Afilar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of afilar — “to sharpen” 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 afilar 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. Afilar means to sharpen, to make a knife, a pencil or a tool sharp again. It is a household and workshop verb, fully regular, and it is used with the tool and often with con. To see it in a real sentence: Afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “I sharpen the knife before cooking.” Learn the six forms in the table below, and the present tense of afilar will be ready for everyday conversation.
Present tense conjugation table: afilar
Every person of afilar in the present tense. The gerund is afilando and the past participle is afilado.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | afilo |
| tú | afilas |
| él/ella/Ud. | afila |
| nosotros/as | afilamos |
| vosotros/as | afiláis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | afilan |
How the present indicative of afilar is formed
The present indicative of afilar is built from the stem plus the present indicative 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 | afilo |
| tú | -as | afilas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | afila |
| nosotros/as | -amos | afilamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | afiláis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | afilan |
Afilar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the table above is completely regular. The stem is afil- and the endings are the normal -ar endings, so once you know the pattern you can produce every form on this page.
The gerund of afilar is afilando and the past participle is afilado. 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 afilar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and afilar 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.
Routines and habits
Use the present for things you do regularly, every day or every week. The present is the tense of routine, and afilar fits naturally into daily life.
“Yo afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar todos los días.” — “I sharpen the knife before cooking every day.”
General facts
Use the present for facts that are true in general, not just today. When you state how something is, the present is the tense to use.
“Él afila el lápiz para dibujar.” — “He/she sharpens the pencil for drawing.”
What is happening right now
Use the present for what is happening at this moment. Spanish often uses the simple present where English uses the progressive, so afilo can mean both “I sharpen” and “I am sharpening”.
“Ahora mismo, yo afilo la navaja con una piedra.” — “Right now, I sharpen the razor with a stone.”
Fixed plans in the near future
Use the present for a plan that is already fixed, such as something arranged for tomorrow. Spanish uses the present for near-future plans much more freely than English does.
“Mañana, yo afilo las tijeras del taller.” — “Tomorrow, I will sharpen the workshop scissors.”
Questions and negatives
Use the present to ask about habits and to say what does not happen. The question and the negative use exactly the same forms as the statement.
“¿Tú afilas el cuchillo antes de cocinar?” — “Do you sharpen the knife before cooking?”
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: Afila el lápiz para dibujar. — “He/she sharpens the pencil for drawing.”
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Afiló el lápiz para dibujar. — 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: Afilan la navaja con una piedra. — “They sharpen the razor with a stone.”
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Afilaban la navaja con una piedra. — 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: Afilas las tijeras del taller. — “You sharpen the workshop scissors.”
- Future — what will happen: Afilarás las tijeras del taller. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: afilar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show afilar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “I sharpen the knife before cooking.”
- Tú afilas el lápiz para dibujar. — “You sharpen the pencil for drawing.”
- Él afila la navaja con una piedra. — “He sharpens the razor with a stone.”
- Nosotros afilamos las tijeras del taller. — “We sharpen the workshop scissors.”
- Vosotros afiláis el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “You (plural) sharpen the knife before cooking.”
- Ellos afilan el lápiz para dibujar. — “They sharpen the pencil for drawing.”
- ¿Tú afilas la navaja con una piedra? — “Do you sharpen the razor with a stone?”
Common mistakes with afilar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with afilar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ Yo afilar el cuchillo antes de cocinar. (using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form).
✓ Correct: Yo afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar.
The infinitive is not a conjugated form. With yo, the present tense of afilar is afilo, not the infinitive afilar.
✗ Vosotros afilais el cuchillo antes de cocinar. (forgetting the accent on the vosotros form).
✓ Correct: Vosotros afiláis el cuchillo antes de cocinar.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: afiláis, not afilais. The accent marks the stressed vowel, and leaving it out is a spelling mistake.
✗ Ayer, yo afilo el lápiz para dibujar. (using the present for a finished past action).
✓ Correct: Ayer, yo afilé el lápiz para dibujar.
The present and the preterite are different tenses: afilo is happening now, while afilé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
✗ Treating afilar and cortar as identical in every context. (confusing afilar with cortar).
✓ Correct: Afilar means to sharpen, while cortar means to cut.
They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: afilar fits sentences such as Afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar, while cortar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Quiz: afilar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of afilar. 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 afilar for tú?
- a) afilas
- b) afilo
- c) afila
- d) afilan
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “I sharpen the knife before cooking.”
- a) afila
- b) afilamos
- c) afilas
- d) afilo
3. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el lápiz para dibujar. — “He/she sharpens the pencil for drawing.” (present tense)
- a) afilaba
- b) afilará
- c) afila
- d) afiló
4. Which is the correct present tense form of afilar for nosotros?
- a) afilan
- b) afilamos
- c) afilo
- d) afila
5. Which sentence uses afilar correctly in the present tense?
- a) Él afiló el lápiz para dibujar.
- b) Él afila el lápiz para dibujar.
- c) Él afilará el lápiz para dibujar.
- d) Ellos afila el lápiz para dibujar.
6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ la navaja con una piedra. — “They sharpen the razor with a stone.”
- a) afilo
- b) afila
- c) afilamos
- d) afilan
7. Complete the question: ¿Tú ______ las tijeras del taller? — “Do you sharpen the workshop scissors?”
- a) afila
- b) afilarás
- c) afilas
- d) afilo
8. What is the gerund of afilar?
- a) afilé
- b) afilando
- c) afilado
- d) afilo
Answer key
a) afilas — The tú form is afilas. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; afilo is yo, afila is él/ella and afilan is ellos/ellas.
d) afilo — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: afilo. The other options are the wrong person.
c) afila — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: afila. The other options are the preterite, the imperfect and the future.
b) afilamos — Nosotros takes afilamos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ar verbs is -amos, attached to the stem.
b) Él afila el lápiz para dibujar. — Él afila el lápiz para dibujar. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) afilan — The subject is ellos/ellas/Uds., so the present form is afilan.
c) afilas — The question needs the tú form in the present: afilas.
b) afilando — The gerund is afilando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle afilado.
Frequently asked questions
Is afilar regular in the present tense?
Yes. Afilar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the forms follow the standard endings: afilo, afilas, afila, afilamos, afiláis and afilan.
What is the gerund and the past participle of afilar?
The gerund is afilando and the past participle is afilado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say “I sharpen” in Spanish?
Say afilo. For example: Afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “I sharpen the knife before cooking.”
What is the difference between afilar and cortar?
Afilar means “to sharpen”, while cortar means “to cut”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use afilar when you mean “to sharpen” and cortar when you mean “to cut”. The full conjugation of afilar is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of afilar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- afilar 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.
- Afianzar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with afilar.
- Afrontar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with afilar.
- Agachar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with afilar.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise this verb in the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on Spanish verbs.