Aficionarse Present Tense in Spanish
aficionarse means "to become fond of" in English, and the present tense is the form you use when you talk about what happens regularly, what is generally true, and what is happening now. This page gives you the full present-tense table for aficionarse, explains how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it, contrasts it with the closest tense, and finishes with examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the most common questions. A natural example is: Cada día, yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela. — "Every day, I become fond of to music at school." Once you can say that sentence confidently, try changing the person and the complement using the table below.
The present tense of aficionarse: full table
Every person of aficionarse in the present tense. The gerund is aficionándose and the past participle is aficionado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | me aficiono |
| tú | te aficionas |
| él/ella/Ud. | se aficiona |
| nosotros/as | nos aficionamos |
| vosotros/as | os aficionáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | se aficionan |
The gerund of aficionarse is aficionándose and the past participle is aficionado. The gerund is used for the progressive (estoy aficionándose), and the participle is used with haber in all perfect tenses (me he aficionado). Because aficionarse is reflexive, every present-tense form carries its pronoun in front of it: me, te, se, nos, os, se.
How the present tense of aficionarse is formed
The present tense of aficionarse is built from the stem aficion- plus the regular -ar endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. Take the infinitive, remove the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person: yo me aficiono, tú te aficionas, él se aficiona, nosotros nos aficionamos, vosotros os aficionáis and ellos se aficionan. Once you know the pattern for one regular -ar verb, you can apply it to hundreds of others.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | me aficiono |
| tú | -as | te aficionas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | se aficiona |
| nosotros/as | -amos | nos aficionamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | os aficionáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | se aficionan |
aficionarse is completely regular in the present tense: the stem never changes and every ending is the standard -ar ending. The only thing to watch is the accent on the vosotros form aficionáis.
aficionarse is a reflexive verb, so every form carries a reflexive pronoun in front of it: me, te, se, nos, os, se. The pronoun always goes before the conjugated verb in the present tense. The gerund is aficionándose, with the pronoun attached to the end, and the past participle is aficionado.
Two more forms belong with this tense. The gerund is aficionándose, used for the progressive with estar: estoy aficionándose. The past participle is aficionado, used with haber in all perfect tenses: me he aficionado. Both forms appear constantly, so they are worth memorising on their own.
When to use the present tense with aficionarse
1. Routines and habits
The present tense describes what happens regularly. For example: Cada día, yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela. — "Every day, I become fond of to music at school." The complement in this sentence is about music at school, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear aficionarse in the present tense.
2. Things happening now
The present tense describes what is happening at this moment. For example: Ahora, tú te aficionas al fútbol con sus amigos. — "Now, you become fond of to football with his friends." The complement in this sentence is about football with his friends, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear aficionarse in the present tense.
3. General truths
The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. For example: Normalmente, él se aficiona a la lectura en invierno. — "Normally, he/she becomes fond of to reading in winter." The complement in this sentence is about reading in winter, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear aficionarse in the present tense.
4. Plans and the near future
The present tense is also used for plans that are already fixed, especially with a time expression. Spanish speakers often say the present where English would use a future: the plan is so certain that it feels like a fact. For example: Mañana, nosotros nos aficionamos a la cocina con su abuela. — "Tomorrow, we become fond of to cooking with his grandmother." The complement in this sentence is about cooking with his grandmother, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear aficionarse in the present tense.
5. Frequent actions
With words such as siempre, a menudo and todos los días, the present tense shows how often something happens. For example: Siempre, ellos se aficionan a la música en la escuela. — "Always, they become fond of to music at school." The complement in this sentence is about music at school, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear aficionarse in the present tense.
Present vs preterite: aficionarse
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the present describes habits, routines and general truths, while the preterite describes one action that started and finished in the past. The three pairs below show the difference with aficionarse.
Pair 1
- Present (habit): Cada día, yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela. — "Every day, I become fond of to music at school."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, yo me aficioné a la música en la escuela. — "Yesterday, I became fond of to music at school."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 2
- Present (habit): Cada día, tú te aficionas al fútbol con sus amigos. — "Every day, you become fond of to football with his friends."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, tú te aficionaste al fútbol con sus amigos. — "Yesterday, you became fond of to football with his friends."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 3
- Present (habit): Cada día, él se aficiona a la lectura en invierno. — "Every day, he/she becomes fond of to reading in winter."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, él se aficionó a la lectura en invierno. — "Yesterday, he/she became fond of to reading in winter."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Examples: aficionarse in the present tense
These eight sentences show aficionarse in the present tense with a different person each time. Read them aloud, then try changing the person and the complement to make your own versions.
- Yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela. — "I become fond of to music at school."
- Tú te aficionas al fútbol con sus amigos. — "you become fond of to football with his friends."
- Él se aficiona a la lectura en invierno. — "he/she becomes fond of to reading in winter."
- Nosotros nos aficionamos a la cocina con su abuela. — "we become fond of to cooking with his grandmother."
- Vosotros os aficionáis a la música en la escuela. — "you (plural) become fond of to music at school."
- Ellos se aficionan al fútbol con sus amigos. — "they become fond of to football with his friends."
- Yo me aficiono a la lectura en invierno. — "I become fond of to reading in winter."
- Tú te aficionas a la cocina con su abuela. — "you become fond of to cooking with his grandmother."
Common mistakes with aficionarse in the present tense
Mistake 1: Forgetting the reflexive pronoun
- Wrong: Yo aficiono a la música en la escuela.
- Right: Yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela.
- Why: aficionarse is reflexive, so the pronoun is part of the verb: Yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela.. Without me the sentence is incomplete.
Mistake 2: Dropping the accent on the vosotros form
- Wrong: Vosotros os aficionais a la música en la escuela.
- Right: Vosotros os aficionáis a la música en la escuela.
- Why: The vosotros form aficionáis carries a written accent. Without it the word is misspelled.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo me aficiono al fútbol con sus amigos.
- Right: Ayer, yo me aficioné al fútbol con sus amigos.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo me aficioné al fútbol con sus amigos. — "Yesterday, I became fond of to football with his friends." The present tense is for habits and routines, not for yesterday.
Mistake 4: Using the present tense for a past habit
- Wrong: Antes, yo me aficiono a la lectura en invierno.
- Right: Antes, yo me aficionaba a la lectura en invierno.
- Why: Antes means before, in the past, so a past habit needs the imperfect: Antes, yo me aficionaba a la lectura en invierno. — "In the past, I used to become fond of to reading in winter." The present tense describes what happens now, not what used to happen.
Mistake 5: Using the él form for nosotros
- Wrong: Nosotros nos aficiona a la música en la escuela.
- Right: Nosotros nos aficionamos a la música en la escuela.
- Why: The person and the ending must match: nosotros takes aficionamos, while aficiona belongs to él and ella. Check the person first, then choose the form.
Quiz: the present tense of aficionarse
Test yourself with eight questions on the present tense of aficionarse. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of aficionarse in the present tense?
- (a) aficionamos
- (b) aficiono
- (c) aficionas
- (d) aficiona
Answer: (b) aficiono. The yo form is aficiono. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
2. What is the tú form of aficionarse in the present tense?
- (a) aficionas
- (b) aficiono
- (c) aficiona
- (d) aficionamos
Answer: (a) aficionas. The tú form is aficionas. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
3. What is the él/ella form of aficionarse in the present tense?
- (a) aficiono
- (b) aficionas
- (c) aficionamos
- (d) aficiona
Answer: (d) aficiona. The él/ella form is aficiona. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
4. What is the nosotros form of aficionarse in the present tense?
- (a) aficionas
- (b) aficiona
- (c) aficionamos
- (d) aficiono
Answer: (c) aficionamos. The nosotros form is aficionamos. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
5. What is the ellos/ellas form of aficionarse in the present tense?
- (a) aficiona
- (b) aficionan
- (c) aficiono
- (d) aficionas
Answer: (b) aficionan. The ellos/ellas form is aficionan. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
6. Complete the sentence: Cada día, yo ___ a la música en la escuela.
- (a) aficiono
- (b) aficionas
- (c) aficiona
- (d) aficionamos
Answer: (a) aficiono. The sentence needs the yo form aficiono (Every day, I become fond of to music at school.)
7. What is the gerund of aficionarse?
- (a) aficionando
- (b) aficionado
- (c) aficiono
- (d) aficionarse
Answer: (a) aficionando. The gerund is aficionando, used for the progressive: me estoy aficionando.
8. Which sentence describes a habit, something you do regularly?
- (a) Antes, yo me aficionaba al fútbol con sus amigos.
- (b) Ayer, yo me aficioné al fútbol con sus amigos.
- (c) Mañana, yo me aficionaré al fútbol con sus amigos.
- (d) Cada día, yo me aficiono al fútbol con sus amigos.
Answer: (d) Cada día, yo me aficiono al fútbol con sus amigos.. Cada día, yo me aficiono al fútbol con sus amigos. (Every day, I become fond of to football with his friends.) describes a habit, so it uses the present tense. Ayer, yo me aficioné al fútbol con sus amigos. is a single completed action, and Mañana, yo me aficionaré al fútbol con sus amigos. is in the future.
Frequently asked questions about the present tense of aficionarse
Is aficionarse regular in the present tense?
Yes. aficionarse is a regular -ar verb: aficiono, aficionas, aficiona, aficionamos. There are no spelling changes and no stem changes in the present tense, so the endings do all the work.
How do you say 'become fond of' in a sentence?
Use the present tense with a complement: Cada día, yo me aficiono a la música en la escuela. — "Every day, I become fond of to music at school." Change the person using the table above, and change the complement to talk about your own life.
When do I use the present tense instead of the preterite with aficionarse?
Use the present for habits and routines: Cada día, yo me aficiono al fútbol con sus amigos. — "Every day, I become fond of to football with his friends." Use the preterite for one finished action: Ayer, yo me aficioné al fútbol con sus amigos. — "Yesterday, I became fond of to football with his friends." If the action happens regularly, choose the present; if it happened once and is finished, choose the preterite.
Can I use the present tense for the future with aficionarse?
Yes, when the plan is already fixed. Mañana, nosotros nos aficionamos a la cocina con su abuela. — "Tomorrow, we become fond of to cooking with his grandmother." Spanish often uses the present for a plan that feels certain, where English would use the future. Add a time word such as mañana so the listener knows you mean the future.