Updated on April 8, 2025

All Spanish tenses made easy: A breakdown
Feeling overwhelmed by all the Spanish tenses? No worries âour guide will break them down for you!

Just like with any other language, if weâre looking to become fluent in Spanish we need to get (very) acquainted with all types of tenses in Spanish and their correct usage. This is key for communicating effectively and clearly.
And, yes, verb conjugation can be, unsurprisingly, one of the trickiest parts of learning Spanish, but with time and practice, youâll become a natural. So, letâs take a look at this overview of all Spanish tenses, how to use them and example sentences. Ready, set, go!
- Understanding Spanish verb tenses and moods
- How many Spanish tenses are there?
- The Spanish indicative mood (el indicativo)
- The Spanish subjunctive mood (el subjuntivo)
- FAQs

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Understanding Spanish verb tenses and moods
When we talk about Spanish tenses, weâre talking about time. Just like in English, tenses in Spanish help us explain when an action (verb) takes place â whether it has already happened, is happening or will happen. To indicate this, we conjugate the verb form appropriately (we add, for example, a particular ending to the infinitive form).
Now, Spanish verb conjugations are divided into different âmoodsâ depending on the speakerâs intention, and understanding them will help us distinguish between tenses. The three grammatical moods in Spanish are:
- Indicative: We use it to express facts and objective information. For example:
- Yo corro dos veces a la semana (I run twice a week).
- Minerva fue al dentista (Minerva went to the dentist).
- Hoy cenaremos pasta (Weâll have pasta for dinner).
- Subjunctive: For showing possibilities, doubts, feelings, desires and opinions.
- Ojalå vayamos al cine mañana (I hope we go to the movies tomorrow).
- Espero que la hayas pasado bien (I hope you had a good time).
- Es importante que guardemos silencio (Itâs important that we keep quiet).
- Imperative: This is for giving commands and orders.
- Ponte el sombrero (Wear the hat).
- ÂĄNo te pares ahĂ! (Donât stand there!).
- PĂĄsame la sal (Pass me the salt).
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How many Spanish tenses are there?
Okay, we now know what Spanish tenses are and what they can do for us. But how many are there exactly? Well, the most common tenses are past, present and future (illustrated in the three examples given for the indicative mood), but there are 18 in total. These are categorized into simple and compound sentences:
- Simple tenses: These only have one verb â yo corro (I run).
- Compound tenses: The main verb is accompanied by the auxiliary verb haber (have), which is placed before the main verb in the past participle: Yo he corrido (I have run).
Now, are you ready for an overview of all Spanish tenses? Letâs dive into the different types of tenses in Spanish, which we have classified by mood and simple and compound tenses below.

The Spanish indicative mood (el indicativo)
These are the tenses that make up the indicative mood:
Simple tenses (tiempos simples)
These are the most common tenses and youâre likely to use them often:
The present tense in Spanish (presente): We use it to talk about something that is happening now or about habits.
We form this tense by removing the -ar, -er or -ir ending from the infinitive form and replacing it with the ending that fits the pronoun. Hereâs a chart with the new endings:
Pronoun | -ar | -er | -ir |
yo (I) | -o | -o | -o |
tĂș (you) | -as | -es | -es |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -a | -e | -e |
ustedes (you – plural) | -an | -en | -en |
nosotros/as (we) | -amos | -emos | -imos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -an | -en | -en |
Examples:
- Escalar (to climb): Escalo todos los fines de semana (I climb/go climbing every week).
- Correr (to run): Ellas corren en las noches (They run at night).
- Vivir (to live): Nosotros vivimos en España (We live in Spain).
Preterite (pretĂ©rito): To speak about an event that happened at a certain point in the past. To conjugate it, we also change the infinitiveâs ending for another:
Pronoun | -ar | -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -Ă© | -Ă |
tĂș (you) | -aste | -iste |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -ó | -ió |
ustedes (you – plural) | -aron | -ieron |
nosotros/as (we) | -amos | -imos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -aron | -ieron |
- Escalé el fin de semana (I climbed last weekend).
- Ellas corrieron en la noche (They ran at night).
- Nosotros vivimos en España el año pasado (We lived in Spain last year).
Imperfect (pretĂ©rito imperfecto): To talk about past events without a specific end. For example, we use it to talk about past habits or events that werenât completed âin English, we would translate it as âused toâ:
Pronoun | -ar | -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -aba | -Ăa |
tĂș (you) | -abas | -Ăas |
Ă©l ella, eso (he, she, it) | -aba | -Ăa |
ustedes (you – plural) | -aban | -Ăan |
nosotros/as (we) | -ĂĄbamos | -Ăamos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -aban | -Ăan |
- Escalaba seguido (I used to climb often).
- Ellas corrĂan para ir a la escuela (They used to run to school).
- Nosotros vivĂamos en España, pero nos mudamos (We used to live in Spain, but we moved).
The future tense in Spanish (futuro): We use it to talk about the future (something that will or may happen). In English, it would be equivalent to the form âwill + verbâ.
For this tense and for regular verbs, all endings are the same regardless of the verb. All we have to do is add these endings to the infinitive form:
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -Ă© |
tĂș (you) | -ĂĄs |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -å |
ustedes (you – plural) | -ĂĄn |
nosotros/as (we) | -emos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -ĂĄn |
- Escalaré mañana (I will climb tomorrow).
- Ellas correrĂĄn la carrera (They will run the race).
- Nosotros viviremos en España algĂșn dĂa (Weâll live in Spain one day).
Conditional (condicional): We use it to make requests or talk about hypotheticals. This tenseâsâ conjugation is similar to the future tense and in English it would be equivalent to âwould + verbâ:
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -Ăa |
tĂș (you) | -Ăas |
Ă©l, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -Ăa |
ustedes (you – plural) | -Ăan |
nosotros/as (we) | -Ăamos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -Ăan |
- EscalarĂa mĂĄs si fuera tĂș (Iâd climb more often if I were you).
- Ellas correrĂan si pudieran (Theyâd run if they could).
- No sĂ© si vivirĂamos en España (I donât know if weâd ever live in Spain).
What our students of Spanish say
Compound tenses (tiempos compuestos)
Present perfect (pretérito perfecto): For actions that were completed recently or for something that started in the past and is ongoing. We form it with a conjugated haber (have/has) + the main verb in past participle:
Pronoun | Haber |
yo (I) | he |
tĂș (you) | has |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | ha |
ustedes (you – plural) | han |
nosotros/as (we) | hemos |
ellos, ellas (they) | han |
- He escalado mucho este mes (Iâve climbed a lot this month).
- Ellas han corrido ya (Theyâve already run).
- Nosotros hemos vivido en España por años (Weâve lived in Spain for years).
Past perfect (pluscuamperfecto): To describe an action that was completed before another. Just like with the tense above, we also use a conjugated form of haber + main verb in p.p. (in English: had + p.p. verb):
Pronoun | Haber |
yo (I) | habĂa |
tĂș (you) | habĂas |
Ă©l, ella, eso (he, she, it) | habĂa |
ustedes (you – plural) | habĂan |
nosotros/as (we) | habĂamos |
ellos, ellas (they) | habĂan |
- Yo ya habĂa escalado antes de que llegaras (I had already climbed before you arrived).
- Ellas ya habĂan corrido a esa hora (They had already run by that time).
- Nosotros ya habĂamos vivido en España antes (We had already lived in Spain before).
Preterite perfect (pretérito anterior): To express an action in the past that happened right before another action in the past. This is very uncommon and reserved for extremely formal language.
Pronoun | Haber |
yo (I) | hube |
tĂș (you) | hubiste |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | hubo |
ustedes (you – plural) | hubieron |
nosotros/as (we) | hubimos |
ellos, ellas (they) | hubieron |
- En cuanto hube corrido, llegĂł Sol (After I had run, Sol arrived).
Future perfect (futuro perfecto): To describe a future action that will happen before another action in the future. In English, it would be equivalent to âwill have + p.p. verbâ.
Pronoun | Haber |
yo (I) | habré |
tĂș (you) | habrĂĄs |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | habrå |
ustedes (you – plural) | habrĂĄn |
nosotros/as (we) | habremos |
ellos, ellas (they) | habrĂĄn |
- HabrĂ© escalado ya para cuando tĂș llegues (I will have already climbed by the time you arrive).
- Ellas habrĂĄn corrido 10 km (They will have run 10 km).
- Nosotros habremos vivido en España ocho meses antes de que nazca el bebé (We will have lived in Spain for eight months before the baby is born).
Conditional perfect (condicional perfecto): To discuss events that wouldâve happened had another event not occurred or actions that are likely to have happened (assumptions or suppositions). This would be equivalent to âwould have + p.p. verbâ.
Pronoun | Haber |
yo (I) | habrĂa |
tĂș (you) | habrĂas |
Ă©l, ella, eso (he, she, it) | habrĂa |
ustedes (you – plural) | habrĂan |
nosotros/as (we) | habrĂamos |
ellos, ellas (they) | habrĂan |
- Yo habrĂa escalado esta mañana si no me hubiera despertado tarde (I wouldâve climbed this morning had I not woken up late).
- Ellas habrĂan corrido el maratĂłn, pero se lastimaron (They wouldâve run the marathon, but they were hurt).
- Nosotros habrĂamos vivido en España si hubiĂ©ramos tenido la oportunidad (We wouldâve lived in Spain had we had the chance).
The Spanish subjunctive mood (el subjuntivo)
Letâs explore the subjunctive mood:
Simple tenses
Present subjunctive (presente del subjuntivo): To communicate uncertainty, hope and hypothetical events. To conjugate it, we take the yo form in the present tense, remove the -o ending and replace it with the adequate ending:
Pronoun | -ar | -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -e | -a |
tĂș (you) | -es | -as |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -e | -a |
ustedes (you – plural) | -en | -an |
nosotros/as (we) | -emos | -amos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -en | -an |
- Puede que escale mañana si me levanto a tiempo (I may climb tomorrow if I get up on time).
- Espero que ellas corran mañana (I hope they run tomorrow).
- Posiblemente nosotros vivamos en España el siguiente año (We may live in Spain next year).
Imperfect subjunctive (imperfecto del subjuntivo): To refer to feelings and desires about past events, hopes and hypothetical scenarios (equivalent to âifâ). For this tense, we take the third person plural (ellos, ellas) of the preterite, remove the -ron ending and add the appropriate ending:
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -ra |
tĂș (you) | -ras |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -ra |
ustedes (you – plural) | -ran |
nosotros/as (we) | -ramos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -ran |
- Si escalara mĂĄs seguido, tendrĂa mejor condiciĂłn (If I climbed more often, Iâd be in better condition.
- Esperaba que ellas corrieran esa carrera (I was hoping theyâd run that race).
- Me gustarĂa que viviĂ©ramos en España (I would like for us to live in Spain).
Future subjunctive (futuro del subjuntivo): This tense is largely obsolete and has mostly been replaced by the present subjunctive, but we may still find it in legal documents. To conjugate it, we follow the same steps as with the imperfect subjunctive, but use these endings:
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | -re |
tĂș (you) | -res |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | -re |
ustedes (you – plural) | -ren |
nosotros/as (we) | -remos |
ellos, ellas (they) | -ren |
- Escalare o no, yo seguirĂa yendo a la montaña (Iâd still go to the mountain even if I didnât climb).
Compound Tenses
Present perfect subjunctive (pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo): Relates to past actions or events that started in the past and still impact the present or will affect the future.
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | haya |
tĂș (you) | hayas |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | haya |
ustedes (you – plural) | hayan |
nosotros/as (we) | hayamos |
ellos, ellas (they) | hayan |
- Te aviso cuando ya haya escalado (Iâll let you know when Iâve already climbed).
- No creo que ellas hayan corrido esa carrera (I donât think theyâve run that race).
- Es probable que hayamos vivido en España para entonces (Itâs likely that weâll have lived in Spain by then).
Past perfect subjunctive (pluscuamperfecto del subjuntivo): To refer to events in the past that someone could not do. It describes hypothetical events in the past and past actions that came before other actions.
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | hubiera |
tĂș (you) | hubieras |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | hubiera |
ustedes (you – plural) | hubieran |
nosotros/as (we) | hubiéramos |
ellos, ellas (they) | hubieran |
- Si me hubiera despertado temprano, hubiera escalado (If I had woken up early, I wouldâve climbed).
- Ellas hubieran corrido la carrera si hubieran podido (They wouldâve run the race if they could have).
- Me encantarĂa igual la paella aunque no hubiĂ©ramos vivido en España (Iâd love paella all the same even if we hadnât lived in Spain).
Future perfect subjunctive (futuro perfecto del subjuntivo): To describe actions that will have happened at some point in the future. This tense is rare and is mostly used in legal contexts, having been largely replaced by the past perfect subjunctive.
Pronoun | -ar / -er / -ir |
yo (I) | hubiere |
tĂș (you) | hubieres |
él, ella, eso (he, she, it) | hubiere |
ustedes (you – plural) | hubieren |
nosotros/as (we) | hubiéremos |
ellos, ellas (they) | hubieren |
- Aunque ellas hubieren corrido la carrera, hubieran perdido (Even if they had run the race, they wouldâve lost).
The Spanish imperative mood (el imperativo)
For commands or orders, we use the imperative, which is only conjugated with tĂș, ustedes, usted and nosotros/as.
Affirmative imperative (imperativo afirmativo): For telling someone what to do. To form it for regular verbs, we take the verb, remove the -ar, -er, -ir ending and replace it with the following endings:
Pronoun | -ar | -er | -ir |
tĂș (you) | -a | -e | -e |
ustedes (you – plural) | -en | -an | -an |
usted (you – formal) | -e | -a | -a |
nosotros/as (we) | -emos | -amos | -amos |
- ¥Escala la montaña! (Climb the mountain!).
- ÂĄCorramos mĂĄs rĂĄpido! (Letâs run faster!).
- Si les gusta la buena comida, ¥vivan en España! (If you guys like good food, live in Spain!).
Negative imperative (imperativo negativo): For telling someone what not to do. We need to add a no or nunca (never) before the verb:
Pronoun | -ar | -er | -ir |
tĂș (you) | -es | -as | -as |
ustedes (you – plural) | -en | -an | -an |
usted (you – formal) | -e | -a | -a |
nosotros/as (we) | -emos | -amos | -amos |
- ÂĄNunca escales en la noche! (Never climb at night!).
- No corra en la tienda (Donât run in the store).
- No vivamos enojados (Letâs not live our lives angry).
Note: All of the verbs discussed are regular verbs. When it comes to irregular verbs, itâs best we memorize them as we go.
How many tenses are in Spanish?
There are 18 tenses in Spanish, which can be divided into mood and simple or compound tenses.
What Spanish tenses should I learn?
All but future subjunctive, preterite perfect and future perfect subjunctive tenses are key if your aim is to speak Spanish fluently. However, by learning the simple presente, future and past, youâll already be able to communicate at a basic level, so you may want to learn these first!
A great head start for Spanish tenses
We hope this overview of all Spanish tenses will help you get a great head start on your Spanish learning journey. Now, if you’re looking to give your skills a serious boost, we encourage you to join us at Lingoda. Youâll work with native-level teachers whoâll help you build the confidence to speak from day one, thanks to our immersive approach. Plus, you can choose your class schedule and whether youâd prefer individual or small group lessons. Sounds good, huh?

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