Conjugation of possum in Latin
possumto be able / canirregular
Praesēnspresent
Actions happening now or habitually.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | possum | |
| tū | potes | |
| is/ea/id | potest | |
| nōs | possumus | |
| vōs | potestis | |
| eī/eae/ea | possunt |
Common mistakes in the Praesēns
- ego
possepossumLearners sometimes mistake the infinitive 'posse' for the first-person present; the correct form is 'possum'.
Imperfectum
Ongoing or habitual actions in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | poteram | |
| tū | poteras | |
| is/ea/id | poterat | |
| nōs | poteramus | |
| vōs | poteratis | |
| eī/eae/ea | poterant |
Futūrum Ifuture
Actions that will happen.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | poterō | |
| tū | poteris | |
| is/ea/id | poterit | |
| nōs | poterimus | |
| vōs | poteritis | |
| eī/eae/ea | poterunt |
Perfectumpresent perfect
Past actions with a bearing on the present.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | potuī | |
| tū | potuistī | |
| is/ea/id | potuit | |
| nōs | potuimus | |
| vōs | potuistis | |
| eī/eae/ea | potuērunt |
Common mistakes in the Perfectum
- ego
posuipotuīThe perfect uses the irregular stem 'pot-' → 'potuī', not *posuī; avoid keeping the present-stem 'pos-'.
Plūsquamperfectumpluperfect
Actions completed before another past action.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | potueram | |
| tū | potueras | |
| is/ea/id | potuerat | |
| nōs | potueramus | |
| vōs | potueratis | |
| eī/eae/ea | potuerant |
Futūrum Perfectumfuture perfect
Actions that will be finished by a future point.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | potuero | |
| tū | potueris | |
| is/ea/id | potuerit | |
| nōs | potuerimus | |
| vōs | potueritis | |
| eī/eae/ea | potuerint |
Subiūnctīvus Praesēnspresent subjunctive
Wishes, doubts and possibilities in the present.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | possim | |
| tū | possis | |
| is/ea/id | possit | |
| nōs | possimus | |
| vōs | possitis | |
| eī/eae/ea | possint |
Subiūnctīvus Imperfectumimperfect subjunctive
Hypothetical or unreal situations in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | possem | |
| tū | posses | |
| is/ea/id | posset | |
| nōs | possemus | |
| vōs | possetis | |
| eī/eae/ea | possent |
Common mistakes in the Subiūnctīvus Imperfectum
- ego
possimpossemConfusion between present and imperfect subjunctive: 'possim' is present subjunctive, while the imperfect is 'possem'.
Subiūnctīvus Perfectumperfect subjunctive
Completed hypothetical actions.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| ego | potuerim | |
| tū | potueris | |
| is/ea/id | potuerit | |
| nōs | potuerimus | |
| vōs | potueritis | |
| eī/eae/ea | potuerint |
possum — frequently asked questions
Is possum a regular verb?
No — possum is an irregular Latin verb, so some of its forms do not follow the standard endings.
What does possum mean?
possum is a Latin verb meaning "to be able / can".