Aburrirse Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of aburrirse — "to get bored" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for aburrirse with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Aburrirse means "to get bored", and it is the reflexive partner of aburrir (to bore). The difference is the point of view: la clase me aburre (the class bores me) versus me aburro en clase (I get bored in class). Both say the same thing from different angles, and native speakers use both. Aburrirse is a regular -ir verb, so the forms are simple — the pronoun is the part to practise: me aburro, te aburres, se aburre, nos aburrimos, os aburrís, se aburren. It is the verb for long meetings, long journeys and rainy afternoons. To see it in a real sentence: Yo me aburro en clase. — "I get bored in class.".
Present tense conjugation table: aburrirse
Every person of aburrirse in the present tense. The gerund is aburriéndose and the past participle is aburrido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | me aburro |
| tú | te aburres |
| él/ella/Ud. | se aburre |
| nosotros/as | nos aburrimos |
| vosotros/as | os aburrís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | se aburren |
How the present indicative of aburrirse is formed
The present indicative of aburrirse is built from the stem aburr- plus the present indicative endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | me aburro |
| tú | -es | te aburres |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | se aburre |
| nosotros/as | -imos | nos aburrimos |
| vosotros/as | -ís | os aburrís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | se aburren |
aburrirse is a reflexive verb, so every form carries a reflexive pronoun in front of it: me, te, se, nos, os, se. The verb itself is a regular -ir verb built on the stem aburr-, so the only extra work is matching the pronoun to the person — me aburro for yo, te aburres for tú, se aburre for él/ella, nos aburrimos for nosotros, os aburrís for vosotros and se aburren for ellos/ellas. The pronoun always goes before the conjugated verb in the present tense. The gerund is aburriéndose, with the pronoun attached to the end, and the past participle is aburrido.
The gerund of aburrirse is aburriéndose and the past participle is aburrido. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present tense of aburrirse
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and aburrirse appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
Getting bored in class
The present describes boredom happening now or as a regular pattern.
"Yo me aburro en clase." — "I get bored in class."
Getting bored at home
The present states a habit — boredom on rainy days, at weekends.
"Nosotros nos aburrimos en casa los domingos." — "We get bored at home on Sundays."
Getting bored waiting
Aburrirse esperando is the standard phrase for boredom while waiting.
"Tú te aburres esperando al médico." — "You get bored waiting for the doctor."
Children getting bored
The present describes children losing interest.
"Los niños se aburren en el coche." — "The children get bored in the car."
Getting bored easily
The present states a general fact about someone's patience.
"Mi hermano se aburre muy rápido." — "My brother gets bored very quickly."
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: Yo me aburro en las reuniones largas. — "I get bored in long meetings."
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Yo me aburrí en las reuniones largas. — the same idea, placed in the preterite.
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add "used to" in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: Tú te aburres con este libro. — "You get bored with this book."
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Tú te aburrías con este libro. — the same idea, placed in the imperfect.
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: Ella se aburre en el trabajo. — "She gets bored at work."
- Future — what will happen: Ella se aburrirá en el trabajo. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: aburrirse in the present tense
Seven sentences that show aburrirse in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo me aburro en las reuniones largas. — "I get bored in long meetings."
- Tú te aburres con este libro. — "You get bored with this book."
- Ella se aburre en el trabajo. — "She gets bored at work."
- Nosotros nos aburrimos en los viajes largos. — "We get bored on long journeys."
- Vosotros os aburrís en la cola del banco. — "You get bored in the bank queue."
- Ellos se aburren viendo la televisión. — "They get bored watching television."
- El abuelo se aburre sin sus nietos. — "Grandfather gets bored without his grandchildren."
Common mistakes with aburrirse in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with aburrirse in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo aburro en clase (using aburrir instead of aburrirse).
✓ Correct: Yo me aburro en clase.
To say you get bored, use the reflexive: me aburro. Yo aburro means "I bore (someone else)".
✗ *Nosotros aburrimos en casa los domingos (missing nos).
✓ Correct: Nosotros nos aburrimos en casa los domingos.
The pronoun is obligatory: nos aburrimos, not aburrimos.
✗ *Tú aburres esperando al médico (missing te).
✓ Correct: Tú te aburres esperando al médico.
Again, the pronoun is part of the verb: te aburres, not aburres.
✗ *Vosotros aburrís en la cola (missing os).
✓ Correct: Vosotros os aburrís en la cola del banco.
Vosotros needs os: os aburrís. And aburrís carries the written accent on the í.
Quiz: aburrirse in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of aburrirse. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
1. Which is the correct present tense form of aburrirse for tú?
- a) se aburre
- b) se aburren
- c) te aburres
- d) me aburro
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ en las reuniones largas. — "I get bored in long meetings."
- a) se aburren
- b) te aburres
- c) me aburro
- d) me aburrí
3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ en casa los domingos. — "We get bored at home on Sundays."
- a) os aburrís
- b) nos aburrimos
- c) se aburre
- d) nos aburrimos
4. Which is the correct present tense form of aburrirse for nosotros?
- a) nos aburrimos
- b) me aburro
- c) te aburres
- d) se aburren
5. Which sentence uses aburrirse correctly in the present tense?
- a) Ella se aburrió en el trabajo.
- b) Ella te aburres en el trabajo.
- c) Ella se aburre en el trabajo.
6. Which is the correct present tense form of aburrirse for yo, including the reflexive pronoun?
- a) se aburre
- b) te aburres
- c) me aburro
- d) aburro
7. Complete the sentence: Los niños ______ en el coche. — "The children get bored in the car."
- a) me aburro
- b) se aburrieron
- c) se aburren
- d) te aburres
8. What is the gerund of aburrirse?
- a) aburrido
- b) aburriéndose
- c) aburrimos
- d) aburriendose
Answer key
c) te aburres — The tú form is te aburres. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; me aburro is yo, se aburre is él/ella and se aburren is ellos/ellas.
c) me aburro — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: me aburro. The other options are the wrong person or the wrong tense.
b) nos aburrimos — The subject is nosotros/as, so the present form is nos aburrimos.
a) nos aburrimos — Nosotros takes nos aburrimos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ir verbs is -imos, attached to the stem aburr-.
c) Ella se aburre en el trabajo. — Ella se aburre en el trabajo. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
c) me aburro — Reflexive verbs need the pronoun: me aburro. Without me the verb means something else, and the other options belong to different persons.
c) se aburren — The subject is ellos/ellas/Uds., so the present form is se aburren.
b) aburriéndose — The gerund is aburriéndose. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle aburrido.
Frequently asked questions
Is aburrirse regular in the present tense?
The verb itself is regular — it is a normal -ir verb — but it is reflexive, so every form carries a pronoun: me aburro, te aburres, se aburre, nos aburrimos, os aburrís and se aburren. The pronoun is part of the verb, not an optional extra.
What is the gerund and the past participle of aburrirse?
The gerund is aburriéndose and the past participle is aburrido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I to get bored" in Spanish?
Say me aburro. For example: Yo me aburro en las reuniones largas. — "I get bored in long meetings.".
What is the difference between aburrirse and divertirse?
aburrirse means "to get bored", while divertirse means "to have fun". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use aburrirse when you mean "to get bored" and divertirse when you mean "to have fun". The full conjugation of divertirse is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of aburrirse — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- aburrirse examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.