Adornar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of adornar — “to decorate” 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 adornar 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. Adornar means to decorate, and it is used for decorating a house, a Christmas tree, a cake or a room: you decorate with lights, flowers, candles and ornaments. It also means to embellish a story, as in adornar la verdad, to dress up the truth. Adornar 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: Adorno la casa para Navidad.

Present tense conjugation table: adornar

Every person of adornar in the present tense. The gerund is adornando and the past participle is adornado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo adorno
tú adornas
él/ella/Ud. adorna
nosotros/as adornamos
vosotros/as adornáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. adornan

How the present of adornar is formed

The present of adornar is built from the stem adorn- 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 adorno
tú -as adornas
él/ella/Ud. -a adorna
nosotros/as -amos adornamos
vosotros/as -áis adornáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an adornan

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

When to use the present tense with adornar

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Yo adorno la casa para Navidad. — I decorate the house for Christmas.

General facts

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

Él/Ella adorna el árbol con luces. — He decorates the tree with lights.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, Nosotros/as adornamos la tarta con fresas. — Right now, We decorate the cake with strawberries.

Near-future plans

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

Mañana, Tú adornas la sala con flores. — Tomorrow, You decorate the room with flowers.

Instructions and timeless statements

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

Él/Ella adorna la casa para Navidad. — He decorates the house for Christmas.

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 adornar.

  1. Yo adorno la casa para Navidad. — I decorate the house for Christmas. / Ayer, Yo adorné la casa para Navidad. — Yesterday, I decorated the house for Christmas.
  2. Yo adorno el árbol con luces. — I decorate the tree with lights. / Ayer, Yo adorné el árbol con luces. — Yesterday, I decorated the tree with lights.
  3. Yo adorno la tarta con fresas. — I decorate the cake with strawberries. / Ayer, Yo adorné la tarta con fresas. — Yesterday, I decorated the cake with strawberries.

Example sentences in the present tense

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

  1. Yo adorno la casa para Navidad. — I decorate the house for Christmas.
  2. Tú adornas el árbol con luces. — You decorate the tree with lights.
  3. Él/Ella adorna la tarta con fresas. — He decorates the cake with strawberries.
  4. Nosotros/as adornamos la sala con flores. — We decorate the room with flowers.
  5. Vosotros/as adornáis la casa para Navidad. — You decorate the house for Christmas.
  6. Ellos/as adornan el árbol con luces. — They decorate the tree with lights.
  7. Yo adorno la tarta con fresas. — I decorate the cake with strawberries.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo adorna la casa para Navidad. — Right: Yo adorno la casa para Navidad. — The person matters: adorna is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is adorno.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo adorno el árbol con luces. — Right: Ayer, yo adorné el árbol con luces. — With ayer, use the preterite (adorné), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Using adornar where decorar belongs. — Right: Adornar means to decorate, while decorar means to decorate a room or building. — Check the meaning before you choose: adornar fits Adorno la casa para Navidad.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él adorna el árbol con luces. — Right: Espero que él adorne el árbol con luces. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: adorne, not the present indicative adorna.

Quiz: the present tense of adornar

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la casa para Navidad. (present tense, yo) A. adorno B. adornas C. adorna D. adornamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ el árbol con luces. (present tense, tú) A. adorno B. adorna C. adornamos D. adornas

  3. Complete the sentence: Él/Ella ___ la tarta con fresas. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. adornas B. adornamos C. adorna D. adorno

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ la sala con flores. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. adorna B. adornamos C. adorno D. adornas

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros/as ___ la casa para Navidad. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. adornáis B. adorno C. adornas D. adorna

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ el árbol con luces. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. adorno B. adornas C. adorna D. adornan

  7. Which is the gerund of adornar? A. adorno B. adorné C. adornando D. adornado

  8. Which is the past participle of adornar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. adorné B. adornado C. adornando D. adorno

Answer key

  1. adorno — The yo present form of adornar is adorno.
  2. adornas — The tú present form of adornar is adornas.
  3. adorna — The él/ella/Ud. present form of adornar is adorna.
  4. adornamos — The nosotros/as present form of adornar is adornamos.
  5. adornáis — The vosotros/as present form of adornar is adornáis.
  6. adornan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. present form of adornar is adornan.
  7. adornando — The gerund of adornar is adornando: estoy adornando.
  8. adornado — The past participle of adornar is adornado: he adornado, has adornado, ha adornado.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of adornar formed?

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

When do I use the present tense of adornar?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Adorno la casa para Navidad.

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

The present (adorno) and the preterite (adorné) 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 adornar?

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

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