Servir Conjugation | How to Conjugate Servir in Spanish

Servir means “to serve,” “to be useful,” or “to function.” You will learn its e → i present change, sirvió / sirvieron preterite, gerund sirviendo, subjunctive families, and purpose patterns.

Servir conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Irregular. Servir uses sirv- in stressed present forms, third-person preterite, all present-subjunctive forms, past/future subjunctive families, and gerund sirviendo. The participle servido is regular.

Servir 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 servido remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	servir	to serve / be useful
Gerund	sirviendo	serving / being useful
Past participle	servido	served / been useful

Servir meaning and essential uses

Servir can be transitive when serving a person, food, drink, or an institution: Sirvo la cena. — “I serve dinner.” Sirvió al país durante años. — “He / she served the country for years.”

It is also extremely common in usefulness and purpose constructions: Esto sirve para abrir la puerta. — “This is useful for opening the door.” La caja sirve de mesa. — “The box serves as a table.”

Servir irregular conjugation patterns

Stressed present forms use sirv-: sirvo, sirves, sirve, sirven — “I/you/he-they serve.” Nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras use serv-: servimos / servís.

Third-person preterite uses sirvió / sirvieron — “he/she served / they served.” The present subjunctive uses sirv- throughout, past/future subjunctive use sirvier-, and the gerund is sirviendo.

Servir indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Servir present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current situations, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. Stressed forms use sirv-; nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras use serv-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	sirvo	I serve / be useful
Tú — you, singular informal	sirves	you serve / be useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	sirve	he / she serves / is useful; you serve / be useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	servimos	we serve / be useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	servís	you serve / be useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	sirven	they serve / be useful; you serve / be useful (plural)

• Sirvo la cena a las ocho. — I serve dinner at eight.

Servir preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events. Third-person forms are sirvió / sirvieron; the remaining preterite forms keep serv-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	serví	I served / was useful
Tú — you, singular informal	serviste	you served / was useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	sirvió	he / she served / was useful; you served / was useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	servimos	we served / was useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	servisteis	you served / was useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	sirvieron	they served / was useful; you served / was useful (plural)

• Ayer serví café a los invitados. — Yesterday I served coffee to the guests.

Servir 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 servido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	servía	I used to serve / be useful / was serving / being useful
Tú — you, singular informal	servías	you used to serve / be useful / were serving / being useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	servía	he / she used to serve / be useful / was serving / being useful; you used to serve / be useful / were serving / being useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	servíamos	we used to serve / be useful / were serving / being useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	servíais	you used to serve / be useful / were serving / being useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	servían	they used to serve / be useful / were serving / being useful; you used to serve / be useful / were serving / being useful (plural)

• Antes servíamos la comida en el jardín. — We used to serve the food in the garden.

Servir present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. Form it with present estar plus the stem-changing gerund sirviendo — “serving / being useful.”

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

• Estoy sirviendo la sopa. — I am serving the soup.

Servir 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 servir.

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

• Voy a servir el postre ahora. — I am going to serve dessert now.

Servir future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	serviré	I will serve / be useful
Tú — you, singular informal	servirás	you will serve / be useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	servirá	he / she will serve / be useful; you will serve / be useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	serviremos	we will serve / be useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	serviréis	you will serve / be useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	servirán	they will serve / be useful; you will serve / be useful (plural)

• Serviremos la cena después de la reunión. — We will serve dinner after the meeting.

Servir conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical outcomes, softened statements, or related conditional meanings. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	serviría	I would serve / be useful
Tú — you, singular informal	servirías	you would serve / be useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	serviría	he / she would serve / be useful; you would serve / be useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	serviríamos	we would serve / be useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	serviríais	you would serve / be useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	servirían	they would serve / be useful; you would serve / be useful (plural)

• Serviría otra bebida si la pidieran. — I would serve another drink if they asked for it.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• He servido en esta organización durante años. — I have served in this organization for years.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• Ya habíamos servido el primer plato. — We had already served the first course.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• Para entonces habrán servido toda la comida. — By then they will have served all the food.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• Habría servido más café si lo hubiera sabido. — I would have served more coffee if I had known.

Servir subjunctive conjugations

Servir 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. The present subjunctive uses sirv- throughout.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	sirva	that I serve / be useful
Tú — you, singular informal	sirvas	that you serve / be useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	sirva	that he / she serve / be useful; that you serve / be useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	sirvamos	that we serve / be useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	sirváis	that you serve / be useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	sirvan	that they serve / be useful; that you serve / be useful (plural)

• Quiero que sirvas la cena ahora. — I want you to serve dinner now.

Servir 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. These forms use the sirvier- family; the main table shows the -ra series.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	sirviera	that I served / was useful
Tú — you, singular informal	sirvieras	that you served / was useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	sirviera	that he / she served / was useful; that you served / was useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	sirviéramos	that we served / was useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	sirvierais	that you served / was useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	sirvieran	that they served / was useful; that you served / was useful (plural)

• Preferían que sirviéramos el postre más tarde. — They preferred that we serve dessert later.
• Era mejor que sirvieses la sopa caliente. — It was better for you to serve the soup hot.

Servir 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 forms use the sirvier- family.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	sirviere	if / when I should serve / be useful
Tú — you, singular informal	sirvieres	if / when you should serve / be useful
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	sirviere	if / when he / she should serve / be useful; if / when you should serve / be useful (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	sirviéremos	if / when we should serve / be useful
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	sirviereis	if / when you should serve / be useful (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	sirvieren	if / when they should serve / be useful; if / when you should serve / be useful (plural)

• Quien sirviere alimentos deberá cumplir las normas de higiene. — Whoever should serve food must comply with hygiene rules.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• Me alegra que hayas servido la comida a tiempo. — I am glad that you served the food on time.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• Si hubiera servido la cena antes, todos habrían comido juntos. — If I had served dinner earlier, everyone would have eaten together.
• Si hubieses servido más agua, no habría faltado. — If you had served more water, there would not have been a shortage.

Servir 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 servido.

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

• Si hubieren servido alimentos, deberán registrar el servicio. — If they should have served food, they must record the service.

Servir imperative and commands

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

Servir 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	sirve	serve
Usted — you, singular formal	sirva	serve (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	sirvamos	let’s serve
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	servid	serve (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	sirvan	serve (plural)

• Sirve la sopa caliente. — Serve the soup hot.

Servir 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 sirvas	do not serve
Usted — you, singular formal	no sirva	do not serve (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no sirvamos	let’s not serve
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no sirváis	do not serve (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no sirvan	do not serve (plural)

• No sirvas comida fría. — Do not serve cold food.

Common constructions with Servir

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

• servir algo a alguien. — to serve something to someone.
• servir a alguien / una institución. — to serve someone / an institution.
• servir para + noun or infinitive. — to be useful for / serve the purpose of.
• servir de + noun. — to serve as something.

Example sentences with Servir

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

• Este botón sirve para abrir la puerta. — This button is used to open the door.
• La caja sirve de mesa. — The box serves as a table.
• Nos sirvieron la cena muy tarde. — They served us dinner very late.
• Espero que sirvas el café caliente. — I hope you serve the coffee hot.
• Ese consejo me ha servido mucho. — That advice has been very useful to me.
• Sirve primero a los invitados. — Serve the guests first.

Regional and usage notes for Servir

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 servís la cena a las ocho. — You serve dinner at eight. (voseo)
• Serví el café ahora. — Serve the coffee now. (affirmative vos command)

For servir, keep the sirv- family together: stressed present forms, third-person preterite, present and past/future subjunctives, and gerund sirviendo. Use serv- in the remaining regular families.