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debías

should, were supposed to, must have, should have, owed

d e ˈb i a s → deber
deb owe; must + ías tú imperfect
auxiliary · singular informal, imperfect tense Uncommon #13,998
should, were supposed to Often expresses an expectation or obligation in the past; with «no», it can mean “weren’t supposed to.”
SP: Debías llamar a tu madre ayer.
EN: You were supposed to call your mother yesterday.
must have With «de» and an infinitive, it can express a guess or inference.
SP: Debías de estar cansado después del viaje.
EN: You must have been tired after the trip.
Conjugation of deber
Indicative imperfect
SingularPlural
Third — debían
debíadebíasdebíamos

Alfred, ¿no crees que debías quitarte la insignia?

Alfred, don't you think you should take off the badge?

— Die Blechtrommel (1979)

¡Te dije que no debías tocar mis objetos personales!

I told you not to touch my personal belongings!

— El increíble castillo vagabundo (2004)

Te dije que no debías venir aquí.

I told you that you shouldn't come here.

— Возвращение (2003)

Debías venir aquí.

You should have come here.

— Buenos Muchachos (1990)

Tú debías ganar una, mínimo.

You should have won at least one.

— F1 la película (2025)

No debías haberlo hecho.

You shouldn't have done it.

— Todo sobre mi madre (1999)

Hiciste lo que debías hacer.

You did what you had to do.

Debías dejar tu orgullo a un lado e ir a verlo.

You had to put your pride aside and go see him.

— Moscú no cree en lágrimas (1980)

Te dije que debías ser más cuidadoso.

I told you that you should be more careful.

— Guardianes De La Noche (2004)

Lo que debías de hacer es largarte de esa casa.

What you should have done was get out of that house.

— Nosotros los pobres (1948)

Te voy a llevar a dónde debías estar hace tiempo.

I’m going to take you where you should have been a long time ago.

— Los olvidados (1950)

Debías vigilar los dulces de coco para el cumpleaños de Issac.

You had to keep an eye on the coconut sweets for Isaac's birthday.

— El engaño (2026)

¿No debías presentarte ante el rey tú también?

Weren’t you supposed to present yourself to the king too?

— El increíble castillo vagabundo (2004)

No debías oírme.

You shouldn't have listened to me.

— Un buen ladrón (2025)

Hace tiempo que debías de estar en la cama.

You should have been in bed a long time ago.

Debías haber leído el libro.

You should have read the book.

Dentro, hiciste lo que debías hacer.

Inside, you did what you were supposed to do.

— Buenos Muchachos (1990)

No debías estar en el show esta noche, ¿no?

You weren't supposed to be on the show tonight, were you?

— Por eso lo llaman amor (2017)

Además, no debías haber dicho que la droga era tuya.

Also, you shouldn't have said the drugs were yours.

— Tropa de Élite 2 (2010)

No, que debías meter la cabeza bajo tierra.

No, you should have buried your head in the ground.

— Perros de Reserva (1992)

Creí que debías saberlo.

I thought you should know.

¡No debías llamar a la hermana Betty!

You shouldn't have called Sister Betty!

— Malcolm X (1992)

No debías preguntar eso.

You shouldn't have asked that.

Debías haber nacido hombre.

You should have been born a man.

— Летят журавли (1957)

Tú también debías haber pensado.

You must have thought that too.

— Moscú no cree en lágrimas (1980)

No debías haber venido tan pronto.

You shouldn't have come so soon.

Debías avisarme cuando fueras y no lo hiciste.

You were supposed to let me know when you were going, but you didn’t.

— 7 años (2016)

Ya te dije que no debías comer.

I already told you that you shouldn't eat.

— El salario del miedo (1953)

Pensé que debías saberlo.

I thought you should know.

verb · 2nd-person singular, imperfect tense Rare #36,383
should have, were supposed to Often used for something someone should or shouldn’t have done.
SP: Debías llamarme antes.
EN: You should have called me earlier.
owed Used when talking about a debt or money owed.
SP: Me debías veinte euros.
EN: You owed me twenty euros.
Conjugation of deber
Indicative imperfect
SingularPlural
First debía —
Second debías —
Third debía —
Subjunctive imperfect
SingularPlural
First debía —
Second debías —
Third debía —

Oye, ¿no me debías dinero?

Hey, didn't you owe me money?

— Gángster Americano (2007)

¿Por qué no has hecho lo que debías?

Why haven’t you done what you were supposed to?

— La Nuit américaine (1973)

Dijiste algo que no debías, Cornelius.

You said something you shouldn't have, Cornelius.

— El jardín de los pecadores 5: Paradoja espiral (2008)

Hiciste lo que debías.

You did what you had to do.

— Gángster Americano (2007)

¡Te metiste con el tipo que no debías!

You messed with the wrong guy!

Has acabado haciendo algo que no debías.

You've ended up doing something you shouldn't have.

— Carandiru (2003)

¡Te metiste con quien menos debías!

You messed with the wrong person!

— Cuestión De Honor (1992)

Ese dinero que tomé, me lo debías.

You owed me that money I took.

— Marty Supremo (2025)

Te metiste con quien no debías.

You messed with the wrong person.

— El Hombre De Ninguna Parte (2010)

Sounds similar to

debían d e ˈb i a n decías d e ˈθ i a s