quisieras
“quisieras” means “would like (you)” in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:
would like (you)
Also: wanted (you)
📝 In Action
¿Qué quisieras beber, un café o un té?
A2What would you like to drink, a coffee or a tea?
Si quisieras venir, la fiesta empieza a las ocho.
B1If you would like to come, the party starts at eight.
Yo no sé si tú quisieras hablar de esto ahora.
B2I don't know if you would want to talk about this right now.
(that) you wanted
📝 In Action
Dudaba mucho que tú quisieras estudiar esa carrera.
B2I strongly doubted that you wanted to study that major.
Era necesario que tú quisieras el cambio para que funcionara.
C1It was necessary that you wanted the change for it to work.
Indicative
Present
Imperfect
Preterite
Subjunctive
Present Subjunctive
Imperfect Subjunctive
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: quisieras
Question 1 of 2
Which sentence uses 'quisieras' in its primary, polite request function?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family▼
📚 Etymology▼
'Quisieras' comes directly from the irregular Latin verb *quaerere*, meaning 'to seek, to ask for, or to desire.' The '-siera' ending evolved specifically in Spanish to create this polite, hypothetical, or past-related verb form.
First recorded: Old Spanish (circa 13th century)
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does 'quisieras' (a past tense form) mean 'would like' (a present conditional)?
Using a past or hypothetical verb form (like 'quisieras') is a linguistic trick used in many languages, including Spanish, to soften a request. By pushing the desire into a hypothetical or past state, it makes the request less demanding and therefore more polite. It's similar to saying, 'I was hoping you would like...' in English.
Is 'quisieras' only used with 'tú'?
Yes, 'quisieras' is specifically the form for 'tú' (you, singular informal). If you were speaking to a formal acquaintance or a group, you would use 'quisiera' (for Usted) or 'quisieran' (for Ustedes).