Future & Conditional of Probability
Practice using the future and conditional tenses to express conjecture about the present and past in Spanish.
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Questions Covered in This Set
10 cards to master
What does the FUTURE tense express when used for probability?
Conjecture about the PRESENT: 'must be / probably is / I wonder' — e.g. ¿Qué hora será? = I wonder what time it is.
What does the CONDITIONAL tense express when used for probability?
Conjecture about the PAST: 'must have been / probably was' — e.g. Serían las tres = It was probably about three.
Translate: 'Ella tendrá unos cuarenta años.'
She must be about forty (years old).
Translate: 'No vino; estaría enfermo.'
He didn't come; he was probably sick. (Not 'he would be sick.')
Which construction expresses a guess about a completed action in the present perfect?
Future perfect: habrá + past participle — Habrá salido ya = He must have left already.
Which construction expresses a guess about a pluperfect action?
Conditional perfect: habría + past participle — Cuando llegué, ya se habrían ido = They had probably already left.
How do you tell probability-conditional from hypothetical-conditional?
Context: if there's an if-clause (si tuviera tiempo, estaría allí) it's hypothetical; if it's a guess about a fact, it's probability.
What alternatives to the future of probability are common in Latin America?
debe de + infinitivo, a lo mejor, seguramente, and capaz que (Southern Cone).
What is the most idiomatic way to say 'I wonder where my phone is'?
¿Dónde estará mi teléfono? — the future in questions is the standard 'I wonder'.
Why do irregular stems dominate this structure?
The verbs of speculation — ser, tener, saber, poder, decir, haber, valer — are exactly the ones with irregular future/conditional stems (tendr-, sabr-, podr-, dir-, habr-, valdr-).
