Afligir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of afligir — “to afflict, to distress” 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 afligir 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. Afligir means to afflict or to distress, and it describes grief, illness or trouble weighing on a person: la noticia aflige a la familia, la enfermedad aflige al pueblo. It is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so yo aflijo and the subjunctive aflija. Its reflexive partner afligirse means to grieve. To see it in a real sentence: Aflijo a la familia con la noticia. — “I afflict the family with the news.”
Present tense conjugation table: afligir
Every person of afligir in the present tense. The gerund is afligiendo and the past participle is afligido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aflijo |
| tú | afliges |
| él/ella/Ud. | aflige |
| nosotros/as | afligimos |
| vosotros/as | afligís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | afligen |
The gerund is afligiendo, which you use with estar to say what is happening right now: “Estoy afligiendo” means the action of afligir is in progress at this very moment. The past participle is afligido, which you use with haber in the perfect tenses: “he afligido” is the present perfect, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the present is only one part of how afligir is used.
How the present of afligir is formed
The present of afligir is built from the stem aflig plus the present 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 | aflijo |
| tú | -es | afliges |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | aflige |
| nosotros/as | -imos | afligimos |
| vosotros/as | -ís | afligís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | afligen |
afligir is not fully regular in form: this verb is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so the present first person is aflijo and the present subjunctive is aflija. The endings in the table above are the regular -ir endings, so once you know the pattern, the whole tense follows. The forms that show the pattern most clearly are aflijo and aflige.
The gerund of afligir is afligiendo and the past participle is afligido. Both are the forms you need for the progressive and the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present of afligir
The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use afligir in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. A routine or habit
The present tense of afligir is the tense for what happens regularly. When something is part of your routine, your week or your normal life, the present is the right choice, and afligir is no exception. The time words that go with it are todos los días, cada semana, siempre and a menudo.
Example: “Aflijo a la familia con la noticia.” — I afflict the family with the news.
2. A general fact
The present tense also states facts that are true in general, not just today. When you describe what afligir means in the world — what it does, who it affects, how it works — the present is the tense to use. There is no time limit on the statement, so no past or future form is needed.
Example: “Aflige al pueblo con la sequía.” — He/she afflicts the village with the drought.
3. Something happening right now
The present tense describes what is happening at this very moment. You do not need the progressive (estar plus the gerund) to say what is going on now: the simple present does the job in Spanish, and it is the more common choice in everyday speech.
Example: “Aflijo mucho a su madre.” — I afflict his mother a lot.
4. A plan or arrangement
Spanish uses the present tense for plans that are already fixed, especially with a time expression such as mañana or el lunes. When the arrangement is made, the present tense states it as a fact, and afligir follows the same rule as every other verb.
Example: “Mañana, nosotros afligimos a los niños con el castigo.” — Tomorrow, we afflict the children with the punishment.
5. Asking and answering questions
Questions in the present tense ask about routines, facts and what is happening now. The answer uses the same tense, so a question and its answer stay in the present together. This is the pattern you will hear most often in conversation.
Example: “¿Afliges al pueblo con la sequía?” — Do you afflict the village with the drought?
The present vs the preterite: how to choose
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and choosing between them is one of the first decisions in Spanish. The rule is simple: the present reports what happens now, what happens regularly, or what is generally true, while the preterite reports one finished action in the past. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is whether the action is happening now or is already finished. Time words help: ahora and todos los días point to the present, while ayer and anoche point to the preterite.
Present: “Aflijo a la familia con la noticia.” — I afflict the family with the news.
Preterite: “Afligí a la familia con la noticia.” — I afflicted the family with the news.
The present sentence describes what happens now or regularly; the preterite sentence reports one finished action in the past. That difference — now versus finished — is the whole decision.
Present: “Aflige al pueblo con la sequía.” — He/she afflicts the village with the drought.
Preterite: “Afligió al pueblo con la sequía.” — He/she afflicted the village with the drought.
The present sentence describes what happens now or regularly; the preterite sentence reports one finished action in the past. That difference — now versus finished — is the whole decision.
Present: “Afligimos mucho a su madre.” — We afflict his mother a lot.
Preterite: “Afligimos mucho a su madre.” — We afflicted his mother a lot.
The present sentence describes what happens now or regularly; the preterite sentence reports one finished action in the past. That difference — now versus finished — is the whole decision.
Example sentences: afligir in the present
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other verbs — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
“Aflijo a la familia con la noticia.” — I afflict the family with the news.
“Afliges al pueblo con la sequía.” — You afflict the village with the drought.
“Aflige mucho a su madre.” — He/she afflicts his mother a lot.
“Afligimos a los niños con el castigo.” — We afflict the children with the punishment.
“Afligís a la familia con la noticia.” — You afflict the family with the news.
“Afligen al pueblo con la sequía.” — They afflict the village with the drought.
“Aflijo mucho a su madre.” — I afflict his mother a lot.
“Aflige a los niños con el castigo.” — He/she afflicts the children with the punishment.
Common mistakes with afligir in the present
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo aflige a la familia con la noticia.” Right: “Yo aflijo a la familia con la noticia.” Why: Yo needs the yo form aflijo. The form aflige belongs with él, ella or Ud.
Wrong: “Yo afligo al pueblo con la sequía.” Right: “Yo aflijo al pueblo con la sequía.” Why: Afligir is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so the present first person is aflijo and the present subjunctive is aflija, so the first-person present is aflijo, not afligo.
Wrong: “Ayer yo aflijo al pueblo con la sequía.” Right: “Ayer yo afligí al pueblo con la sequía.” Why: The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to afligí.
Wrong: “Ellos aflige al pueblo con la sequía.” Right: “Ellos afligen al pueblo con la sequía.” Why: Ellos needs the ellos form afligen. The singular aflige belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
Quiz: afligir in the present
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
1. Complete the sentence: “Yo ___ a la familia con la noticia.”
- (a) aflijo
- (b) afliges
- (c) aflige
Answer: aflijo — The yo form of afligir in the present is aflijo.
2. Complete the sentence: “Tú ___ al pueblo con la sequía.”
- (a) aflijo
- (b) aflige
- (c) afliges
Answer: afliges — The tú form of afligir in the present is afliges.
3. Complete the sentence: “Él/ella ___ mucho a su madre.”
- (a) afliges
- (b) aflige
- (c) aflijo
Answer: aflige — The él/ella form of afligir in the present is aflige.
4. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros/as ___ a los niños con el castigo.”
- (a) afligimos
- (b) aflijo
- (c) afliges
Answer: afligimos — The nosotros/as form of afligir in the present is afligimos.
5. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros/as ___ a la familia con la noticia.”
- (a) aflijo
- (b) afliges
- (c) afligís
Answer: afligís — The vosotros/as form of afligir in the present is afligís.
6. Complete the sentence: “Ellos/ellas ___ al pueblo con la sequía.”
- (a) afliges
- (b) afligen
- (c) aflijo
Answer: afligen — The ellos/ellas form of afligir in the present is afligen.
7. What does afligir mean in English?
- (a) to afflict, to distress
- (b) to grieve
- (c) to be about
Answer: to afflict, to distress — Afligir means to afflict, to distress.
8. Which sentence is in the present?
- (a) Afligí a la familia con la noticia.
- (b) Afligiré a la familia con la noticia.
- (c) Aflijo a la familia con la noticia.
Answer: Aflijo a la familia con la noticia. — “Aflijo a la familia con la noticia.” is in the present. The other two use different tenses.
Frequently asked questions
Is afligir regular in the present?
Afligir is a spelling-change verb in the present: it is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so the present first person is aflijo and the present subjunctive is aflija. The endings are the regular -ir endings, so the table above follows the pattern exactly.
What is the gerund and the past participle of afligir?
The gerund is afligiendo, used with estar for the progressive: estoy afligiendo. The past participle is afligido, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he afligido.
What should I watch out for with afligir?
Afligir is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so yo aflijo and the subjunctive aflija. In the present, the form to fix in your memory first is aflijo, because the yo form shows the stem pattern for the whole tense.
How do I practise afligir in the present?
Say the six forms in the table out loud with the examples above, then use the afligir examples and quiz page for more sentences, and the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of afligir — every tense of afligir in one place.
- Afligir examples and quiz — more sentences with afligir and a ten-question quiz.
- Spanish present guide — how the present works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Present tense conjugator — conjugate any verb in the present instantly.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on afligir and other verbs.