What does debe in Spanish mean?

What is the meaning of the word debe in Spanish? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use debe in Spanish.

The word debe in Spanish means debit, have to, must, must, owe, owe, duty, homework, be due to, as it should be, it should be made clear, it should be explained. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word debe

debit

nombre masculino (contabilidad: adeudo)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Si no cuadran el debe y el haber el balance está equivocado.
If the debit and credit columns don't match, the ledger must be wrong.

have to

verbo transitivo (estar obligado a) (informal)

(auxiliary verb: Helping verb--for example, "She is running." "It has been lost.")
La mayoría de las personas deben trabajar para vivir. Debes respetar a tus padres.
Most people have to work to live.

must

verbo transitivo (derecho: estar obligado por ley)

(auxiliary verb: Helping verb--for example, "She is running." "It has been lost.")
Se debe reportar todos los ingresos del año fiscal.
All income for the financial year must be reported.

must

(indica duda)

Laura no ha llegado; debe de estar en la oficina todavía.
Laura hasn't arrived; she must still be in the office.

owe

verbo transitivo (finanzas: adeudar)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")
Con todo lo que se debe no facturamos ganancias este mes.
Taking into account everything we owe, we won't be making any profit this month.

owe

verbo transitivo (dinero: adeudar)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
¿Recuerdas que me debes los 500 € que te presté?
Do you remember that you still owe me the 500 Euros I lent you?

duty

nombre masculino (exigencia, obligación)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
El soldado tiene el deber de servir a la patria.
Soldiers have a duty to serve their country.

homework

nombre masculino (gen pl (tarea escolar) (school, not countable)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Mi hijo hace los deberes después de merendar.
My son does his homework after eating a snack.

be due to

(indica causalidad)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
La frustración de los estudiantes se debe a la dificultad de los exámenes.
The frustration among students is due to the difficulty of the exams.

as it should be

locución adverbial (debidamente)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Mi padre me enseñó a hacer las cosas como se debe.
My father taught me to do things as they should be.

it should be made clear, it should be explained

expresión (es preciso aclarar)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Se debe aclarar que el aumento regirá a partir de diciembre.
It should be made clear that the increase will come into force in December.

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So now that you know more about the meaning of debe in Spanish, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in Spanish.

Do you know about Spanish

Spanish (español), also known as Castilla, is a language of the Iberian-Romance group of the Romance languages, and the 4th most common language in the world according to Some sources, while others list it as a 2nd or 3rd most common language. It is the mother tongue of about 352 million people, and is spoken by 417 million people when adding its speakers as a language. sub (estimated in 1999). Spanish and Portuguese have very similar grammar and vocabulary; The number of similar vocabulary of these two languages is up to 89%. Spanish is the primary language of 20 countries around the world. It is estimated that the total number of speakers of Spanish is between 470 and 500 million, making it the second most widely spoken language in the world by number of native speakers.