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SPANISH VERB

hablar

to speak

  • #21 most used
  • Regular -ar verb
  • Gerund: hablando
  • Past participle: hablado

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

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

Imperfect

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

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Past subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use hablar

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

  1. Present

    Mis papás hablan español e inglés en casa.

    My parents speak Spanish and English at home.

  2. Past

    Anoche hablé con mi jefa por teléfono.

    Last night I spoke with my boss on the phone.

  3. Imperfect

    Antes hablábamos todos los días, ¿te acuerdas?

    We used to talk every day, remember?

  4. Future

    Hablaré con el gerente mañana temprano.

    I will talk to the manager early tomorrow.

  5. Conditional

    Yo hablaría más despacio con los niños.

    I would speak more slowly with the kids.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Quiero que hables con tu hermana hoy.

    I want you to talk to your sister today.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Me pidieron que hablara en la junta.

    They asked me to speak at the meeting.

  8. Imperative

    ¡Habla más fuerte, no te oigo!

    Speak louder, I can't hear you!

Good to know

  • Hablar con is to talk to someone; hablar de is to talk about something.

Where you hear hablar

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

Spanish · Beginner Level 1

  • Hablo español y un poco de inglés. I speak Spanish and a little English.
  • Ayer hablé con mi mamá. Yesterday I spoke with my mom.
  • Mañana voy a hablar con Diego. Tomorrow I'm going to talk to Diego.

Spanish · Beginner Level 2

  • Te hablo de tú. I'll speak to you the friendly way.
  • Hablé con la doctora el viernes. I talked to the doctor on Friday.
  • El sábado vamos a hablar mucho. On Saturday we're going to talk a lot.
2
Where Are You From?

Beginner Level 1 · hablas · hablo · Hablo un poco. · no hablo

Free 13
What Time Is It?

Beginner Level 1 · hablar

Needs a subscription 18
Do You Have Brothers and Sisters?

Beginner Level 1 · hablan

Needs a subscription 28
When Are You Leaving?

Beginner Level 1 · no hablaba

Needs a subscription 9
First, Cut the Onion

Beginner Level 2 · háblame

Needs a subscription 14
When I Was a Child

Beginner Level 2 · hablaba

Needs a subscription 30
Almost Two Months Already

Beginner Level 2 · que no hablo

Needs a subscription 1
How Long Will You Stay?

Beginner Level 3 · hablar · hablaré · hablará

Free 4
What Brings You Here?

Beginner Level 3 · me habló de ti · hablamos · hablaba · lo habla

Needs a subscription 10
A Call from Oaxaca

Beginner Level 3 · le hablaré

Needs a subscription 16
The Pink Flamingos

Beginner Level 3 · hablaste

Needs a subscription 21
Seven Colours

Beginner Level 3 · me hablen

Needs a subscription

And 22 more lessons.

Verbs like this one

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