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fluentbyear

SPANISH VERB

decir

to say, to tell

  • #6 most used
  • Irregular -ir verb
  • Gerund: diciendo
  • Past participle: dicho

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

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

Imperfect

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

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Past subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

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

  1. tú say!
  2. usted say! (formal)
  3. nosotros say! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain say! (all of you)
  5. ustedes say! (all of you)

How to use decir

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

  1. Present

    ¿Cómo se dice "camión" en inglés?

    How do you say "camión" in English?

  2. Past

    Mi mamá dijo que la cena está lista.

    My mom said dinner is ready.

  3. Imperfect

    Mi abuelo siempre decía: "Más vale tarde que nunca".

    My grandfather always said: "Better late than never."

  4. Future

    Te diré la verdad: no me gustó la película.

    I will tell you the truth: I didn't like the movie.

  5. Conditional

    Yo diría que llegamos en una hora.

    I would say we will arrive in an hour.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Que diga lo que quiera, no me importa.

    Let him say what he wants, I don't care.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Le pedí que no dijera nada a mi mamá.

    I asked him not to say anything to my mom.

  8. Imperative

    Dime la verdad, ¿rompiste el vaso?

    Tell me the truth, did you break the glass?

Good to know

  • ¿Cómo se dice...? is "how do you say...?"; dime is "tell me".

Where you hear decir

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

Spanish · Beginner Level 1

  • Mi abuela dice que eres bienvenida. My grandmother says you're welcome.
  • Le dije gracias a Valeria. I said thank you to Valeria.
  • Voy a decirle que regreso mañana. I'm going to tell her I'm coming back tomorrow.

Spanish · Beginner Level 2

  • Dice que habla un poco de español. She says she speaks a little Spanish.
  • Elena dijo que aquí tengo mi casa. Elena said I have a home here.
  • ¿Qué va a decir tu mamá? What's your mom going to say?
29
I'm Going to Miss You

Beginner Level 1 · mi abuela dice

Needs a subscription 20
How Do You Feel?

Beginner Level 2 · dice que

Needs a subscription 21
What Is the Day of the Dead?

Beginner Level 2 · se dice

Needs a subscription 24
This Is My Sister

Beginner Level 2 · dijo · dice que

Needs a subscription 25
Have You Ever Tried Them?

Beginner Level 2 · no me dijiste

Needs a subscription 29
I've Decided

Beginner Level 2 · dijo que

Needs a subscription 4
What Brings You Here?

Beginner Level 3 · te dijo

Needs a subscription 5
It's My Treat

Beginner Level 3 · decir · para decir gracias por el viaje

Needs a subscription 8
I'll Take You

Beginner Level 3 · me dijo

Needs a subscription 18
Camila's Story

Beginner Level 3 · dijeron

Needs a subscription 19
Friends?

Beginner Level 3 · dije

Needs a subscription 21
Seven Colours

Beginner Level 3 · dicen

Needs a subscription

And 59 more lessons.

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -ir verb.