Spanish · C1 · Everyday language
Teddy Claims He Did It in Spanish
This guide focuses on the 'subjective' use of the verb 'querer' or the construction 'dice que' in Spanish to express a subject's claim about their own past actions. While English often uses 'claims to have done,' Spanish uses the indicative with 'dice haber' or 'dice que ha' to convey that the speaker is reporting the subject's assertion without necessarily verifying it.
What you'll learn
- Express self-attributed claims using 'dice haber' + past participle.
- Distinguish between reported speech and objective facts in a playful context.
- Incorporate complex perfect infinitive structures into natural parent-child dialogue.
Spanish phrases for teddy claims he did it
Teddy dice haber doblado tu babero él solito—¡qué historia!
Teddy claims to have folded your bib all by himself—what a story!
'Dice haber' followed by the participle 'doblado' mirrors the English 'claims to have folded'.
El patito dice haber salpicado hasta la última gota fuera de la bañera.
Duck claims to have splashed every drop out of the bath.
'Hasta la última gota' is a natural way to say 'every drop'.
Conejito dice haber elegido tu pijama cómodo.
Bunny claims to have chosen your cosy pajamas.
'Elegido' is the regular past participle of 'elegir'.
Teddy dice haberte cantado una nana entera mientras yo no estaba.
Teddy claims to have sung you a whole lullaby while I was away.
The indirect object pronoun 'te' is attached to the infinitive 'haber'.
Nuestro títere dice haberte oído decir 'hola'.
Our little puppet claims to have heard you say 'hello'.
Use 'oído' for the physical act of hearing a sound.
El patito dice haber se lavado ya la cabeza, aunque yo no lo vi.
Duck claims to have washed his own head already, although I didn't see him do it.
Reflexive pronouns like 'se' precede the auxiliary 'haber' or attach to it: 'habérsela'.
Conejito dice haber empujado tu carrito todo el camino a casa.
Bunny claims to have pushed your stroller all the way home.
'Todo el camino a casa' is the standard idiom for 'all the way home'.
Teddy dice no haber visto tu cuchara por ninguna parte—¿miramos a su lado?
Teddy claims not to have seen your spoon anywhere—shall we look beside him?
Negation 'no' is placed before the entire infinitive phrase 'haber visto'.
Hear these phrases and practise them
Tildi plays every phrase out loud, tests you in five-minute lessons and builds them into bedtime stories from your own picture books.
Try it free for 7 daysKey words
dice haber
claims to have
A sophisticated C1 construction combining 'decir' with an infinitive perfect.
babero
bib
Essential nursery vocabulary.
nana
lullaby
Also known as 'canción de cuna' in formal contexts.
por ninguna parte
anywhere / nowhere
Used in negative sentences to emphasize absence.
Subjective Claims with 'Decir'
In Spanish, the English concept of 'claiming to have' is most naturally expressed using 'decir' followed by a perfect infinitive (haber + participle). This attributes the statement strictly to the subject.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Structure | [Sujeto] + dice + haber + [participio] | Él dice haber terminado. |
| Alternative (Que) | [Sujeto] + dice que + [pretérito perfecto] | Él dice que ha terminado. |
More examples
El oso dice haber comido todas las verduras.
The bear claims to have eaten all the vegetables.
Use this when the plate is empty but you suspect the dog helped.
Dice no haber tenido sueño.
He claims not to have been sleepy.
Focuses on the subject's own assertion about their state.