Spanish grammar
Conditional for guessing (past): serían, estaría, tendría
Guess about times and events in the past.
From the scene Serían las tres (It must’ve been three)
In short
To guess about the past, use the conditional: serían las nueve means it was probably nine.
- it was probably (nine) serían (las nueve)
- he was probably (singing) estaría (cantando)
- he probably had (the mic) tendría (el micrófono)
- I was probably (exhausted) estaría (agotado)
Your turn
Which one goes with he was probably (singing)?
Options: serían (las nueve) · tendría (el micrófono) · estaría (cantando)
Show answer
he was probably (singing) → estaría (cantando)
How it works
To guess about the past — what was probably true then — use the conditional: eran → serían, estaba → estaría, tenía → tendría.
Your turn
Pick the word that fits the line.
(blank) las tres de la madrugada.
Options: Sería · Serían · Serán
Show answer
Serían las tres de la madrugada.
It must’ve been three in the morning.
Good to know
Same idea as estará for now, just one step further back.
it was probably (nine) serían (las nueve)
Javi
Serían las nueve cuando llegamos.
It must’ve been nine when we arrived.
Your turn
What fills the gap?
(blank) las nueve cuando llegamos.
Options: Tendría · Serían · Estaría
Show answer
Javi
Serían las nueve cuando llegamos.
It must’ve been nine when we arrived.
he was probably (singing) estaría (cantando)
Nuria
Estaría cantando fatal, seguro.
He must’ve been singing terribly, for sure.
Your turn
What fills the gap?
(blank) cantando fatal, seguro.
Options: Serían · Tendría · Estaría
Show answer
Nuria
Estaría cantando fatal, seguro.
He must’ve been singing terribly, for sure.
he probably had (the mic) tendría (el micrófono)
Javi
Tendría el micrófono toda la noche.
He must’ve had the mic all night.
Your turn
What fills the gap?
(blank) el micrófono toda la noche.
Options: Tendría · Serían · Estaría
Show answer
Javi
Tendría el micrófono toda la noche.
He must’ve had the mic all night.
I was probably (exhausted) estaría (agotado)
Nuria
Estaría cantando fatal, seguro.
He must’ve been singing terribly, for sure.
Your turn
What fills the gap?
(blank) cantando fatal, seguro.
Options: Serían · Tendría · Estaría
Show answer
Nuria
Estaría cantando fatal, seguro.
He must’ve been singing terribly, for sure.
Common mistake
Not Estará or Estaríamos here. He, a guess about last night.
Estaría cantando fatal, seguro.
He must’ve been singing terribly, for sure.
Practise it in the story
Meet this rule inside a short animated scene. Answer as it plays, then say the lines yourself.
Practise free in the appSee all forms
| it was probably (nine) | serían (las nueve) |
|---|---|
| he was probably (singing) | estaría (cantando) |
| he probably had (the mic) | tendría (el micrófono) |
| I was probably (exhausted) | estaría (agotado) |
More lines from the story
- JaviSerían las tres de la madrugada.It must’ve been three in the morning.
- NuriaPues en este vídeo, el del micrófono eres tú.Well in this video, the one with the mic is you.
- Javi¡Ah, sí! El karaoke.Oh yes! The karaoke.