Aparcar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb aparcar means to park, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Aparcar means to park, and it is the usual verb for parking a car in Spain, while estacionar is common in Latin America. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e, so the subjunctive is aparque, and the preterite first person is aparqué. Like every Spanish verb, aparcar changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say aparco el coche en la calle, and in the preterite you say aparqué en el garaje por la noche. 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: aparcar
  • English: to park
  • Verb type: irregular verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: aparcando
  • Past participle: aparcado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + aparcado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for aparcar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Aparcar is a spelling-change verb: c becomes qu before e, so the subjunctive is aparque and the preterite is aparqué.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for aparcar. 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.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo aparco
tú aparcas
él/ella/Ud. aparca
nosotros/as aparcamos
vosotros/as aparcáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparcan

Preterite

Person Form
yo aparqué
tú aparcaste
él/ella/Ud. aparcó
nosotros/as aparcamos
vosotros/as aparcasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparcaron

Imperfect

Person Form
yo aparcaba
tú aparcabas
él/ella/Ud. aparcaba
nosotros/as aparcábamos
vosotros/as aparcabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparcaban

Future

Person Form
yo aparcaré
tú aparcarás
él/ella/Ud. aparcará
nosotros/as aparcaremos
vosotros/as aparcaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparcarán

Conditional

Person Form
yo aparcaría
tú aparcarías
él/ella/Ud. aparcaría
nosotros/as aparcaríamos
vosotros/as aparcaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparcarían

Present perfect

Person Form
yo he aparcado
tú has aparcado
él/ella/Ud. ha aparcado
nosotros/as hemos aparcado
vosotros/as habéis aparcado
ellos/ellas/Uds. han aparcado

Pluperfect

Person Form
yo había aparcado
tú habías aparcado
él/ella/Ud. había aparcado
nosotros/as habíamos aparcado
vosotros/as habíais aparcado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habían aparcado

Future perfect

Person Form
yo habré aparcado
tú habrás aparcado
él/ella/Ud. habrá aparcado
nosotros/as habremos aparcado
vosotros/as habréis aparcado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrán aparcado

Conditional perfect

Person Form
yo habría aparcado
tú habrías aparcado
él/ella/Ud. habría aparcado
nosotros/as habríamos aparcado
vosotros/as habríais aparcado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrían aparcado

Present subjunctive

Person Form
yo aparque
tú aparques
él/ella/Ud. aparque
nosotros/as aparquemos
vosotros/as aparquéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparquen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo aparcara
tú aparcaras
él/ella/Ud. aparcara
nosotros/as aparcáramos
vosotros/as aparcarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparcaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú aparca
él/ella/Ud. aparque
nosotros/as aparquemos
vosotros/as aparcad
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparquen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú aparques
él/ella/Ud. aparque
nosotros/as aparquemos
vosotros/as aparquéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. aparquen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund aparcando with estar for the progressive: estoy aparcando
Past participle aparcado with haber for the perfect tenses: he aparcado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Aparco el coche en la calle. Learn the present 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 with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, aparqué delante de la casa. 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 de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, aparcaba en el garaje por la noche. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, aparcaré cerca de la estación. 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 with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Aparcaría el coche en la calle si pudiera. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, he aparcado delante de la casa. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Había aparcado en el garaje por la noche antes de salir. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habré aparcado cerca de la estación. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría aparcado el coche en la calle con más tiempo. 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. Note the spelling change here: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For aparcar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él aparque delante de la casa. 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 this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For aparcar, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él aparcara en el garaje por la noche, todo cambiaría. Learn the imperfect subjunctive 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. Note the spelling change here: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For aparcar, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Aparca cerca de la estación! Learn the affirmative imperative 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. Note the spelling change here: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For aparcar, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No aparques el coche en la calle. Learn the negative imperative 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 aparcar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Aparco el coche en la calle. — I park the car in the street.
  2. Aparca delante de la casa. — He/she parks in front of the house.
  3. Ayer, aparqué en el garaje por la noche. — Yesterday, I parked in the garage at night.
  4. Antes, nosotros aparcábamos cerca de la estación. — Before, we used to park near the station.
  5. Mañana, tú aparcarás el coche en la calle. — Tomorrow, you will park the car in the street.
  6. Yo aparcaría delante de la casa si tuviera más tiempo. — I would park in front of the house if I had more time.
  7. Él ha aparcado en el garaje por la noche. — He has parked in the garage at night.
  8. Espero que él aparque cerca de la estación. — I hope he parks near the station.
  9. Yo ya había aparcado el coche en la calle antes de salir. — I had already parked the car in the street before leaving.
  10. Ellos aparcaban delante de la casa cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to park in front of the house when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo aparca el coche en la calle. — Right: Yo aparco el coche en la calle. — The person matters: aparca is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is aparco. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo aparcé delante de la casa. — Right: Ayer yo aparqué delante de la casa. — Aparcar has an irregular preterite: the correct first-person form is aparqué, not the regular aparcé. Learn the preterite forms in the table as a set.
  3. Wrong: Treating aparcar and estacionar as identical in every context. — Right: Aparcar means to park, while estacionar means to park. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: aparcar fits sentences such as Aparco el coche en la calle, while estacionar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy aparcado delante de la casa. — Right: Yo he aparcado delante de la casa. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he aparcado, has aparcado, ha aparcado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo aparqué en el garaje por la noche todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo aparcaba en el garaje por la noche todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (aparcaba), not the preterite. The preterite (aparqué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on aparcar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el coche en la calle. (present tense) A. aparco B. aparcas C. aparca D. aparcamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ delante de la casa. (preterite) A. aparqué B. aparcaste C. aparcaron D. aparcó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ en el garaje por la noche. (imperfect) A. aparcabas B. aparcaban C. aparcábamos D. aparcaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ cerca de la estación. (future) A. aparcaremos B. aparcarás C. aparcaré D. aparcará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el coche en la calle si pudiera. (conditional) A. aparcaría B. aparcarías C. aparcarían D. aparco

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ delante de la casa. (present subjunctive) A. aparques B. aparquemos C. aparco D. aparque

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ en el garaje por la noche, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. aparcáramos B. aparco C. aparcara D. aparcaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ cerca de la estación. (present perfect) A. han aparcado B. hemos aparcado C. he aparcado D. has aparcado

  9. Complete the command: ¡___ el coche en la calle! (affirmative imperative, tú) A. aparca B. aparque C. aparquemos D. aparcad

  10. Which is the gerund of aparcar, used with estar for the progressive? A. aparcado B. aparco C. aparqué D. aparcando

Answer key

  1. aparco — The first-person present of aparcar is aparco. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. aparcó — The third-person preterite of aparcar is aparcó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. aparcábamos — The nosotros imperfect of aparcar is aparcábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. aparcarás — The second-person future of aparcar is aparcarás.
  5. aparcaría — The first-person conditional of aparcar is aparcaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. aparque — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of aparcar is aparque.
  7. aparcara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of aparcar is aparcara.
  8. hemos aparcado — The nosotros present perfect of aparcar is hemos aparcado: hemos + aparcado.
  9. aparca — The affirmative tú imperative of aparcar is aparca.
  10. aparcando — The gerund of aparcar is aparcando: estoy aparcando. The participle aparcado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does aparcar mean in English?

Aparcar means to park. It is used in everyday situations such as Aparco el coche en la calle. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is aparcar regular or irregular?

Aparcar is a spelling-change verb: its stem changes spelling before e to keep the same consonant sound, for example in the preterite first person (aparqué) and the present subjunctive (aparque). The rest of the verb follows the regular -ar pattern.

What is the difference between aparcar and estacionar?

Aparcar means to park, while estacionar means to park. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use aparcar when you mean to park, as in Aparco el coche en la calle, and use estacionar for to park. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I park” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo aparqué delante de la casa. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo aparcaba en el garaje por la noche. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo he aparcado delante de la casa.

How do I practise aparcar?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the aparcar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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