Expedición Condicional

Hipótesis, consejos y la fórmula "Would"

Hypothetical Situations, Polite Requests & Giving Advice

1 What is the Conditional Tense?

In English, to express possibilities, hypothetical actions, or polite requests, we use helper words like "would," "could," or "should". In Spanish, you do not use an extra helper word. Instead, you change the ending of the verb to express the exact same idea!

English: I would like to go to the park. ➔ Spanish: Me gustaría ir al parque.
English: We would eat at the restaurant. ➔ Spanish: Nosotros comeríamos en el restaurante.

2 How to Form It (The Formula)

The conditional is one of the easiest tenses in Spanish because it uses the exact same endings for all -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs, added directly to the full infinitive verb!

The Endings (add directly to Infinitive):
Yo -ía · Tú -ías · Él/Ella -ía · Nosotros -íamos · Vosotros -íais · Ellos -ían
Notice that ALL endings have a written accent mark over the "i".

Example (Hablar): Yo hablaría · tú hablarías · él hablaría · nosotros hablaríamos · vosotros hablaríais · ellos hablarían.

! Verbos Irregulares — Irregular Stems

For irregular verbs, do not use the infinitive. Instead, use these special irregular stems, and add the same conditional endings (-ía, -ías...).

Group	Infinitive	Irregular Stem	Yo Form Example
Group 1: Drop the "e"	Poder (Can/Could)	podr-	Yo podría (I could)
	Saber (To know)	sabr-	Yo sabría
	Haber (There is)	habr-	Habría (There would be)
Group 2: Add a "d"	Tener (To have)	tendr-	Yo tendría
	Poner (To put)	pondr-	Yo pondría
	Salir (To leave)	saldr-	Yo saldría
	Venir (To come)	vendr-	Yo vendría
Group 3: Shorteners	Hacer (To do/make)	har-	Yo haría (I would do)
Group 3: Shorteners	Decir (To say)	dir-	Yo diría (I would say)

🛑 English Trap Alert: Do NOT use the conditional for past habits (e.g. "When I was a kid, I would play outside"). In Spanish, this must be in the Imperfect tense (Cuando era niño, jugaba...).

PRÁCTICA: EL CONDICIONAL

Español con Alas Propias · Nivel A2.3

3 Uses of the Conditional

A. Polite Requests ("Could / Would like")

Make requests softer and more polite.
Formula: [Cond. of poder/gustar] + [Infinitive] ¿Podrías ayudarme? (Could you help me?) Me gustaría comer. (I would like to eat.)

B. Giving Advice ("Should")

Give suggestions to others.
Formula: Deberías + [Infinitive] Deberías estudiar un poco cada día. (You should study a little every day.)

C. Hypothetical Situations with "If"

Dreaming about unreal situations.
Formula: Si + [Imperfect Subj.] + [Cond.] Si tuviera dinero, viajaría por el mundo. (If I had money, I would travel the world.)

D. Implicit Conditions ("But...")

Things you would do, but can't.
Formula: [Cond.] + pero + [Present Reason] La invitaría, pero sé que no va a venir. (I would invite her, but I know she won't come.)

4 Exercise 1: Fill in the Blanks

Conjugate the verb in parentheses into the Conditional Tense:

A Elena le (gustar) ir a París este verano.
Yo (dormir) toda la tarde, pero tengo que trabajar.
Señorita, ¿nos (poder) traer más agua?
Nosotros no (saber) qué decir en esa situación difícil.
Bruno me (comprar) un reloj nuevo pero no tiene dinero.

5 Exercise 2: Translate to Spanish

Apply the grammar formulas:

I would like to book a table for two. ➔
You should watch a Spanish series. ➔
Could you help me, please? ➔

6 Exercise 3: What would you do?

Answer the hypothetical questions:

Si fueras un superhéroe, ¿qué harías? (If you were a superhero, what would you do?)
Si tuvieras un millón de dólares, ¿qué comprarías? (If you had a million dollars, what would you buy?)