Poder Conjugation

Poder is a Spanish irregular ER verb meaning "to be able to" or "can". Irregular verbs are verbs which do not follow the standard conjugation patterns of Spanish regular verbs.

Poder is ranked on the 100 Most Used Spanish Verbs Poster as the #10 most used irregular verb.

Poder Conjugation

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	puedo	I am able to
Tú	puedes	You are able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	puede	He/She is able to
Nosotros	podemos	We are able to
Vosotros	podéis	You (plural) are able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	pueden	They are able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

Poder Participio

The Participio or Past Participle of Poder is podido. This is used to form the Poder Present Perfect and the Poder Past Perfect.

Poder Gerundio

The Gerundio or Present Participle of Poder is podiendo. This is used to form the Poder Present Continuous.

Poder Present Continuous

The Present Continuous (presente progresivo or presente continuo) is used to describe actions that are happening right now or around now. To form the present continuous tense, combine the Estar conjugation with the Poder Gerundio (or Present Participle).

Example: Él está siendo muy egoísta últimamente. (He is being very selfish lately.)

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	estoy podiendo	I am being able to
Tú	estás podiendo	You are being able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	está podiendo	He/She is being able to
Nosotros	estamos podiendo	We are being able to
Vosotros	estáis podiendo	You (plural) are being able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	están podiendo	They are being able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Past Tense

Spanish has several past tenses, each serving a specific purpose to express actions in the past.

Additionally, the use of Spanish past tenses can vary significantly across regions due to cultural and linguistic differences.

These are some of the most commonly used Spanish past tenses:

Poder Preterite

The Preterite Tense (Pretérito or Indefinido) is used for completed actions in the past that have a clear beginning or end.

Example: Ayer comí pizza. (Yesterday, I ate pizza).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	pude	I was able to
Tú	pudiste	You were able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	pudo	He/She was able to
Nosotros	pudimos	We were able to
Vosotros	pudisteis	You (plural) were able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	pudieron	They were able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Imperfect

The Imperfect Tense (Imperfecto) describes ongoing, habitual, or background actions in the past, often without a defined start or end.

Example: Cuando era niño, jugaba fútbol todos los días. (When I was a child, I used to play soccer every day).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	podía	I used to be able to
Tú	podías	You used to be able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	podía	He/She used to be able to
Nosotros	podíamos	We used to be able to
Vosotros	podíais	You (plural) used to be able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	podían	They used to be able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Present Perfect

The Present Perfect Tense (Presente Perfecto) is used to describe actions that have been completed recently or have relevance to the present moment. The Present Perfect Tense is formed by combining the Present Tense of the auxiliary verb Haber Conjugation with the Poder Participio.

Example: He leído ese libro. (I have read that book).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	he podido	I have been able to
Tú	has podido	You have been able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	ha podido	He/She has been able to
Nosotros	hemos podido	We have been able to
Vosotros	habéis podido	You (plural) have been able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	han podido	They have been able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Past Perfect

The Past Perfect Tense (Pluscuamperfecto) refers to actions completed before another action in the past. The Past Perfect Tense is formed by combining the Imperfect Tense of the auxiliary verb Haber Conjugation with the Poder Participio.

Example: Había comido antes de salir. (I had eaten before leaving).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	había podido	I had been able to
Tú	habías podido	You had been able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	había podido	He/She had been able to
Nosotros	habíamos podido	We had been able to
Vosotros	habíais podido	You (plural) had been able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	habían podido	They had been able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Future Tense

The Future Tense (Futuro) is used to describe actions or events that will happen in the future. It often expresses certainty or plans about what is yet to come.

Example: Mañana comeré pizza. (Tomorrow, I will eat pizza).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	podré	I will be able to
Tú	podrás	You will be able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	podrá	He/She will be able to
Nosotros	podremos	We will be able to
Vosotros	podréis	You (plural) will be able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	podrán	They will be able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Conditional Tense

The Conditional Tense (Condicional) is used to express hypothetical situations, polite requests, or actions that depend on other conditions. It is often used in combination with the Future Tense.

Example: Me gustaría un café, por favor.(I would like a coffee, please).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	podría	I would be able to
Tú	podrías	You would be able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	podría	He/She would be able to
Nosotros	podríamos	We would be able to
Vosotros	podríais	You (plural) would be able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	podrían	They would be able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Poder Subjunctive

The Subjunctive Tense (Subjuntivo) is used to express doubt, uncertainty, desire, or emotion. It is often used in dependent clauses introduced by specific conjunctions or verbs.

Example: Espero que seas feliz. (I hope you are happy).

Pronoun	Conjugation	Translation
Yo	pueda	I am able to
Tú	puedas	You are able to
Él/Ella/Ud.	pueda	He/She is able to
Nosotros	podamos	We are able to
Vosotros	podáis	You (plural) are able to
Ellos/Ellas/Uds.	puedan	They are able to

* Irregular forms are highlighted in red

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Spanish Regular Verbs

A verb is called a regular verb when its conjugation follows a consistent and predictable pattern. In contrast, a verb that does not follow these standard patterns is called an irregular verb. In Spanish, the three regular conjugation patterns are based on the verb endings: -AR, -ER, and -IR.

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Spanish Conjugation Chart

Looking for more Spanish verbs like Poder? Check out our Spanish Conjugation Chart, the 100 Most Used Spanish Verbs Poster!

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