Derribar Conjugation in Spanish

derribar is the Spanish verb for «to knock down, to demolish». As a regular -ar verb verb it follows the -ar endings, and the tables on this page list every form so you never have to guess. You will find the present, the past tenses, the future, the conditional, the perfect tenses, the subjunctive and the imperative, each with a short note on when to use it. Start with the present tense: «Yo derribo todos los días» — I knock down every day. Then work down the page tense by tense, and finish with the quiz.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: derribar
  • English: to knock down, to demolish
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: derribando
  • Past participle: derribado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + derribado)

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Gerund: derribando · Past participle: derribado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo derribo
tú derribas
él/ella/Ud. derriba
nosotros/as derribamos
vosotros/as derribáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. derriban

Use the present of derribar for things that happen regularly and for things that are true in general. The yo form derribo is the anchor of the table: the other persons follow the regular -ar endings from it. When you talk about yourself right now, this is the form you need.

Preterite

Person Form
yo derribé
tú derribaste
él/ella/Ud. derribó
nosotros/as derribamos
vosotros/as derribasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. derribaron

Use the preterite of derribar for a single finished event: something that happened once and is over. The yo form is derribé. If you can put a finished time expression with it — ayer, la semana pasada, anoche — the preterite is usually right.

Imperfect

Person Form
yo derribaba
tú derribabas
él/ella/Ud. derribaba
nosotros/as derribábamos
vosotros/as derribabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. derribaban

Use the imperfect of derribar for what used to happen and for what was going on when something else happened. The yo form is derribaba. If the action has no clear beginning or end in the story, the imperfect is the right choice.

Future

Person Form
yo derribaré
tú derribarás
él/ella/Ud. derribará
nosotros/as derribaremos
vosotros/as derribaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. derribarán

Use the future of derribar for plans, promises and predictions. The yo form is derribaré, built on the infinitive plus the future endings. For a firm plan, the future sounds more formal than ir a + infinitive; for a casual plan, either works.

Conditional

Person Form
yo derribaría
tú derribarías
él/ella/Ud. derribaría
nosotros/as derribaríamos
vosotros/as derribaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. derribarían

Use the conditional of derribar for hypothetical situations and for softening requests. The yo form is derribaría. It appears after si-clauses with the imperfect subjunctive and on its own for polite suggestions.

Present Perfect

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

Use the present perfect of derribar for recent events with present relevance. The yo form is he derribado — haber in the present plus derribado. Time expressions like hoy, esta semana and últimamente are its natural partners.

Pluperfect

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

Use the pluperfect of derribar when you need two layers of past: one event already finished before another past event began. The yo form is había derribado. It is the tense of «had already done».

Future Perfect

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

Use the future perfect of derribar to say that something will be finished by a future moment. The yo form is habré derribado. It pairs naturally with deadlines: para mañana, para el viernes, para entonces.

Conditional Perfect

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

Use the conditional perfect of derribar for the past that did not happen: what would have been done with more time or a different choice. The yo form is habría derribado. It follows si-clauses with the pluperfect subjunctive.

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo derribe
tú derribes
él/ella/Ud. derribe
nosotros/as derribemos
vosotros/as derribéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. derriben

Use the present subjunctive of derribar when the main clause expresses a wish, a doubt, an emotion or an impersonal judgement. The yo form is derribe. After espero que, ojalá que and no creo que, the subjunctive is required, not optional.

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)

Person Form
yo derribara
tú derribaras
él/ella/Ud. derribara
nosotros/as derribáramos
vosotros/as derribarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. derribaran

Use the imperfect subjunctive of derribar after past-tense wishes and doubts, and in si-clauses that set up a hypothetical present. The yo form is derribara. It is built on the third-person plural preterite stem, which is why it looks different from the present subjunctive.

Imperative — Affirmative

Person Form
tú derriba
él/ella/Ud. derribe
nosotros/as derribemos
vosotros/as derribad
ellos/ellas/Uds. derriben

There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.

Use the affirmative imperative of derribar to tell someone to do something: instructions, invitations and requests. The tú form is derriba. For a polite command, use the usted form derribe instead of the tú form.

Imperative — Negative

Person Form
tú derribes
él/ella/Ud. derribe
nosotros/as derribemos
vosotros/as derribéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. derriben

There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.

Use the negative imperative of derribar to forbid or to warn: «¡No derribes!». The tú form is derribes, taken from the present subjunctive. The word no always comes first, and the form never changes for emphasis.

Example sentences

  1. Yo derribo todos los días. — I knock down every day.
  2. Ayer yo derribé por la tarde. — Yesterday I knocked down in the afternoon.
  3. Antes, yo derribaba todos los días. — In the past, I used to knock down every day.
  4. Mañana yo derribaré sin falta. — Tomorrow I will knock down without fail.
  5. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo derribaría ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would knock down right now.
  6. Hoy yo he derribado dos veces. — Today I have knocked down twice.
  7. Espero que tú derribes pronto. — I hope You knock down soon.
  8. Si yo derribara, todo sería distinto. — If I knocked down, everything would be different.
  9. Ahora mismo yo estoy derribando. — Right now I am knocking down.
  10. ¡derriba, por favor! — Knock down, please!

Common mistakes

1. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo derribaba.

Right: Ayer yo derribé.

Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, derribé. The imperfect derribaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.

2. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

Wrong: Espero que tú derribas.

Right: Espero que tú derribes.

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: derribes, not the indicative derribas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.

3. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No derriba.

Right: No derribes.

Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no derribes. The affirmative derriba can never follow no.

4. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo derribar todos los días.

Right: Yo derribo todos los días.

The infinitive derribar names the action; it never works as the main verb of a sentence. Conjugate it for the person: yo derribo.

5. Confusing the gerund with the past participle

Wrong: He derribando.

Right: He derribado.

The perfect tenses use haber plus the past participle: he derribado. The gerund derribando goes with estar for actions in progress («Estoy derribando»), never with haber.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the tú form of derribar in the present indicative?

- (a) derribamos
- (b) derribo
- (c) derriba
- (d) derribas

2. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of derribar in the preterite?

- (a) derribé
- (b) derribamos
- (c) derribó
- (d) derribaste

3. What is the nosotros/as form of derribar in the imperfect?

- (a) derribábamos
- (b) derribaba
- (c) derribabas
- (d) derribaba

4. What is the vosotros/as form of derribar in the future?

- (a) derribaréis
- (b) derribarás
- (c) derribaré
- (d) derribará

5. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of derribar in the conditional?

- (a) derribarían
- (b) derribaría
- (c) derribaría
- (d) derribarías

6. What is the yo form of derribar in the present perfect?

- (a) he derribado
- (b) has derribado
- (c) ha derribado
- (d) hemos derribado

7. What is the tú form of derribar in the present subjunctive?

- (a) derribe
- (b) derribe
- (c) derribemos
- (d) derribes

8. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of derribar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)?

- (a) derribara
- (b) derribaras
- (c) derribáramos
- (d) derribara

9. What is the gerund of derribar?

- (a) derribar
- (b) derribando
- (c) derribo
- (d) derribado

10. What is the past participle of derribar?

- (a) derribé
- (b) derribado
- (c) derribar
- (d) derribando

Answer key

1. (d) — In the present indicative, the tú form of derribar is derribas. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (c) — In the preterite, the él/ella/Ud. form of derribar is derribó. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (a) — In the imperfect, the nosotros/as form of derribar is derribábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (a) — In the future, the vosotros/as form of derribar is derribaréis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (a) — In the conditional, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of derribar is derribarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (a) — In the present perfect, the yo form of derribar is he derribado. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 7. (d) — In the present subjunctive, the tú form of derribar is derribes. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 8. (a) — In the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms), the él/ella/Ud. form of derribar is derribara. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 9. (b) — The gerund of derribar is derribando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy derribando». 10. (b) — The past participle of derribar is derribado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he derribado».

Frequently asked questions

Is derribar regular or irregular?

Yes — derribar is a regular -ar verb. Learn the endings once and they work in every tense, with the stem derrib unchanged throughout.

What are the gerund and past participle of derribar?

The gerund is derribando and the past participle is derribado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy derribando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he derribado»).

How do I say «I knock down» in Spanish?

Say «Yo derribo todos los días». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.

What is the difference between the preterite and the imperfect of derribar?

Use the preterite (derribé) for a single finished event and the imperfect (derribaba) for habits and background. «Ayer yo derribé» reports something that happened and ended; «Antes, yo derribaba» describes what used to happen.

When do I use the subjunctive with derribar?

Use the subjunctive after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions — for example «Espero que tú derribes». The trigger sits in the main clause; once it is there, the subjunctive form is required, not a stylistic choice.

How do I use derribar in the present perfect?

Put haber in the present before the past participle: «Hoy yo he derribado». The participle derribado never changes for person — only haber changes — so once you know the participle, the whole perfect tense follows.

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