Recibir in everyday life
¿Recibiste mi correo? = did you get my email? Recibir a alguien = to welcome / receive someone (nos recibieron muy bien). And a recibo is a receipt or a bill. In speech, llegar is common too: ¿te llegó mi mensaje?
Indicative tenses of recibir
Facts and things that happen: the tenses you'll use most.
Present indicative
| yo | reciboI receive |
|---|---|
| tú | recibesyou receive |
| él/ella/usted | recibehe/she receives |
| nosotros/as | recibimoswe receive |
| vosotros/as | recibísyou all receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibenthey receive |
¿Has recibido mi mensaje? = did you get my message?
Preterite indicative
| yo | recibíI received |
|---|---|
| tú | recibisteyou received |
| él/ella/usted | recibióhe/she received |
| nosotros/as | recibimoswe received |
| vosotros/as | recibisteisyou all received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibieronthey received |
Imperfect indicative
| yo | recibíaI used to receive |
|---|---|
| tú | recibíasyou used to receive |
| él/ella/usted | recibíahe/she used to receive |
| nosotros/as | recibíamoswe used to receive |
| vosotros/as | recibíaisyou all used to receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibíanthey used to receive |
Present continuous indicative
| yo | estoy recibiendoI am receiving |
|---|---|
| tú | estás recibiendoyou are receiving |
| él/ella/usted | está recibiendohe/she is receiving |
| nosotros/as | estamos recibiendowe are receiving |
| vosotros/as | estáis recibiendoyou all are receiving |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | están recibiendothey are receiving |
estar + gerund
Informal future indicative
| yo | voy a recibirI am going to receive |
|---|---|
| tú | vas a recibiryou are going to receive |
| él/ella/usted | va a recibirhe/she is going to receive |
| nosotros/as | vamos a recibirwe are going to receive |
| vosotros/as | vais a recibiryou all are going to receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | van a recibirthey are going to receive |
ir a + infinitive
Future indicative
| yo | recibiréI will receive |
|---|---|
| tú | recibirásyou will receive |
| él/ella/usted | recibiráhe/she will receive |
| nosotros/as | recibiremoswe will receive |
| vosotros/as | recibiréisyou all will receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibiránthey will receive |
Conditional indicative
| yo | recibiríaI would receive |
|---|---|
| tú | recibiríasyou would receive |
| él/ella/usted | recibiríahe/she would receive |
| nosotros/as | recibiríamoswe would receive |
| vosotros/as | recibiríaisyou all would receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibiríanthey would receive |
Present perfect indicative
| yo | he recibidoI have received |
|---|---|
| tú | has recibidoyou have received |
| él/ella/usted | ha recibidohe/she has received |
| nosotros/as | hemos recibidowe have received |
| vosotros/as | habéis recibidoyou all have received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han recibidothey have received |
haber (present) + past participle
Past perfect indicative
| yo | había recibidoI had received |
|---|---|
| tú | habías recibidoyou had received |
| él/ella/usted | había recibidohe/she had received |
| nosotros/as | habíamos recibidowe had received |
| vosotros/as | habíais recibidoyou all had received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habían recibidothey had received |
haber (imperfect) + past participle
Future perfect indicative
| yo | habré recibidoI will have received |
|---|---|
| tú | habrás recibidoyou will have received |
| él/ella/usted | habrá recibidohe/she will have received |
| nosotros/as | habremos recibidowe will have received |
| vosotros/as | habréis recibidoyou all will have received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrán recibidothey will have received |
haber (future) + past participle
Conditional perfect indicative
| yo | habría recibidoI would have received |
|---|---|
| tú | habrías recibidoyou would have received |
| él/ella/usted | habría recibidohe/she would have received |
| nosotros/as | habríamos recibidowe would have received |
| vosotros/as | habríais recibidoyou all would have received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrían recibidothey would have received |
haber (conditional) + past participle
Subjunctive tenses of recibir
Wishes, doubts, emotions and "if" sentences.
Present subjunctive
| yo | reciba(that) I receive |
|---|---|
| tú | recibas(that) you receive |
| él/ella/usted | reciba(that) he/she receives |
| nosotros/as | recibamos(that) we receive |
| vosotros/as | recibáis(that) you all receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | reciban(that) they receive |
Imperfect subjunctive
| yo | recibiera(if) I received |
|---|---|
| tú | recibieras(if) you received |
| él/ella/usted | recibiera(if) he/she received |
| nosotros/as | recibiéramos(if) we received |
| vosotros/as | recibierais(if) you all received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibieran(if) they received |
Future subjunctive
| yo | recibiere(if) I receive |
|---|---|
| tú | recibieres(if) you receive |
| él/ella/usted | recibiere(if) he/she receives |
| nosotros/as | recibiéremos(if) we receive |
| vosotros/as | recibiereis(if) you all receive |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | recibieren(if) they receive |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Present perfect subjunctive
| yo | haya recibido(that) I have received |
|---|---|
| tú | hayas recibido(that) you have received |
| él/ella/usted | haya recibido(that) he/she has received |
| nosotros/as | hayamos recibido(that) we have received |
| vosotros/as | hayáis recibido(that) you all have received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan recibido(that) they have received |
haber (present subj.) + past participle
Past perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiera recibido(if) I had received |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieras recibido(if) you had received |
| él/ella/usted | hubiera recibido(if) he/she had received |
| nosotros/as | hubiéramos recibido(if) we had received |
| vosotros/as | hubierais recibido(if) you all had received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieran recibido(if) they had received |
haber (imperfect subj.) + past participle
Future perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiere recibido(if) I will have received |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieres recibido(if) you will have received |
| él/ella/usted | hubiere recibido(if) he/she will have received |
| nosotros/as | hubiéremos recibido(if) we will have received |
| vosotros/as | hubiereis recibido(if) you all will have received |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieren recibido(if) they will have received |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Imperative tenses of recibir
Commands and instructions.
Affirmative imperative
| tú | recibereceive! |
|---|---|
| usted | recibareceive! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | recibamoslet's receive! |
| vosotros/as | recibidreceive! (you all) |
| ustedes | recibanreceive! (you all, formal) |
Negative imperative
| tú | no recibasdon't receive! |
|---|---|
| usted | no recibadon't receive! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | no recibamoslet's not receive! |
| vosotros/as | no recibáisdon't receive! (you all) |
| ustedes | no recibandon't receive! (you all, formal) |
Practice recibir
Two quick exercises. No sign-up, no app: just you and recibir.
How to use recibir
¿Recibiste mi mensaje?
Did you get my message?
Hoy recibo un paquete.
I'm getting a package today.
Nos recibieron con los brazos abiertos.
They welcomed us with open arms.
Recibió un premio.
She received a prize.
He recibido su correo.
I've received your email.
Example sentences with recibir
- ¿Recibes muchos correos?Do you get a lot of emails?
- No he recibido nada.I haven't received anything.
- Ayer recibí tu carta.Yesterday I got your letter.
- Recibíamos visitas cada domingo.We used to get visitors every Sunday.
- Recibirás un correo de confirmación.You'll receive a confirmation email.
- ¿Lo recibirías en casa?Would you receive it at home?
- Espero que lo recibas pronto.I hope you get it soon.
- Estamos recibiendo muchas preguntas.We're getting a lot of questions.
Verbs like recibir
All regular -ir verbs follow exactly the same pattern as recibir.
Frequently asked questions about recibir
Is recibir regular or irregular?
Recibir is completely regular. It follows the normal -ir pattern in every tense.
How do you conjugate recibir in the present tense?
recibo, recibes, recibe, recibimos, recibís, reciben.
How do you conjugate recibir in the preterite?
recibí, recibiste, recibió, recibimos, recibisteis, recibieron.
How do you say "did you get my message?" in Spanish?
¿Recibiste mi mensaje? or, more casually, ¿te llegó mi mensaje?
Is it recibir with b or v?
Always with b: recibir, recibo.
What is the past participle of recibir?
The past participle is recibido and the gerund is recibiendo.
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