Oír Conjugation: Free Spanish Lesson and PDF

Are you ready to hear about oír conjugation? The Spanish verb oír means “to hear,” and it refers to the sounds we hear, as opposed to those we listen to.

What sounds can you hear right now? You might be hearing the cars go by or someone talking. If you’re in nature, you might be hearing birdsong or the sound of the wind. 

Oír is a highly irregular verb, so pay attention to its spelling in every form. 

Notice that the i becomes y in some forms. Also note that oír conjugation often involves the use of an accent. 

Only three derivative verbs are conjugated in the same way as oír: 

• desoír (to ignore)
• entreoír (to half-hear or hear indistinctly) 
• trasoír (to mishear)

Today, we’ll learn oír conjugation in multiple forms, encompassing three moods: 

• Indicative (present, past, conditional, and future)
• Subjunctive (present and past)
• Imperative 

Let’s hear it for the Spanish verb oir!

The Ultimate Guide to Oír Conjugation

Since this is a complete guide to oír conjugation, you may not be familiar with all the tenses and forms shown. Try out your newfound oír conjugation skills using some practice exercises later in this blog post!

Oír Conjugation: Verbals

For these oír conjugations, there are two forms of oír that you need to learn.

1. Conjugation of haber + past participle of oír
2. Conjugation of estar + gerund form of oír

The infinitive form of the verb is oír.
The past participle of oír is oído.
The gerund form of oír is oyendo.

These compound tenses involve using the helping verbs haber and estar. The conjugation changes in these tenses happen in the helping verb, while the form of oír stays the same. 

Let’s see them in action.

¿Puedes oír el río? 
Can you hear the river?

Me gusta oír el canto de los pájaros. 
I like to hear the birds singing.

Todos hemos oído esa historia. 
We’ve all heard that story. 

¿Estás oyendo ese ruido?
Are you hearing this noise?

Oír Conjugation: Indicative Mood

Present simple

Desde mi casa oigo los aviones llegando al aeropuerto. 
From my house, I hear the planes arriving at the airport.

Me despierto desde que oigo un ruido. 
I wake up as soon as I hear a noise.

Mi abuelo dice que no oye nada en toda la noche. 
My grandfather says he doesn’t hear anything all night.

¿Qué sonidos oyes?
What sounds do you hear?

Past Simple

¿Oyó? 
¿Oiste?

Did you hear?

Ayer en la ciudad, oímos las sirenas con frecuencia. 
Yesterday in the city, we often heard sirens.

Past Imperfect

Aquella noche yo oía la lluvia y pensaba en mi sueño. 
That night, I heard the rain and thought about my dream. 

Cuando vivíamos en la ciudad, oíamos el tráfico y las sirenas con frecuencia. 
When we lived in the city, we often heard traffic and sirens.

Future Simple

Oiré la canción cada vez que pase por aquí. 
I will hear the song every time I pass by here. 

Ustedes oirán un sonido al final de la grabación.
You all will hear a sound at the end of the recording.

Conditional

Ellos no oirían la lectura de otro modo. 
They wouldn’t hear the lecture any other way. 

Oír Conjugation: Subjunctive Mood

We use the subjunctive mood to talk about hypotheses, hopes, wishes, or uncertainty.

Present Subjunctive

Creo que es importante que se oiga cuál es nuestra opinión.
I feel it is important to make our view known.

Oigan ustedes lo que les voy a decir. 
Listen to what I’m going to tell you.

Past Subjunctive

Yo no quería que oyeras esto. 
I didn’t want you to hear this. 

Si lo oyeras, no dirías eso. 
If you heard him, you would not say that.

Two other subjunctive tenses exist: future and past perfect. The future subjunctive is rarely used, and the past subjunctive tense in the table above is the more common of the two. 

Oír Conjugation: Imperative Mood

We use the imperative mood to give orders or commands. 

¡Oye, oye!
Hear ye, hear ye!

Now, it’s time to practice what we’ve covered!

Oír Conjugation Exercises

To test with your newfound knowledge of oír conjugation, practice using the following exercises! You can check your work with the answer key below.

Exercise 1

Identify the tense and pronoun of each oír conjugation.

1. oía

2. oirían

3. oyes

4. oirán

5. oiga

Exercise 2

Conjugate oír in the tense given.

1. Usted – present

2. Ellos – conditional

3. Tú – past subjunctive

4. Nosotros – future

5. Yo – past simple (preterite)

Exercise 3

Fill in the blank with the correct form of oir.

1. Nosotros _____________ las canciones de las ballenas cuando fuimos a Alaska. (present simple)

2. Ella ha _____________ el álbum Abbey Road muchas veces. (past participle)

3. Ojala que _____________ la alarma mañana para ir al aeropuerto. (ellos, present subjunctive)

4. Tú _____________ los sonidos por la noche. (future)

5. Él solo _____________ la radio durante el día en su oficina. (imperfect)

Exercise 4

Translate the following sentences to English.

1. ¿Oíste que Nancy se separó de su esposo? 

2. Mañana oiré los sonidos tranquilos del mar.

3. No estábamos oyendo nada. 

4. No te puedo oír porque hay demasiado ruido.

5. ¿Has oído el chisme nuevo? 

Click here yo check your answers.

Practice Your oír Conjugation!

Great job! You’ve learned about oír conjugation in Spanish and uses of the verb oir. To continue practicing, try a free trial class with our friendly, native Spanish-speaking teachers. You can ask them about oír conjugation and learn Spanish through practical application. Enhance your Spanish skills today by engaging in real-life conversation. 

Ready to learn more Spanish grammar and vocabulary? Check these out!

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• Ver vs Mirar: What’s the Difference in Spanish?
• Ordinal Numbers in Spanish
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• Present Continuous Tense in Spanish: Grammar Guide
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Answer Key

Exercise 1

1: ella/él – past imperfect, 2: ellos/ustedes – conditional, 3: tú – present simple, 4: ellos/ustedes – future, 5: yo – present subjunctive / usted present imperative

Exercise 2

1: oye, 2: oirían, 3: oyeras, 4: oiremos, 5: oí

Exercise 3

1: oímos, 2: oído, 3: oigan, 4: oirás, 5: oía

Exercise 4 

1: Did you hear that Nancy and her husband separated? 2: Tomorrow I will hear the tranquil sounds of the sea. 3: We were not hearing anything. 4: I can’t hear you because there is too much noise. 5: Have you heard the new gossip?

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Michelle Margaret Fajkus

Editor & Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

Michelle Margaret Fajkus is a bilingual writer and longtime yoga teacher. A former advertising copywriter turned bilingual elementary school teacher, she is now a freelance writer, editor and translator. A native Texan, Michelle has Mexican roots and learned Spanish in middle and high school. She has become more fluent thanks to living as an expat in Guatemala. She lives with her family on beautiful Lake Atitlan.

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