Prohibir Conjugation | How to Conjugate Prohibir in Spanish

Prohibir means “to prohibit” or “to forbid.” You will learn its accent pattern in prohíbo / prohíba, otherwise regular -IR families, gerund prohibiendo, participle prohibido, and complement structures.

Prohibir conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Irregular. Linguistically, prohibir has a written stress pattern that differs from the default regular -IR pattern. RAE gives prohíbo, prohíbes, prohíbe, prohíben, but prohibimos / prohibís; the present subjunctive similarly contrasts prohíba with prohibamos.

Prohibir gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund supports progressive constructions, and the past participle combines with haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — in compound forms. The participle prohibido remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	prohibir	to prohibit / forbid
Gerund	prohibiendo	prohibiting / forbidding
Past participle	prohibido	prohibited / forbidden

Prohibir meaning and essential uses

Prohibir is transitive and means preventing or formally disallowing the use or execution of something: La ley prohíbe fumar aquí. — “The law prohibits smoking here.”

The person affected can be expressed with an indirect object, and an action can follow as an infinitive or subordinate clause: Le prohíben entrar. — “They forbid him / her to enter.” Prohíben que se use el teléfono. — “They prohibit the phone from being used.”

Prohibir irregular conjugation patterns

The stressed present forms carry a written accent on í: prohíbo, prohíbes, prohíbe, prohíben. Nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras are prohibimos, prohibís.

The present subjunctive repeats the contrast: prohíba, prohíbas, prohíba, prohíban versus prohibamos, prohibáis. The preterite and remaining major families are otherwise predictable.

Prohibir indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Prohibir present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current situations, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. Stressed forms require written í: prohíbo, prohíbes, prohíbe, prohíben; plural stem-stressed forms are prohibimos / prohibís.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohíbo	I prohibit / forbid
Tú — you, singular informal	prohíbes	you prohibit / forbid
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohíbe	he / she prohibits / forbids; you prohibit / forbid (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibimos	we prohibit / forbid
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibís	you prohibit / forbid (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohíben	they prohibit / forbid; you prohibit / forbid (plural)

• La ley prohíbe fumar en este edificio. — The law prohibits smoking in this building.

Prohibir preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohibí	I prohibited / forbade
Tú — you, singular informal	prohibiste	you prohibited / forbade
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohibió	he / she prohibited / forbade; you prohibited / forbade (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibimos	we prohibited / forbade
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibisteis	you prohibited / forbade (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohibieron	they prohibited / forbade; you prohibited / forbade (plural)

• Ayer prohibieron el acceso a esa zona. — Yesterday they prohibited access to that area.

Prohibir imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohibía	I used to prohibit / forbid / was prohibiting / forbidding
Tú — you, singular informal	prohibías	you used to prohibit / forbid / were prohibiting / forbidding
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohibía	he / she used to prohibit / forbid / was prohibiting / forbidding; you used to prohibit / forbid / were prohibiting / forbidding (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibíamos	we used to prohibit / forbid / were prohibiting / forbidding
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibíais	you used to prohibit / forbid / were prohibiting / forbidding (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohibían	they used to prohibit / forbid / were prohibiting / forbidding; you used to prohibit / forbid / were prohibiting / forbidding (plural)

• Antes prohibían usar teléfonos en clase. — They used to prohibit phone use in class.

Prohibir present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. Form it with present estar — “to be” — plus prohibiendo — “prohibiting / forbidding.”

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

• Están prohibiendo nuevas actividades en la zona. — They are prohibiting new activities in the area.

Prohibir near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis expresses an intention, plan, or expected event. Form it with present ir — “to go” — plus a — “to” — and prohibir.

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

• Van a prohibir el estacionamiento aquí. — They are going to prohibit parking here.

Prohibir future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The endings attach to the full infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohibiré	I will prohibit / forbid
Tú — you, singular informal	prohibirás	you will prohibit / forbid
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohibirá	he / she will prohibit / forbid; you will prohibit / forbid (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibiremos	we will prohibit / forbid
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibiréis	you will prohibit / forbid (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohibirán	they will prohibit / forbid; you will prohibit / forbid (plural)

• Prohibirán el acceso después de las diez. — They will prohibit access after ten.

Prohibir conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical outcomes, softened statements, or related conditional meanings. The endings attach to the full infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohibiría	I would prohibit / forbid
Tú — you, singular informal	prohibirías	you would prohibit / forbid
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohibiría	he / she would prohibit / forbid; you would prohibit / forbid (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibiríamos	we would prohibit / forbid
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibiríais	you would prohibit / forbid (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohibirían	they would prohibit / forbid; you would prohibit / forbid (plural)

• Prohibirían esa práctica si fuera peligrosa. — They would prohibit that practice if it were dangerous.

Prohibir present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use it for completed events connected to a present reference frame; regional distribution varies. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Han prohibido el uso de ese producto. — They have prohibited the use of that product.

Prohibir past perfect conjugation

Past perfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use it for an event completed before another past reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Ya habían prohibido esa actividad. — They had already prohibited that activity.

Prohibir future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro perfecto) — Use it for an event expected to be completed before a future reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Para entonces habrán prohibido varias prácticas. — By then they will have prohibited several practices.

Prohibir conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto) — Use it for a hypothetical completed outcome. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Habrían prohibido la entrada sin autorización. — They would have prohibited entry without authorization.

Prohibir subjunctive conjugations

Prohibir present subjunctive conjugation

Present subjunctive (el presente de subjuntivo) — Use it in subordinate environments involving wishes, influence, emotion, doubt or denial, evaluation, necessity, possibility, or non-specific reference. Stressed forms require prohíb-, while nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras use prohib-: prohibamos / prohibáis.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohíba	that I prohibit / forbid
Tú — you, singular informal	prohíbas	that you prohibit / forbid
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohíba	that he / she prohibit / forbid; that you prohibit / forbid (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibamos	that we prohibit / forbid
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibáis	that you prohibit / forbid (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohíban	that they prohibit / forbid; that you prohibit / forbid (plural)

• Quiero que prohíbas el acceso no autorizado. — I want you to prohibit unauthorized access.

Prohibir imperfect subjunctive conjugation

Imperfect subjunctive (el imperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses the -ra series. The accepted -se series is also valid in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohibiera	that I prohibited / forbade
Tú — you, singular informal	prohibieras	that you prohibited / forbade
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohibiera	that he / she prohibited / forbade; that you prohibited / forbade (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibiéramos	that we prohibited / forbade
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibierais	that you prohibited / forbade (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohibieran	that they prohibited / forbade; that you prohibited / forbade (plural)

• Preferían que prohibiéramos esa práctica. — They preferred that we prohibit that practice.
• Era necesario que prohibieses el uso de ese equipo. — It was necessary that you prohibit the use of that equipment.

Prohibir future subjunctive conjugation

Future subjunctive (el futuro de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. It survives mainly in formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical contexts. These rare reference forms share the same historical family as the imperfect subjunctive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	prohibiere	if / when I should prohibit / forbid
Tú — you, singular informal	prohibieres	if / when you should prohibit / forbid
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	prohibiere	if / when he / she should prohibit / forbid; if / when you should prohibit / forbid (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	prohibiéremos	if / when we should prohibit / forbid
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibiereis	if / when you should prohibit / forbid (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	prohibieren	if / when they should prohibit / forbid; if / when you should prohibit / forbid (plural)

• Quien prohibiere una actividad deberá justificar la medida. — Whoever should prohibit an activity must justify the measure.

Prohibir present perfect subjunctive conjugation

Present perfect subjunctive (el pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) — Use it when a completed event appears inside a present- or future-oriented subjunctive environment. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Me alegra que hayan prohibido esa práctica peligrosa. — I am glad they prohibited that dangerous practice.

Prohibir past perfect subjunctive conjugation

Past perfect subjunctive (el pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses hubiera; hubiese is an accepted auxiliary alternative in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Si hubiéramos prohibido antes el acceso, habríamos evitado el problema. — If we had prohibited access earlier, we would have avoided the problem.
• Si hubieses prohibido esa práctica, no habría ocurrido. — If you had prohibited that practice, it would not have happened.

Prohibir future perfect subjunctive conjugation

Future perfect subjunctive (el futuro perfecto de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. Treat it as a formal or historical reference form, not an everyday conversational target. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle prohibido.

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

• Si hubieren prohibido nuevas actividades, deberán comunicarlo. — If they should have prohibited new activities, they must announce it.

Prohibir imperative and commands

Commands address another person directly. The nosotros/nosotras row is a present-subjunctive form used with exhortative “let’s…” value.

Prohibir affirmative commands

Use the verified affirmative command forms for direct instructions when the target meaning supports them naturally.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	prohíbe	prohibit
Usted — you, singular formal	prohíba	prohibit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	prohibamos	let’s prohibit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	prohibid	prohibit (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	prohíban	prohibit (plural)

• Prohíbe el acceso sin autorización. — Prohibit unauthorized access.

Prohibir negative commands

Negative commands use subjunctive-based forms, with no — “not / do not” — before the verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no prohíbas	do not prohibit
Usted — you, singular formal	no prohíba	do not prohibit (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no prohibamos	let’s not prohibit
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no prohibáis	do not prohibit (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no prohíban	do not prohibit (plural)

• No prohíbas algo sin una razón clara. — Do not prohibit something without a clear reason.

Common constructions with Prohibir

These patterns show sentence frames that materially affect how the target verb is used.

• prohibir algo. — to prohibit / forbid something.
• prohibir a alguien + infinitive. — to forbid someone to do something.
• prohibir que + subjunctive. — to prohibit that an action occur.

Example sentences with Prohibir

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

• Está prohibido fumar aquí. — Smoking is prohibited here.
• Le prohibieron entrar. — They forbade him / her to enter.
• La norma prohíbe usar ese equipo. — The rule prohibits using that equipment.
• Espero que prohíban esa práctica peligrosa. — I hope they prohibit that dangerous practice.
• Han prohibido el acceso temporalmente. — They have temporarily prohibited access.
• No prohíbas una opción sin evaluarla. — Do not prohibit an option without evaluating it.

Regional and usage notes for Prohibir

The core tables retain tú, usted, vosotros/vosotras, and ustedes for project comparability. Voseo changes some second-person singular forms in regions where vos — “you, singular informal” — is used.

• Vos prohibís el acceso cuando es necesario. — You prohibit access when necessary. (voseo)
• Prohibí el acceso a esa zona. — Prohibit access to that area. (affirmative vos command)

For prohibir, the morphology is mostly regular but the written stress must be learned carefully: prohíbo / prohíba contrast with prohibimos / prohibamos. Keep the accent exactly where standard Spanish requires it.