destruir Present Conjugation
destruir — destroy
Destruir is a 'y-verb' in the present tense, adding a 'y' before the ending in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
destruir Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense to talk about things that are currently being ruined, habitual destructive behaviors, or general facts about destruction.
Notes on destruir in the Present
For all forms except nosotros and vosotros, you must insert a 'y' after the 'u'. For example, it's 'destruyo', not 'destruo'.
Example Sentences
La humedad destruye las paredes de esta casa.
The humidity destroys the walls of this house.
él/ella/usted
Yo siempre destruyo mis dibujos si no me gustan.
I always destroy my drawings if I don't like them.
yo
Ustedes destruyen el medio ambiente con ese plástico.
You all are destroying the environment with that plastic.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'destruo' for the yo form.
Correct: destruyo
Why: Verbs ending in -uir require a 'y' before the vowel endings in the present tense.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: destruí
The preterite of destruir is irregular, changing the 'i' to 'y' in the third-person forms: destruyó and destruyeron.
Imperfect
yo: destruía
The imperfect of destruir is regular: destruía, destruías, destruía, destruíamos, destruíais, destruían.
Future
yo: destruiré
The future tense of destruir is regular: añadiré las terminaciones al infinitivo.
Conditional
yo: destruiría
The conditional of destruir is regular: destruiría, destruirías, destruiría, destruiríamos, destruiríais, destruirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: destruya
The present subjunctive of destruir follows the 'y' pattern: destruya, destruyas, destruya, destruyamos, destruyáis, destruyan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: destruyera
The imperfect subjunctive of destruir is based on the third-person preterite: destruyera, destruyeras, destruyera...
Affirmative Imperative
yo: destruye
The imperative of destruir uses 'destruye' (tú) and 'destruya' (usted), following the 'y' spelling change.
Negative Imperative
yo: no destruyas
The negative imperative of destruir uses the present subjunctive: no destruyas, no destruya, no destruyamos...