The verb poder (to be able/can) is a high-frequency verb that will help you communicate about your abilities, ask permission, make excuses, express potential, and more. Learning the power of poder can unlock important questions and answers for ordering in a restaurant or asking for help next time you travel.
This guide will review how to conjugate poder in Spanish in all the main tenses and show you how each tense can affect the meaning of the verb. In line with Rosetta Stone’s Dynamic Immersion method, example sentences will help unlock your understanding of this essential verb.
Table of Contents
What does poder mean?
In its infinitive form or unconjugated form, the verb poder translates as “to be able.”
- Él espera poder sacar una buena foto de los elefantes. = He hopes to be able to take a good photo of elephants.
- Queremos vivir en Colombia por un año para poder practicar español. = We want to live in Colombia for a year in order to be able to practice Spanish.
You’ll use this infinitive form when it follows another conjugated verb where the subject does not change as in the examples above. It will commonly follow verbs like querer (to want), esperar (to hope), and phrases with the Spanish verb gustar (to be pleasing/like).
It also appears directly after Spanish prepositions like para (in order to).
Overview of poder conjugation in the Spanish tenses
The verb poder is one of the most common irregular verbs in Spanish. Here is how to conjugate poder in the main tenses at a glance.
| Subject Pronouns | Present (can) |
Preterite (was able) |
Imperfect (could/was able) |
Future (will be able) |
| Yo I |
puedo | pude | podía | podré |
| Tú you (singular informal) |
puedes | pudiste | podías | podrás |
| Usted you (singular formal) |
puede | pudo | podía | podrá |
| Él/Ella he/she |
puede | pudo | podía | podrá |
| Nosotros/Nosotras we |
podemos | pudimos | podíamos | podremos |
| Vosotros/Vosotras you (plural informal – Spain) |
podéis | pudisteis | podíais | podréis |
| Ellos/Ellas they |
pueden | pudieron | podían | podrán |
Next, you’ll learn how and when to use each of these tenses to say “be able” and “can” in Spanish with examples to help you see the verb in action.
How to use the present tense conjugation of poder
Saying poder in the present tense is a way to express what someone can, or is able, to do. It’s followed by the infinitive Spanish verb for the action.
Many times the translation is simply “can” in English. Use it to talk about the languages you can speak, when you’re available to spend time with a friend, or to ask for help.
The next time you’re on the phone or an online videocall, you might ask if the person can hear you.
- ¿Me puede oír? = Can you hear me?
- Sí, lo puedo oír ahora. = Yes, I can hear you now.
Poder is commonly used to ask permission, using “can” in Spanish. For example, “can I go to the bathroom?” in Spanish classrooms is ¿Puedo ir al baño?
- Mamá, ¿puedo jugar con nuestra nueva vecina? = Mom, can I play with our new neighbor?
- Sí, puedes. ¡Diviértete! = Yes, you can. Have fun!
You’ll hear poder in polite interactions in public as well, such as “Can I help you?” in Spanish.
- Hola. ¿Puedo ayudarle? = Hello, can I help you?
Encourage others with expressions like “you can do it!” in Spanish.
- ¡Tú puedes hacerlo! = You can do it!
It can also be helpful when making plans. If you can’t make it or need to decline an invitation, use poder.
- ¿Quieres venir conmigo a un restaurante francés el viernes? = Do you want to come with me to a French restaurant on Friday?
- Lo siento, no puedo. El viernes voy a cenar con mi abuela. = Sorry, I can’t. Friday I’m going to have dinner with my grandmother.
In this chart, you can see that poder is a stem-changing verb when conjugated in the present tense, meaning that you’ll see the “o” change to “ue” in all forms except nosotros/vosotros. Otherwise the endings are the same as other-ER verbs in Spanish.
poder – to be able/can
| Spanish Present Tense | English |
| yo puedo | I can |
| tú puedes | you can (singular/informal) |
| usted puede | you can (singular/formal) |
| él/ella puede | he/she can |
| nosotros/nosotras podemos | we can |
| vosotros/vosotras podéis | you can (informal plural – Spain only) |
| ustedes pueden | you can (plural) |
| ellos/ellas pueden | they can |
Poder in the Spanish past tenses
There are two main past tenses in Spanish, so you’ll choose between the preterite and the imperfect tenses.
It’s important to remember that the meaning of poder changes in the preterite tense. If you can share stories with a friend, or a Rosetta Stone tutor, it’s an excellent way to practice the difference between these two tenses.
When to use poder in the preterite tense
The Spanish preterite tense of poder indicates that the subject was either able or unable to do something in a specific instance or for a set period of time in the past.
- Ayer paró de llover, así que pude hacer ejercicio afuera. = Yesterday it stopped raining, so I was able to exercise outside.
- Nadie pudo manejar por la tormenta de nieve. = No one was able to drive because of the snowstorm.
This poder conjugation uses the irregular stem pud- and irregular endings. These are the same endings for a group of common irregular verbs in the preterite, including tener (to have) and estar (to be).
poder – to be able/can
| Spanish Preterite Tense | English |
| yo pude | I was able |
| tú pudiste | you were able (singular/informal) |
| usted pudo | you were able (singular/formal) |
| él/ella pudo | he/she was able |
| nosotros/nosotras pudimos | we were able |
| vosotros/vosotras pudisteis | you were able (informal plural, Spain only) |
| ustedes pudieron | you were able (plural) |
| ellos/ellas pudieron | they were able |
Describe what you ‘could’ do with poder in the imperfect
The Spanish imperfect tense of poder is used when describing someone’s ability or permission over a more extended or less defined period of time in the past.
It can be translated as “could.” The imperfect of poder is a great way to reminisce about the abilities of your youth.
- Cuando era más joven, podía correr un kilómetro en tres minutos. = When I was younger, I could run a kilometer in 3 minutes.
- Cuando era niña no podía tocar el piano muy bien. = When I was a young girl, I couldn’t play the piano very well.
In the imperfect tense, poder has a regular conjugation.
poder – to be able/can
| Spanish Imperfect Tense | English |
| yo podía | I could |
| tú podías | you could (singular/informal) |
| usted podía | you could (singular/formal) |
| él/ella podía | he/she could |
| nosotros/nosotras podíamos | we could |
| vosotros/vosotras podíais | you could (informal plural – Spain only) |
| ustedes podían | you could (plural) |
| ellos/ellas podían | they could |
Discussing future abilities with poder
Setting goals for the future? Tell about your plans by speaking in the future timeframe. You have two Spanish future tenses to choose from when discussing what someone will be able to do in the future.
- The near future tense of poder is formed with ir (to go) + a + poder (infinitive).
- Voy a poder comprar un boleto mañana. = I’m going to be able to buy a ticket tomorrow.
- Mi padre va a poder jubilarse el mes que viene. = My father is going to be able to retire next month.
- The futuro, a simple one word tense, can be translated as “will be able to.” It uses an irregular stem podr-.
- Si practicas, podrás tocar bien. = If you practice, you will be able to play well.
- ¿Podremos alquilar un velero el viernes? = Will we be able to rent a sailboat on Friday?
poder – to be able/can
| Spanish Future Tense | English |
| yo podré | I will be able |
| tú podrás | you will be able (singular/informal) |
| usted podrá | you will be able (singular/formal) |
| él/ella podrá | he/she will be able |
| nosotros/nosotras podremos | we will be able |
| vosotros/vosotras podréis | you will be able (informal plural – Spain only) |
| ustedes podrán | you will be able (plural) |
| ellos/ellas podrán | they will be able |
Use the conditional of poder to say ‘could’ in Spanish
The verb poder in the conditional mood unlocks hypothetical situations and polite requests in Spanish.
Hypothetical situations
Use poder in the conditional to say “could” when you’re discussing a hypothetical ability, if certain conditions were met. This might also translate as “would be able.”
- Si tuviera una mochila más grande, la podría llevar. = If I had a bigger backpack, I could carry it.
- Si tuviéramos entradas, podríamos ver el partido. = If we had tickets, we would be able to see the game.
Make polite requests with poder in the conditional
If you’re talking to a roommate or friend, you might need to ask someone to do you a favor. Turn “you can” in Spanish into the question ¿Puedes/Puede…? (Can you…?) to ask them to do something for you.
Sometimes you might be concerned that you’re coming across as too demanding. To sound even more polite, you can soften the request by using the conditional ¿Podrías/Podría…? (Could you…?) Use the usted instead of tú form for more formal requests.
The conditional is made up of the future stem and the imperfect endings.
poder – to be able/can
| Spanish Conditional | English |
| yo podría | I could |
| tú podrías | you could (singular/informal) |
| usted podría | you could (singular/formal) |
| él/ella podría | he/she could |
| nosotros/nosotras podríamos | we could |
| vosotros/vosotras podríais | you could (informal plural – Spain only) |
| ustedes podrían | you could (plural) |
| ellos/ellas podrían | they could |
Forming compound tenses with poder
You can use poder conjugations with an auxiliary or helping verb to express additional tenses in Spanish. These are compound tenses using a conjugation of the auxiliary verb haber and the past participle podido (been able).
| Subject Pronouns | Present Perfect (have/has been able) | Pluperfect (had been able) | Future Perfect (will have been able) | Conditional Perfect (would have been able) |
| Yo I |
he podido | había podido | habré podido | habría podido |
| Tú you (singular informal) |
has podido | habías podido | habrás podido | habrías podido |
| Usted you (singular formal) |
ha podido | había podido | habrá podido | habría podido |
| Él/Ella he/she |
ha podido | había podido | habrá podido | habría podido |
| Nosotros/Nosotras we |
hemos podido | habíamos podido | habremos podido | habríamos podido |
| Vosotros/Vosotras you (plural informal – Spain) |
habéis podido | habíais podido | habréis podido | habríais podido |
| Ellos/Ellas they |
han podido | habían podido | habrán podido | habrían podido |
Conjugating poder in the subjunctive
The subjunctive mood is a part of daily conversation in Spanish. It’s used when the speaker is expressing a wish or desire, doubts and denials, and sometimes opinions and emotions. You may not perceive a difference in the English translation.
- La reunión es en cinco minutos. Dudo que pueda llegar a horario. = The meeting is in 5 minutes. I doubt that he can arrive on schedule.
- Estoy visitando la ciudad. ¿Hay algún restaurante que me pueda recomendar? = I’m visiting the city. Is there a restaurant that you can recommend to me?
Dive deeper into the subjunctive mood in Spanish and when to use it for a fuller understanding of this important mood.
poder – to be able/can
| Spanish Subjunctive | English |
| yo pueda | I can |
| tú puedas | you can (singular/informal) |
| usted pueda | you can (singular/formal) |
| él/ella pueda | he/she can |
| nosotros/nosotras podamos | we can |
| vosotros/vosotras podáis | you can (informal plural – Spain only) |
| ustedes puedan | you can (plural) |
| ellos/ellas puedan | they can |
Key takeaways about poder conjugation in Spanish
Now that tú puedes (you can) conjugate the verb poder, don’t stress too much about memorizing all of the forms. Proven methods like Rosetta Stone’s Dynamic Immersion help you use these forms naturally in context so they’re more likely to stick.
- Poder is a stem-changing verb in the present tense, so you’ll see the stem pued- in all but the nosotros/vosotros forms.
- The preterite tense of poder means “was able to” or “wasn’t able to” and uses the stem pud- with the pattern for some irregular verbs.
- It follows the regular -ER verb patterns in the imperfect tense.
- Both the future and conditional use the slightly irregular stem podr- and the regular endings for each tense.
0 Commentaires