Caber Conjugation | How to Conjugate Caber in Spanish

Caber means “to fit” or “to have room.” You will learn its irregular quep-, cup-, and cabr- families, plus the contexts where progressive and command forms need caution.

Caber conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Irregular. Linguistically, caber is an irregular -ER verb. Its present yo form is quepo, its present subjunctive uses quep-, its preterite uses cup-, and its future and conditional use cabr-. The gerund cabiendo and participle cabido are regular non-finite forms.

Caber gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund helps build progressive constructions, and the past participle is used with haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — in compound forms. With compound forms built with haber, the participle remains invariant.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	caber	to fit / to have room
Gerund	cabiendo	fitting
Past participle	cabido	fit

Caber meaning and essential uses

Caber — “to fit / to have room” — commonly expresses whether a person or thing can be contained within a space: La mesa cabe en la cocina. — “The table fits in the kitchen.”

It can also express possibility in fixed and abstract constructions, as in No cabe duda. — “There is no doubt.” Because the core physical meaning is usually stative rather than deliberate, some progressive and command uses are less natural than the simple forms.

Caber conjugation pattern

Caber has several irregular families that must be learned separately. Present yo uses quepo; the present subjunctive uses quep-. The preterite uses cup- (cupe, cupiste, cupo, cupimos, cupisteis, cupieron), and the imperfect and future subjunctive inherit that preterite family. The future and conditional use cabr-.

Caber indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Caber present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use the present indicative for current states and ordinary descriptions of what fits. The yo form is irregular: quepo — “I fit”; the other present forms use cab- with standard -ER endings.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	quepo	I fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cabes	you fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cabe	he / she fits; you fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cabemos	we fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cabéis	you fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	caben	they fit; you fit (plural)

• La mesa cabe junto a la ventana. — The table fits next to the window.

Caber preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use the preterite for completed or bounded past situations. Caber uses the irregular cup- stem: cupe, cupiste, cupo, cupimos, cupisteis, cupieron.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	cupe	I fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cupiste	you fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cupo	he / she fit; you fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cupimos	we fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cupisteis	you fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	cupieron	they fit; you fit (plural)

• Ayer cupieron todas las cajas en el coche. — Yesterday all the boxes fit in the car.

Caber imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use the imperfect for past habits, background situations, descriptions, or states viewed as ongoing. This tense is regular for the target verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	cabía	I used to fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cabías	you used to fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cabía	he / she used to fit; you used to fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cabíamos	we used to fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cabíais	you used to fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	cabían	they used to fit; you used to fit (plural)

• Antes cabían más personas en esta sala. — More people used to fit in this room.

Caber present progressive

Present progressive (el presente progresivo) — The present progressive is grammatically possible but less common with the core “fit” meaning because caber usually describes a state. It is most natural when the fit is changing, being tested, or developing. Form it with the present of estar plus cabiendo.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	estoy cabiendo	I am fitting
Tú — you, singular informal	estás cabiendo	you are fitting
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	está cabiendo	he / she is fitting; you are fitting (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	estamos cabiendo	we are fitting
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	estáis cabiendo	you are fitting (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	están cabiendo	they are fitting; you are fitting (plural)

• Estamos cabiendo todos en la foto, pero apenas. — We are all fitting in the photo, but barely.

Caber near future conjugation

Near future (el futuro próximo) — The near future is a verbal periphrasis for plans, intentions, or expected future situations. Form it with the present of ir — “to go” — plus a + caber — “to fit / to have room.”

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	voy a caber	I am going to fit
Tú — you, singular informal	vas a caber	you are going to fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	va a caber	he / she is going to fit; you are going to fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	vamos a caber	we are going to fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	vais a caber	you are going to fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	van a caber	they are going to fit; you are going to fit (plural)

• Todo va a caber en una sola maleta. — Everything is going to fit in one suitcase.

Caber future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use the simple future for future reference and, where context supports it, probability. Caber drops the infinitive vowel and uses the irregular stem cabr- before the regular future endings.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	cabré	I will fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cabrás	you will fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cabrá	he / she will fit; you will fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cabremos	we will fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cabréis	you will fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	cabrán	they will fit; you will fit (plural)

• Aquí cabrán dos sillas más. — Two more chairs will fit here.

Caber conditional conjugation

Simple conditional (el condicional simple) — Use the conditional for hypothetical results and other conditional meanings. Caber uses the same irregular cabr- stem as the future before the regular conditional endings.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	cabría	I would fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cabrías	you would fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cabría	he / she would fit; you would fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cabríamos	we would fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cabríais	you would fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	cabrían	they would fit; you would fit (plural)

• Otra mesa no cabría en este espacio. — Another table would not fit in this space.

Caber present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use the present perfect for a past event connected to the present; its distribution varies by region. Form it with the present of haber plus the invariant participle cabido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	he cabido	I have fit
Tú — you, singular informal	has cabido	you have fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ha cabido	he / she has fit; you have fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hemos cabido	we have fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habéis cabido	you have fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	han cabido	they have fit; you have fit (plural)

• Han cabido todas las cajas en el armario. — All the boxes have fit in the cupboard.

Caber past perfect conjugation

Past perfect / pluperfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use the past perfect for an event completed before another past reference point. Form it with the imperfect of haber plus the invariant participle cabido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	había cabido	I had fit
Tú — you, singular informal	habías cabido	you had fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	había cabido	he / she had fit; you had fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habíamos cabido	we had fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habíais cabido	you had fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habían cabido	they had fit; you had fit (plural)

• Nunca habían cabido tantos libros en ese estante. — So many books had never fit on that shelf.

Caber future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro compuesto / antefuturo) — Use the future perfect for something expected to be completed by a future point. Form it with the future of haber plus the invariant participle cabido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habré cabido	I will have fit
Tú — you, singular informal	habrás cabido	you will have fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habrá cabido	he / she will have fit; you will have fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habremos cabido	we will have fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habréis cabido	you will have fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrán cabido	they will have fit; you will have fit (plural)

• Cuando terminemos, todo habrá cabido en tres cajas. — When we finish, everything will have fit into three boxes.

Caber conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto / antepospretérito) — Use the conditional perfect for a hypothetical completed result or unreal past outcome. Form it with the conditional of haber plus the invariant participle cabido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habría cabido	I would have fit
Tú — you, singular informal	habrías cabido	you would have fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habría cabido	he / she would have fit; you would have fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habríamos cabido	we would have fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habríais cabido	you would have fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrían cabido	they would have fit; you would have fit (plural)

• El sofá habría cabido con una puerta más ancha. — The sofa would have fit with a wider door.

Caber subjunctive conjugations

Caber present subjunctive conjugation

Present subjunctive (el presente de subjuntivo) — Use the present subjunctive after environments such as wishes, influence, emotion, doubt, evaluation, or necessity. Caber uses the irregular stem quep- throughout: quepa, quepas, quepa, quepamos, quepáis, quepan.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	quepa	that I fit
Tú — you, singular informal	quepas	that you fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	quepa	that he / she fit; that you fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	quepamos	that we fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	quepáis	that you fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	quepan	that they fit; that you fit (plural)

• Dudo que quepa otra silla aquí. — I doubt another chair will fit here.

Caber imperfect subjunctive conjugation

Imperfect subjunctive (el imperfecto de subjuntivo) — Use the imperfect subjunctive in subordinate clauses linked to past, hypothetical, or unreal contexts. The main table uses the accepted -ra series; an accepted -se series also exists in many contexts, for example the -se form shown in the examples below. Caber inherits the irregular preterite family and uses cupier- in the primary -ra series.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	cupiera	that I fit / were to fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cupieras	that you fit / were to fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cupiera	that he / she fit / were to fit; that you fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cupiéramos	that we fit / were to fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cupierais	that you fit / were to fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	cupieran	that they fit / were to fit; that you fit (plural)

• Era difícil que cupiéramos todos en el coche. — It was difficult for all of us to fit in the car.
• No creían que cupieseis en ese espacio. — They did not think you all would fit in that space.

Caber future subjunctive conjugation

Future subjunctive (el futuro de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. The future subjunctive survives mainly in formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical contexts. Caber uses the inherited cupier-/cupiere family.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	cupiere	if / when I should fit
Tú — you, singular informal	cupieres	if / when you should fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	cupiere	if / when he / she should fit; if / when you should fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	cupiéremos	if / when we should fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cupiereis	if / when you should fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	cupieren	if / when they should fit; if / when you should fit (plural)

• Si en el recipiente cupiere más líquido, se indicará su capacidad máxima. — If more liquid should fit in the container, its maximum capacity will be stated.

Caber present perfect subjunctive conjugation

Present perfect subjunctive (el pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) — Use the present perfect subjunctive when a completed event is viewed through a subjunctive environment connected to the present or future. Form it with present-subjunctive haber plus cabido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	haya cabido	that I have fit
Tú — you, singular informal	hayas cabido	that you have fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	haya cabido	that he / she has fit; that you have fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hayamos cabido	that we have fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hayáis cabido	that you have fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hayan cabido	that they have fit; that you have fit (plural)

• Me sorprende que hayan cabido todas las maletas. — I am surprised that all the suitcases have fit.

Caber past perfect subjunctive conjugation

Past perfect subjunctive (el pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo) — Use the past perfect subjunctive for unreal, counterfactual, or earlier completed situations inside a subjunctive environment. The main table uses hubiera + cabido; hubiese + cabido is an accepted alternative in many contexts.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiera cabido	that I had fit
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieras cabido	that you had fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiera cabido	that he / she had fit; that you had fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéramos cabido	that we had fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubierais cabido	that you had fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieran cabido	that they had fit; that you had fit (plural)

• Ojalá hubiéramos cabido todos en un solo coche. — I wish we had all fit in one car.
• Si hubiese cabido otra silla, la habríamos puesto aquí. — If another chair had fit, we would have put it here.

Caber future perfect subjunctive conjugation

Future perfect subjunctive (el futuro perfecto de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. The future perfect subjunctive is a reference form found mainly in formal, legal, literary, or historical contexts. Form it with future-subjunctive haber plus cabido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiere cabido	if / when I should have fit
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieres cabido	if / when you should have fit
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiere cabido	if / when he / she should have fit; if / when you should have fit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéremos cabido	if / when we should have fit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubiereis cabido	if / when you should have fit (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieren cabido	if / when they should have fit; if / when you should have fit (plural)

• Si hubiere cabido material adicional, se hará constar en el inventario. — If additional material should have fit, it will be recorded in the inventory.

Caber imperative and commands

Commands address another person directly. Spanish uses different morphological sources across persons and polarity; the nosotros/nosotras row is a present-subjunctive form used with exhortative “let’s…” value.

Caber affirmative commands

Restricted as an everyday teaching use. RAE records these affirmative imperative forms, so they are shown for morphological reference. With the core non-volitional meaning “to fit,” however, direct commands are pragmatically unusual; no artificial everyday command example is added.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	cabe	fit (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Usted — you, singular formal	quepa	fit (formal) (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	quepamos	let’s fit (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	cabed	fit (plural, mainly Spain) (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Ustedes — you, plural	quepan	fit (plural) (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)

Caber negative commands

Restricted as an everyday teaching use. These negative command forms follow the present-subjunctive quep- family and are included as morphological reference. With ordinary physical “fit,” a direct instruction not to fit is generally unnatural, so no fabricated contextual example is supplied.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no quepas	do not fit (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Usted — you, singular formal	no quepa	do not fit (formal) (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no quepamos	let’s not fit (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no quepáis	do not fit (plural, mainly Spain) (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)
Ustedes — you, plural	no quepan	do not fit (plural) (reference command; uncommon with the core “fit” meaning)

Common constructions with Caber

These patterns show common ways the target verb combines with its complements or develops its core meaning.

• Caber en una caja. — To fit in a box.
• Aquí caben seis personas. — Six people fit here.
• No cabe duda. — There is no doubt.

Example sentences with Caber

These examples reinforce the target verb across useful forms and contexts already explained in the lesson.

• Esta caja no cabe en el armario. — This box does not fit in the cupboard.
• Ayer cupieron todos en el coche. — Yesterday everyone fit in the car.
• Antes cabían más libros en este estante. — More books used to fit on this shelf.
• Han cabido todas las maletas en el maletero. — All the suitcases have fit in the trunk.
• En esa sala cabrán unas cien personas. — About one hundred people will fit in that room.

Regional and usage notes for Caber

Voseo changes the second-person singular present to cabés — “you fit.” RAE also records the affirmative vos imperative cabé, but direct commands with the core non-volitional “fit” meaning are not normal everyday teaching targets.

• Vos cabés aquí sin problema. — You fit here without any problem. (voseo)

With caber, learn the irregular families by function: quepo/quepa in the present family, cup- in the preterite-derived family, and cabr- in the future and conditional. Use progressive and command forms only when the context makes them natural.