caber
Spanish, verb/kaˈbeɾ/
caber is a Spanish verb meaning “to fit, enter (to be able to be contained (by something; regardless of whether space or volume remains))” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) defines it as “Poder estar o ser contenido dentro de algo”.
What does caber mean in English?
verb
- 1
to fit, enter (to be able to be contained (by something; regardless of whether space or volume remains))
Quise tomar prestados los pantalones de mi hermana pequeña, pero no me cabían.
- 2
to traverse, pass through or across (a way, path, door, hole, opening, mouth, orifice, etc.)
- 3
to be held or contained (to be held inside (something) or passed through (regardless of whether space or volume remains))
- 4
to have, hold, should be (in certain phrases)
No os quepa duda...
- 5
to be acceptable, accepted, permitted, permissible, allowable, etc.
- 6
archaicto take
- 7
archaicto understand
- 8
to be possible
Cabe eso.
Source: English Wiktionary, Spanish section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Spanish dictionaries define it
verb: 1. Poder estar o ser contenido dentro de algo. 2. Tener espacio. 3. Ser posible. 4. Ser adecuado para el discurso.
verb: 1. Dicho de un recipiente: Tener capacidad o espacio. 2. Admitir. 3. Entender.
The definition in the Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario), in Spanish.
Source: Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of caber
- quepo first-person present singular
- cupe first-person preterite singular
- cabido participle past
- cabiendo gerund
- cabida feminine participle past
- cabidos masculine participle past
- cabidas feminine participle past
- cabes indicative informal present
- cabés indicative informal present
- cabe indicative present singular
- cabemos first-person indicative plural
- cabéis indicative plural present
- caben indicative plural present
- cabía first-person imperfect indicative
- cabías imperfect indicative second-person
- cabíamos first-person imperfect indicative
- cabíais imperfect indicative plural
- cabían imperfect indicative plural
Source: English Wiktionary and Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce caber?
- /kaˈbeɾ/
- [kaˈβ̞eɾ]
Sources: English Wiktionary, Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to caber
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is caber in Spanish?
caber appears 1.5 times per million words in written Spanish.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).