Acumular Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of acumular — “to accumulate” 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 acumular 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. Acumular means to accumulate, and it is used for things that pile up over time: debts accumulate, dust accumulates, points accumulate, experience accumulates. It works for money, objects, knowledge and problems, and it is a regular -ar verb. Acumular is a regular -ar verb, so the notes below explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To see it in a real sentence: Acumulo deudas con la tarjeta.

Present tense conjugation table: acumular

Every person of acumular in the present tense. The gerund is acumulando and the past participle is acumulado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo acumulo
tú acumulas
él/ella/Ud. acumula
nosotros/as acumulamos
vosotros/as acumuláis
ellos/ellas/Uds. acumulan

How the present of acumular is formed

The present of acumular is built from the stem acumul- plus the present endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar 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 acumulo
tú -as acumulas
él/ella/Ud. -a acumula
nosotros/as -amos acumulamos
vosotros/as -áis acumuláis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an acumulan

For acumular there are no surprises in the present: every form is the stem acumul- plus the regular ending, so once you know the endings you know the whole tense.

When to use the present tense with acumular

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Yo acumulo deudas con la tarjeta. — I accumulate debts on the card.

General facts

Use the present for facts and general truths that do not change.

Él/Ella acumula polvo en la estantería. — He accumulates dust on the shelf.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, Nosotros/as acumulamos puntos en el programa. — Right now, We accumulate points in the programme.

Near-future plans

Use the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with mañana or la semana que viene.

Mañana, Tú acumulas experiencia con los años. — Tomorrow, You accumulate experience over the years.

Instructions and timeless statements

Use the present for instructions, rules and statements that are always true.

Él/Ella acumula deudas con la tarjeta. — He accumulates debts on the card.

The present vs the preterite

The present and the preterite answer different questions: the present says what happens regularly or right now, while the preterite says what happened once and finished. Compare the same idea in both tenses with acumular.

  1. Yo acumulo deudas con la tarjeta. — I accumulate debts on the card. / Ayer, Yo acumulé deudas con la tarjeta. — Yesterday, I accumulated debts on the card.
  2. Yo acumulo polvo en la estantería. — I accumulate dust on the shelf. / Ayer, Yo acumulé polvo en la estantería. — Yesterday, I accumulated dust on the shelf.
  3. Yo acumulo puntos en el programa. — I accumulate points in the programme. / Ayer, Yo acumulé puntos en el programa. — Yesterday, I accumulated points in the programme.

Example sentences in the present tense

Seven sentences with acumular in the present tense only, covering all six persons.

  1. Yo acumulo deudas con la tarjeta. — I accumulate debts on the card.
  2. Tú acumulas polvo en la estantería. — You accumulate dust on the shelf.
  3. Él/Ella acumula puntos en el programa. — He accumulates points in the programme.
  4. Nosotros/as acumulamos experiencia con los años. — We accumulate experience over the years.
  5. Vosotros/as acumuláis deudas con la tarjeta. — You accumulate debts on the card.
  6. Ellos/as acumulan polvo en la estantería. — They accumulate dust on the shelf.
  7. Yo acumulo puntos en el programa. — I accumulate points in the programme.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo acumula deudas con la tarjeta. — Right: Yo acumulo deudas con la tarjeta. — The person matters: acumula is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is acumulo.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo acumulo polvo en la estantería. — Right: Ayer, yo acumulé polvo en la estantería. — With ayer, use the preterite (acumulé), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Using acumular where amontonar belongs. — Right: Acumular means to accumulate, while amontonar means to pile things up. — Check the meaning before you choose: acumular fits Acumulo deudas con la tarjeta.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él acumula polvo en la estantería. — Right: Espero que él acumule polvo en la estantería. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: acumule, not the present indicative acumula.

Quiz: the present tense of acumular

Eight questions on the present tense of acumular. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ deudas con la tarjeta. (present tense, yo) A. acumulo B. acumulas C. acumula D. acumulamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ polvo en la estantería. (present tense, tú) A. acumulo B. acumula C. acumulamos D. acumulas

  3. Complete the sentence: Él/Ella ___ puntos en el programa. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. acumulas B. acumulamos C. acumula D. acumulo

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ experiencia con los años. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. acumula B. acumulamos C. acumulo D. acumulas

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros/as ___ deudas con la tarjeta. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. acumuláis B. acumulo C. acumulas D. acumula

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ polvo en la estantería. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. acumulo B. acumulas C. acumula D. acumulan

  7. Which is the gerund of acumular? A. acumulo B. acumulé C. acumulando D. acumulado

  8. Which is the past participle of acumular, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. acumulé B. acumulado C. acumulando D. acumulo

Answer key

  1. acumulo — The yo present form of acumular is acumulo.
  2. acumulas — The tú present form of acumular is acumulas.
  3. acumula — The él/ella/Ud. present form of acumular is acumula.
  4. acumulamos — The nosotros/as present form of acumular is acumulamos.
  5. acumuláis — The vosotros/as present form of acumular is acumuláis.
  6. acumulan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. present form of acumular is acumulan.
  7. acumulando — The gerund of acumular is acumulando: estoy acumulando.
  8. acumulado — The past participle of acumular is acumulado: he acumulado, has acumulado, ha acumulado.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of acumular formed?

Take the infinitive acumular, drop the -ar ending to get the stem acumul-, then add the present endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. The full table is above, with every person. No, the present of acumular is fully regular: the stem acumul- plus the standard -ar endings gives every form.

When do I use the present tense of acumular?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Acumulo deudas con la tarjeta.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of acumular?

The present (acumulo) and the preterite (acumulé) answer different questions: the present is for habits and for right now, while the preterite is for one finished action. Compare them in the contrast section above.

How do I practise the present of acumular?

Drill the six forms in the table until you can say them without looking, then use the full conjugation of acumular to see how the present fits with the other tenses, and the acumular examples and quiz page for more sentences. The Spanish Verb Quiz tests the forms under pressure.

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