Padecer Conjugation in Spanish

Learning to conjugate padecer — «to suffer from» — opens up a whole set of sentences you will use every day. It is a spelling-changing -er verb verb, and this page covers it completely: thirteen tenses, the gerund padeciendo and the past participle padecido, example sentences in every tense, the common mistakes and a quiz with an answer key. A good first sentence to learn is «Yo padezco todos los días» — I suffer from every day. Once you can say that, the rest of the table falls into place person by person.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: padecer
  • English: to suffer from
  • Verb type: spelling-changing -er verb
  • Ending: -er
  • Gerund: padeciendo
  • Past participle: padecido
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + padecido)
  • Spelling change: in the present indicative the yo form is padezco, not padeco, so the stem-final letter changes before e and i.
  • Spelling change: in the present subjunctive the yo form is padezca, not padeca, so the stem-final letter changes before e and i.

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Gerund: padeciendo · Past participle: padecido

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo padezco
tú padeces
él/ella/Ud. padece
nosotros/as padecemos
vosotros/as padecéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. padecen

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

Preterite

Person Form
yo padecí
tú padeciste
él/ella/Ud. padeció
nosotros/as padecimos
vosotros/as padecisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. padecieron

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

Imperfect

Person Form
yo padecía
tú padecías
él/ella/Ud. padecía
nosotros/as padecíamos
vosotros/as padecíais
ellos/ellas/Uds. padecían

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

Future

Person Form
yo padeceré
tú padecerás
él/ella/Ud. padecerá
nosotros/as padeceremos
vosotros/as padeceréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. padecerán

Use the future of padecer for plans, promises and predictions. The yo form is padeceré, 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 padecería
tú padecerías
él/ella/Ud. padecería
nosotros/as padeceríamos
vosotros/as padeceríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. padecerían

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

Present Perfect

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

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

Pluperfect

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

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

Future Perfect

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

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

Conditional Perfect

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

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

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo padezca
tú padezcas
él/ella/Ud. padezca
nosotros/as padezcamos
vosotros/as padecáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. padezcan

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

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)

Person Form
yo padeciera
tú padecieras
él/ella/Ud. padeciera
nosotros/as padeciéramos
vosotros/as padecierais
ellos/ellas/Uds. padecieran

Use the imperfect subjunctive of padecer after past-tense wishes and doubts, and in si-clauses that set up a hypothetical present. The yo form is padeciera. 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 padece
él/ella/Ud. padezca
nosotros/as padezcamos
vosotros/as padeced
ellos/ellas/Uds. padezcan

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

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

Imperative — Negative

Person Form
tú padezcas
él/ella/Ud. padezca
nosotros/as padezcamos
vosotros/as padecáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. padezcan

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

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

Example sentences

  1. Yo padezco todos los días. — I suffer from every day.
  2. Ayer yo padecí por la tarde. — Yesterday I sufferred from in the afternoon.
  3. Antes, yo padecía todos los días. — In the past, I used to suffer from every day.
  4. Mañana yo padeceré sin falta. — Tomorrow I will suffer from without fail.
  5. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo padecería ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would suffer from right now.
  6. Hoy yo he padecido dos veces. — Today I have sufferred from twice.
  7. Espero que tú padezcas pronto. — I hope You suffer from soon.
  8. Si yo padeciera, todo sería distinto. — If I sufferred from, everything would be different.
  9. Ahora mismo yo estoy padeciendo. — Right now I am sufferring from.
  10. ¡padece, por favor! — Suffer from, please!

Common mistakes

1. Missing the spelling change in the present indicative

Wrong: Yo padeco.

Right: Yo padezco.

The spelling changes so the pronunciation stays the same: the yo form in the present indicative is padezco, not padeco. The endings are regular — only the spelling of the stem-final letter adjusts before e and i.

2. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo padecía.

Right: Ayer yo padecí.

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

3. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

Wrong: Espero que tú padeces.

Right: Espero que tú padezcas.

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

4. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No padece.

Right: No padezcas.

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

5. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo padecer todos los días.

Right: Yo padezco todos los días.

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

6. Confusing the gerund with the past participle

Wrong: He padeciendo.

Right: He padecido.

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

Quiz

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

1. What is the vosotros/as form of padecer in the present indicative?

- (a) padecéis
- (b) padeces
- (c) padezco
- (d) padece

2. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of padecer in the preterite?

- (a) padecí
- (b) padecieron
- (c) padeció
- (d) padeciste

3. What is the yo form of padecer in the imperfect?

- (a) padecía
- (b) padecías
- (c) padecía
- (d) padecíamos

4. What is the tú form of padecer in the future?

- (a) padeceré
- (b) padeceremos
- (c) padecerá
- (d) padecerás

5. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of padecer in the conditional?

- (a) padecería
- (b) padeceríamos
- (c) padecerías
- (d) padecería

6. What is the nosotros/as form of padecer in the present perfect?

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

7. What is the vosotros/as form of padecer in the present subjunctive?

- (a) padecáis
- (b) padezcas
- (c) padezca
- (d) padezca

8. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of padecer in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)?

- (a) padecieran
- (b) padeciera
- (c) padecieras
- (d) padeciera

9. What is the gerund of padecer?

- (a) padecer
- (b) padeciendo
- (c) padecido
- (d) padezco

10. What is the past participle of padecer?

- (a) padecido
- (b) padeciendo
- (c) padecer
- (d) padecí

Answer key

1. (a) — In the present indicative, the vosotros/as form of padecer is padecéis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (b) — In the preterite, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of padecer is padecieron. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (a) — In the imperfect, the yo form of padecer is padecía. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (d) — In the future, the tú form of padecer is padecerás. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (a) — In the conditional, the él/ella/Ud. form of padecer is padecería. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (a) — In the present perfect, the nosotros/as form of padecer is hemos padecido. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 7. (a) — In the present subjunctive, the vosotros/as form of padecer is padecáis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 8. (a) — In the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms), the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of padecer is padecieran. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 9. (b) — The gerund of padecer is padeciendo. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy padeciendo». 10. (a) — The past participle of padecer is padecido. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he padecido».

Frequently asked questions

Is padecer regular or irregular?

Mostly yes — padecer takes the regular -er endings, but the spelling of the stem changes in some forms (for example the yo preterite padecí). The endings never change; only the stem-final letter adjusts so the pronunciation stays the same.

What are the gerund and past participle of padecer?

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

How do I say «I suffer from» in Spanish?

Say «Yo padezco 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 padecer?

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

When do I use the subjunctive with padecer?

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

How do I use padecer in the present perfect?

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

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