Oír is one of the most common irregular -IR verbs in Spanish. However, in addition to its irregularities, this verb has stem changes in certain tenses and for some of its subject pronouns. So, in this guide, we’ll go over the most important oír conjugation charts. Here’s what you’ll learn:
- Oír Overview
- Indicative Tenses of Oír Conjugations
- Subjunctive Tenses of Oír Conjugations
- Imperative (Commands) of Oír Conjugations
- Uses & Examples
- Download Oír Conjugation Tables & Uses Cheat sheets
- Oír Conjugation Practice Quiz
Overview of Oír
| Verb Characteristic | Property |
|---|---|
| Verb Type | -IR |
| Irregular | Yes |
| Infinitive | Oír |
| Gerund (Present Participle) Form | Oyendo |
| Past Participle Form | Oído |
| Synonyms | Escuchar. |
Irregularities:
- Present Indicative: oig only for ‘yo’.
- Present Subjunctive: oig for all subject pronouns.
- Affirmative Imperative: oy for ‘tú’and oigfor ‘usted’ and ‘ustedes’.
- Negative Imperative: oig for all subject pronouns.
Stem Changes:
- Present Indicative: oy for ‘tú’ and the third-person singular and plural.
- Preterite: oy for the third-person singular.
- Imperfect Subjunctive: oye for all subject pronouns.
Indicative Conjugations of Oír
Present tense
Oír conjugation in the present tense is irregular for the pronoun ‘yo’. Additionally, you must replace the stem oi for oy with other subject pronouns to ease the pronunciation. Check these changes in the conjugation chart below.
The Spanish present tense of ‘oír’ is used to talk about what a person hears. For instance: Yo no oigo nada.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oigo | I hear |
| Tú | Oyes | You hear |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oye | He/She hears You (formal) hear |
| Nosotros | Oímos | We hear |
| Vosotros | Oís | You hear |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oyen | They hear You (plural) hear |
Take Note: When conjugating -IR verbs, we must use the letter ‘y’ if the verb’s root ends in ‘i’ and the conjugation ending starts with an ‘e’ or ‘o’ (oies becomes oyes). We do this to avoid having these vowels in a row and ease the pronunciation. Huir, construir, and oír follow this pattern.
Preterite tense
Oír preterite conjugations use the stem oy for the third-person singular and plural. You must also put an accent mark on the endings for the remaining pronouns. When conjugated to the Spanish preterite, oír communicates that a person heard something.
For instance: ¿Oyeron eso?
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oí | I heard |
| Tú | Oíste | You heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oyó | He/She heard You (formal) heard |
| Nosotros | Oímos | We heard |
| Vosotros | Oísteis | You heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oyeron | They heard You (plural) heard |
Imperfect tense
In the Spanish imperfect tense, oír is a regular verb with no stem changes. Use this verb’s imperfect conjugations to talk about the things someone used to hear repeatedly in the past. For example: Mis hermanos nunca oían lo que mi mamá les decía.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oía | I heard I used to hear |
| Tú | Oías | You heard You used to hear |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oía | He/She heard He/She used to hear You (formal) heard You (formal) used to hear |
| Nosotros | Oíamos | We heard We used to hear |
| Vosotros | Oíais | You heard You used to hear |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oían | They heard They used to hear You (plural) heard You (plural) used to hear |
Near future
The near or immediate future in Spanish is conjugated with the formula ir (present tense) + a + oír. Use these forms to say that someone will hear something soon in the future. Apenas voy a oír el audio que me mandaste.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Voy a oír | I’m going to hear |
| Tú | Vas a oír | You’re going to hear |
| Él / Ella Usted | Va a oír | He/She is going to hear You (formal) are going to hear |
| Nosotros | Vamos a oír | We’re going to hear |
| Vosotros | Vais a oír | You’re going to hear |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Van a oír | They’re going to hear You (plural) are going to hear |
Future simple tense
In the future simple tense, oír expresses that someone will hear something at some moment in the future. For example: Oirás un poco de ruido, pero no te preocupes.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oiré | I will hear |
| Tú | Oirás | You will hear |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oirá | He/She will hear You (formal) will hear |
| Nosotros | Oiremos | We will hear |
| Vosotros | Oiréis | You (formal) will hear |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oirán | They will hear You (plural) will hear |
Conditional tense
Oír conjugated to the conditional tense is used to talk about the things someone would hear. For example: Si subieras el volumen, todos oiríamos mejor.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oiría | I would hear |
| Tú | Oirías | You would hear |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oiría | He/She would hear You (formal) would hear |
| Nosotros | Oiríamos | We would hear |
| Vosotros | Oiríais | You would hear |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oirían | They would hear You (plural) would hear |
Present perfect tense
The present perfect tense in Spanish is formed by conjugating haber in the present + a verb in the past participle form (oído, for this conjugation guide). These forms allow you to refer to the things people have or haven’t heard. For example: ¿Qué han oído de la chica nueva?
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | He oído | I have heard |
| Tú | Has oído | You have heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Ha oído | He/She has heard You (formal) have heard |
| Nosotros | Hemos oído | We have heard |
| Vosotros | Habéis oído | You have heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Han oído | They have heard You (plural) have heard |
Take Note: When forming a past participle verb in Spanish, you must use the accented ending -ído with verbs whose roots end with a vowel. Leer, reír, and caer are some examples of these verbs.
Past perfect
When conjugated to the Spanish past perfect tense, this verb communicates that someone had or hadn’t heard something before another past action or point in time. For example: Ya había oído algo sobre este tema.
Haber (imperfect form) + past participle of ‘oír’ is the formula we must use to form this tense.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Había oído | I had heard |
| Tú | Habías oído | You had heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Había oído | He/She had heard You (formal) had heard |
| Nosotros | Habíamos oído | We had heard |
| Vosotros | Habíais oído | You had heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Habían oído | They had heard You (plural) had heard |
Future perfect
Oír future perfect conjugations convey that a person will have heard something by or before a specific point in the future. These forms also refer to the things people may have heard. For instance: No sé si ya habrán oído esta conferencia.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Habré oído | I will have heard |
| Tú | Habrás oído | You will have heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Habrá oído | He/She will have heard You (formal) will have heard |
| Nosotros | Habremos oído | We will have heard |
| Vosotros | Habréis oído | You will have heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Habrán oído | They will have heard You (plural) will have heard |
Conditional perfect
In the conditional perfect tense, oír is used to say that someone would have heard something if a past action happened. Si no te hubieras dormido, habrías escuchado lo que dijimos.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Habría oído | I would have heard |
| Tú | Habrías oído | You would have heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Habría oído | He/She would have heard You (formal) would have heard |
| Nosotros | Habríamos oído | We would have heard |
| Vosotros | Habríais oído | You would have heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Habrían oído | They would have heard You (plural) would have heard |
Progressive tenses
The progressive tenses in Spanish are formed with estar conjugations + oyendo (present participle form of the verb). These conjugations of oír convey that someone is hearing something at the moment of speaking or, in the case of the past tenses (preterite or imperfect), that someone was hearing something when a past action took place.
For example: Antes de que llegaras, estábamos oyendo esta canción.
| Progressive Tense | Formula | Translation Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present | Estar (present) + oyendo | I am hearing |
| Preterite | Estar (preterite) + oyendo | You were hearing |
| Imperfect | Estar (imperfect) + oyendo | He was hearing |
| Future | Estar (future) + oyendo | We will be hearing |
| Conditional | Estar (conditional) + oyendo | They would be hearing |
Take Note: Present participles in Spanish also use the letter y when a verb’s root ends in a vowel.
Oír Subjunctive Conjugations
You must use the subjunctive mood in Spanish when discussing wishes, suggestions, demands, hopes, doubts, or hypothetical situations. Below are oír’s conjugation charts for the most common subjunctive tenses to learn Spanish.
Present subjunctive
Oír present subjunctive conjugations are irregular. Use the irregular stem oig to form this tense. When using these subjunctive conjugations, you request, hope, or suggest someone to hear something. For example: Te sugiero que oigas lo que Paola tiene que decirte.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oiga | I hear |
| Tú | Oigas | You hear |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oiga | He/She hears You (formal) hear |
| Nosotros | Oigamos | We hear |
| Vosotros | Oigáis | You hear |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oigan | They hear You (plural) hear |
Present perfect subjunctive
Haber (present subjunctive) + oído is the formula you must use to conjugate oír to the Spanish present perfect subjunctive. These conjugations are used to express uncertainty or wonder if a person has already heard something or not. For instance: ¿Crees que nos haya oído?
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Haya oído | I have heard |
| Tú | Hayas oído | You have heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Haya oído | He/She has heard You (formal) have heard |
| Nosotros | Hayamos oído | We have heard |
| Vosotros | Hayáis oído | You have heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Hayan oído | They have heard You (plural) have heard |
Imperfect subjunctive
Oye is the root used to conjugate this verb to the imperfect subjunctive in Spanish. Use these subjunctive conjugations to talk about past demands, recommendations, or wishes someone had about a person hearing something. Mi mamá nos pidió que oyéramos esta canción.
In Spanish, the imperfect subjunctive tense has two models:
Latin American Spanish version
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oyera | I heard |
| Tú | Oyeras | You heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oyera | He/She heard You (formal) heard |
| Nosotros | Oyéramos | We heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oyeran | They heard You (plural) heard |
Note: Since the subject pronoun vosotros is not used in Latin American Spanish, the conjugation chart above doesn’t include this conjugation.
Castilian Spanish version
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Oyese | I heard |
| Tú | Oyeses | You heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Oyese | He/She heard You (formal) heard |
| Nosotros | Oyésemos | We heard |
| Vosotros | Oyeseis | You heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Oyesen | They heard You (plural) heard |
Past perfect subjunctive
Conjugate oír to the past perfect subjunctive when you want to say that someone would have heard something if a past condition occurred. You can also use these forms to convey regret for having heard or not heard something.
For example: Ojalá te hubiera oído.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | Hubiera oído | I had heard |
| Tú | Hubieras oído | You had heard |
| Él / Ella Usted | Hubiera oído | He/She had heard You (formal) had heard |
| Nosotros | Hubiéramos oído | We had heard |
| Vosotros | Hubierais oído | You had heard |
| Ellos / Ellas Ustedes | Hubieran oído | They had heard You (plural) had heard |
Oír Imperative Conjugations
The Spanish imperative forms are used to command people to do something (affirmative commands or imperative) or not do something (negative commands).
Affirmative commands
To form this verb’s affirmative commands, you’ll use the oye for ‘tú’ and oig for ‘usted’ and ‘ustedes’. You can see these changes in the oír conjugation chart below. Use the affirmative imperative to command people to hear something. Luis, oye esta canción.
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Tú | Oye | Hear |
| Usted | Oiga | Hear |
| Vosotros | Oíd | Hear |
| Ustedes | Oigan | Hear |
Take Note: Oye, oiga, and oigan are also interjections in Spanish. However, in that context, these words are used to call someone and catch their attention.
Negative commands
Oig is the irregular stem used to form the negative imperative of ‘oír’. For this verb, use Spanish negative commands to order someone not to hear something. For example: ¡No oigas el audio que te mandé!
| Person | Conjugation | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Tú | No oigas | Don’t hear |
| Usted | No oiga | Don’t hear |
| Vosotros | No oigáis | Don’t hear |
| Ustedes | No oigan | Don’t hear |
Meanings of Oír & Examples
You’ve just learned how to conjugate oír in Spanish in the previous sections. This verb means ‘to hear’ or ‘to listen’, here are some examples of how to use it:
(Direct object pronoun) + [oír conjugated] + (determiner) + (noun)
¿Me estás oyendo?
Are you listening to me?
No te oí, ¿a qué hora llegaste?
I didn’t hear you. What time did you get here?
¿Ya habían oído esta canción?
Had you already heard this song before, guys?
Take Note: You can use different elements with the verb oír. Use nouns and Spanish determiners to say that you’re hearing something. If you wish to shorten your sentences and omit this information or you’re referring to a person, use Spanish direct object pronouns.
Download Oír Conjugation Tables & Uses Cheat sheets
Oír is an irregular -IR verb in Spanish which also has stem changes in several tenses, so it can be somewhat challenging for learners to memorize. I’ve made a downloadable PDF which contains all the oír conjugation tables as well as example sentences to better understand how to use it.
Practice Quiz: Oír Conjugation
You’ve just learned how to conjugate oír in Spanish. The next step is to take the oír conjugation practice quiz to test your knowledge of its various regular, irregular, and stem-changing forms.