despedir Imperfect Subjunctive Conjugation
despedir — to fire
Based on the third-person preterite, the imperfect subjunctive uses the 'i' stem: despidiera.
despedir Imperfect Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Imperfect Subjunctive
Use this for 'if' clauses (e.g., 'If I fired him...') or when the main verb is in the past and triggers the subjunctive.
Notes on despedir in the Imperfect Subjunctive
Since the third-person preterite is 'despidió', the imperfect subjunctive stem is 'despidier-'. This 'i' carries through all forms.
Example Sentences
Si yo fuera el jefe, lo despidiera.
If I were the boss, I would fire him.
yo
Me dolió que se despidieran tan rápido.
It hurt me that they said goodbye so quickly.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Si nos despidiéramos ahora, llegaríamos a tiempo.
If we said goodbye now, we would arrive on time.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'despediera' with an 'e'.
Correct: The correct form is despidiera.
Why: The imperfect subjunctive always follows the stem of the 3rd person preterite (despidieron).
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: despido
Despedir is a stem-changing verb (e > i) in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: despedí
Despedir has a stem change (e > i) only in the third-person forms: despidió and despidieron.
Imperfect
yo: despedía
Despedir is regular in the imperfect: despedía, despedías, despedía, despedíamos, despedíais, despedían.
Future
yo: despediré
Despedir is completely regular in the future tense, using the full infinitive as the base.
Conditional
yo: despediría
The conditional of despedir is regular and formed by adding endings to the infinitive: despediría.
Present Subjunctive
yo: despida
The present subjunctive of despedir stem-changes e > i in ALL forms, including nosotros.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: despide
The imperative uses 'despide' for tú and 'despida' for formal commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no despidas
Negative commands use the present subjunctive forms: no despidas, no despida.