Ampliar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of ampliar — "to expand" 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 ampliar 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. Ampliar means to expand or enlarge something: ampliar la casa, ampliar el negocio, ampliar la foto. It is used for buildings, businesses, photos and deadlines. To see it in a real sentence: Yo amplío la casa con una habitación — "I expand the house with a room".
Present tense conjugation table: ampliar
Every person of ampliar in the present tense. The gerund is ampliando and the past participle is ampliado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | amplío |
| tú | amplías |
| él/ella/Ud. | amplía |
| nosotros/as | ampliamos |
| vosotros/as | ampliáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | amplían |
How the present of ampliar is formed
The present of ampliar is built from the stem ampli- 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 | amplío |
| tú | -as | amplías |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | amplía |
| nosotros/as | -amos | ampliamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | ampliáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | amplían |
The gerund of ampliar is ampliando and the past participle is ampliado. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of ampliar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and ampliar 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 describes things that happen regularly, as a habit or routine.
"Cada día, yo amplío la casa con una habitación" — "Every day, I expand the house with a room"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo amplía el negocio a otra ciudad" — "My friend expands the business to another city"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo amplío la foto en el ordenador" — "Right now, I expand the photo on the computer"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros ampliamos su vocabulario cada día" — "Tomorrow, we expand his vocabulary every day"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos amplían el plazo de entrega" — "They expand the delivery deadline"
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: {'pre_es': 'Cada día, ', 'pre_en': 'Every day, '}yo amplío la casa con una habitación — "I expand the house with a room"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo amplié la casa con una habitación — "I expanded the house with a room"
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: {}tú amplías el negocio a otra ciudad — "You expand the business to another city"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú ampliabas el negocio a otra ciudad — "You used to expand the business to another city"
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: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él amplía la foto en el ordenador — "He expands the photo on the computer"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él ampliará la foto en el ordenador — "He will expand the photo on the computer"
Examples: ampliar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show ampliar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo amplío la casa con una habitación — "I expand the house with a room"
- Tú amplías el negocio a otra ciudad — "You expand the business to another city"
- Él amplía la foto en el ordenador — "He expands the photo on the computer"
- Nosotros ampliamos su vocabulario cada día — "We expand his vocabulary every day"
- Vosotros ampliáis el plazo de entrega — "You expand the delivery deadline"
- Ellos amplían la casa con una habitación — "They expand the house with a room"
- Yo amplío el negocio a otra ciudad — "I expand the business to another city"
Common mistakes with ampliar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with ampliar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo amplío en la casa con una habitación.
✓ Correct: Yo amplío la casa con una habitación.
ampliar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo amplío la casa con una habitación.
✗ *Tú amplía el negocio a otra ciudad.
✓ Correct: Tú amplías el negocio a otra ciudad.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes amplías, él takes amplía.
✗ *Cada día, yo amplié la foto en el ordenador
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo amplío la foto en el ordenador
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros ampliais su vocabulario cada día.
✓ Correct: Vosotros ampliáis su vocabulario cada día.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: ampliáis, not ampliais.
Quiz: ampliar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of ampliar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of ampliar for tú? A. amplía B. ampliamos C. amplías D. amplío
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la casa con una habitación — "I expand the house with a room" (present) A. amplío B. amplías C. amplía D. ampliamos
Complete the sentence: Él ______ el negocio a otra ciudad — "He expands the business to another city" (present) A. amplías B. ampliamos C. amplía D. amplío
Which is the correct present form of ampliar for nosotros? A. amplían B. ampliamos C. amplías D. amplía
Which sentence uses ampliar correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo amplías la foto en el ordenador B. Mi amigo ampliaba la foto en el ordenador C. Mi amigo ampliamos la foto en el ordenador D. Mi amigo amplía la foto en el ordenador
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ su vocabulario cada día — "You expand his vocabulary every day" (present) A. ampliáis B. amplío C. amplías D. amplía
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ el plazo de entrega — "They expand the delivery deadline" (present) A. amplía B. amplían C. amplío D. amplías
What is the gerund of ampliar? A. ampliando B. ampliado C. amplío D. amplié
Answer key
- amplías — The tú form in the present is amplías.
- amplío — The present form for yo is amplío.
- amplía — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is amplía.
- ampliamos — The nosotros form in the present is ampliamos.
- Mi amigo amplía la foto en el ordenador — Mi amigo amplía la foto en el ordenador is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- ampliáis — The present form for vosotros/as is ampliáis.
- amplían — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is amplían.
- ampliando — The gerund is ampliando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle ampliado.
Frequently asked questions
Is ampliar regular in the present tense?
Yes — in the present tense ampliar follows the regular endings for -ar verbs, as the table above shows.
What is the gerund and the past participle of ampliar?
The gerund is ampliando and the past participle is ampliado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I expand" in the present tense?
Say amplío. For example: Yo amplío la casa con una habitación — "I expand the house with a room".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of ampliar?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo amplío la casa con una habitación — "I expand the house with a room". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo amplié la casa con una habitación — "Yesterday, I expanded the house with a room". Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once.
Related links
- Full conjugation of ampliar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- ampliar 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.