Hervir Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb hervir means to boil, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Hervir means to boil: hierve el agua, hierve la leche. The stem changes e to ie in the present and e to i in the preterite third person and the gerund: hirvió, hirvieron, hirviendo. Like every Spanish verb, hervir 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 hiervo el agua para el té — "I boil the water for the tea". 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.

The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: hiervo, hierves, hierve and hierven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: hervimos, hervís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: hirvió, hirvieron, and the gerund is hirviendo.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: hervir
  • English: to boil
  • Verb type: stem-changing -ir verb (e → ie)
  • Ending: -ir
  • Gerund: hirviendo
  • Past participle: hervido
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + hervido)

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | hiervo | | tú | hierves | | él/ella/Ud. | hierve | | nosotros/as | hervimos | | vosotros/as | hervís | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hierven |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | herví | | tú | herviste | | él/ella/Ud. | hirvió | | nosotros/as | hervimos | | vosotros/as | hervisteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hirvieron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | hervía | | tú | hervías | | él/ella/Ud. | hervía | | nosotros/as | hervíamos | | vosotros/as | hervíais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hervían |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | herviré | | tú | hervirás | | él/ella/Ud. | hervirá | | nosotros/as | herviremos | | vosotros/as | herviréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hervirán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | herviría | | tú | hervirías | | él/ella/Ud. | herviría | | nosotros/as | herviríamos | | vosotros/as | herviríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hervirían |

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | hierva | | tú | hiervas | | él/ella/Ud. | hierva | | nosotros/as | hirvamos | | vosotros/as | hirváis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hiervan |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | hirviera | | tú | hirvieras | | él/ella/Ud. | hirviera | | nosotros/as | hirviéramos | | vosotros/as | hirvierais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hirvieran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | hierve | | él/ella/Ud. | hierva | | nosotros/as | hirvamos | | vosotros/as | hervid | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hiervan |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | hiervas | | él/ella/Ud. | hierva | | nosotros/as | hirvamos | | vosotros/as | hirváis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | hiervan |

Gerund and past participle

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

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: hiervo, hierves, hierve and hierven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: hervimos, hervís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: hirvió, hirvieron, and the gerund is hirviendo. For hervir, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo hiervo el agua para el té — "I boil the water for the tea".

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. In this tense the stem changes in the third person: hirvió, hirvieron. The gerund changes too: hirviendo. For hervir, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo herví la leche en la cacerola — "Yesterday, I boiled the milk in the saucepan".

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 hervir, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo hervía las patatas con sal — "As a child, I used to boil the potatoes with salt".

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 hervir, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo herviré el caldo a fuego fuerte — "Tomorrow, I will boil the stock over a high heat".

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 hervir, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo herviría el agua para el té si pudiera — "I would boil the water for the tea 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 hervir, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he hervido la leche en la cacerola — "Today, I have boiled the milk in the saucepan".

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 hervir, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había hervido las patatas con sal antes de salir — "I already had boiled the potatoes with salt 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 hervir, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré hervido el caldo a fuego fuerte — "By tomorrow, I will have boiled the stock over a high heat".

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 hervir, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría hervido el agua para el té con más tiempo — "I would have boiled the water for the tea with more time".

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: hiervo, hierves, hierve and hierven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: hervimos, hervís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: hirvió, hirvieron, and the gerund is hirviendo. For hervir, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él hierva la leche en la cacerola — "I hope he boils the milk in the saucepan".

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 irregular — see the table above. For hervir, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo hirviera las patatas con sal, todo cambiaría — "If I boiled the potatoes with salt, everything would change".

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: hiervo, hierves, hierve and hierven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: hervimos, hervís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: hirvió, hirvieron, and the gerund is hirviendo. For hervir, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Hierve el caldo a fuego fuerte. — "Boil the stock over a high heat.".

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: hiervo, hierves, hierve and hierven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: hervimos, hervís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: hirvió, hirvieron, and the gerund is hirviendo. For hervir, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No hiervas el agua para el té. — "Do not boil the water for the tea.".

Example sentences

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

  1. Yo hiervo el agua para el té — "I boil the water for the tea"
  2. Mi amigo hierve la leche en la cacerola — "My friend boils the milk in the saucepan"
  3. Ayer, yo herví las patatas con sal — "Yesterday, I boiled the potatoes with salt"
  4. Antes, nosotros hervíamos el caldo a fuego fuerte — "Before, we used to boil the stock over a high heat"
  5. Mañana, tú hervirás el agua de la tetera — "Tomorrow, you will boil the water in the kettle"
  6. Yo herviría el agua para el té si tuviera más tiempo — "I would boil the water for the tea if I had more time"
  7. Él ha hervido la leche en la cacerola — "He has boiled the milk in the saucepan"
  8. Espero que él hierva las patatas con sal — "I hope he boils the potatoes with salt"
  9. Yo ya había hervido el caldo a fuego fuerte antes de salir — "I already had boiled the stock over a high heat before leaving"
  10. Ellos hervían el agua de la tetera cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to boil the water in the kettle when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo hervo la leche en la cacerola. — Right: Yo hiervo la leche en la cacerola. — hervir is a stem-changing verb (e → ie): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is hiervo, not hervo.
  2. Wrong: Espero que él hierve la leche en la cacerola — Right: Espero que él hierva la leche en la cacerola — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él hierva la leche en la cacerola — not the indicative Espero que él hierve la leche en la cacerola.
  3. Wrong: Ayer, yo hiervo las patatas con sal — Right: Ayer, yo herví las patatas con sal — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo herví las patatas con sal.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo herví el caldo a fuego fuerte todos los días — Right: De niño, yo hervía el caldo a fuego fuerte todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo hervía el caldo a fuego fuerte todos los días.
  5. Wrong: Yo hiervo en el agua para el té. — Right: Yo hiervo el agua para el té. — hervir takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo hiervo el agua para el té.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el agua para el té — "I boil the water for the tea" (present) A. hervimos B. hiervo C. hierves D. hierve

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ la leche en la cacerola — "He boiled the milk in the saucepan" (preterite) A. hervimos B. hirvió C. herví D. herviste

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ las patatas con sal — "We used to boil the potatoes with salt" (imperfect) A. hervías B. hervíais C. hervíamos D. hervía

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ el caldo a fuego fuerte — "You will boil the stock over a high heat" (future) A. hervirá B. herviremos C. hervirás D. herviré

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el agua de la tetera — "I would boil the water in the kettle" (conditional) A. hervirías B. herviríamos C. herviríais D. herviría

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ el agua para el té — "I hope he boils the water for the tea" (present subjunctive) A. hirváis B. hierva C. hiervas D. hirvamos

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ la leche en la cacerola, todo cambiaría — "If I boiled the milk in the saucepan, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. hirvierais B. hirviera C. hirvieras D. hirviéramos

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ las patatas con sal — "We have boiled the potatoes with salt" (present perfect) A. has hervido B. ha hervido C. hemos hervido D. he hervido

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ el caldo a fuego fuerte. — "Do not boil the stock over a high heat." (negative imperative) A. hirvamos B. hirváis C. hiervas D. hierva

  10. Which is the gerund of hervir, used with estar for the progressive? A. hiervo B. herví C. hirviendo D. hervido

Answer key

  1. hiervo — The present form for yo is hiervo.
  2. hirvió — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is hirvió.
  3. hervíamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is hervíamos.
  4. hervirás — The future form for tú is hervirás.
  5. herviría — The conditional form for yo is herviría.
  6. hierva — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is hierva.
  7. hirviera — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is hirviera.
  8. hemos hervido — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos hervido.
  9. hiervas — The negative imperative form is hiervas.
  10. hirviendo — The gerund of hervir is hirviendo: estoy hirviendo. The participle hervido is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does hervir mean in English?

hervir means to boil. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo hiervo el agua para el té — "I boil the water for the tea". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is hervir regular?

No. hervir is a stem-changing -ir verb (e → ie). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: hiervo, hierves, hierve and hierven — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: hervimos, hervís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: hirvió, hirvieron, and the gerund is hirviendo. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem, which is the part learners most often get right by accident.

What is the gerund and the past participle of hervir?

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

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

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo herví la leche en la cacerola — "Yesterday, I boiled the milk in the saucepan". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo hervía las patatas con sal — "As a child, I used to boil the potatoes with salt". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he hervido la leche en la cacerola — "Today, I have boiled the milk in the saucepan".

What is the difference between hervir and cocer?

Cocer is the wider verb for cooking food by boiling or baking. Hervir describes the liquid itself boiling: el agua hierve. Hervir means to boil: hierve el agua, hierve la leche. The stem changes e to ie in the present and e to i in the preterite third person and the gerund: hirvió, hirvieron, hirviendo.

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