Debilitar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb debilitar means to weaken, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Debilitar means to weaken something: debilitar su salud, debilitar al enemigo. It is the opposite of fortalecer, and it is used for health, structures, will and defences. Like every Spanish verb, debilitar changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say Yo debilito su salud con el trabajo — "I weaken his health with work". Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: debilitar
  • English: to weaken
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: debilitando
  • Past participle: debilitado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + debilitado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for debilitar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for debilitar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem.

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilito | | tú | debilitas | | él/ella/Ud. | debilita | | nosotros/as | debilitamos | | vosotros/as | debilitáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debilitan |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilité | | tú | debilitaste | | él/ella/Ud. | debilitó | | nosotros/as | debilitamos | | vosotros/as | debilitasteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debilitaron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilitaba | | tú | debilitabas | | él/ella/Ud. | debilitaba | | nosotros/as | debilitábamos | | vosotros/as | debilitabais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debilitaban |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilitaré | | tú | debilitarás | | él/ella/Ud. | debilitará | | nosotros/as | debilitaremos | | vosotros/as | debilitaréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debilitarán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilitaría | | tú | debilitarías | | él/ella/Ud. | debilitaría | | nosotros/as | debilitaríamos | | vosotros/as | debilitaríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debilitarían |

Present perfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | he debilitado | | tú | has debilitado | | él/ella/Ud. | ha debilitado | | nosotros/as | hemos debilitado | | vosotros/as | habéis debilitado | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | han debilitado |

Pluperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | había debilitado | | tú | habías debilitado | | él/ella/Ud. | había debilitado | | nosotros/as | habíamos debilitado | | vosotros/as | habíais debilitado | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían debilitado |

Future perfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | habré debilitado | | tú | habrás debilitado | | él/ella/Ud. | habrá debilitado | | nosotros/as | habremos debilitado | | vosotros/as | habréis debilitado | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán debilitado |

Conditional perfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | habría debilitado | | tú | habrías debilitado | | él/ella/Ud. | habría debilitado | | nosotros/as | habríamos debilitado | | vosotros/as | habríais debilitado | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían debilitado |

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilite | | tú | debilites | | él/ella/Ud. | debilite | | nosotros/as | debilitemos | | vosotros/as | debilitéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debiliten |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | debilitara | | tú | debilitaras | | él/ella/Ud. | debilitara | | nosotros/as | debilitáramos | | vosotros/as | debilitarais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debilitaran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | debilita | | él/ella/Ud. | debilite | | nosotros/as | debilitemos | | vosotros/as | debilitad | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debiliten |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | debilites | | él/ella/Ud. | debilite | | nosotros/as | debilitemos | | vosotros/as | debilitéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | debiliten |

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund debilitando with estar for the progressive: está debilitando
Past participle debilitado with haber for the perfect tenses: he debilitado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo debilito su salud con el trabajo — "I weaken his health with work".

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo debilité al enemigo con el bloqueo — "Yesterday, I weakened the enemy with the blockade".

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo debilitaba la estructura del puente — "As a child, I used to weaken the bridge's structure".

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo debilitaré su voluntad con las dudas — "Tomorrow, I will weaken his will with doubts".

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo debilitaría su salud con el trabajo si pudiera — "I would weaken his health with work if I could".

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he debilitado al enemigo con el bloqueo — "Today, I have weakened the enemy with the blockade".

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había debilitado la estructura del puente antes de salir — "I already had weakened the bridge's structure before leaving".

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré debilitado su voluntad con las dudas — "By tomorrow, I will have weakened his will with doubts".

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría debilitado su salud con el trabajo con más tiempo — "I would have weakened his health with work with more time".

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él debilite al enemigo con el bloqueo — "I hope he weakens the enemy with the blockade".

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past. The -ra forms are shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo debilitara la estructura del puente, todo cambiaría — "If I weakened the bridge's structure, everything would change".

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Debilita su voluntad con las dudas. — "Weaken his will with doubts.".

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For debilitar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No debilites su salud con el trabajo. — "Do not weaken his health with work.".

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with debilitar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Yo debilito su salud con el trabajo — "I weaken his health with work"
  2. Mi amigo debilita al enemigo con el bloqueo — "My friend weakens the enemy with the blockade"
  3. Ayer, yo debilité la estructura del puente — "Yesterday, I weakened the bridge's structure"
  4. Antes, nosotros debilitábamos su voluntad con las dudas — "Before, we used to weaken his will with doubts"
  5. Mañana, tú debilitarás las defensas con el estrés — "Tomorrow, you will weaken his defences with stress"
  6. Yo debilitaría su salud con el trabajo si tuviera más tiempo — "I would weaken his health with work if I had more time"
  7. Él ha debilitado al enemigo con el bloqueo — "He has weakened the enemy with the blockade"
  8. Espero que él debilite la estructura del puente — "I hope he weakens the bridge's structure"
  9. Yo ya había debilitado su voluntad con las dudas antes de salir — "I already had weakened his will with doubts before leaving"
  10. Ellos debilitaban las defensas con el estrés cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to weaken his defences with stress when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Espero que él debilita al enemigo con el bloqueo — Right: Espero que él debilite al enemigo con el bloqueo — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él debilite al enemigo con el bloqueo — not the indicative Espero que él debilita al enemigo con el bloqueo.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo debilito la estructura del puente — Right: Ayer, yo debilité la estructura del puente — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo debilité la estructura del puente.
  3. Wrong: De niño, yo debilité su voluntad con las dudas todos los días — Right: De niño, yo debilitaba su voluntad con las dudas todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo debilitaba su voluntad con las dudas todos los días.
  4. Wrong: Yo debilito en su salud con el trabajo. — Right: Yo debilito su salud con el trabajo. — debilitar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo debilito su salud con el trabajo.
  5. Wrong: Vosotros debilitais las defensas con el estrés. — Right: Vosotros debilitáis las defensas con el estrés. — The vosotros present form carries a written accent: debilitáis, not debilitais.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on debilitar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ su salud con el trabajo — "I weaken his health with work" (present) A. debilitamos B. debilito C. debilitas D. debilita

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ al enemigo con el bloqueo — "He weakened the enemy with the blockade" (preterite) A. debilitó B. debilité C. debilitaste D. debilitamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ la estructura del puente — "We used to weaken the bridge's structure" (imperfect) A. debilitabais B. debilitábamos C. debilitaba D. debilitabas

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ su voluntad con las dudas — "You will weaken his will with doubts" (future) A. debilitarás B. debilitaré C. debilitará D. debilitaremos

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ las defensas con el estrés — "I would weaken his defences with stress" (conditional) A. debilitaría B. debilitarías C. debilitaríamos D. debilitaríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ su salud con el trabajo — "I hope he weakens his health with work" (present subjunctive) A. debilitéis B. debilite C. debilites D. debilitemos

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ al enemigo con el bloqueo, todo cambiaría — "If I weakened the enemy with the blockade, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. debilitara B. debilitaras C. debilitáramos D. debilitarais

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ la estructura del puente — "We have weakened the bridge's structure" (present perfect) A. ha debilitado B. hemos debilitado C. he debilitado D. has debilitado

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ su voluntad con las dudas. — "Do not weaken his will with doubts." (negative imperative) A. debilites B. debilite C. debilitemos D. debilitéis

  10. Which is the gerund of debilitar, used with estar for the progressive? A. debilito B. debilité C. debilitando D. debilitado

Answer key

  1. debilito — The present form for yo is debilito.
  2. debilitó — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is debilitó.
  3. debilitábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is debilitábamos.
  4. debilitarás — The future form for tú is debilitarás.
  5. debilitaría — The conditional form for yo is debilitaría.
  6. debilite — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is debilite.
  7. debilitara — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is debilitara.
  8. hemos debilitado — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos debilitado.
  9. debilites — The negative imperative form is debilites.
  10. debilitando — The gerund of debilitar is debilitando: estoy debilitando. The participle debilitado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does debilitar mean in English?

debilitar means to weaken. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo debilito su salud con el trabajo — "I weaken his health with work". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is debilitar regular?

Yes. debilitar is a regular -ar verb, so once you know the endings for its class you can conjugate it in every tense. The only thing to watch is the written accent on some forms, such as debilitáis.

What is the gerund and the past participle of debilitar?

The gerund is debilitando and the past participle is debilitado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.

How do I say "I weaken" in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo debilité al enemigo con el bloqueo — "Yesterday, I weakened the enemy with the blockade". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo debilitaba la estructura del puente — "As a child, I used to weaken the bridge's structure". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he debilitado al enemigo con el bloqueo — "Today, I have weakened the enemy with the blockade".

What is the difference between debilitar and fortalecer?

Fortalecer is the opposite — to strengthen something. Debilitar is to make it weaker, whether a body, a structure or a will. Debilitar means to weaken something: debilitar su salud, debilitar al enemigo. It is the opposite of fortalecer, and it is used for health, structures, will and defences.

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