Animar Present Tense in Spanish
Introduction
animar means "to encourage, to cheer up" in English, and the present tense is the form you use when you talk about what happens regularly, what is generally true, and what is happening now. This page gives you the full present-tense table for animar, explains how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it, contrasts it with the closest tense, and finishes with examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the most common questions. A natural example is: Cada día, me animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "Every day, my coach's words cheer me up." Once you can say that sentence confidently, try changing the person and the complement using the table below.
The present tense of animar: full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| Yo | animo |
| Tú | animas |
| Él / Ella | anima |
| Nosotros | animamos |
| Vosotros | animáis |
| Ellos | animan |
The gerund of animar is animando and the past participle is animado. The gerund is used for the progressive (estoy animando), and the participle is used with haber in all perfect tenses (he animado).
How the present tense of animar is formed
The present tense of animar is built from the stem anim- plus the regular -ar endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. Take the infinitive, remove the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person: yo animo, tú animas, él anima, nosotros animamos, vosotros animáis and ellos animan. Once you know the pattern for one regular -ar verb, you can apply it to hundreds of others.
In everyday use, animar usually works like gustar: the thing that produces the feeling is the subject of the sentence, and you are the indirect object. So you say me animan las palabras de mi entrenador — literally, the thing is the subject and you are the person it affects — rather than starting with yo. The verb agrees with the thing, not with you: one thing takes the singular form anima, and several things take the plural form animan. The full table above still matters, because the transitive use (for example, animar a alguien) uses the ordinary persons.
Two more forms belong with this tense. The gerund is animando, used for the progressive with estar: estoy animando. The past participle is animado, used with haber in all perfect tenses: he animado. Both forms appear constantly, so they are worth memorising on their own.
When to use the present tense with animar
1. Music and encouragement
Me anima la música alegre is the most uplifting use of this verb. The music is the subject, and you are the person it cheers up, which is why Spanish says me anima and not yo animo. For example: Me animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "My coach's words cheer me up."
2. A coach's words
Me animan las palabras de mi entrenador shows the plural agreement. Las palabras is plural, so the verb is animan. It is the standard way athletes talk about motivation. For example: Te anima la música alegre. — "The cheerful music cheers you up."
3. Encouraging someone to act
Mi profesor me anima a estudiar shows the animar a + infinitive structure. It means my teacher encourages me to study, and it is one of the most useful patterns in Spanish. For example: Le anima el apoyo de mis amigos. — "My friends' support cheers him up."
4. Plans and the near future
The present tense is also used for plans that are already fixed, especially with a time expression. Spanish speakers often say the present where English would use a future: the plan is so certain that it feels like a fact. For example, to talk about tomorrow's plan you can use the future — Mañana, me animará un buen resultado. — "Tomorrow, a good result will encourage me." — but in conversation you will also hear the present used the same way.
5. General truths and routines
Finally, the present tense states general truths and routines: what usually happens, what is always true, what people normally do. It is the tense of habits and of facts that do not belong to one moment. For example: Normalmente, le animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "Normally, my coach's words cheer him up."
Present vs preterite: animar
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the present describes habits, routines and general truths, while the preterite describes one action that started and finished in the past. The three pairs below show the difference with animar.
Pair 1
- Present (habit): Cada día, me animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "Every day, my coach's words cheer me up."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, me animaron las palabras de mi entrenador. — "Yesterday, my coach's words encouraged me."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 2
- Present (habit): Cada día, me anima la música alegre. — "Every day, the cheerful music cheers me up."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, me animó la música alegre. — "Yesterday, the cheerful music encouraged me."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 3
- Present (habit): Cada día, me anima el apoyo de mis amigos. — "Every day, my friends' support cheers me up."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, me animó el apoyo de mis amigos. — "Yesterday, my friends' support encouraged me."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Examples: animar in the present tense
These six sentences show animar in the present tense with a different person each time. Read them aloud, then try changing the person and the complement to make your own versions.
- Me animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "My coach's words cheer me up."
- Te anima la música alegre. — "The cheerful music cheers you up."
- Le anima el apoyo de mis amigos. — "My friends' support cheers him up."
- Nos anima un buen resultado. — "A good result cheers us up."
- Os animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "My coach's words cheer you up."
- Les anima la música alegre. — "The cheerful music cheers them up."
Common mistakes with animar in the present tense
Mistake 1
- Wrong: Yo animo la música.
- Right: Me anima la música.
- Why: When something cheers you up, animar works like gustar: me anima la música. Yo animo would mean I encourage someone.
Mistake 2
- Wrong: Me anima las palabras.
- Right: Me animan las palabras.
- Why: The verb agrees with the subject. Las palabras is plural, so the verb must be animan.
Mistake 3
- Wrong: Me anima estudiar.
- Right: Me anima a estudiar.
- Why: When animar means to encourage someone to do something, it needs a before the infinitive: me anima a estudiar, te anima a probar.
Mistake 4
- Wrong: Ayer, me animan las palabras de mi entrenador.
- Right: Ayer, me animaron las palabras de mi entrenador.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite. The present tense is for habits and routines, not for yesterday.
Mistake 5
- Wrong: Me animais las palabras de mi entrenador.
- Right: Me animáis las palabras de mi entrenador.
- Why: The form is animáis, with a written accent. The accent is part of the spelling, and without it the word is misspelled.
Quiz: the present tense of animar
Test yourself with eight questions on the present tense of animar. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the i form of animar in the present tense?
- (a) animo
- (b) animas
- (c) anima
- (d) animamos
Answer: (a) animo. The i form is animo. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
2. What is the you form of animar in the present tense?
- (a) animo
- (b) anima
- (c) animamos
- (d) animas
Answer: (d) animas. The you form is animas. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
3. What is the he / she form of animar in the present tense?
- (a) animas
- (b) animamos
- (c) anima
- (d) animo
Answer: (c) anima. The he / she form is anima. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
4. What is the we form of animar in the present tense?
- (a) anima
- (b) animamos
- (c) animo
- (d) animas
Answer: (b) animamos. The we form is animamos. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
5. What is the they form of animar in the present tense?
- (a) animan
- (b) animo
- (c) animas
- (d) anima
Answer: (a) animan. The they form is animan. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
6. Complete the sentence: Cada día, me ___ las palabras de mi entrenador.
- (a) animó
- (b) animaba
- (c) animan
- (d) anima
Answer: (c) animan. The sentence needs the third-person form animan (Every day, my coach's words cheer me up.)
7. What is the gerund of animar?
- (a) animado
- (b) animar
- (c) anima
- (d) animando
Answer: (d) animando. The gerund is animando, used for the progressive: estoy animando.
8. Which sentence describes a habit, something you do regularly?
- (a) Cada día, me anima la música alegre.
- (b) Antes, me animaba la música alegre.
- (c) Ayer, me animó la música alegre.
- (d) Mañana, me animará la música alegre.
Answer: (a) Cada día, me anima la música alegre.. Cada día, me anima la música alegre. (Every day, the cheerful music cheers me up.) describes a habit, so it uses the present tense. Ayer, me animó la música alegre. is a single completed action, and Mañana, me animará la música alegre. is in the future.
Frequently asked questions about the present tense of animar
What does 'animar a' mean?
It means to encourage someone to do something: me anima a estudiar means it encourages me to study. The a before the infinitive is required.
What is the difference between animar and alegrar?
Animar is about motivation and energy: it cheers you up and moves you to act. Alegrar is about happiness: it makes you feel glad.
Is animar regular?
Yes. Animar is a regular -ar verb: animo, animaste, animaba, animaré. The challenge is the sentence structure, not the conjugation.
When do I use the present tense instead of the preterite with animar?
Use the present for habits and routines: Cada día, me animan las palabras de mi entrenador. — "Every day, my coach's words cheer me up." Use the preterite for one finished action: Ayer, me animaron las palabras de mi entrenador. — "Yesterday, my coach's words encouraged me." If the action happens regularly, choose the present; if it happened once and is finished, choose the preterite.