Despedir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of despedir — "to dismiss, to say goodbye to" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for despedir with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Despedir a alguien usually means to see someone off: despedir a su amigo en la estación. It also means to dismiss an employee — despedir a su empleado — and to give off a smell: despedir un olor. With se, despedirse de means to say goodbye. To see it in a real sentence: Yo despido a su amigo en la estación — "I say goodbye to his friend at the station".
Present tense conjugation table: despedir
Every person of despedir in the present tense. The gerund is despidiendo and the past participle is despedido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | despido |
| tú | despides |
| él/ella/Ud. | despide |
| nosotros/as | despedimos |
| vosotros/as | despedís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | despiden |
How the present of despedir is formed
The present of despedir is built from the stem desped- plus the present endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | despido |
| tú | -es | despides |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | despide |
| nosotros/as | -imos | despedimos |
| vosotros/as | -ís | despedís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | despiden |
The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: despido, despides, despide and despiden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: despedimos, despedís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: despidió, despidieron, and the gerund is despidiendo.
The gerund of despedir is despidiendo and the past participle is despedido. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of despedir
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and despedir appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
Habits and routines
The present describes things that happen regularly, as a habit or routine.
"Cada día, yo despido a su amigo en la estación" — "Every day, I say goodbye to his friend at the station"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo despide a su hijo en el aeropuerto" — "My friend says goodbye to his son at the airport"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo despido a los invitados en la puerta" — "Right now, I say goodbye to the guests at the door"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros despedimos a su abuela en la terminal" — "Tomorrow, we say goodbye to his grandmother at the terminal"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos despiden a su hermano en la estación de tren" — "They say goodbye to his brother at the train station"
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: {'pre_es': 'Cada día, ', 'pre_en': 'Every day, '}yo despido a su amigo en la estación — "I say goodbye to his friend at the station"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo despedí a su amigo en la estación — "I said goodbye to his friend at the station"
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add "used to" in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: {}tú despides a su hijo en el aeropuerto — "You say goodbye to his son at the airport"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú despedías a su hijo en el aeropuerto — "You used to say goodbye to his son at the airport"
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él despide a los invitados en la puerta — "He says goodbye to the guests at the door"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él despedirá a los invitados en la puerta — "He will say goodbye to the guests at the door"
Examples: despedir in the present tense
Seven sentences that show despedir in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo despido a su amigo en la estación — "I say goodbye to his friend at the station"
- Tú despides a su hijo en el aeropuerto — "You say goodbye to his son at the airport"
- Él despide a los invitados en la puerta — "He says goodbye to the guests at the door"
- Nosotros despedimos a su abuela en la terminal — "We say goodbye to his grandmother at the terminal"
- Vosotros despedís a su hermano en la estación de tren — "You say goodbye to his brother at the train station"
- Ellos despiden a su amigo en la estación — "They say goodbye to his friend at the station"
- Yo despido a su hijo en el aeropuerto — "I say goodbye to his son at the airport"
Common mistakes with despedir in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with despedir in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo despedo a su amigo en la estación.
✓ Correct: Yo despido a su amigo en la estación.
despedir is a stem-changing verb (e → i): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is despido, not despedo.
✗ *Tú despide a su hijo en el aeropuerto.
✓ Correct: Tú despides a su hijo en el aeropuerto.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes despides, él takes despide.
✗ *Cada día, yo despedí a los invitados en la puerta
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo despido a los invitados en la puerta
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros despedis a su abuela en la terminal.
✓ Correct: Vosotros despedís a su abuela en la terminal.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: despedís, not despedis.
Quiz: despedir in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of despedir. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of despedir for tú? A. despides B. despido C. despide D. despedimos
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ a su amigo en la estación — "I say goodbye to his friend at the station" (present) A. despedimos B. despido C. despides D. despide
Complete the sentence: Él ______ a su hijo en el aeropuerto — "He says goodbye to his son at the airport" (present) A. despedimos B. despide C. despido D. despides
Which is the correct present form of despedir for nosotros? A. despides B. despide C. despiden D. despedimos
Which sentence uses despedir correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo despedimos a los invitados en la puerta B. Mi amigo despide a los invitados en la puerta C. Mi amigo despides a los invitados en la puerta D. Mi amigo despedía a los invitados en la puerta
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ a su abuela en la terminal — "You say goodbye to his grandmother at the terminal" (present) A. despides B. despide C. despedís D. despido
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ a su hermano en la estación de tren — "They say goodbye to his brother at the train station" (present) A. despides B. despide C. despiden D. despido
What is the gerund of despedir? A. despido B. despedí C. despidiendo D. despedido
Answer key
- despides — The tú form in the present is despides.
- despido — The present form for yo is despido.
- despide — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is despide.
- despedimos — The nosotros form in the present is despedimos.
- Mi amigo despide a los invitados en la puerta — Mi amigo despide a los invitados en la puerta is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- despedís — The present form for vosotros/as is despedís.
- despiden — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is despiden.
- despidiendo — The gerund is despidiendo. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle despedido.
Frequently asked questions
Is despedir regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: despido, despides, despide and despiden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: despedimos, despedís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: despidió, despidieron, and the gerund is despidiendo. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of despedir?
The gerund is despidiendo and the past participle is despedido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I say goodbye to" in the present tense?
Say despido. For example: Yo despido a su amigo en la estación — "I say goodbye to his friend at the station".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of despedir?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo despido a su amigo en la estación — "I say goodbye to his friend at the station". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo despedí a su amigo en la estación — "Yesterday, I said goodbye to his friend at the station". Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once.
Related links
- Full conjugation of despedir — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- despedir examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.