Should I learn all Spanish tenses at once?
Start with present, preterite, and imperfect first. Add compound and subjunctive tenses after you are stable on core patterns.
Spanish Verb Tenses Guide
Master all Spanish verb tenses with our complete guide. Learn when and how to use each tense with notes, rules, patterns, and examples for regular verbs.
Complete Spanish verb tenses chart
This chart shows all key Spanish tenses by mood, with formulas, ending patterns for regular -ar, -er and -ir verbs, and a simple example for each tense.
How to use this chart
- On mobile, scroll the chart horizontally. Each tense appears as a large touch-friendly card.
- Suggested path: start with the Present Indicative, then learn past tenses (Preterite and Imperfect), then Future and Conditional.
Quick tips
- Start with regular verbs before learning irregular ones.
- Practice one mood at a time to avoid confusion.
- Use the subjunctive after expressions of emotion or doubt.
- Remember that compound tenses always use "haber" as the auxiliary.
Common errors to avoid
- Confusing the subjunctive with the indicative mood.
- Using incorrect past participles in compound tenses.
- Mixing up irregular verb conjugations.
- Forgetting accent marks in key conjugations.
yo
I
tú
you
él/ella/Ud.
he / she
nosotros
we
vosotros
you (pl.)
ellos/as/Uds.
they
Indicative
Present Indicative
Actions happening now, habits, and general truths.
yo
o
tú
es
él
e
nosotros
emos
vosotros
éis
ellos
en
Present Perfect Indicative
Recent or ongoing relevance to the present; actions completed with a connection to now.
haber (presente) + participio
yo
he
tú
has
él
ha
nosotros
hemos
vosotros
habéis
ellos
han
+ past participle: -ido
Imperfect Indicative
Ongoing or repeated actions in the past, descriptions.
yo
ía
tú
ías
él
ía
nosotros
íamos
vosotros
íais
ellos
ían
Pluperfect Indicative
Past actions completed before another past action (pluscuamperfecto).
haber (imperfecto) + participio
yo
había
tú
habías
él
había
nosotros
habíamos
vosotros
habíais
ellos
habían
+ past participle: -ido
Preterite Indicative
Completed actions in the past with a defined endpoint.
yo
í
tú
iste
él
ió
nosotros
imos
vosotros
isteis
ellos
ieron
Preterite Anterior
Preterite of haber + participle (hube vivido); past-before-past, mainly literary.
haber (pretérito) + participio
yo
hube
tú
hubiste
él
hubo
nosotros
hubimos
vosotros
hubisteis
ellos
hubieron
+ past participle: -ido
Future Indicative
Actions that will happen, predictions, and probability.
yo
eré
tú
erás
él
erá
nosotros
eremos
vosotros
eréis
ellos
erán
Future Perfect Indicative
Actions that will have been completed by a future time.
haber (futuro) + participio
yo
habré
tú
habrás
él
habrá
nosotros
habremos
vosotros
habréis
ellos
habrán
+ past participle: -ido
Conditional
Hypothetical situations, polite requests, and future in the past.
yo
ería
tú
erías
él
ería
nosotros
eríamos
vosotros
eríais
ellos
erían
Conditional Perfect
Hypothetical past; actions that would have been completed.
haber (condicional) + participio
yo
habría
tú
habrías
él
habría
nosotros
habríamos
vosotros
habríais
ellos
habrían
+ past participle: -ido
Subjunctive
Present Subjunctive
Wishes, doubts, emotions, and subjective statements.
yo
a
tú
as
él
a
nosotros
amos
vosotros
áis
ellos
an
Present Perfect Subjunctive
Subjunctive of haber (present) + participle; past with present relevance in subjunctive contexts.
haber (presente subj.) + participio
yo
haya
tú
hayas
él
haya
nosotros
hayamos
vosotros
hayáis
ellos
hayan
+ past participle: -ido
Imperfect Subjunctive
Past subjunctive -ra forms; hypothetical or reported past (e.g. Si viviera…).
yo
iera
tú
ieras
él
iera
nosotros
iéramos
vosotros
ierais
ellos
ieran
Pluperfect Subjunctive
Subjunctive of haber (imperfect -ra) + participle; past-before-past in subjunctive contexts.
haber (imperfecto subj.) + participio
yo
hubiera
tú
hubieras
él
hubiera
nosotros
hubiéramos
vosotros
hubierais
ellos
hubieran
+ past participle: -ido
Future Subjunctive
Rare; legal/formal style. Regular -re endings (viviere, vivieres…).
yo
iere
tú
ieres
él
iere
nosotros
iéremos
vosotros
iereis
ellos
ieren
Future Perfect Subjunctive
Rare; future subjunctive of haber + participle (hubiere vivido…).
haber (futuro subj.) + participio
yo
hubiere
tú
hubieres
él
hubiere
nosotros
hubiéremos
vosotros
hubiereis
ellos
hubieren
+ past participle: -ido
Imperative
Imperative
Commands and direct requests. Affirmative imperative only (scoped support for now).
yo
—
tú
e
él
a
nosotros
amos
vosotros
ed
ellos
an
Negative Imperative
Negative commands: no + subjunctive form (no hables, no coma…).
yo
—
tú
as
él
a
nosotros
amos
vosotros
áis
ellos
an
Impersonal forms
Infinitive
Ending:
-er
Compound infinitive
haber + participio
Gerund
Ending:
-iendo
Compound gerund
habiendo + participio
Past participle
Ending:
-ido
Ready to practice what you've learned?
Jump into model-based drills and apply these endings with real verbs.
Frequently asked questions
How do I remember endings faster?
Practice by model families and repeat high-frequency persons every day. Short daily drills work better than occasional long sessions.
Do irregular verbs follow any logic?
Yes. Many irregular verbs belong to repeatable models. Learn the model once, then transfer it to related verbs.