The Conditional Mood of detener is used to express hypothetical situations or actions that would happen if a certain condition were met. For example, Te detendría si intentaras escapar. (I would stop you if you tried to escape.)

Detener is a regular verb, meaning its conjugations in the Conditional Mood follow the typical pattern for verbs ending in -er.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Detener (to stop) in the Conditional Mood tense (Castilian Spanish):

The conditional mood of detener is used to express hypothetical situations, wishes, or possibilities in the future.

To stop or halt an action: For example, Yo detendría el coche si viera un animal en la carretera. (I would stop the car if I saw an animal on the road.)

To arrest or apprehend someone: For example, La policía detendría a los ladrones si los encontraran. (The police would arrest the thieves if they found them.)

To prevent or impede: For example, Pondría una barrera para detener la propagación del fuego. (I would put up a barrier to stop the spread of the fire.)

To pause or interrupt: For example, Detendría la película para ir al baño. (I would pause the movie to go to the bathroom.)

To detain or hold back: For example, Te detendría unos minutos para explicarte las instrucciones. (I would detain you for a few minutes to explain the instructions to you.)

Examples

Examples of Detener in the Conditional Mood

Si viera a un ladrón, detendría su huida. (If I saw a thief, I would stop their escape.)

Aunque detendrías el tráfico por un momento, no es una buena idea cruzar por en medio de la calle. (Even though you would stop traffic for a moment, it’s not a good idea to cross in the middle of the street.)

El guardia de seguridad detendría a cualquier persona sospechosa que intentara entrar. (The security guard would stop any suspicious person trying to enter.)

Si tuviéramos más recursos, detendríamos la deforestación en esta región. (If we had more resources, we would stop deforestation in this region.)

¿Detendrían ustedes la pelea o dejarían que continuara? (Would you stop the fight or let it continue?)

Si detendríais a los manifestantes pacíficos, eso violaría su derecho a la libertad de expresión. (If you would stop the peaceful protesters, that would violate their right to freedom of expression.)

Los bomberos detendrían el incendio antes de que se propagara a los edificios cercanos. (The firefighters would stop the fire before it spread to nearby buildings.)

En una emergencia, detendría cualquier actividad peligrosa de inmediato. (In an emergency, I would stop any dangerous activity immediately.)

Si tuvieran más personal, detendrían a los infractores de tránsito con más frecuencia. (If they had more staff, they would stop traffic violators more often.)

Para evitar más daños, detendríamos la construcción hasta realizar una evaluación ambiental completa. (To prevent further damage, we would stop construction until a full environmental assessment was done.)

Los manifestantes detendrían el tráfico como forma de protesta pacífica. (The protesters would stop traffic as a form of peaceful protest.)

Si tuviera la oportunidad, detendría el reloj para tener más tiempo libre. (If I had the chance, I would stop the clock to have more free time.)

Ante una situación de acoso, detendrías al agresor de inmediato. (In a situation of harassment, you would stop the aggressor immediately.)

Para prevenir más violencia, las autoridades detendrían a los cabecillas del grupo armado. (To prevent further violence, the authorities would stop the leaders of the armed group.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Detener (to stop) in the Conditional Mood tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Conditional mood is also known as the Simple Conditional, Conditional Simple, Would Tense, or Future of the Past in English, and as Condicional Simple, Pospretérito, Potencial Simple, or Condicional de Indicativo in Spanish.