The condicional perfecto, also called the past conditional, is another perfect tense of the indicative mood. The condicional perfecto is used to indicate that an action would have happened in the past if a condition or set of conditions had been met.
The condicional perfecto is formed by the auxiliar verb "haber" in the conditional tense followed by the past participle of the main verb. It is the equivalent of the conditional perfect in English, formed by "would" and the auxiliar verb "to have" followed by the past participle of the main verb.
Si hubieras estudiado más, habrías sacado una mejor nota en el examen.
If you had studied more, you would have gotten a better grade on the test.
¿Habrías ido a México si hubieras tenido vacaciones en el trabajo?
Would you have gone to Mexico if you would have had days off from work?
The condicional perfecto conjugation for regular verbs is:
The condicional perfecto conjugation for irregular verbs is the same as for regular verbs. However, irregular verbs have irregular past participles. See a list of irregular past participles on the pretérito pluscuamperfecto part 1 lesson.
Si nos hubiéramos dado más prisa, habríamos llegado a tiempo al cine.
If we had rushed, we would have made it to the movies on time.
Si hubieras venido a la fiesta, te habrías divertido muchísimo.
If you had come to the party, you would have had a lot of fun.
2. The condicional perfecto is used to express something hypothetical or a supposition in the past.
Habrían sido las dos cuando les llamamos.
It might have been 2 o'clock when we called them.
Lucía habría comido en su casa antes de venir al restaurante y por eso no pidió nada.
Lucia might have eaten at home before coming to the restaurant and that's why she didn't order anything.
3. The conditional perfecto is used to make a guess in the past when the imperfect tense and an adverb that expresses probability can be used in replacement.
Probablemente estaba con sus amigos.
Habría estado con sus amigos.
He probably was with his friends.
The condicional perfecto is formed by the auxiliar verb "haber" in the conditional tense followed by the past participle of the main verb. It is the equivalent of the conditional perfect in English, formed by "would" and the auxiliar verb "to have" followed by the past participle of the main verb.
Si hubieras estudiado más, habrías sacado una mejor nota en el examen.
If you had studied more, you would have gotten a better grade on the test.
¿Habrías ido a México si hubieras tenido vacaciones en el trabajo?
Would you have gone to Mexico if you would have had days off from work?
The condicional perfecto conjugation for regular verbs is:
Condicional Perfecto | CANTAR | BEBER | VIVIR | yo | habría cantado | habría bebido | habría vivido | tú | habrías cantado | habrías bebido | habrías vivido | él, ella, usted | habría cantado | habría bebido | habría vivido | nosotros/as | habríamos cantado | habríamos bebido | habríamos vivido | ellos, ellas, ustedes | habrían cantado | habrían bebido | habrían vivido |
The condicional perfecto conjugation for irregular verbs is the same as for regular verbs. However, irregular verbs have irregular past participles. See a list of irregular past participles on the pretérito pluscuamperfecto part 1 lesson.
Uses of the Condicional Perfecto
1. The condicional perfecto is often used together with subordinate conditional clauses (also known as "si clauses"). The "si clauses" introduce the conditions that should have been met in order for the action to actually happen. These "si clauses" normally use a past perfect subjunctive verb tense.Si nos hubiéramos dado más prisa, habríamos llegado a tiempo al cine.
If we had rushed, we would have made it to the movies on time.
Si hubieras venido a la fiesta, te habrías divertido muchísimo.
If you had come to the party, you would have had a lot of fun.
2. The condicional perfecto is used to express something hypothetical or a supposition in the past.
Habrían sido las dos cuando les llamamos.
It might have been 2 o'clock when we called them.
Lucía habría comido en su casa antes de venir al restaurante y por eso no pidió nada.
Lucia might have eaten at home before coming to the restaurant and that's why she didn't order anything.
3. The conditional perfecto is used to make a guess in the past when the imperfect tense and an adverb that expresses probability can be used in replacement.
Probablemente estaba con sus amigos.
Habría estado con sus amigos.
He probably was with his friends.