Permitir means to allow. Learn five tenses, then practise each person.
Present: permito, permites, permite, permitimos, permitís, permiten.
Permitir in the present tense
Use the present for current states, habits and actions. The subject can be omitted when the verb makes it clear.
Vosotros is informal plural you in Spain. Ustedes uses the ellos/ellas form and is the usual plural you in Latin America.
Permitir in the preterite tense
Use the preterite for a completed event in the past, viewed as a whole.
Permitir in the imperfect tense
Use the imperfect for past habits, ongoing situations and background descriptions, without marking their endpoint.
Permitir in the future tense
Use the simple future for what will happen. Spanish also uses this tense for a guess about the present.
Permitir in the conditional tense
Use the conditional for what would happen, a polite request or a hypothetical situation.
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All six persons. Blue, bold forms differ from regular endings, including spelling changes that preserve pronunciation.
| Person | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Future | Conditional |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | permito | permití | permitía | permitiré | permitiría |
| tú | permites | permitiste | permitías | permitirás | permitirías |
| él / ella / usted | permite | permitió | permitía | permitirá | permitiría |
| nosotros / nosotras | permitimos | permitimos | permitíamos | permitiremos | permitiríamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | permitís | permitisteis | permitíais | permitiréis | permitiríais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | permiten | permitieron | permitían | permitirán | permitirían |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | permito | I allow |
| tú | permites | you allow |
| él / ella / usted | permite | he/she allows |
| nosotros / nosotras | permitimos | we allow |
| vosotros / vosotras | permitís | you all (vosotros) allow |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | permiten | they allow |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | permití | I allowed |
| tú | permitiste | you allowed |
| él / ella / usted | permitió | he/she allowed |
| nosotros / nosotras | permitimos | we allowed |
| vosotros / vosotras | permitisteis | you all (vosotros) allowed |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | permitieron | they allowed |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | permitía | I used to allow |
| tú | permitías | you used to allow |
| él / ella / usted | permitía | he/she used to allow |
| nosotros / nosotras | permitíamos | we used to allow |
| vosotros / vosotras | permitíais | you all (vosotros) used to allow |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | permitían | they used to allow |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | permitiré | I will allow |
| tú | permitirás | you will allow |
| él / ella / usted | permitirá | he/she will allow |
| nosotros / nosotras | permitiremos | we will allow |
| vosotros / vosotras | permitiréis | you all (vosotros) will allow |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | permitirán | they will allow |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | permitiría | I would allow |
| tú | permitirías | you would allow |
| él / ella / usted | permitiría | he/she would allow |
| nosotros / nosotras | permitiríamos | we would allow |
| vosotros / vosotras | permitiríais | you all (vosotros) would allow |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | permitirían | they would allow |
Permitir follows the regular ir pattern in these five tenses.
The present forms are permito, permites, permite, permitimos, permitís, permiten, in the order yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros and ellos/ellas/ustedes.
permití, permitiste, permitió, permitimos, permitisteis, permitieron. For example, permití means “I allowed”.
Permitir follows the regular ir pattern in these five tenses.
The preterite (permití) presents a completed event; the imperfect (permitía) gives a past habit or background situation. The English glosses are “I allowed” and “I used to allow”, but context determines the best translation.
The yo forms are permitiré (“I will allow”) and permitiría (“I would allow”). The full charts above include every person.
Permitir means to allow.
Updated · English prompts, Spanish answers.