Dormir Conjugation 101: Conjugate Dormir In Spanish

Dormir is a basic -IR verb with O to UE stem changes. In some tenses, this verb also has an O to U change. Since this verb is essential for your communication and can help you practice these patterns, we’ll review the dormir conjugation rules in this guide. 

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• Dormir Overview
• Indicative Tenses of Dormir Conjugations
  • Present tense
  • Preterite tense
  • Imperfect tense
  • Near Future tense
  • Future tense
  • Conditional tense
  • Present Perfect tense
  • Past Perfect tense
  • Future Perfect tense
  • Conditional Perfect tense
  • Progressive tenses
• Subjunctive Tenses of Dormir Conjugations
  • Present Subjunctive tense
  • Present Perfect Subjunctive tense
  • Imperfect Subjunctive tense
  • Past Perfect Subjunctive tense
• Imperative (Commands) of Dormir Conjugations
  • Affirmative Commands
  • Negative Commands
• Uses & Examples
• Download Dormir Conjugation Tables & Uses Cheat sheets
• Dormir Conjugation Practice Quiz

Overview of Dormir

Indicative Conjugations of Dormir

Present tense

Dormir’s conjugations in the present tense have an O to UE stem change, which doesn’t affect the pronouns ‘vosotros’ and ‘nosotros’. See these changes in the dormir conjugation chart below. Use these forms to say that a person sleeps or describe how they do this activity. 

For example: Los bebés duermen mucho. 

Preterite tense

Dormir preterite conjugations have an O to U stem change only for the third-person singular and plural. When conjugated to the preterite tense, dormir is used to say that a person slept. Add adverbs of time to mention the specific moment when this action happened. 

Here is an example: ¿Durmieron bien?

Take Note: This O to U change is made to avoid having two ‘o’ sounds in a row and ease the pronunciation. So, dormó becomes durmió. This change is also applied to the verbs poder and morir. 

Imperfect tense

In the past imperfect tense, this verb has no stem changes. Use dormir imperfect conjugations to describe how a person used to sleep. These forms are also used when it’s unclear when someone slept. For instance: Cuando eran niñas, mis primas dormían con la luz prendida. 

Near future

In Spanish, the immediate future is conjugated by using ir (present tense) + a + dormir. We use these forms to say that someone will sleep soon. For example: Ya me voy a dormir. 

Future simple tense

Conjugate dormir to the future simple tense to express that someone will sleep at some moment in the future. For example: En unos minutos, dormiré a la bebé.  

Conditional tense

In the conditional tense, dormir is used to say that a person would sleep. For instance: Si pudiéramos, nos dormiríamos más temprano. 

Present perfect tense

The Spanish present perfect tense is formed with haber in the present form + dormido (past participle). These dormir conjugations allow you to express whether someone has slept or not. For instance: Esta semana, no he dormido muy bien.

Take Note: The past participle form of dormir (dormido) can also work as an adjective when combined with the verb estar. In this case, ‘dormido’ means ‘asleep’. El bebé está dormido. 

Past perfect

Use dormir’s past perfect tense conjugations to say that someone had slept before a past action or moment. For example: Cuando llegó de trabajar, los niños ya se habían dormido.  

Future perfect

When conjugated to the future perfect tense, this verb expresses that someone will have slept by or before a certain future moment or action. To form this tense, use haber future conjugations + the past participle form of ‘dormir’. For example: Al final de esta semana, sólo habré dormido 8 horas.

Conditional perfect

Conjugate this verb to the conditional perfect for conveying that someone would have slept if a past condition had occurred. Si mis vecinos le hubieran bajado a la música, habríamos dormido mejor. 

Progressive tenses

To form the progressive tenses in Spanish, use the estar conjugations + present participle (durmiendo, in this case). These dormir conjugations express that someone is sleeping at a given point in time.For example: No hagas ruido, mis papás están durmiendo. 

Take Note: Like dormir, there are other verbs whose present participle form in Spanish have stem changes. 

Dormir Subjunctive Conjugations

The subjunctive mood in Spanish is used to refer to someone’s wishes, hopes, demands, advice, uncertainty, suggestions, or hypothetical situations. In the following sections, we’ll review dormir subjunctive conjugation charts. 

Present subjunctive

Dormir subjunctive conjugations have an O to UE and O to U stem change. In the conjugations charts below, you can check which subject pronouns are affected by these patterns. Use these forms to talk about requests, suggestions, or wishes someone has about a person sleeping. 

For instance: Les sugiero que duerman más.

Present perfect subjunctive

In Spanish, the present perfect subjunctive of dormir is formed with haber subjunctive conjugations + past participle (dormido, for this conjugation guide). With this tense, dormir is used to wonder or wish that a person has already slept. Ojalá que la bebé ya se haya dormido. 

Imperfect subjunctive

Durmie is the stem you must use to conjugate this verb to the imperfect subjunctive. These conjugations allow you to talk about past suggestions, requests or wishes someone had about a person’s sleep. For example: Te pedí que durmieras a los niños. 

Based on the type of Spanish you’re learning (Latin American or Castilian), you must use a specific conjugation model for the imperfect subjunctive: 

Latin American Spanish version

Note: Latin American Spanish doesn’t use the pronoun vosotros. Because of that, this pronoun and its conjugation have not been included in the previous dormir conjugation chart. 

Castilian Spanish version

Past perfect subjunctive

The past perfect subjunctive conjugations of dormir express that someone would have slept if a past condition was met. These forms also express regret because you slept or not. For instance: Si no hubiera ido a esa fiesta, hubiera dormido más tiempo. 

Dormir Imperative Conjugations

In Spanish, we use the imperative conjugations of a verb to give orders. 

Affirmative commands

Dormir affirmative commands have an O to UE stem change except for ‘vosotros’. Use these imperative forms to order someone to sleep or to wish someone a good night. Duerman bien.

Negative commands

The negative commands of dormir are formed with two stems. Duerm for ‘tú’, ‘usted’, and ‘ustedes’, and durm for ‘vosotros’. You can use these conjugations to order someone not to sleep. No te duermas, ya casi llegamos. 

Meanings of Dormir & Examples

So far, we’ve learned how to conjugate dormir in Spanish. Now, we’ll review some common applications of this verb. Based on the sentence and Spanish pronouns you use, dormir means to: 

• Sleep or go to sleep
• Fall asleep (reflexive pronouns)
• Go numb (reflexive and indirect pronouns)
• Slack off or be careless 

[Dormir conjugated] + [complement]

Los niños durmieron muy bien. 
The kids slept very well. 

A mi mamá se le durmió la pierna. 
My mom’s leg went numb. 

Te dormiste a la mitad de la película. 
You fell asleep in the middle of the movie. 

Si se duermen, el otro equipo les va a ganar. 
If you slack off, the other team is going to win. 

Take Note: The reflexive form dormirse follows the same conjugation pattern as ‘dormir’. You must only add the correct reflexive pronoun. Use dormir with adverbs of manner to describe how someone sleeps. 

Download Dormir Conjugation Charts & Uses Cheat sheet

Dormir is a crucial Spanish -IR verb to know since it’s used in many conversations and to talk about daily routines. However, it’s also a stem-changing Spanish verb in many tenses. So, if you’d like a refresher on this verbs various forms, check out the dormir conjugation reference guide.

Download Conjugations PDF

Practice Quiz: Dormir Conjugation

Practice this verb’s patterns by taking this dormir conjugation practice quiz. You can choose any combination of moods and tenses to include in the quiz, from beginner to advanced levels.

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