Agradar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of agradar — “to please” 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 agradar 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. Agradar means to please, and it works like gustar: the thing that pleases is the subject, and the person pleased is an indirect object, as in me agrada tu idea, your idea pleases me. It is a polite, slightly formal verb for liking something, common in letters, speeches and careful conversation. Agradar 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: Me agrada tu idea.

Present tense conjugation table: agradar

Every person of agradar in the present tense. Remember that agradar works like gustar: in practice you will mostly use the third-person forms with me, te, le, nos, os and les, as in me agrada tu idea. The gerund is agradando and the past participle is agradado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo agrado
tú agradas
él/ella/Ud. agrada
nosotros/as agradamos
vosotros/as agradáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. agradan

How the present of agradar is formed

The present of agradar is built from the stem agrad- 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 agrado
tú -as agradas
él/ella/Ud. -a agrada
nosotros/as -amos agradamos
vosotros/as -áis agradáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an agradan

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

Because agradar works like gustar, the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person. In practice that means the third-person forms do most of the work: me agrada tu idea, te agrada la propuesta, le agrada el plan.

When to use the present tense with agradar

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Me agrada tu idea. — Your idea pleases me.

General facts

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

Le agrada la propuesta. — The proposal pleases him.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, nos agrada el plan. — Right now, The plan pleases us.

Near-future plans

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

Mañana, te agrada la música. — Tomorrow, The music pleases you.

Instructions and timeless statements

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

Le agrada tu idea. — Your idea pleases him.

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 agradar.

  1. Me agrada tu idea. — Your idea pleases me. / Ayer, me agradó tu idea. — Yesterday, Your idea pleased me.
  2. Me agrada la propuesta. — The proposal pleases me. / Ayer, me agradó la propuesta. — Yesterday, The proposal pleased me.
  3. Me agrada el plan. — The plan pleases me. / Ayer, me agradó el plan. — Yesterday, The plan pleased me.

Example sentences in the present tense

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

  1. Me agrada tu idea. — Your idea pleases me.
  2. Te agrada la propuesta. — The proposal pleases you.
  3. Le agrada el plan. — The plan pleases him.
  4. Nos agrada la música. — The music pleases us.
  5. Os agrada tu idea. — Your idea pleases you.
  6. Les agrada la propuesta. — The proposal pleases them.
  7. Me agrada el plan. — The plan pleases me.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo agrada tu idea. — Right: Yo agrado tu idea. — Remember that agradar works like gustar: use the third-person form with me, te or le, as in me agrada tu idea.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo agrado la propuesta. — Right: Ayer, yo agradé la propuesta. — With ayer, use the preterite (agradé), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Using agradar where gustar belongs. — Right: Agradar means to please, while gustar means to like something. — Check the meaning before you choose: agradar fits Me agrada tu idea.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él agrada la propuesta. — Right: Espero que él agrade la propuesta. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: agrade, not the present indicative agrada.

Quiz: the present tense of agradar

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Me ___ tu idea. (present tense, yo) A. agrada B. agrado C. agradas D. agradamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Te ___ la propuesta. (present tense, tú) A. agrado B. agradas C. agradamos D. agrada

  3. Complete the sentence: Le ___ el plan. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. agradas B. agradamos C. agrada D. agrado

  4. Complete the sentence: Nos ___ la música. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. agradamos B. agrada C. agrado D. agradas

  5. Complete the sentence: Os ___ tu idea. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. agrada B. agrado C. agradas D. agradamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Les ___ la propuesta. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. agrado B. agradas C. agradamos D. agrada

  7. Which is the gerund of agradar? A. agrado B. agradé C. agradando D. agradado

  8. Which is the past participle of agradar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. agradé B. agradado C. agradando D. agrado

Answer key

  1. agrada — The form that fits here is agrada: the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person.
  2. agrada — The form that fits here is agrada: the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person.
  3. agrada — The form that fits here is agrada: the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person.
  4. agrada — The form that fits here is agrada: the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person.
  5. agrada — The form that fits here is agrada: the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person.
  6. agrada — The form that fits here is agrada: the verb agrees with the thing that pleases, not with the person.
  7. agradando — The gerund of agradar is agradando: estoy agradando.
  8. agradado — The past participle of agradar is agradado: he agradado, has agradado, ha agradado.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of agradar formed?

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

When do I use the present tense of agradar?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Me agrada tu idea.

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

The present (agrado) and the preterite (agradé) 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 agradar?

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

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