deber Negative Imperative Conjugation
deber — must
The negative imperative (no debas, no debáis...) is used to tell someone not to owe money or things.
deber Negative Imperative Forms
When to Use the Negative Imperative
Commonly used in financial or moral contexts to say 'Don't owe anyone anything'.
Notes on deber in the Negative Imperative
Follows the present subjunctive forms exactly, preceded by 'no'.
Example Sentences
No debas nada a nadie.
Don't owe anything to anyone.
tú
No deban dinero si pueden evitarlo.
Don't owe money if you can avoid it.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'No debes' for a command.
Correct: No debas.
Why: Negative commands must use the subjunctive form, not the indicative.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: debo
The present of deber is regular (debo, debes, debe...) and expresses current obligations or debts.
Preterite
yo: debí
The preterite of deber is regular (debí, debiste...) and focuses on a specific moment of obligation or a completed debt.
Imperfect
yo: debía
The imperfect of deber is regular (debía, debías...) and describes ongoing obligations or debts in the past.
Future
yo: deberé
The future of deber is regular (deberé, deberás...) and expresses future obligations or probability.
Conditional
yo: debería
The conditional of deber (debería, deberías...) is the go-to way to say 'should' in Spanish.
Present Subjunctive
yo: deba
The present subjunctive of deber (deba, debas...) is used after expressions of doubt, desire, or necessity.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: debiera
The imperfect subjunctive of deber (debiera, debieras...) is used in 'if' clauses or for very polite advice.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: debe
The imperative of deber (debe, debed...) is rarely used as it sounds redundant to 'command' an obligation.