obedecen

Obedecen is a Spanish verb form. It corresponds to the third person plural present indicative of the verb obedecer, meaning “they obey,” and can also be used as “you all obey” in regions where ustedes is the standard plural subject. It appears in sentences such as Los estudiantes obedecen las reglas.

The verb obedecer comes from Latin obœdire, meaning to listen to or to obey, and entered Spanish through Old Spanish as obedecer. The form obedecen reflects the regular endings of -cer verbs in the present tense, with the stem obedec- unchanged in most forms and a special yo form (obedezco) where the c changes to z before the o.

In the present indicative, the forms are: yo obedezco, tú obedeces, él obedece, nosotros obedecemos, vosotros obedecéis, ellos obedecen. The yo form is irregular, spelled obedezco, due to a spelling change before the -o. Other tenses follow the regular -cer verb patterns, for example: obedecí, obedeciste, obedeció, obedecimos, obedecisteis, obedecieron in the preterite.

Usage notes: obedecen is used for a plural subject, whether referring to people or groups, and with a direct or indirect object (obey someone or something). Common collocations include obedecer a la ley (to obey the law) and obeyer commands or rules. The verb also has the present subjunctive forms obedezca, obedezcas, obedezca, obedezcamos, obedezcáis, obedezcan, used to express doubt, desire, or necessity regarding obedience. Its gerund is obedeciendo.