Conditional Perfect Forms
The conditional perfect is a combination of the past participle and the conditional of the verb
haber
.
Conditional Perfect Formula
haber in the conditional + past participle
Haber in the Conditional
Subject Haber in the Conditional
yo
habría
tú
habrías
él, ella, usted
habría
nosotros
habríamos
vosotros
habríais
ellos, ellas, ustedes
habrían
Conditional Perfect Uses
In the examples below, the conditional perfect is used to talk about actions that would have happened had something else not gotten in the way.
Yo habría comprado los regalos pero no tenía tiempo.
I would have bought the gifts, but I didn't have time.
Él habría leído el libro, pero el teléfono soñó.
He would have finished the book, but the telephone rang.
Nosotros habríamos cenado en ese restaurante si hubiera sabido lo bueno que era.
We would have eaten at that restaurant if I had known how good it was.
In the examples below, the conditional perfect is used to talk about an action that probably happened or was true.
Habría comido antes de salir.
He had probably already eaten before leaving.
Habrían sido las ocho cuando llegamos.
It must have been eight o’clock when we arrived.
There are four other perfect tenses in the indicative: the present perfect, the past perfect, the preterite perfect, and the future perfect.
