Suponer Conjugation in Spanish
Introduction
suponer means "to suppose" in English, and it is one of the verbs you will meet constantly in everyday Spanish — for making an assumption or an educated guess. Learning it properly means more than memorising one form: the verb changes across thirteen tenses, and this page gives you every one of them, with the exact forms from the VerbFlow engine, so you can check any person or tense in seconds. Suponer is a irregular -er verb verb, and it is irregular in: present, preterite, future, conditional, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. That matters because the patterns on this page are the patterns you will reuse every time you speak or write. Work through the tables first, then read the notes under each tense — they explain when to use each tense and what to watch out for with this verb in particular. A natural example is: Cada día, yo supongo que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Every day, I suppose that the meeting starts at ten." Once you can say that sentence confidently, try changing the person and the tense using the tables below.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | suponer |
| Translation | to suppose |
| Verb type | Irregular -er verb |
| Gerund | suponiendo |
| Past participle | supuesto |
| Auxiliary | haber (all compound tenses) |
| Irregular tenses | irregular in: present, preterite, future, conditional, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative |
Full conjugation of suponer
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | supongo |
| tú | supones |
| él / ella / Ud. | supone |
| nosotros / nosotras | suponemos |
| vosotros / vosotras | suponéis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | suponen |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | supuse |
| tú | supusiste |
| él / ella / Ud. | supuso |
| nosotros / nosotras | supusimos |
| vosotros / vosotras | supusisteis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supusieron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suponía |
| tú | suponías |
| él / ella / Ud. | suponía |
| nosotros / nosotras | suponíamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | suponíais |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | suponían |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | supondré |
| tú | supondrás |
| él / ella / Ud. | supondrá |
| nosotros / nosotras | supondremos |
| vosotros / vosotras | supondréis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supondrán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | supondría |
| tú | supondrías |
| él / ella / Ud. | supondría |
| nosotros / nosotras | supondríamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | supondríais |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supondrían |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suponga |
| tú | supongas |
| él / ella / Ud. | suponga |
| nosotros / nosotras | supongamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | supongáis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supongan |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | supusiera |
| tú | supusieras |
| él / ella / Ud. | supusiera |
| nosotros / nosotras | supusiéramos |
| vosotros / vosotras | supusierais |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supusieran |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he supuesto |
| tú | has supuesto |
| él / ella / Ud. | ha supuesto |
| nosotros / nosotras | hemos supuesto |
| vosotros / vosotras | habéis supuesto |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | han supuesto |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había supuesto |
| tú | habías supuesto |
| él / ella / Ud. | había supuesto |
| nosotros / nosotras | habíamos supuesto |
| vosotros / vosotras | habíais supuesto |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | habían supuesto |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré supuesto |
| tú | habrás supuesto |
| él / ella / Ud. | habrá supuesto |
| nosotros / nosotras | habremos supuesto |
| vosotros / vosotras | habréis supuesto |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | habrán supuesto |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría supuesto |
| tú | habrías supuesto |
| él / ella / Ud. | habría supuesto |
| nosotros / nosotras | habríamos supuesto |
| vosotros / vosotras | habríais supuesto |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | habrían supuesto |
Imperative — affirmative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | supón |
| él / ella / Ud. | suponga |
| nosotros / nosotras | supongamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | suponed |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supongan |
Imperative — negative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | supongas |
| él / ella / Ud. | suponga |
| nosotros / nosotras | supongamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | supongáis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | supongan |
Gerund: suponiendo · Past participle: supuesto
Suponer in every tense — notes and examples
Present indicative
The present is the tense for habits, facts and what is happening now. It is the first tense to master, because the present subjunctive and the affirmative imperative are both built from the present yo form. Example: Cada día, yo supongo que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Every day, I suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
Preterite
The preterite is for completed actions in the past — things that started and finished at a definite moment. Use it for a single event, a sequence of events, or an action with a clear end. The preterite uses an irregular stem: the yo form is supuse and the él/ella form is supuso. Learn this stem, because the imperfect subjunctive is built on it too. Example: Ayer, yo supuse que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Yesterday, I supposed that the meeting starts at ten."
Imperfect
The imperfect is for the past without a definite end: habits, background scenes, descriptions and actions in progress when something else happened. It never states when the action finished. Example: Antes, yo suponía que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Before, I supposed that the meeting starts at ten."
Future
The future is for what will happen, and also for guesses about the present ("I wonder if…"). For regular verbs it is the infinitive plus the endings -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án. The future is built on an irregular stem, not on the infinitive — the yo form is supondré. Example: Mañana, yo supondré que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Tomorrow, I will suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
Conditional
The conditional is for what would happen — polite requests, hypothetical results and reported expectations. It shares its stem with the future, so any irregular future stem appears here too. The conditional is built on an irregular stem, not on the infinitive — the yo form is supondría. Example: Yo supondría que la reunión empieza a las diez si tuviera la oportunidad. — "I would suppose that the meeting starts at ten if I had the chance."
Present subjunctive
The present subjunctive is for wishes, doubts, emotions and other non-facts after que, and after expressions such as ojalá, es importante que or no creo que. It is not a tense for stating facts. The present subjunctive is irregular for this verb: the yo form is suponga, and all six persons follow from it. Example: Espero que ella suponga que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "I hope she will suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)
The imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms) is for wishes and doubts about the past, and for the if-part of hypothetical sentences (si + imperfect subjunctive, conditional). This page shows the -ra forms from the engine. The imperfect subjunctive uses the irregular preterite stem: the yo form is supusiera. Example: Si ella supusiera que la reunión empieza a las diez, todo cambiaría. — "If she supposed that the meeting starts at ten, everything would change."
Present perfect
The present perfect (haber + past participle) is for past actions connected to the present — recent events, experience, or something that has just happened. The auxiliary is always haber. These perfect tenses use the irregular past participle supuesto after haber — never the regular -ido form. Example: Yo he supuesto un retraso de media hora varias veces. — "I have supposed a delay of half an hour several times."
Pluperfect
The pluperfect (había + past participle) is the past of the past: something that had already happened before another past event. These perfect tenses use the irregular past participle supuesto after haber — never the regular -ido form. Example: Yo había supuesto que la reunión empieza a las diez antes de la reunión. — "I had supposed that the meeting starts at ten before the meeting."
Future perfect
The future perfect (habré + past participle) is for something that will already be finished by a future moment, or for a guess about the past. It is less common in speech than the simple future. These perfect tenses use the irregular past participle supuesto after haber — never the regular -ido form. Example: Para mañana, yo habré supuesto que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "By tomorrow, I will have supposed that the meeting starts at ten."
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect (habría + past participle) is for what would have happened — the past of the conditional, used for regrets and unreal past conditions. These perfect tenses use the irregular past participle supuesto after haber — never the regular -ido form. Example: Yo habría supuesto que la reunión empieza a las diez si hubiera tenido tiempo. — "I would have supposed that the meeting starts at ten if I had had time."
Imperative — affirmative
The affirmative imperative is for direct orders, instructions and invitations. The tú form is irregular (supón) and does not come from the present él/ella form; the formal, nosotros and plural forms come from the present subjunctive. The affirmative imperative is irregular for this verb: the tú form is supón and the formal form is suponga. Example: ¡supón que la reunión empieza a las diez! — "Suppose that the meeting starts at ten!"
Imperative — negative
The negative imperative (no + subjunctive) is for telling someone not to do something. All five persons come from the present subjunctive, which is why they look different from the affirmative tú form. Example: No supongas que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Do not suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
Example sentences with suponer
Yo supongo que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "I suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
¿Tú supones un retraso de media hora? — "Do you suppose a delay of half an hour?"
Ayer, él supuso que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Yesterday, he supposed that the meeting starts at ten."
Nosotros supusimos un retraso de media hora a tiempo. — "We supposed a delay of half an hour on time."
Antes, ellos suponían que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "Before, they supposed that the meeting starts at ten."
Mañana, yo supondré un retraso de media hora. — "Tomorrow, I will suppose a delay of half an hour."
Nosotros supondríamos que la reunión empieza a las diez si pudiéramos. — "We would suppose that the meeting starts at ten if we could."
Yo he supuesto un retraso de media hora varias veces. — "I have supposed a delay of half an hour several times."
Espero que ella suponga que la reunión empieza a las diez. — "I hope she will suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
Ahora mismo, yo estoy suponiendo un retraso de media hora. — "Right now, I am supposing a delay of half an hour."
Common mistakes with suponer
1. Using the regular participle ✗ suponido
The past participle of suponer is irregular: supuesto, not suponido. So it is he supuesto, never he suponido. This irregular participle appears in every perfect tense.
2. Confusing suponer with imaginar (to imagine)
suponer means "to suppose", while imaginar means "to imagine". They overlap in English but they are not interchangeable in Spanish: use suponer when you mean making an assumption or an educated guess, and imaginar for its own meaning. Check the conjugation of imaginar before choosing.
3. Mixing up the preterite and the imperfect
Ayer yo supuse que la reunión empieza a las diez (preterite: one finished event yesterday) is not the same as antes yo suponía que la reunión empieza a las diez (imperfect: what used to happen). If you can add "yesterday" or "last week", you usually want the preterite; if you can add "used to", you want the imperfect.
4. Using estar instead of haber in the perfect tenses
The present perfect is he supuesto (haber + participle), never estoy supuesto. Haber is the only auxiliary for compound tenses in Spanish.
5. Using the infinitive after a conjugated verb without a connector
When suponer is followed by another verb, check whether Spanish needs que or a preposition between them. A bare infinitive after a conjugated suponer is a common English-speaker error — say the full construction you have practised on this page.
Quiz: suponer
1. Yo ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez.
a. supone b. supongo c. suponen
2. Ella ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez.
a. supongo b. supone c. suponen
3. Ayer, yo ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez.
a. supongo b. supuse c. supone
4. Ellos ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez ayer.
a. supongo b. supusieron c. supone
5. Antes, yo ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez.
a. supongo b. suponía c. supone
6. Mañana, yo ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez.
a. supongo b. supondré c. supone
7. Yo ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez si pudiera.
a. supongo b. supondría c. supone
8. Espero que ella ___ que la reunión empieza a las diez.
a. supongo b. suponga c. supone
9. Ahora mismo, yo estoy ___ un retraso de media hora.
a. supuesto b. suponiendo c. supongo
10. Yo he ___ un retraso de media hora varias veces.
a. suponiendo b. supuesto c. supongo
Answer key
supongo — present tense, yo form.
supone — present tense, él/ella form.
supuse — preterite, yo form — a finished action yesterday.
supusieron — preterite, ellos/ellas form.
suponía — imperfect, yo form — a past habit.
supondré — future, yo form.
supondría — conditional, yo form — a hypothetical.
suponga — present subjunctive after 'espero que'.
suponiendo — gerund — the progressive is estar + gerund.
supuesto — past participle — the present perfect is haber + participle.
Frequently asked questions about suponer
What does suponer mean in English?
Suponer means "to suppose". It is used for making an assumption or an educated guess. A simple example is yo supongo que la reunión empieza a las diez — "I suppose that the meeting starts at ten."
Is suponer regular or irregular?
Suponer is a irregular -er verb verb, and it is irregular in: present, preterite, future, conditional, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The forms that most often catch learners out are the present yo form supongo, the preterite yo form supuse and the past participle supuesto — learn those three first, then fill in the rest from the tables above.
What is the gerund and the past participle of suponer?
The gerund is suponiendo (used for the progressive: estoy suponiendo) and the past participle is supuesto (used with haber in all perfect tenses: he supuesto). Both forms are used constantly, so they are worth memorising on their own.
How do I say "I suppose" in the past?
It depends on the meaning. For one finished action use the preterite: ayer yo supuse que la reunión empieza a las diez — "yesterday I supposed that the meeting starts at ten". For a past habit or background use the imperfect: antes yo suponía que la reunión empieza a las diez — "before, I supposed that the meeting starts at ten". The mistake most learners make is using one for the other.
Does suponer take the subjunctive?
Not usually. Suponer on its own takes the indicative — yo supongo que la reunión empieza a las diez. You will meet the subjunctive with suponer only inside a larger construction that itself triggers it, such as no creo que or es importante que, and then the subjunctive form is suponga.