Ajustar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of ajustar — “to adjust, to fit” 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 ajustar 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. Ajustar means to adjust or to fit, to make a small change so something works or fits, such as a belt, a price or a plan. It is a fully regular verb used in everyday life, work and machines. To see it in a real sentence: Ajusto el cinturón antes de salir. — “I adjust the belt before going out.” Learn the six forms in the table below, and the present tense of ajustar will be ready for everyday conversation.
Present tense conjugation table: ajustar
Every person of ajustar in the present tense. The gerund is ajustando and the past participle is ajustado.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | ajusto |
| tú | ajustas |
| él/ella/Ud. | ajusta |
| nosotros/as | ajustamos |
| vosotros/as | ajustáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | ajustan |
How the present indicative of ajustar is formed
The present indicative of ajustar 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 | ajusto |
| tú | -as | ajustas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | ajusta |
| nosotros/as | -amos | ajustamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | ajustáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | ajustan |
Ajustar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the table above is completely regular. The stem is ajust- 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 ajustar is ajustando and the past participle is ajustado. 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 ajustar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and ajustar 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 ajustar fits naturally into daily life.
“Yo ajusto el cinturón antes de salir todos los días.” — “I adjust the belt before going out 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 ajusta el precio a la demanda.” — “He/she adjusts the price to demand.”
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 ajusto can mean both “I adjust” and “I am adjusting”.
“Ahora mismo, yo ajusto el plan a la realidad.” — “Right now, I adjust the plan to reality.”
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 ajusto la silla a su altura.” — “Tomorrow, I will adjust the chair to my height.”
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 ajustas el cinturón antes de salir?” — “Do you adjust the belt before going out?”
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: Ajusta el precio a la demanda. — “He/she adjusts the price to demand.”
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Ajustó el precio a la demanda. — 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: Ajustan el plan a la realidad. — “They adjust the plan to reality.”
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Ajustaban el plan a la realidad. — 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: Ajustas la silla a su altura. — “You adjust the chair to my height.”
- Future — what will happen: Ajustarás la silla a su altura. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: ajustar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show ajustar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo ajusto el cinturón antes de salir. — “I adjust the belt before going out.”
- Tú ajustas el precio a la demanda. — “You adjust the price to demand.”
- Él ajusta el plan a la realidad. — “He adjusts the plan to reality.”
- Nosotros ajustamos la silla a su altura. — “We adjust the chair to my height.”
- Vosotros ajustáis el cinturón antes de salir. — “You (plural) adjust the belt before going out.”
- Ellos ajustan el precio a la demanda. — “They adjust the price to demand.”
- ¿Tú ajustas el plan a la realidad? — “Do you adjust the plan to reality?”
Common mistakes with ajustar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with ajustar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ Yo ajustar el cinturón antes de salir. (using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form).
✓ Correct: Yo ajusto el cinturón antes de salir.
The infinitive is not a conjugated form. With yo, the present tense of ajustar is ajusto, not the infinitive ajustar.
✗ Vosotros ajustais el cinturón antes de salir. (forgetting the accent on the vosotros form).
✓ Correct: Vosotros ajustáis el cinturón antes de salir.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: ajustáis, not ajustais. The accent marks the stressed vowel, and leaving it out is a spelling mistake.
✗ Ayer, yo ajusto el precio a la demanda. (using the present for a finished past action).
✓ Correct: Ayer, yo ajusté el precio a la demanda.
The present and the preterite are different tenses: ajusto is happening now, while ajusté is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
✗ Treating ajustar and adaptar as identical in every context. (confusing ajustar with adaptar).
✓ Correct: Ajustar means to adjust, to fit, while adaptar means to adapt.
They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: ajustar fits sentences such as Ajusto el cinturón antes de salir, while adaptar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Quiz: ajustar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of ajustar. 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 ajustar for tú?
- a) ajustas
- b) ajusto
- c) ajusta
- d) ajustan
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el cinturón antes de salir. — “I adjust the belt before going out.”
- a) ajusta
- b) ajustamos
- c) ajustas
- d) ajusto
3. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el precio a la demanda. — “He/she adjusts the price to demand.” (present tense)
- a) ajustaba
- b) ajustará
- c) ajusta
- d) ajustó
4. Which is the correct present tense form of ajustar for nosotros?
- a) ajustan
- b) ajustamos
- c) ajusto
- d) ajusta
5. Which sentence uses ajustar correctly in the present tense?
- a) Él ajustó el precio a la demanda.
- b) Él ajusta el precio a la demanda.
- c) Él ajustará el precio a la demanda.
- d) Ellos ajusta el precio a la demanda.
6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ el plan a la realidad. — “They adjust the plan to reality.”
- a) ajusto
- b) ajusta
- c) ajustamos
- d) ajustan
7. Complete the question: ¿Tú ______ la silla a su altura? — “Do you adjust the chair to my height?”
- a) ajusta
- b) ajustarás
- c) ajustas
- d) ajusto
8. What is the gerund of ajustar?
- a) ajusté
- b) ajustando
- c) ajustado
- d) ajusto
Answer key
a) ajustas — The tú form is ajustas. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; ajusto is yo, ajusta is él/ella and ajustan is ellos/ellas.
d) ajusto — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: ajusto. The other options are the wrong person.
c) ajusta — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: ajusta. The other options are the preterite, the imperfect and the future.
b) ajustamos — Nosotros takes ajustamos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ar verbs is -amos, attached to the stem.
b) Él ajusta el precio a la demanda. — Él ajusta el precio a la demanda. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) ajustan — The subject is ellos/ellas/Uds., so the present form is ajustan.
c) ajustas — The question needs the tú form in the present: ajustas.
b) ajustando — The gerund is ajustando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle ajustado.
Frequently asked questions
Is ajustar regular in the present tense?
Yes. Ajustar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the forms follow the standard endings: ajusto, ajustas, ajusta, ajustamos, ajustáis and ajustan.
What is the gerund and the past participle of ajustar?
The gerund is ajustando and the past participle is ajustado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say “I adjust” in Spanish?
Say ajusto. For example: Ajusto el cinturón antes de salir. — “I adjust the belt before going out.”
What is the difference between ajustar and adaptar?
Ajustar means “to adjust, to fit”, while adaptar means “to adapt”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use ajustar when you mean “to adjust, to fit” and adaptar when you mean “to adapt”. The full conjugation of ajustar is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of ajustar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- ajustar 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.
- Aislar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with ajustar.
- Alabar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with ajustar.
- Ahuyentar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with ajustar.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise this verb in the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on Spanish verbs.