The Conditional Mood of lavar is used to express hypothetical or potential situations, for example: Yo lavaría la ropa si tuviera tiempo. (I would do the laundry if I had time.)

Lavar is a regular verb, so its conditional conjugations follow the typical pattern for -ar verbs by dropping the infinitive ending and adding the corresponding conditional endings.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Gastar (to spend) in the Conditional Mood tense (Latin American Spanish):

The conditional mood of lavar is used to express hypothetical or potential situations, often with an implied condition.

Wash or clean: This is the most common meaning, referring to the act of cleaning something with water or another liquid. For example, Lavaría los platos después de la cena. (I would wash the dishes after dinner.) It can also be used figuratively, like lavaría mi reputación (I would clean my reputation).

Launder money: In a more figurative sense, it can mean to launder or conceal the origins of illegally obtained money. For example, Los narcotraficantes lavarían su dinero a través de negocios legítimos. (The drug traffickers would launder their money through legitimate businesses.) This usage is considered slang or informal.

Wash one’s hands (of something): Idiomatically, it can mean to absolve oneself of responsibility or involvement in a situation. For example, El gobierno lavaría sus manos del escándalo. (The government would wash its hands of the scandal.)

Wash one’s mouth out (with soap): In a colloquial or jocular sense, it can refer to the idea of washing someone’s mouth out with soap as a punishment for using inappropriate language. For example, ¡Te lavaría la boca con jabón por decir esas groserías! (I would wash your mouth out with soap for saying those swear words!)

Examples

Examples of Gastar in the Conditional Mood

Si lavaría los platos después de la cena, me ayudaría mucho. (If you would wash the dishes after dinner, it would help me a lot.)

Ellos lavarían la ropa si tuvieran una lavadora. (They would do the laundry if they had a washing machine.)

Yo lavaría el carro este fin de semana, pero tengo otros planes. (I would wash the car this weekend, but I have other plans.)

¿Lavaríamos los platos juntos después de la fiesta? (Would we wash the dishes together after the party?)

Ustedes lavarían la ropa con más frecuencia si no fuera tan caro. (You would do laundry more often if it weren’t so expensive.)

Ella lavaría su auto con más cuidado si supiera lo importante que es mantenerlo limpio. (She would wash her car more carefully if she knew how important it is to keep it clean.)

¿Lavarías los platos a mano o los pondrías en el lavavajillas? (Would you wash the dishes by hand or put them in the dishwasher?)

Nosotros lavaríamos la ropa más seguido, pero el agua está muy cara. (We would do laundry more often, but water is very expensive.)

Tú lavarías tu carro con más frecuencia si no tuvieras que pagar por el agua, ¿verdad? (You would wash your car more often if you didn’t have to pay for the water, right?)

Ellas lavarían la loza después de la cena, pero están muy cansadas. (They would wash the dishes after dinner, but they are very tired.)

¿Lavaríamos los platos a mano o usaríamos el lavavajillas? (Would we wash the dishes by hand or use the dishwasher?)

Vosotros lavaríais la ropa con más frecuencia si no fuera tan caro, ¿no? (You would do laundry more often if it weren’t so expensive, right?)

Él lavaría su coche con más cuidado si supiera lo importante que es mantenerlo limpio. (He would wash his car more carefully if he knew how important it is to keep it clean.)

¿Lavarías los platos a mano o los pondrías en el lavavajillas? (Would you wash the dishes by hand or put them in the dishwasher?)

Vosotros lavaríais la loza después de la cena, pero estáis muy cansados. (You would wash the dishes after dinner, but you are very tired.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Gastar (to spend) in the Conditional Mood tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian 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.