What does recibir mean in English?

Recibir means "to receive" in English.

How do you conjugate recibir in Spanish?

Recibir is conjugated across all Spanish tenses including present, preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, subjunctive, and more. Each tense has specific conjugations for yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, and ellos/ustedes. You can see complete conjugation tables with audio pronunciations on this page.

What are common idiomatic expressions with recibir?

Common idiomatic expressions using recibir include: "recibir con los brazos abiertos" (to welcome with open arms), "recibirse de" (to graduate as (Latin America)), "recibir una paliza" (to get beaten / to receive a thrashing). These expressions are frequently used in everyday Spanish conversation.

What verbs are related to recibir?

Verbs related to recibir include: percibir, concebir. These verbs share similar meanings, stems, or conjugation patterns.

How do you use recibir in a sentence?

Example: "Recibo muchos emails todos los días." which means "I receive many emails every day." in English.

What are synonyms for recibir?

Spanish synonyms for recibir include: obtener, aceptar. The exact synonym to use depends on the context and specific meaning intended.

Recibir Conjugation

to receive in Spanish

🏃

Gerund (gerundio)

Present participle (-ing form)

recibiendo

📋

Past Participle

Used in compound tenses

recibido

Simple Tenses

⚡

Present Indicative (presente de indicativo)

Present actions and habitual activities

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	recibo I receive	I receive
tú	recibes you receive	you receive
él/ella/usted	recibe he/she/you receives	he/she/you receives
nosotros	recibimos we receive	we receive
vosotros	recibís you all receive	you all receive
ellos/ustedes	reciben they/you all receive	they/you all receive

🕰️

Imperfect Indicative (imperfecto de indicativo)

Ongoing past actions and descriptions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	recibía I used to receive	I used to receive
tú	recibías you used to receive	you used to receive
él/ella/usted	recibía he/she/you used to receive	he/she/you used to receive
nosotros	recibíamos we used to receive	we used to receive
vosotros	recibíais you all used to receive	you all used to receive
ellos/ustedes	recibían they/you all used to receive	they/you all used to receive

📅

Preterit (pretérito)

Completed past actions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	recibí I received	I received
tú	recibiste you received	you received
él/ella/usted	recibió he/she/you received	he/she/you received
nosotros	recibimos we received	we received
vosotros	recibisteis you all received	you all received
ellos/ustedes	recibieron they/you all received	they/you all received

🔮

Future (futuro)

Future actions and intentions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	recibiré I will receive	I will receive
tú	recibirás you will receive	you will receive
él/ella/usted	recibirá he/she/you will receive	he/she/you will receive
nosotros	recibiremos we will receive	we will receive
vosotros	recibiréis you all will receive	you all will receive
ellos/ustedes	recibirán they/you all will receive	they/you all will receive

🎯

Conditional (potencial simple)

Hypothetical and conditional actions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	recibiría I would receive	I would receive
tú	recibirías you would receive	you would receive
él/ella/usted	recibiría he/she/you would receive	he/she/you would receive
nosotros	recibiríamos we would receive	we would receive
vosotros	recibiríais you all would receive	you all would receive
ellos/ustedes	recibirían they/you all would receive	they/you all would receive

💭

Present Subjunctive (presente de subjuntivo)

Subjective present actions and desires

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	reciba that I receive	that I receive
tú	recibas that you receive	that you receive
él/ella/usted	reciba that he/she/you receive	that he/she/you receive
nosotros	recibamos that we receive	that we receive
vosotros	recibáis that you all receive	that you all receive
ellos/ustedes	reciban that they/you all receive	that they/you all receive

🌙

Imperfect Subjunctive (imperfecto de subjuntivo)

Subjective past actions and hypothetical situations

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	recibiera or recibiese that I received	that I received
tú	recibieras or recibieses that you received	that you received
él/ella/usted	recibiera or recibiese that he/she/you received	that he/she/you received
nosotros	recibiéramos or recibiésemos that we received	that we received
vosotros	recibierais or recibieseis that you all received	that you all received
ellos/ustedes	recibieran or recibiesen that they/you all received	that they/you all received

Compound Tenses

✅

Present Perfect (perfecto de indicativo)

Actions completed recently or with present relevance

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	he recibido I have received	I have received
tú	has recibido you have received	you have received
él/ella/usted	ha recibido he/she/you have received	he/she/you have received
nosotros	hemos recibido we have received	we have received
vosotros	habéis recibido you all have received	you all have received
ellos/ustedes	han recibido they/you all have received	they/you all have received

⏪

Pluperfect Indicative (pluscuamperfecto de indicativo)

Actions completed before another past action

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	había recibido I had received	I had received
tú	habías recibido you had received	you had received
él/ella/usted	había recibido he/she/you had received	he/she/you had received
nosotros	habíamos recibido we had received	we had received
vosotros	habíais recibido you all had received	you all had received
ellos/ustedes	habían recibido they/you all had received	they/you all had received

📍

Preterit Perfect (pretérito anterior)

Actions completed immediately before another past action

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	hube recibido I had received	I had received
tú	hubiste recibido you had received	you had received
él/ella/usted	hubo recibido he/she/you had received	he/she/you had received
nosotros	hubimos recibido we had received	we had received
vosotros	hubisteis recibido you all had received	you all had received
ellos/ustedes	hubieron recibido they/you all had received	they/you all had received

🎊

Future Perfect (futuro perfecto)

Actions that will be completed by a future time

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	habré recibido I will have received	I will have received
tú	habrás recibido you will have received	you will have received
él/ella/usted	habrá recibido he/she/you will have received	he/she/you will have received
nosotros	habremos recibido we will have received	we will have received
vosotros	habréis recibido you all will have received	you all will have received
ellos/ustedes	habrán recibido they/you all will have received	they/you all will have received

🔄

Conditional Perfect (potencial compuesto)

Actions that would have been completed under certain conditions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	habría recibido I would have received	I would have received
tú	habrías recibido you would have received	you would have received
él/ella/usted	habría recibido he/she/you would have received	he/she/you would have received
nosotros	habríamos recibido we would have received	we would have received
vosotros	habríais recibido you all would have received	you all would have received
ellos/ustedes	habrían recibido they/you all would have received	they/you all would have received

💫

Subjunctive Present Perfect (perfecto de subjuntivo)

Subjective actions completed in relation to the present

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	haya recibido that I have received	that I have received
tú	hayas recibido that you have received	that you have received
él/ella/usted	haya recibido that he/she/you have received	that he/she/you have received
nosotros	hayamos recibido that we have received	that we have received
vosotros	hayáis recibido that you all have received	that you all have received
ellos/ustedes	hayan recibido that they/you all have received	that they/you all have received

🌌

Subjunctive Past Perfect (pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo)

Subjective actions completed before another past action

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	hubiera recibido that I had received	that I had received
tú	hubieras recibido that you had received	that you had received
él/ella/usted	hubiera recibido that he/she/you had received	that he/she/you had received
nosotros	hubiéramos recibido that we had received	that we had received
vosotros	hubierais recibido that you all had received	that you all had received
ellos/ustedes	hubieran recibido that they/you all had received	that they/you all had received

❗

Commands (imperativo)

Commands and direct orders

Person	Command	English
tú	recibe	receive! (you)
usted	reciba	receive! (you formal)
nosotros	recibamos	let's receive!
vosotros	recibid	receive! (you all)
ustedes	reciban	receive! (you all)

🚫

Negative Commands (imperativo negativo)

Negative commands and prohibitions

Person	Command	English
tú	no recibas	don't receive! (you)
usted	no reciba	don't receive! (you formal)
nosotros	no recibamos	let's not receive!
vosotros	no recibáis	don't receive! (you all)
ustedes	no reciban	don't receive! (you all)

More About "recibir"

Idiomatic Expressions

recibir con los brazos abiertos

to welcome with open arms

💡 Greeting someone warmly and enthusiastically

recibirse de

to graduate as (Latin America)

💡 Completing studies and obtaining a degree

recibir una paliza

to get beaten / to receive a thrashing

💡 Being defeated badly or physically beaten

recibir un regalo

to receive a gift

💡 Getting a present from someone

Examples in Context

Recibo muchos emails todos los días.

I receive many emails every day.

Present

Recibí tu mensaje ayer.

I received your message yesterday.

Preterite

¿Recibiste mi paquete?

Did you receive my package?

Preterite

He recibido buenas noticias.

I have received good news.

Present Perfect

Recibirás una confirmación por email.

You will receive a confirmation by email.

Future

Related Verbs

percibir(to perceive, receive)

similar meaning - to perceive/receive

concebir(to conceive)

similar ending - to conceive

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms:

obtener(to obtain, get)

More active acquisition

aceptar(to accept)

Emphasizes willingness to receive

Antonyms:

dar(to give)

enviar(to send)

entregar(to deliver, hand over)

Usage Notes

•Recibir is a regular -ir verb
•Main meaning: to receive, to get, to welcome
•Can mean "to welcome" or "to greet": recibir invitados (to welcome guests)
•In Latin America, "recibirse" means "to graduate": Me recibí de médico (I graduated as a doctor)
•Opposite of "dar" (to give) or "enviar" (to send)
•Common in formal contexts: recibir correspondencia (to receive correspondence)
•Used for payments: recibir el salario (to receive salary)
•Related noun: el recibo (receipt)

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Recibir Conjugation

Simple Tenses

Compound Tenses

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Antonyms:

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