Alojarse Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of alojarse — "to stay (lodging)" 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 alojarse 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. Alojarse means to stay somewhere, in the lodging sense: to stay in a hotel, a flat or a friend's house while travelling. It is a reflexive verb, and it is more formal than quedarse, which is the everyday verb for staying put. To see it in a real sentence: Él se aloja en un hotel cerca de la playa. — "He/she stays in a hotel near the beach." Work through the table below, then the formation notes, the usage rules and the contrast with the preterite, and test yourself at the end.
Present tense conjugation table: alojarse
Every person of alojarse in the present tense. The gerund is alojando and the past participle is alojado.
Present indicative
| Person | Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | me | alojo |
| tú | te | alojas |
| él/ella/Ud. | se | aloja |
| nosotros/as | nos | alojamos |
| vosotros/as | os | alojáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | se | alojan |
How the present indicative of alojarse is formed
The present indicative of alojarse is built from the stem aloj- 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 | me alojo |
| tú | -as | te alojas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | se aloja |
| nosotros/as | -amos | nos alojamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | os alojáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | se alojan |
alojarse is a reflexive verb, so every form carries a reflexive pronoun in front of it: me, te, se, nos, os, se. The pronoun always goes before the conjugated verb in the present tense. The gerund is alojando, with the pronoun attached to the end, and the past participle is alojado.
When to use the present tense of alojarse
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and alojarse 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.
Habits and routines
The present tense describes things you do regularly. If you do it every day, every week or every morning, the present is the tense to use. For alojarse, this use looks like this: "Yo me alojo en un hotel cerca de la playa." — "I stay in a hotel near the beach." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
General facts
The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. It is the tense for definitions and permanent situations. For alojarse, this use looks like this: "Él se aloja en casa de unos amigos." — "He/she stays at some friends' house." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
What is happening now
The present tense also covers what is happening at this moment, especially with verbs that describe an action in progress. For alojarse, this use looks like this: "Nosotros nos alojamos en un apartamento del centro." — "We stay in a flat in the centre." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
Timetables and schedules
The present tense is used for fixed plans and timetables, such as trains, classes and opening times, even when they refer to the future. For alojarse, this use looks like this: "Ellos se alojan en el hostal de la estación." — "They stay in the hostel by the station." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
Instructions and requests
The present tense appears in instructions and polite requests, where it sounds softer than a direct command. For alojarse, this use looks like this: "Tú te alojas en un hotel cerca de la playa." — "You stay in a hotel near the beach." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
The present tense vs the preterite
Learners often mix up the present and the preterite with alojarse. The rule is simple: the present is for habits, facts and what is happening now, while the preterite is for one finished action in the past. The three pairs below show the same idea in both tenses, so you can feel the difference.
Pair 1: present vs preterite
- Present: "Yo me alojo en un hotel cerca de la playa." — "I stay in a hotel near the beach."
- Preterite: "Yo me alojé en un hotel cerca de la playa." — "I stayed in a hotel near the beach." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.
Pair 2: present vs preterite
- Present: "Él se aloja en casa de unos amigos." — "He/she stays at some friends' house."
- Preterite: "Él se alojó en casa de unos amigos." — "He/she stayed at some friends' house." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.
Pair 3: present vs preterite
- Present: "Nosotros nos alojamos en un apartamento del centro." — "We stay in a flat in the centre."
- Preterite: "Nosotros nos alojamos en un apartamento del centro." — "We stayed in a flat in the centre." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.
Example sentences in the present tense
Eight natural sentences with alojarse in the present tense only. Each one uses a form from the table above.
- Yo me alojo en un hotel cerca de la playa. — I stay in a hotel near the beach.
- Tú te alojas en casa de unos amigos. — You stay at some friends' house.
- Él se aloja en un apartamento del centro. — He/she stays in a flat in the centre.
- Nosotros nos alojamos en el hostal de la estación. — We stay in the hostel by the station.
- Vosotros os alojáis en un hotel cerca de la playa. — You all stay in a hotel near the beach.
- Ellos se alojan en casa de unos amigos. — They stay at some friends' house.
- Yo me alojo en un apartamento del centro. — I stay in a flat in the centre.
- Él se aloja en el hostal de la estación. — He/she stays in the hostel by the station.
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Vosotros alojais en casa de unos amigos. — Right: Vosotros alojáis en casa de unos amigos. — The vosotros present form carries a written accent: alojáis, not alojais.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo me alojo en un apartamento del centro. — Right: Ayer, yo me alojé en un apartamento del centro. — Ayer means yesterday, so it needs the preterite (me alojé), not the present (me alojo). The present is for now, not for yesterday.
- Wrong: Yo se aloja en un hotel cerca de la playa. — Right: Yo me alojo en un hotel cerca de la playa. — The person matters: se aloja is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is me alojo.
- Wrong: Yo alojo en el hostal de la estación. — Right: Yo me alojo en el hostal de la estación. — Alojarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required before the present form.
Quiz: test yourself
Eight questions on the present tense of alojarse. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ en un hotel cerca de la playa. (present tense) A. me alojo B. te alojas C. se aloja D. nos alojamos
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ en casa de unos amigos. (present tense) A. te alojas B. me alojo C. se aloja D. nos alojamos
Complete the sentence: Él ___ en un apartamento del centro. (present tense) A. se aloja B. me alojo C. te alojas D. nos alojamos
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ en el hostal de la estación. (present tense) A. nos alojamos B. me alojo C. te alojas D. se aloja
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ___ en un hotel cerca de la playa. (present tense) A. os alojáis B. me alojo C. te alojas D. se aloja
Complete the sentence: Ellos ___ en casa de unos amigos. (present tense) A. se alojan B. me alojo C. te alojas D. se aloja
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ en un apartamento del centro. (present tense) A. me alojo B. te alojas C. se aloja D. nos alojamos
Complete the sentence: Él ___ en el hostal de la estación. (present tense) A. se aloja B. me alojo C. te alojas D. nos alojamos
Answer key
- me alojo — The yo present form of alojarse is me alojo. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- te alojas — The tu present form of alojarse is te alojas. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- se aloja — The el present form of alojarse is se aloja. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- nos alojamos — The nosotros present form of alojarse is nos alojamos. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- os alojáis — The vosotros present form of alojarse is os alojáis. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- se alojan — The ellos present form of alojarse is se alojan. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- me alojo — The yo present form of alojarse is me alojo. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- se aloja — The el present form of alojarse is se aloja. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
Frequently asked questions
When do I use the present tense of alojarse?
Use the present tense of alojarse for habits, facts and what is happening now. For example: Yo me alojo en un hotel cerca de la playa. — "I stay in a hotel near the beach." The usage rules above give five situations with examples.
How is the present tense of alojarse formed?
Take the stem aloj- and add the present endings for -ar verbs. The full table is at the top of this page.
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of alojarse?
The present describes a habit or a present fact, while the preterite describes a finished action. Compare Yo me alojo en casa de unos amigos. with Yo me alojé en casa de unos amigos. — the verb is the same, but the time meaning changes.
How do I practise the present tense of alojarse?
Drill the six forms in the table above until you can say them without looking, then use the alojarse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and test yourself with the Alojarse conjugation page for the full picture across all tenses.
Related links
- Alojarse conjugation — the full conjugation of alojarse in every tense.
- Alojarse examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for alojarse.
- Spanish Present tense guide — the full guide to the present tense in Spanish.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Spanish Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense on any verb.