Open this grammar lesson and learn all about the “abrir” conjugation in Spanish!

Abrir is the Spanish verb for “to open”. It is an irregular verb, which means its conjugations do not always follow the standard patterns found in regular verbs. 

​​Whether you’re a beginner in Spanish or looking to fine-tune your language skills, this comprehensive guide will help you navigate the irregular beauty of “abrir” with confidence and ease. Let’s dive in and enhance your Spanish language proficiency, one verb at a time.

Read more: THE 150 MOST COMMON SPANISH VERBS (IRREGULAR + REGULAR)

“Abrir” Conjugation Indicative / Indicativo

The indicative tense (el modo indicativo) is one of the three grammatical moods used to express different attitudes or purposes in speech. The indicative mood is used to make factual statements, ask questions, and express opinions about actions or events that are considered real or certain.

Present Tense Abrir Conjugation / Presente

The present tense is used to describe actions happening in the present or to express general truths or habitual actions.

Yo	Abro
Tú	Abres
Él/Ella/Usted	Abre
Nosotros	Abrimos
Vosotros	Abrís
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abren

Examples:

1. Yo abro la puerta cuando llego a casa. (I open the door when I get home.)
2. Tú abres la caja con mucho cuidado. (You open the box very carefully.)
3. Usted abre el libro para mostrar la página. (You open the book to show the page.)

Simple Past Abrir Conjugation / Pasado 

The simple past tense (preterite) is used to describe completed actions in the past, often with specific time frames or events.

Yo	Abrí
Tú	Abriste
Él/Ella/Usted	Abrió
Nosotros	Abrimos
Vosotros	Abristeis
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abrieron

Examples:

1. Ayer, vosotros abristeis las ventanas para ventilar la casa. (Yesterday, you all opened the windows to air out the house.)
2. Nosotros abrimos el restaurante a las diez de la mañana. (We open the restaurant at ten in the morning.)
3. Tú abriste el regalo antes de la fiesta. (You opened the gift before the party.)

Imperfect Abrir Conjugation / Imperfecto

Spanish imperfect tense is used to describe ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions in the past, as well as to set the stage or provide background information

Yo	Abría
Tú	Abrías
Él/Ella/Usted	Abría
Nosotros	Abríamos
Vosotros	Abríais
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abrían

Examples:

1. Cuando era niño, mis padres siempre abrían la puerta para mí cuando llegaba a casa. (When I was a child, my parents would always open the door for me when I got home.)
2. Cada mañana, él abría la tienda a las ocho en punto. (Every morning, he would open the store at eight o’clock.)
3. Nosotros abríamos las ventanas cada vez que hacía buen tiempo. (We would open the windows every time the weather was nice.)

Present Continuous / Presente Continuo

The present continuous tense (also known as “estar + gerundio”) is used to describe actions that are currently happening in the present moment or to express temporary situations.

Yo	Estoy abriendo
Tú	Estás abriendo
Él/Ella/Usted	Está abriendo
Nosotros	Estamos abriendo
Vosotros	Estáis abriendo
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Están abriendo

Examples:

1. Estoy abriendo el libro para estudiar. (I am opening the book to study.)
2. Ella está abriendo el paquete que llegó esta mañana. (She is opening the package that arrived this morning.)
3. Tú estás abriendo las ventanas porque hace calor. (You are opening the windows because it’s hot.)

Future Tense Abrir Conjugation / Futuro

The Spanish future tense is used to express actions or events that will happen in the future, indicating something that has not yet occurred.

Yo	Abriré
Tú	Abrirás
Él/Ella/Usted	Abrirá
Nosotros	Abriremos
Vosotros	Abriréis
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abrirán

Examples:

1. Yo abriré el regalo cuando llegue a casa. (I will open the gift when I get home.)
2. Ellos abrirán la tienda a las diez de la mañana. (They will open the store at ten in the morning.)
3. Nosotros abriremos la puerta cuando llegue el invitado. (We will open the door when the guest arrives.)

Conditional Abrir Conjugation / Condicional

The conditional tense is used to express hypothetical or speculative actions or events that would happen under certain conditions in the present or future.

Yo	Abriría
Tú	Abrirías
Él/Ella/Usted	Abriría
Nosotros	Abriríamos
Vosotros	Abriríais
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abrirían

Examples:

1. ¿Abrirías la ventana si tuvieses frío? (Would you open the window if you were cold?)
2. Usted abriría el documento si supiera la contraseña. (You would open the document if you knew the password.)
3. Vosotros abriríais el negocio si tuvieseis más clientes. (You all would open the business if you had more customers.)

Present Perfect / pretérito perfecto compuesto

Spanish present perfect tense (also known as “pretérito perfecto compuesto”) is used to express actions that have occurred in the past but have a connection to the present, emphasizing the result or consequences of those actions.

Yo	He abierto
Tú	Has abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Ha abierto
Nosotros	Hemos abierto
Vosotros	habéis abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Han abierto

Examples:

1. He abierto la puerta para que entre el aire fresco. (I have opened the door to let in the fresh air.)
2. Hemos abierto todas las ventanas para ventilar la habitación. (We have opened all the windows to ventilate the room.)
3. Ellos han abierto el restaurante para el almuerzo. (They have opened the restaurant for lunch.)

Past Perfect Abrir Conjugation / Pretérico Pluscuamperfecto

Spanish past perfect tense (also known as “pretérito pluscuamperfecto”) is used to describe actions that occurred before another past action or event, expressing a past-in-the-past relationship.

Yo	Había abierto
Tú	Has abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Ha abierto
Nosotros	Hemos abierto
Vosotros	habéis abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Han abierto

Examples:

1. ¿Has abierto la ventana ya? (Have you opened the window yet?)
2. Él ha abierto el regalo que le diste. (He has opened the gift you gave him.)
3. Ellos han abierto la tienda esta mañana. (They have opened the store this morning.)

Future Perfect / Futuro Perfecto

The Spanish future perfect tense is used to express actions that will have been completed in the future, indicating an action that will be finished before another specified future time or event.

Yo	Habré abierto
Tú	Habrás abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Habrá abierto
Nosotros	Habremos abierto
Vosotros	Habréis abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Habrán abierto

Examples:

1. Para cuando llegues, yo habré abierto todas las ventanas. (By the time you arrive, I will have opened all the windows.)
2. Para las seis de la tarde, tú habrás abierto la tienda. (By six in the evening, you will have opened the store.)
3. Para el final del mes, habremos abierto todas las cajas. (By the end of the month, we will have opened all the boxes.)

Conditional Perfect / Condicional Perfect

The conditional perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or speculative actions that would have been completed in the past, indicating an action that would have happened prior to another past event.

Yo	Habría abierto
Tú	Habrías abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Habría abierto
Nosotros	Habríamos abierto
Vosotros	Habríais abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Habrían abierto

Examples:

1. Si hubierais llegado a tiempo, habríais abierto el restaurante antes de que llegaran los clientes. (If you all had arrived on time, you would have opened the restaurant before the customers arrived.)
2. Ellos habrían abierto la tienda si hubieran tenido la llave. (They would have opened the store if they had had the key.)
3. Ella habría abierto la puerta si hubiera sabido que estabas afuera. (She would have opened the door if she had known you were outside.)

“Abrir” Conjugation Subjunctive / Subjuntivo

The subjunctive tense (el modo subjuntivo) is one of the three grammatical moods used to express different attitudes or purposes in speech. The subjunctive mood is used to express doubt, uncertainty, subjectivity, emotion, and hypothetical situations.

Present Tense / Presente

The Spanish subjunctive present tense is used to express subjective actions, desires, doubts, recommendations, or possibilities, often introduced by certain triggers such as expressions of doubt, necessity, or influence.

Yo	Abra
Tú	Abras
Él/Ella/Usted	Abra
Nosotros	Abramos
Vosotros	Abráis
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abran

Examples:

1. Espero que yo abra la puerta antes de que lleguen los invitados. (I hope that I open the door before the guests arrive.)
2. Es importante que usted abra el archivo antes de la reunión. (It’s important that you open the file before the meeting.)
3. Quiero que tú abras el regalo para ver qué hay dentro. (I want you to open the gift to see what’s inside.)

Imperfect / Imperfecto

This tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the past, often introduced by certain triggers such as expressions of doubt, uncertainty, or unreal conditions.

Yo	Abriera
Tú	Abrieras
Él/Ella/Usted	Abriera
Nosotros	Abriéramos
Vosotros	Abrierais
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abrieran

Examples:

1. Si tú abrieras la ventana, entraría aire fresco. (If you opened the window, fresh air would come in.)
2. Era importante que ella abriera el informe antes de la reunión. (It was important that she opened the report before the meeting.)
3. Nos sorprendió que ellos abrieran la tienda tan temprano. (We were surprised that they opened the store so early.)

Future Tense / Futuro

The Spanish subjunctive future tense is used to express hypothetical or uncertain actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the future.

Yo	Abriere
Tú	Abrieres
Él/Ella/Usted	Abriere
Nosotros	Abriéremos
Vosotros	Abriereis
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abrieren

Examples:

1. Si yo abriere la puerta, podrías entrar sin problemas. (If I were to open the door, you could enter without problems.)
2. Si tú abrieres el libro, encontrarás la respuesta. (If you were to open the book, you would find the answer.)
3. Si nosotros abriéremos la tienda, tendríamos más clientes. (If we were to open the store, we would have more customers.)

Present Perfect / Pretérito Perfecto

Spanish subjunctive present perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the present with a connection to the past, indicating actions that would have been completed prior to the present moment.

Yo	Haya abierto
Tú	Hayas abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Haya abierto
Nosotros	Hayamos abierto
Vosotros	Hayáis abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Hayan abierto

Examples:

1. Espero que él haya abierto la ventana antes de que lleguemos. (I hope that he has opened the window before we arrive.)
2. Es importante que usted haya abierto el archivo antes de la reunión. (It is important that you have opened the file before the meeting.)
3. Me alegra que hayamos abierto todas las ventanas a tiempo. (I am glad that we have opened all the windows in time.)

Past Perfect / Pretérico Pluscuamperfecto

Spanish subjunctive past perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the past with a connection to a previous past event, indicating actions that would have been completed before that past event.

Yo	Hubiera abierto
Tú	Hubieras abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Hubiera abierto
Nosotros	Hubiéramos abierto
Vosotros	Hubierais abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Hubieran abierto

Examples:

1. Si ellos hubieran abierto la tienda a tiempo, habríamos podido comprar lo que necesitábamos. (If they had opened the store on time, we would have been able to buy what we needed.)
2. Si vosotros hubierais abierto las ventanas, la casa habría estado más fresca. (If you all had opened the windows, the house would have been cooler.)
3. Me habría gustado que tú hubieras abierto el libro antes de la clase. (I would have liked it if you had opened the book before class.)

Future Perfect / Futuro Perfecto

The future perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the future with a connection to a future event, indicating actions that would have been completed before that future event.

Yo	Hubiere abierto
Tú	Hubieres abierto
Él/Ella/Usted	Hubiere abierto
Nosotros	Hubiéremos abierto
Vosotros	Hubiereis abierto
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Hubieren abierto

Examples:

1. Si para entonces hubieres abierto el archivo, podremos comenzar la presentación. (If by then you have opened the file, we can start the presentation.)
2. Cuando lleguen los invitados, yo hubiere abierto todas las puertas para recibirlos. (When the guests arrive, I will have opened all the doors to welcome them.)

“Abrir” Conjugation Imperative / Imperativo

The imperative tense (el modo imperativo) is one of the verb moods used to express commands, orders, or requests. It is used to tell someone what to do or what not to do.

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Affirmative / Afirmativos

Spanish affirmative refers to the use of positive statements or expressions that indicate agreement, confirmation, or positive response to a question or statement.

Yo	–
Tú	Abre
Él/Ella/Usted	Abra
Nosotros	Abramos
Vosotros	Abrid
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	Abran

Examples:

1. Abrid las ventanas para que entre el aire fresco. (Open the windows so that fresh air comes in.)
2. Abran el libro en la página diez. (Open the book to page ten.)
3. Abre la puerta para que entre la luz. (Open the door so that light comes in.)

Negative / Negativos

Spanish negative refers to the use of negative statements or expressions that indicate negation, denial, or disagreement with a question or statement.

Yo	–
Tú	No abras
Él/Ella/Usted	No abra
Nosotros	No abramos
Vosotros	No abráis
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes	No abran

Examples:

1. No abramos las ventanas hasta que terminen la pintura. (Let’s not open the windows until they finish the painting.)
2. No abras la puerta sin primero preguntar quién es. (Don’t open the door without first asking who it is.)
3. No abra el libro hasta que le dé la señal. (Don’t open the book until I give you the signal.)

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