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SPANISH VERB

deber

should, must

  • Regular -er verb
  • Gerund: debiendo
  • Past participle: debido

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I should
  2. tú you should
  3. usted, él, ella he/she should
  4. nosotros we should
  5. vosotros Spain you all should
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they should

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I should have
  2. tú you should have
  3. usted, él, ella he/she should have
  4. nosotros we should have
  5. vosotros Spain you all should have
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they should have

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I should have
  2. tú you should have
  3. usted, él, ella he/she should have
  4. nosotros we should have
  5. vosotros Spain you all should have
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they should have

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I should
  2. tú you should
  3. usted, él, ella he/she should
  4. nosotros we should
  5. vosotros Spain you all should
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they should

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I should
  2. tú you should
  3. usted, él, ella he/she should
  4. nosotros we should
  5. vosotros Spain you all should
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they should

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I should
  2. tú (that) you should
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she should
  4. nosotros (that) we should
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all should
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they should

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I should have
  2. tú (if) you should have
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she should have
  4. nosotros (if) we should have
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all should have
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they should have

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú
  2. usted
  3. nosotros
  4. vosotros Spain
  5. ustedes

How to use deber

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Debes tomar más agua con este calor.

    You should drink more water in this heat.

  2. Past

    Debiste avisarme que venían tus papás.

    You should have told me your parents were coming.

  3. Imperfect

    Debía llamar a mi abuela y se me olvidó.

    I was supposed to call my grandma and I forgot.

  4. Future

    Los invitados deberán llegar antes de las seis.

    The guests must arrive before six.

  5. Conditional

    ¿No deberíamos salir temprano para evitar el tráfico?

    Shouldn't we leave early to avoid the traffic?

  6. Present subjunctive

    No creo que debas trabajar con esa fiebre.

    I don't think you should work with that fever.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Debieras llamar a tu mamá, hace mucho que no la ves.

    You really should call your mom, it's been a while since you saw her.

  8. Imperative

    ¡No le deban favores a nadie, muchachos!

    Don't owe anyone favors, guys!

Good to know

  • "Deberías" is the gentle "you should"; "debes" is firmer, almost "you must".
  • "Debiste decirme" is "you should have told me": the preterite looks back at what wasn't done.

Where you hear deber

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Intermediate Level 2

  • Deberías descansar más, hija. You should rest more, sweetheart.
  • Me lo debiste decir antes. You should have told me sooner.
  • El paciente deberá tomar mucha agua. The patient must drink plenty of water.
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The End of Summer

Intermediate Level 2 · Deberías.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -er verb.