Suspirar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb suspirar means to sigh, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Suspirar is a regular -ar verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of suspirar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example, in the present tense you say Yo suspiro de alivio — "I sigh with relief" — and in the preterite you say Yo suspiré profundamente — "I sighed deeply". 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.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: suspirar
- English: to sigh
- Verb type: regular -ar verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: suspirando
- Past participle: suspirado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + suspirado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for suspirar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for suspirar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.
Gerund: suspirando · Past participle: suspirado
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspiro |
| tú | suspiras |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspira |
| nosotros/as | suspiramos |
| vosotros/as | suspiráis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiran |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspiré |
| tú | suspiraste |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspiró |
| nosotros/as | suspiramos |
| vosotros/as | suspirasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiraron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspiraba |
| tú | suspirabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspiraba |
| nosotros/as | suspirábamos |
| vosotros/as | suspirabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiraban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspiraré |
| tú | suspirarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspirará |
| nosotros/as | suspiraremos |
| vosotros/as | suspiraréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspirarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspiraría |
| tú | suspirarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspiraría |
| nosotros/as | suspiraríamos |
| vosotros/as | suspiraríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspirarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he suspirado |
| tú | has suspirado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha suspirado |
| nosotros/as | hemos suspirado |
| vosotros/as | habéis suspirado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han suspirado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había suspirado |
| tú | habías suspirado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había suspirado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos suspirado |
| vosotros/as | habíais suspirado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían suspirado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré suspirado |
| tú | habrás suspirado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá suspirado |
| nosotros/as | habremos suspirado |
| vosotros/as | habréis suspirado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán suspirado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría suspirado |
| tú | habrías suspirado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría suspirado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos suspirado |
| vosotros/as | habríais suspirado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían suspirado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspire |
| tú | suspires |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspire |
| nosotros/as | suspiremos |
| vosotros/as | suspiréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiren |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | suspirara |
| tú | suspiraras |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspirara |
| nosotros/as | suspiráramos |
| vosotros/as | suspirarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiraran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | suspira |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspire |
| nosotros/as | suspiremos |
| vosotros/as | suspirad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiren |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | suspires |
| él/ella/Ud. | suspire |
| nosotros/as | suspiremos |
| vosotros/as | suspiréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | suspiren |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | suspirando | with estar for the progressive: estoy suspirando |
| Past participle | suspirado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he suspirado |
How to use each tense
Present indicative
Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. It is the tense you will use most often in everyday conversation, for habits with words like todos los días and for statements that are true in general. For suspirar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo suspiro profundamente — "I sigh deeply". Learn the present indicative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Preterite
Use the preterite for finished actions in the past — things that started and ended, often with time words like ayer, anoche or la semana pasada. The preterite moves a story forward, one completed event at a time. For suspirar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo suspiré al ver el mar — "I sighed on seeing the sea". Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperfect
Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with words like antes, de niño or mientras. It describes how things used to be, not one finished event. For suspirar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo suspiraba de alivio — "I used to sigh with relief". Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Future
Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. It talks about what will happen, not what is happening now. For suspirar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo suspiraré profundamente — "I will sigh deeply". Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Conditional
Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often in si clauses. It softens a request and describes imagined situations. For suspirar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo suspiraría al ver el mar — "I would sigh on seeing the sea". Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Present perfect
Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. It connects the past with the present moment. For suspirar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo he suspirado de alivio — "I have sighed with relief". Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Pluperfect
Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. It is the past of the past, and it usually appears with antes de or ya. For suspirar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo había suspirado profundamente — "I had sighed deeply". Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Future perfect
Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time, often with para mañana or para el viernes. For suspirar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habré suspirado al ver el mar — "I will have sighed on seeing the sea". Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Conditional perfect
Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. It looks back at a past that never happened. For suspirar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría suspirado de alivio — "I would have sighed with relief". Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Present subjunctive
Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The subjunctive does not state a fact; it states an attitude towards the action. For suspirar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él suspire profundamente — "I hope he sighs deeply". Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For suspirar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo suspirara al ver el mar, todo cambiaría — "If I sighed on seeing the sea, everything would change". Learn the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperative (affirmative)
Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. It tells someone to do something, and it has no yo form. For suspirar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Suspire de alivio — "Let him sigh with relief". Learn the imperative (affirmative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperative (negative)
Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. It uses the subjunctive forms, so it looks different from the affirmative commands. For suspirar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No suspires profundamente — "Don't sigh deeply". Learn the imperative (negative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with suspirar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Yo suspiro al ver el mar — "I sigh on seeing the sea"
- Él suspira de alivio — "He sighs with relief"
- Yo suspiré profundamente — "I sighed deeply"
- Yo suspiraba al ver el mar — "I used to sigh on seeing the sea"
- Tú suspirarás de alivio — "You will sigh with relief"
- Yo suspiraría profundamente — "I would sigh deeply"
- Él ha suspirado al ver el mar — "He has sighed on seeing the sea"
- Espero que él suspire de alivio — "I hope he sighs with relief"
- Yo había suspirado profundamente — "I had sighed deeply"
- Ellos suspiraban al ver el mar — "They used to sigh on seeing the sea"
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Ellos suspira de alivio — Right: Ellos suspiran de alivio — Ellos needs the ellos form suspiran. The singular suspira belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo suspiro — Right: Ayer, yo suspiré — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to suspiré.
- Wrong: De niño, yo suspiré todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo suspiraba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (suspiraba), not the preterite. The preterite (suspiré) is for one finished action.
- Wrong: Yo soy suspirado profundamente. — Right: Yo he suspirado profundamente. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he suspirado, has suspirado, ha suspirado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: Espero que él suspira de alivio. — Right: Espero que él suspire de alivio. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: suspire. The indicative suspira is wrong here.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on suspirar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ de alivio. (present tense) A. suspiraran B. suspiráramos C. suspiro D. habrás suspirado
Complete the sentence: Él ___ de alivio. (preterite) A. suspiró B. suspiraba C. suspiráramos D. habéis suspirado
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ de alivio. (imperfect) A. suspire B. suspirábamos C. han suspirado D. suspiramos
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ de alivio. (future) A. habrás suspirado B. suspirarás C. suspiráramos D. has suspirado
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ de alivio. (conditional) A. habrás suspirado B. suspires C. suspiraría D. suspirabas
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ de alivio. (present subjunctive) A. habríamos suspirado B. hemos suspirado C. suspire D. suspiren
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ de alivio, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. suspirarán B. habremos suspirado C. habré suspirado D. suspirara
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ de alivio. (present perfect) A. hemos suspirado B. suspirarais C. habremos suspirado D. suspiraré
Complete the command: No ___ de alivio. (negative imperative, tú) A. suspiréis B. suspire C. suspires D. suspiren
Which is the gerund of suspirar, used with estar for the progressive? A. suspirando B. suspiraba C. suspiraré D. suspiro
Answer key
- suspiro — The yo present tense of suspirar is suspiro.
- suspiró — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of suspirar is suspiró.
- suspirábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of suspirar is suspirábamos.
- suspirarás — The tú future of suspirar is suspirarás.
- suspiraría — The yo conditional of suspirar is suspiraría.
- suspire — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of suspirar is suspire.
- suspirara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of suspirar is suspirara.
- hemos suspirado — The nosotros/as present perfect of suspirar is hemos suspirado.
- suspires — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: suspires.
- suspirando — The gerund of suspirar is suspirando: estoy suspirando. The participle suspirado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does suspirar mean in English?
Suspirar means to sigh. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo suspiro de alivio. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is suspirar regular?
Yes. Suspirar is a regular -ar verb: suspiro, suspiras, suspira. The only thing to learn is the pattern of endings, which is the same for every regular -ar verb.
What is the gerund and the past participle of suspirar?
The gerund is suspirando, used with estar for the progressive: estoy suspirando. The past participle is suspirado, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he suspirado.
How do I say “I sigh” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo suspiré profundamente. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo suspiraba al ver el mar. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he suspirado de alivio.
How do I practise suspirar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the suspirar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Suspirar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for suspirar.
- Suspirar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for suspirar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Jadear conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with suspirar.
- Chillar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with suspirar.
- Murmurar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with suspirar.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.