espiar Imperfect Subjunctive Conjugation
espiar — to spy
The imperfect subjunctive of espiar is regular: espiara, espiaras, espiara, espiáramos, espiarais, espiaran.
espiar Imperfect Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Imperfect Subjunctive
Use in 'if' clauses or after past emotions, like 'If I spied on him, I would know the truth.'
Notes on espiar in the Imperfect Subjunctive
It follows the standard pattern for -ar verbs based on the third-person plural preterite (espiaron).
Example Sentences
Si yo espiara a mi jefe, me despedirían.
If I spied on my boss, they would fire me.
yo
Me dio miedo que nos espiaran.
It scared me that they might be spying on us.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Si espiáramos más, sabríamos el secreto.
If we spied more, we would know the secret.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'espiara' when you mean 'espiaría'.
Correct: espiara is for the 'if' part; espiaría is for the 'would' part.
Why: Learners often swap the subjunctive and conditional in hypothetical sentences.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: espío
Espiar is mostly regular but adds an accent on the 'i' in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: espié
The preterite of espiar is fully regular: espié, espiaste, espió, espiamos, espiasteis, espiaron.
Imperfect
yo: espiaba
The imperfect of espiar is regular: espiaba, espiabas, espiaba, espiábamos, espiabais, espiaban.
Future
yo: espiaré
The future of espiar is regular: espiaré, espiarás, espiará, espiaremos, espiaréis, espiarán.
Conditional
yo: espiaría
The conditional of espiar is regular: espiaría, espiarías, espiaría, espiaríamos, espiaríais, espiarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: espíe
The present subjunctive follows the accent shift of the present indicative: espíe, espíes, espíe, espiemos, espiéis, espíen.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: espía
The imperative uses the accent-shifted forms: espía (tú), espíe (usted), espiemos (nosotros), espiad (vosotros), espíen (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no espíes
The negative imperative matches the present subjunctive: no espíes, no espíe, no espiemos, no espiéis, no espíen.