How to express "should have done something" in Spanish?

There are various ways we can express things we wish should have occured in the past.

The simplest way to express this is by using the preterite form of the verb deber.  Let's take a look at some examples:

Debí hacerlo.
I should have done it.

Debiste llamar a la policía.
You should have called the police.

If you are new to learning Spanish, I recommend you to stick to this form as it's easy to remember and more simple.

However, there are more ways on how to express "should have done something" in Spanish. These are the possible forms:

Preterite form of the verb deber + haber: Debiste haberlo hecho.
Imperfect form of the verb deber + haber: Debías haberlo hecho.
Conditional form of the verb deber + haber: Deberías haberlo hecho.
Past subjunctive of the verb deber + haber: Debieras haberlo hecho.
Imperfect form of the verb tener + haber: Tenías que haberlo hecho.
Conditional form of the verb tener + haber: Tendrías que haberlo hecho.


Most of the time, the preference of the speaker is what makes the difference among these forms. I had a Spanish friend that once told me that the "debiste hacerlo" and "debiste haberlo hecho" form sound more of from mexican telenovelas. In Spain, the form "tenía que haberlo hecho" is much used as far as I can notice on how Spaniards speak. While the conditional forms and the one with past subjunctive sound formal and polite to native speakers.

To some speakers, the form debí haberlo hecho has more "recency" than debí hacerlo, as in:

Mi hermana murió hace años. Debí pasar más tiempo con ella cuando vivía.

Estaba distraído cuando mi hermana me hablaba. Hay algo que me comentó que no entendí del todo. La debí haber escuchado.


In some Latin American countries, especially in Mexico, people would use "hubiera" + the past participle to express "should have done something".

Me hubieras llamado por teléfono.
You should have called me by phone.

Aunque + SUBJUNCTIVE or INDICATIVE mood?

The answer depends whether the information is shared or is known by the person speaking and the person the speaker is speaking to. Let's take a look at this dialogue:


Hijo: Mamá, el profesor dice que el examen de mañana va a ser fácil.
Mamá: Vale. Pero aunque vaya a ser fácil, tienes que estudiar de todos modos.

In the dialogue above the son informs his mother that tomorrow's exam is going to be easy. Upon saying that, the fact that the exam is going to be easy is known both by the son and the mother. To make things simplier, the subjunctive mood is used if the information is known by the speaker and the person the speaker is talking to.


Let's take a look at more examples:

Carlo: Según el pronóstico meteorológico, va a llover mañana.
Marco: Aunuqe llueva mañana, iremos a la playa.

Susan: El novio de Cristina es muy rico.
Ana: Aunuqe sea muy rico, Cristina quiere trabajar de todas formas.


On the other hand, if the information is only known by the person speaking, the indicative is used. Let's take a look at this example:

Carlo: Ya he visto la casa. Es muy bonita. Aunque le faltan decoraciones.
Marco: Pero aunque le falten decoraciones mi hermano quiere comprarla.

In the first sentence, "faltar" is in indicative mood because Marco didn't know that the house lacks decorations., that is to say, Carlo is informing Marco about it. Remember that the indicative mood is used when stating an information. In the second sentence, however, "faltar" is in subjunctive because the fact that the house lacks decorations has become known by the two.

I hope everything now is clear. If you still have any question about this, post it in the comment section.

Spanish subordinate conjunctions

A subordinate conjunction introduces a subordinate clause which is a group of words containing a subject and verb but dependent on a main clause.

Here is a list of the most common Spanish subordinate conjunctions together with some samples sentences I got from spanishdict.com I also indicated whether a verb in subjunctive or indicative should be used.


A fin de que + SUBJUNCTIVE -  in order that, so that

La agarró del brazo a fin de que no se cayera sobre el hielo
He grabbed onto her arm so that she wouldn't fall over on the ice.


A menos que + SUBJUNCTIVE  - unless

A menos que salgamos ahora, llegaremos tarde a la fiesta.
Unless we leave now, we'll be late to the party.


Antes de que + SUBJUNCTIVE or INDICATIVE - prior to

Recuérdame que te dé el libro antes de que te vayas.
Remind me to give you the book before you go.


Así que + INDICATIVE - so, as a consequence

Estaba muy estresado, así que decidí ir al spa para recargar las pilas.
I was very stressed, so I decided to go to the spa to recharge my batteries.


Aunque + INDICATIVE or SUBJUNCTIVE - although, even if, even though

Aunque está lloviendo, el paisaje está precioso.
Even though it's raining, the scenery is beautiful.

Aunque no quedaba mucho tiempo, terminaron la carrera.
Although there wasn't much time left, they finished the race.

Me encantan los partidos de baloncesto aunque no sepa lo que está pasando.
I love basketball games even if I don't know what's going on.

La pizza está rica aunque no es la mejor que he probado.
It's a tasty pizza although it's not the best I've tried.


Como + INDICATIVE - since (expresses cause)

Como no estabas aquí, tomé la decisión por ti.
Since you were not here, I made the decision for you.


Como + SUBJUNCTIVE - if (expresses condition)

Como llegues tarde al examen, no se te dará más tiempo.
If you arrive late for the exam, you will not be given extra time.


Como si + PAST SUBJUNCTIVE - as if, as though

Elisa estaba deprimida. Era como si ya no tuviera ganas de triunfar y ser una estrella.
Elisa was depressed. It was as if she wasn't willing to succeed and become a star anymore.

Mi abuela tiene alzéimer. Me habla como si no me conociera.
My grandmother has Alzheimer's. She speaks to me as though she didn't know me.


Con tal de que + SUBJUNCTIVE - as long as, provided that

Puedes escuchar música con tal de que uses los audífonos.
You can listen to music as long as you use headphones.

Podrá seguir trabajando aquí con tal de que cumpla todos sus deberes.
He will be able to continue working here, provided that he fulfills all his duties.


Cuando + SUBJUNCTIVE or INDICATIVE - when, as, whenever

Cuando hace calor, nos gusta desayunar en el jardín.
When it's hot, we like to have breakfast in the yard.

Justo cuando empezábamos a divertirnos, se cortó la luz.
Just as we were starting to have fun, the lights went out.

Llámame cuando tengas ganas.
Call me whenever you like.


De modo que + INDICATIVE - in such a way that (expresses consecuence)

Entró silenciosamente, de modo que yo no lo oí.
He got in silently in such a way that I didn't hear him.


De modo que + SUBJUNCTIVE - so that (expresses purpose)

Entró silenciosamente, de modo que yo no lo oyera.
He got in silently so that I couldn't hear him.


Desde que + SUBJUNCTIVE or INDICATIVE - since

No lo he vuelto a ver desde que cambió de trabajo.
I haven't seen him since he changed jobs.


Después de que + SUBJUNCTIVE or INDICATIVE - after

Limpia la encimera después de que acabes de lavar los platos.
Clean the countertop after you finish washing the dishes.


Donde + SUBJUNCTIVE or INDICATIVE - where

Estoy en el restaurante donde comimos el otro día.
I'm at the restaurant where we ate the other day.

Sal a donde quieras. A mí no me importa.
Go wherever you want. I don't care.


En caso de que + SUBJUNCTIVE - in the event that, in case

En caso de que el vuelo sea cancelado, pueden tomar el siguiente.
In the event that your flight is canceled, you can take the following one.


Hasta que + SUBJUNCTIVE - untill

No dejará de trabajar hasta que consiga su meta de ventas.
He won't stop working until he reaches his sales goal.


Mientras + INDICATIVE - while

Lavó los platos mientras yo dormía la siesta.
He did the dishes while I took a nap.


Mientras + SUBJUNCTIVE - as long as

Mientras trabaje aquí, nunca podré tomarme unas vacaciones en condiciones.
As long as I work here, I'll never manage to take a proper vacation.

Mientras termines los deberes a tiempo, me da igual que escuches música o no.
As long as you finish your homework on time, I don't mind if you listen to music.


Para que + SUBJUNCTIVE - so that

Deja tu correo electrónico para que podamos mantenernos en contacto.
Leave your email address so that we can stay in touch.


Porque + INDICATIVE - because

Mi hermano está triste porque no ganó el concurso.
My brother is upset because he did not win the contest.


Puesto que + INDICATIVE - since, given that, because, as

Puesto que está lloviendo, no vamos a ir a nadar hoy.
Since it's raining, we're not going swimming today.


Que + INDICATIVE or SUBJUNCTIVE - that

Tenga en cuenta que algunas de estas características son diferentes.
Note that some of these characteristics are different.

No voy a llevar el paraguas. No creo que vaya a llover.
I'm not taking an umbrella. I don't think that it's going to rain.


Si + INDICATIVE - if

Si llueve mañana, cancelaremos el picnic.
If it rains tomorrow, we will cancel the picnic.


Sin que + SUBJUNCTIVE - without

Los programas pueden realizar cambios en el equipo sin que usted lo sepa.
The programs can make changes to your computer without you knowing about it. 

Some useful Spanish adjectives and their opposites

Here is a short list of some useful and common adjectives for beginner level in Spanish.

English		Spanish
alive	dead	vivo	muerto
beautiful	ugly	hermoso	feo
big	small	grande	pequeño
bitter	sweet	amargo	dulce
cheap	expensive	barato	caro
clean	dirty	limpio	sucio
curly	straight	rizado	lizo
difficult	easy	difícil	fácil
good	bad	bueno	malo
early	late	temprano	tarde
fat	thin	gordo	delgado
full	empty	lleno	vacío
hot	cold	caliente	frío
happy	sad/unhappy	feliz	triste
hardworking	lazy	trabajoso	perezoso
new	old	nuevo	viejo
nice	nasty	majo	bruto
intelligent	stupid	inteligente	estúpido
interesting	boring	interesante	aburrido
light	heavy	ligero	pesado
polite	rude/impolite	cortés	grosero
poor	rich	pobre	rico
quiet	noisy	tranquilo	ruidoso
right	wrong	correcto	incorrecto
safe	dangerous	seguro	peligroso
short	long	corto	largo
soft	hard	blando	duro
single	married	soltero	casado
well	ill/unwell	bien	malo
white	black	blanco	negro

How to use the expression "lo de" in Spanish?

The expression lo de + a noun, adverb or infinitive is frequently used in Spanish and has several possible English translations.

Lo de estudiar me cansa.
All this business about studying tires me.

En un televisor lo importante es lo de adentro.
In a television, the important part is what's inside.

The definite article is used with parts of the body and clothing

The definite article is used with parts of the body and clothing instead of the possessive adjective.

Debes ponerte el impermeable cuando está lloviendo.
You should put on your raincoat when it's raining.

Me lavé la cara.
I washed my face.

Los estudiantes levantaron la mano.
The students raised their hands.