Ah, sí, yo voy a conducir.
Oh, right, I'm going to drive.
Someone tells him he's the driver, and he takes the wheel with this one line, using voy a conducir for what he's about to do.
From Beverly Hills Ninja · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "drive" in Spanish
conducir
verbyo conduzcopast: condujo
"To drive" in Spanish is conducir in Spain and manejar in Mexico and most of Latin America. Both mean driving a car: Yo no sé conducir is "I can't drive." Conducir is irregular, so the forms to learn first are conduzco (I drive) and condujo (he or she drove).
Hear "conducir" in real movie scenes
In both lines conducir follows another verb. Each video starts and stops on that line.
Intenta conducir esta cosa.
Try driving this thing.
After intenta, the second verb stays in the infinitive, so intenta conducir is the Spanish for "try to drive".
From Ghostbusters: El Legado · Spanish audio
Driving words in Spain and Latin America
The verb changes with the region. So does the name of your license.
| Spanish | English | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| conducir | to drive | The word in Spain. People in Latin America understand it too. |
| manejar | to drive | The everyday verb in Mexico and most of Latin America. It's regular: manejo, manejas, maneja. |
| el conductor, la conductora | driver | Used everywhere. A professional driver can also be el chófer (Spain) or el chofer (Latin America). |
| el carné de conducir | driver's license | Spain. In much of Latin America it's la licencia de conducir or la licencia de manejo. |
| dar una vuelta en coche | to go for a drive | A drive just for fun, with no fixed destination. |
Tip: To give someone a ride, Spanish uses llevar, not conducir: ¿Te llevo a casa? means "Can I drive you home?"
Grammar: conducir, conduzco, conduje
An irregular verb with a regular middle.
A z in the yo form
yo conduzco, then back to normal: conduces, conduce, conducimos, conducís, conducen.A j in the past
The preterite swaps the c for j: conduje, condujiste, condujo, condujimos, condujisteis, condujeron. None of these forms has an accent mark.Saber or poder
For a skill you learned, use saber: No sé conducir. For being able to at a given moment, use poder: Hoy no puedo conducir.Often you just say en coche
To tell people how you get somewhere, Spanish names the vehicle: Voy al trabajo en coche. It sounds more natural than a sentence with conducir.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
Yo no sé conducir.
I can't drive.
Mi vecino va a conducir hasta el lago para bañarse.
My neighbor is going to drive to the lake for a swim.
Mi amor aún no puede conducir de noche.
My sweetheart still can't drive at night.
Conducir es un riesgo.
Driving is a risk.
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗Yo conduco
✓Yo conduzco
The yo form needs a z before the c. Every other present form keeps the plain c.
✗Ayer conducí
✓Ayer conduje
The past tense of conducir is irregular and uses a j stem, with no accent on the last letter.
✗¿Me conduces a casa? (asking for a ride)
✓¿Me llevas a casa?
Conducir is about handling the car. Taking a person somewhere by car is llevar.
Practice: 3 quick exercises
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How to remember it
A driver in Spanish is el conductor. Picture an orchestra conductor behind the wheel, waving a baton with one hand while he conduce with the other.
Questions about "drive" in Spanish
How do you say drive in Spanish?
Conducir in Spain and manejar in Mexico and most of Latin America. Both mean to drive a car, and conducir is understood everywhere.
How do you say "I can't drive" in Spanish?
No sé conducir (or No sé manejar) if you never learned. If you know how but can't right now, say Hoy no puedo conducir.
How do you say driver's license in Spanish?
In Spain it's el carné de conducir. In much of Latin America you'll hear la licencia de conducir or la licencia de manejo.
How do you say "drive me home" in Spanish?
¿Me llevas a casa? To drive a person somewhere, Spanish uses llevar, which means to take.
