Translating the English Verb Would in Spanish

Translating the auxiliary English verb would isnt as straightforward as it might appear at first glance: Would has multiple uses—and in none of them is it readily translated as a single word. Would is used both to indicate tense as well as to indicate the speakers attitude toward a verbs action. In any case, the principle of translation is the same: Dont try to translate would as a word; translate it for what it means. ‘Would’ in Conditional Statements One of the most common uses of would is in statements of the type if something were to happen, then something else would happen (or the same thing in a different order, something would happen If something else were to happen first). Nearly always, the would in such instances helps form the equivalent of the Spanish conditional tense: Si yo tuviera dinero, invertirà ­a en empresas espaà ±olas. (If I had money, I would invest in Spanish businesses.)Si yo fuera tà º, irà ­a al hospital. (If I were you, I would go to the hospital.)Rebecca ganarà ­a una buena nota en esta clase si estudiara mà ¡s. (Rebecca would earn a good grade in this class if she were to study more.)Si volviera a nacer, dormirà ­a menos y vivirà ­a mà ¡s. (If I were to be born again,l I would sleep less and live more.) It is common in both languages to make statements where the condition isnt directly stated. For example, the first two examples below are derived from the first two examples above with the condition omitted: Invertirà ­a en empresas espaà ±olas. (I would invest in Spanish businesses.)Yo irà ­a al hospital. (I would go to the hospital.)Me gustarà ­a una taza de cafà ©. (I would like a cup of coffee.)Soy de los que llorarà ­an como cuando algo muy preciado se pierde. (I am among those who would cry when something very expensive gets lost.) It is also possible to imply conditions without using the English if or Spanish si: El asesinato del presidente serà ­a un crimen de guerra. (Assassinating the president would be a war crime.) ¿Nos costarà ­a mucho comer aquà ­? (Would it cost us a lot to eat here?)Me prometià ³ que saldrà ­a conmigo. (She promised me that she would leave with me.) ‘Would’ Referring to Past Repeated Events Another common use of would is to indicate that something happened as a matter of habit or custom. Most often, you can use the imperfect tense, the past tense of Spanish that is usually used to refer to actions that took place over an indefinite period of time. Durante el dà ­a trabajaba mucho. (During the day she would work a lot.)Recuerdo que viajà ¡bamos casi cada verano a Puerto Vallarta. (I remember that we would travel almost every summer to Puerto Vallarta.)Le exasperaban las quejas de sus hijos. (His childrens complaints would exasperate him.)Cuando ganà ¡bamos nadie decà ­a nada. (When we would win nobody would say anything.) ‘Would Not’ Sometimes the negative form, wouldnt or would not, suggests a refusal to do something. The reflexive verb negarse can nearly always be used: Se negà ³ a estudiar otras alternativas. (He wouldnt study other alternatives.)Por eso me neguà © a firmar. (Because of that I wouldnt sign.)Me neguà © a comportarme como un adulto. (I wouldnt behave like an adult.) If would not or wouldnt is used as the equivalent of did not or didnt, it can be translated using either the imperfect or preterite tense. La radio del coche no me funcionà ³ en ese momento. (The car radio wouldnt work for me at that moment. The preterite is used here because the event occurred at a specific time.)Muchas veces la radio del coche no me funcionaba. (The car radio often wouldnt work for me. The imperfect is used here for a recurring event.)Esa noche no salieron juntos. (That night they wouldnt leave together.)Muchas veces no salà ­an del escritorio hasta entrada la noche. (They often wouldnt leave their desks until nighttime came.) Would as a Word of Politeness Often, would adds little meaning to a sentence but is used to make a request polite. One way of doing something similar in Spanish is to use the conditional tense:  ¿Me darà ­as  un minuto y medio? (Would you give me a minute and a half?) ¿Te gustarà ­a ayudarme? (Would you like to help me?)Le comprarà ­as un dulce a su hermanita? (Would you buy a sweet for your little sister?) ‘Would’ in Reported Speech In sentences of the type she said she would verb, the would can be translated using either the conditional or imperfect. In this context there is little difference in the two Spanish tenses. Me dijo que irà ­a al centro. (She told me she would go downtown.)Me dijo que iba al centro. (She told me she would go downtown.)Me dijeron que todo parecà ­a correcto. (They told me everything would seem to be correct.)Me dijeron que todo parecerà ­a correcto. (They told me everything would seem to be correct.) Key Takeaways Spanish has no auxiliary that means would or is used in the same way, and would usually must be translated using various tenses.Depending on the context, would verb in English can become either the imperfect, conditional, or preterite tense in Spanish.If would not is used to indicate that someone refused to perform an action, the verb negarse can be used.