Aliñar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb aliñar means to season — it also means to dress (a salad), and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Aliñar is a regular -ar verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of aliñar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example, in the present tense you say Yo aliño la ensalada — "I season the salad" — and in the preterite you say Yo aliñé con aceite — "I seasoned with oil". Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: aliñar
- English: to season, to dress (a salad)
- Verb type: regular -ar verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: aliñando
- Past participle: aliñado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + aliñado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for aliñar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for aliñar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.
Gerund: aliñando · Past participle: aliñado
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliño |
| tú | aliñas |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliña |
| nosotros/as | aliñamos |
| vosotros/as | aliñáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñan |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliñé |
| tú | aliñaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñó |
| nosotros/as | aliñamos |
| vosotros/as | aliñasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliñaba |
| tú | aliñabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñaba |
| nosotros/as | aliñábamos |
| vosotros/as | aliñabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliñaré |
| tú | aliñarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñará |
| nosotros/as | aliñaremos |
| vosotros/as | aliñaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliñaría |
| tú | aliñarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñaría |
| nosotros/as | aliñaríamos |
| vosotros/as | aliñaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he aliñado |
| tú | has aliñado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha aliñado |
| nosotros/as | hemos aliñado |
| vosotros/as | habéis aliñado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han aliñado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había aliñado |
| tú | habías aliñado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había aliñado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos aliñado |
| vosotros/as | habíais aliñado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían aliñado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré aliñado |
| tú | habrás aliñado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá aliñado |
| nosotros/as | habremos aliñado |
| vosotros/as | habréis aliñado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán aliñado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría aliñado |
| tú | habrías aliñado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría aliñado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos aliñado |
| vosotros/as | habríais aliñado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían aliñado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliñe |
| tú | aliñes |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñe |
| nosotros/as | aliñemos |
| vosotros/as | aliñéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñen |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aliñara |
| tú | aliñaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñara |
| nosotros/as | aliñáramos |
| vosotros/as | aliñarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | aliña |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñe |
| nosotros/as | aliñemos |
| vosotros/as | aliñad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñen |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | aliñes |
| él/ella/Ud. | aliñe |
| nosotros/as | aliñemos |
| vosotros/as | aliñéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aliñen |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | aliñando | with estar for the progressive: estoy aliñando |
| Past participle | aliñado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he aliñado |
How to use each tense
Present indicative
Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. It is the tense you will use most often in everyday conversation, for habits with words like todos los días and for statements that are true in general. For aliñar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo aliño con aceite — "I season with oil". Learn the present indicative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Preterite
Use the preterite for finished actions in the past — things that started and ended, often with time words like ayer, anoche or la semana pasada. The preterite moves a story forward, one completed event at a time. For aliñar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo aliñé la ensalada con limón — "I seasoned the salad with lemon". Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperfect
Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with words like antes, de niño or mientras. It describes how things used to be, not one finished event. For aliñar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo aliñaba la ensalada — "I used to season the salad". Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Future
Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. It talks about what will happen, not what is happening now. For aliñar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo aliñaré con aceite — "I will season with oil". Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Conditional
Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often in si clauses. It softens a request and describes imagined situations. For aliñar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo aliñaría la ensalada con limón — "I would season the salad with lemon". Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Present perfect
Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. It connects the past with the present moment. For aliñar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo he aliñado la ensalada — "I have seasoned the salad". Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Pluperfect
Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. It is the past of the past, and it usually appears with antes de or ya. For aliñar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo había aliñado con aceite — "I had seasoned with oil". Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Future perfect
Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time, often with para mañana or para el viernes. For aliñar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habré aliñado la ensalada con limón — "I will have seasoned the salad with lemon". Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Conditional perfect
Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. It looks back at a past that never happened. For aliñar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría aliñado la ensalada — "I would have seasoned the salad". Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Present subjunctive
Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The subjunctive does not state a fact; it states an attitude towards the action. For aliñar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él aliñe con aceite — "I hope he seasons with oil". Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For aliñar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo aliñara la ensalada con limón, todo cambiaría — "If I seasoned the salad with lemon, everything would change". Learn the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperative (affirmative)
Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. It tells someone to do something, and it has no yo form. For aliñar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Aliñe la ensalada — "Let him season the salad". Learn the imperative (affirmative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Imperative (negative)
Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. It uses the subjunctive forms, so it looks different from the affirmative commands. For aliñar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No aliñes con aceite — "Don't season with oil". Learn the imperative (negative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with aliñar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Yo aliño la ensalada con limón — "I season the salad with lemon"
- Él aliña la ensalada — "He seasons the salad"
- Yo aliñé con aceite — "I seasoned with oil"
- Yo aliñaba la ensalada con limón — "I used to season the salad with lemon"
- Tú aliñarás la ensalada — "You will season the salad"
- Yo aliñaría con aceite — "I would season with oil"
- Él ha aliñado la ensalada con limón — "He has seasoned the salad with lemon"
- Espero que él aliñe la ensalada — "I hope he seasons the salad"
- Yo había aliñado con aceite — "I had seasoned with oil"
- Ellos aliñaban la ensalada con limón — "They used to season the salad with lemon"
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Ellos aliña la ensalada — Right: Ellos aliñan la ensalada — Ellos needs the ellos form aliñan. The singular aliña belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo aliño — Right: Ayer, yo aliñé — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to aliñé.
- Wrong: De niño, yo aliñé todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo aliñaba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (aliñaba), not the preterite. The preterite (aliñé) is for one finished action.
- Wrong: Yo soy aliñado con aceite. — Right: Yo he aliñado con aceite. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he aliñado, has aliñado, ha aliñado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: Treating aliñar and sazonar as identical in every context. — Right: Aliñar means to season, while sazonar means to season. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: aliñar fits sentences such as Yo aliño la ensalada, while sazonar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on aliñar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la ensalada. (present tense) A. aliñaste B. aliñaríais C. aliño D. aliñaras
Complete the sentence: Él ___ la ensalada. (preterite) A. aliñarán B. habremos aliñado C. aliñó D. habríamos aliñado
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ la ensalada. (imperfect) A. aliñáis B. aliñábamos C. hemos aliñado D. aliñan
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ la ensalada. (future) A. aliñarás B. aliñaran C. habréis aliñado D. aliñaría
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la ensalada. (conditional) A. aliñaría B. habréis aliñado C. aliñabas D. aliñas
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ la ensalada. (present subjunctive) A. aliñaréis B. aliñaran C. aliño D. aliñe
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ la ensalada, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. aliñara B. aliñaríais C. aliña D. aliñará
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ la ensalada. (present perfect) A. aliñad B. hemos aliñado C. aliñó D. aliño
Complete the command: No ___ la ensalada. (negative imperative, tú) A. aliñéis B. aliñes C. aliñen D. aliñemos
Which is the gerund of aliñar, used with estar for the progressive? A. aliñaré B. aliño C. aliñando D. aliñado
Answer key
- aliño — The yo present tense of aliñar is aliño.
- aliñó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of aliñar is aliñó.
- aliñábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of aliñar is aliñábamos.
- aliñarás — The tú future of aliñar is aliñarás.
- aliñaría — The yo conditional of aliñar is aliñaría.
- aliñe — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of aliñar is aliñe.
- aliñara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of aliñar is aliñara.
- hemos aliñado — The nosotros/as present perfect of aliñar is hemos aliñado.
- aliñes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: aliñes.
- aliñando — The gerund of aliñar is aliñando: estoy aliñando. The participle aliñado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does aliñar mean in English?
Aliñar means to season, to dress (a salad). It is used in everyday situations such as Yo aliño la ensalada. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is aliñar regular?
Yes. Aliñar is a regular -ar verb: aliño, aliñas, aliña. The only thing to learn is the pattern of endings, which is the same for every regular -ar verb.
What is the difference between aliñar and sazonar?
Aliñar means to season, while sazonar means to season. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use aliñar when you mean to season, as in Yo aliño la ensalada, and use sazonar for to season. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.
How do I say “I season” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo aliñé con aceite. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo aliñaba la ensalada con limón. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he aliñado la ensalada.
How do I practise aliñar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the aliñar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Aliñar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for aliñar.
- Aliñar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for aliñar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Sazonar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with aliñar.
- Aderezar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with aliñar.
- Condimentar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with aliñar.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.