Plans, wishes & possibilities
What you would do
Conditional
Express what would happen or make a softened request.
Endings refresher
Conditional
Add these endings to the whole infinitive. Special stems match the simple future.
| Person | All verb endings |
|---|---|
| yo | -ía |
| tú | -ías |
| él / ella / usted | -ía |
| nosotros / nosotras | -íamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | -íais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | -ían |
hacer uses har- + -ía → yo haría
- For a regular verb: hablar + -ía → hablaría. Compare hacer: hacía is imperfect; haría is conditional. The stem, not just the ending, matters.
- These charts use tú. Vosotros / vosotras is mainly used in Spain; ustedes uses the final row. Vos forms vary by region.
The pattern
- Forms below follow: yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, ellos/ustedes. Vosotros is mainly used in Spain; ustedes uses the final form.
- Add -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían to the infinitive.
- Irregular stems match the future: tendría, podría, haría, diría.
Me gustaría viajar más.
I would like to travel more.
Why it works: Gustaría softens the wish. In me gustaría viajar, viajar is the activity that would please me, so gustaría is singular.
Notice the difference
Me gusta viajar.
I like traveling.
Why it works: Gusta describes a present preference. Gustaría frames what I would like, rather than simply stating what I already like.
One thing to watch for
Quisiera is also polite, but its form is imperfect subjunctive, not conditional.