Yo que tú / Si yo fuera tú / Yo de ti for If I were you in Spanish

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There are different ways to say "if I were you" in Spanish.

Learn how to say "if I were you" in Spanish

In Spanish, to express "if I were you" we normally use one of the following structures:

  • Si yo fuera tú...
  • Yo que tú...
  • Yo de ti...

Si yo fuera tú translates literally as "if I were you". It uses the verb ser in El Pretérito Imperfecto Subjuntivo. The other two structures that do not include a verb are more idiomatic and are used in more colloquial contexts.

They all mean the same and are used in hypothetical sentences followed by a clause using El Condicional Simple or El Condicional Perfecto.

Here are some examples:

Si yo fuera tú llamaría a la policía ahora mismo.If I were you I'd call the police right now.

Si yo fuera tú lo habría dejado plantado en el altar.If I were you I'd have left him waiting at the altar.

Yo que tú me disculparía antes de que sea tarde.If I were you I'd apologise before it's too late.

Yo que tú le habría dicho la verdad.If I were you I'd have told him the truth.

Yo de ti hablaría con ellos para aclarar las cosas.If I were you I'd talk to them to clarify things.

Yo de ti habría aceptado su oferta.If I were you I'd have accepted their offer.

Each construction is a set phrase, be careful not to mix them up. For example, yo que tú and yo de ti do not start with "si" (if):

  • Si yo de ti no iría.
  • Yo que ti no iría.
  • Yo de tú no iría.

Bear in mind that this type of hypothetical sentence, also accepts El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo (instead of El Condicional Perfecto). For example:

Yo de ti hubiera aceptado su oferta.If I were you I'd have accepted their offer.

There are similar phrases with the same meaning that can also be used, for example:

  • Si yo estuviera en tu lugar/en tu situación...
  • Si dependiera de mí...

See also:

 

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Examples and resources

Yo de ti hablaría con ellos para aclarar las cosas.If I were you I'd talk to them to clarify things.
Yo que tú le habría dicho la verdad.If I were you I'd have told him the truth.
Yo de ti habría aceptado su oferta.If I were you I'd have accepted their offer.
Si yo fuera tú lo habría dejado plantado en el altar.If I were you I'd have left him waiting at the altar.
Yo de ti hubiera aceptado su oferta.If I were you I'd have accepted their offer.
Si yo fuera tú llamaría a la policía ahora mismo.If I were you I'd call the police right now.
Yo que tú me disculparía antes de que sea tarde.If I were you I'd apologise before it's too late.
Yo que tú / Si yo fuera tú / Yo de ti for If I were you in Spanish
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cancelaría el viaje. (If I were you I'd cancel the trip.)

Q&A Forum 2 questions, 2 answers

Mark C.C1Kwiziq community member

Similar idiomatic expressions?

Are there other similar idiomatic expressions or must one use the conventional gramatical constructs? For example:

If you were me... (Tú que yo?) 

If I were him... (Yo que él?) 

If he were you... (Él que tu?) 

etc. 

Asked 1 year ago
InmaKwiziq Head of Spanish, Native Spanish TeacherCorrect answer

Hola Mark

The "yo que..." structure doesn't really work for when the subject is a different one to "I", so, for example to say "If you were me, what would you do?" you can't say "Tú que yo ¿qué harías?". For this you'd need the more literal "Si tú fueras yo, ¿qué harías?" or also "Si tú estuvieras en mi lugar, ¿qué harías?". The same goes for "If he were you...".

Saludos

Mark C. asked:

Similar idiomatic expressions?

Are there other similar idiomatic expressions or must one use the conventional gramatical constructs? For example:

If you were me... (Tú que yo?) 

If I were him... (Yo que él?) 

If he were you... (Él que tu?) 

etc. 

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Cinzia F.C1Kwiziq community member

Subjunctive vs indicative

>> Bear in mind that this type of hypothetical sentence, also accepts El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo (instead of El Condicional Perfecto). 


Do I understand correctly that both tenses are possible? If so, is there a difference in meaning or are they interchangeable?

Asked 3 years ago
InmaKwiziq Head of Spanish, Native Spanish TeacherCorrect answer

Hola Cinzia

Yes, both tenses are correct and interchangeable using these structure:

Yo de ti hubiera aceptado su oferta.

If I were you I'd have accepted their offer.


Yo de ti habría aceptado su oferta.

If I were you I'd have accepted their offer.


There is no difference in meaning and no specific context to use one or the other; it's a question of preference to the speaker.

Saludos

Inma

Cinzia F. asked:

Subjunctive vs indicative

>> Bear in mind that this type of hypothetical sentence, also accepts El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo (instead of El Condicional Perfecto). 


Do I understand correctly that both tenses are possible? If so, is there a difference in meaning or are they interchangeable?

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