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me referiré	I will refer to
Tú	te referirás	you will refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se referirá	s/he will refer to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos referiremos	we will refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os referiréis	you (plural) will refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se referirán	they will refer to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Conditional

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me referiría	I would refer to
Tú	te referirías	you would refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se referiría	s/he would refer to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos referiríamos	we would refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os referiríais	you (plural) would refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se referirían	they would refer to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Present Perfect

The Indicative Present Perfect of referirse 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 referido”, meaning “I have referred to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me he referido	I have referred to
Tú	te has referido	you have referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se ha referido	s/he has referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos hemos referido	we have referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os habéis referido	you (plural) have referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se han referido	they have referred to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Past Perfect

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me había referido	I had referred to
Tú	te habías referido	you had referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se había referido	s/he had referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos habíamos referido	we had referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os habíais referido	you (plural) had referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se habían referido	they had referred to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Future Perfect

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me habré referido	I will have referred to
Tú	te habrás referido	you will have referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se habrá referido	s/he will have referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos habremos referido	we will have referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os habréis referido	you (plural) will have referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se habrán referido	they will have referred to

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

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Referirse in the Indicative Conditional Perfect

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me habría referido	I would have referred to
Tú	te habrías referido	you would have referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se habría referido	s/he would have referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos habríamos referido	we would have referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os habríais referido	you (plural) would have referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se habrían referido	they would have referred to

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

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Subjunctive tenses of Referirse

Referirse 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 refiera”, meaning “I refer to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me refiera	I refer to
Tú	te refieras	you refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se refiera	s/he refers to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos refiramos	we refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os refiráis	you (plural) refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se refieran	they refer to

How it’s built: Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos follow the yo present, refiero (refiera, refieras, refiera, refieran); nosotros and vosotros change e to i (refiramos, refiráis). 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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Referirse 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 refiriera”, meaning “I referred to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me refiriera	I referred to
Tú	te refirieras	you referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se refiriera	s/he referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos refiriéramos	we referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os refirierais	you (plural) referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se refirieran	they referred to

How it’s built: Built on the irregular ellas/ellos preterite, refirieron: drop -ron and add the -ra endings; nosotros adds an accent (refiriéramos). 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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Referirse 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 refiriere”, meaning “I will refer to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me refiriere	I will refer to
Tú	te refirieres	you will refer to
Ella / Él / Usted	se refiriere	s/he will refer to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos refiriéremos	we will refer to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os refiriereis	you (plural) will refer to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se refirieren	they will refer to

How it’s built: Built on the irregular ellas/ellos preterite, refirieron: drop -ron and add the -re endings; nosotros adds an accent (refiriéremos). 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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Referirse 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 referido”, meaning “I have referred to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me haya referido	I have referred to
Tú	te hayas referido	you have referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se haya referido	s/he has referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos hayamos referido	we have referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os hayáis referido	you (plural) have referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se hayan referido	they have referred to

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

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Referirse 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 referido”, meaning “I had referred to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me hubiera referido	I had referred to
Tú	te hubieras referido	you had referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se hubiera referido	s/he had referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos hubiéramos referido	we had referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os hubierais referido	you (plural) had referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se hubieran referido	they had referred to

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

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Referirse 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 referido”, meaning “I will have referred to”.

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	me hubiere referido	I will have referred to
Tú	te hubieres referido	you will have referred to
Ella / Él / Usted	se hubiere referido	s/he will have referred to
Nosotras / Nosotros	nos hubiéremos referido	we will have referred to
Vosotras / Vosotros	os hubiereis referido	you (plural) will have referred to
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	se hubieren referido	they will have referred to

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

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Imperative tenses of Referirse

Referirse in the Imperative Affirmative

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	-	-
Tú	refiérete	(to you) refer to!
Ella / Él / Usted	refiérase	(to you formal) refer to!
Nosotras / Nosotros	refirámonos	let's refer to!
Vosotras / Vosotros	referíos	(to you plural) refer to!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	refiéranse	(to you plural formal) refer to!

How it’s built: Tú takes the ella/él present and attaches te (refiérete); usted and ustedes take the subjunctive present and attach se (refiérase, refiéranse); nosotros takes the subjunctive present, drops the s and attaches nos (refirámonos); vosotros drops the final r of the infinitive and attaches os (referíos).

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

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Referirse in the Imperative Negative

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

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

Pronoun	Spanish	English
Yo	-	-
Tú	no te refieras	(to you) don't refer to!
Ella / Él / Usted	no se refiera	(to you formal) don't refer to!
Nosotras / Nosotros	no nos refiramos	let's not refer to!
Vosotras / Vosotros	no os refiráis	(to you plural) don't refer to!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes	no se refieran	(to you plural formal) don't refer to!

How it’s built: No plus the subjunctive present: no te refieras, no se refiera, no nos refiramos, no os refiráis, no se refieran.

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

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Frequently asked questions about Referirse

Is referirse a regular or irregular verb?

Referirse is an irregular Spanish verb. In the present tense: yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change e to ie (refiero, refieres, refiere, refieren); nosotros and vosotros are regular. It is also irregular in the preterite (se refirió), subjunctive and gerund (refiriendo).

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

In the present tense (presente), referirse is conjugated as: yo me refiero, tú te refieres, él/ella/usted se refiere, nosotros nos referimos, vosotros os referís, ellos/ellas/ustedes se refieren. 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 referirse in the preterite (pretérito indefinido)?

In the preterite (pretérito indefinido), referirse is conjugated as: yo me referí, tú te referiste, él/ella/usted se refirió, nosotros nos referimos, vosotros os referisteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se refirieron. The preterite is used To talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time.

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

In the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto), referirse is conjugated as: yo me refería, tú te referías, él/ella/usted se refería, nosotros nos referíamos, vosotros os referíais, ellos/ellas/ustedes se referían. 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 referirse in the future tense (futuro simple)?

In the future tense (futuro simple), referirse is conjugated as: yo me referiré, tú te referirás, él/ella/usted se referirá, nosotros nos referiremos, vosotros os referiréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se referirán. The future tense is used To talk about something that will happen in the future.

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

In the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente), referirse is conjugated as: yo me refiera, tú te refieras, él/ella/usted se refiera, nosotros nos refiramos, vosotros os refiráis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se refieran. 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 referir and referirse?

Referir means ‘to refer’ and referirse means ‘to refer to, to talk about, to mean (e.g. what do you mean?)’. Referirse is the reflexive form of referir, 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 refiero becomes me refiero. In the affirmative tú imperative the pronoun attaches to the end of the verb, so refiere becomes refiérete.

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How to conjugate Referirse in Spanish

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