Apresurarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb apresurarse means to hurry up, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Apresurarse means to hurry up, and it is the reflexive partner of apresurar: you hurry up to catch a train, to finish work, to get to class on time. It is an everyday verb of running late, and it is fully regular. Like every Spanish verb, apresurarse 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 me apresuro para coger el tren, and in the preterite you say me apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo. 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: apresurarse
  • English: to hurry up
  • Verb type: reflexive regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: apresurando
  • Past participle: apresurado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + apresurado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for apresurarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Apresurarse is reflexive: me apresuro, te apresuras. The everyday phrase darse prisa means the same thing.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for apresurarse. 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 Pronoun Form
yo me apresuro
tú te apresuras
él/ella/Ud. se apresura
nosotros/as nos apresuramos
vosotros/as os apresuráis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuran

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me apresuré
tú te apresuraste
él/ella/Ud. se apresuró
nosotros/as nos apresuramos
vosotros/as os apresurasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuraron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me apresuraba
tú te apresurabas
él/ella/Ud. se apresuraba
nosotros/as nos apresurábamos
vosotros/as os apresurabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuraban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me apresuraré
tú te apresurarás
él/ella/Ud. se apresurará
nosotros/as nos apresuraremos
vosotros/as os apresuraréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresurarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me apresuraría
tú te apresurarías
él/ella/Ud. se apresuraría
nosotros/as nos apresuraríamos
vosotros/as os apresuraríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresurarían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he apresurado
tú te has apresurado
él/ella/Ud. se ha apresurado
nosotros/as nos hemos apresurado
vosotros/as os habéis apresurado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han apresurado

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había apresurado
tú te habías apresurado
él/ella/Ud. se había apresurado
nosotros/as nos habíamos apresurado
vosotros/as os habíais apresurado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían apresurado

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré apresurado
tú te habrás apresurado
él/ella/Ud. se habrá apresurado
nosotros/as nos habremos apresurado
vosotros/as os habréis apresurado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán apresurado

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría apresurado
tú te habrías apresurado
él/ella/Ud. se habría apresurado
nosotros/as nos habríamos apresurado
vosotros/as os habríais apresurado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían apresurado

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me apresure
tú te apresures
él/ella/Ud. se apresure
nosotros/as nos apresuremos
vosotros/as os apresuréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuren

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me apresurara
tú te apresuraras
él/ella/Ud. se apresurara
nosotros/as nos apresuráramos
vosotros/as os apresurarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuraran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te apresura
él/ella/Ud. se apresure
nosotros/as nos apresuremos
vosotros/as os apresurad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuren

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te apresures
él/ella/Ud. se apresure
nosotros/as nos apresuremos
vosotros/as os apresuréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se apresuren

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund apresurando with estar for the progressive: estoy apresurando (with the pronoun attached: apresurándose)
Past participle apresurado with haber for the perfect tenses: he apresurado

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 apresurarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me apresuro para coger el tren. 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 apresurarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me apresuré a terminar el trabajo. 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 apresurarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me apresuraba a llegar a clase a tiempo. 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 apresurarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me apresuraré porque llegamos tarde. 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 apresurarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me apresuraría para coger el tren 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 apresurarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he apresurado a terminar el trabajo. 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 apresurarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había apresurado a llegar a clase a tiempo 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 apresurarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré apresurado porque llegamos tarde. 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 apresurarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría apresurado para coger el tren 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For apresurarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se apresure a terminar el trabajo. 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 apresurarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se apresurara a llegar a clase a tiempo, 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For apresurarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se apresure porque llegamos tarde. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For apresurarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te apresures para coger el tren. 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 apresurarse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Me apresuro para coger el tren. — I hurry up to catch the train.
  2. Se apresura a terminar el trabajo. — He/she hurries up to finish the work.
  3. Ayer, me apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo. — Yesterday, I hurried up to get to class on time.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos apresurábamos porque llegamos tarde. — Before, we used to hurry up because we are late.
  5. Mañana, tú te apresurarás para coger el tren. — Tomorrow, you will hurry up to catch the train.
  6. Yo me apresuraría a terminar el trabajo si tuviera más tiempo. — I would hurry up to finish the work if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha apresurado a llegar a clase a tiempo. — He has hurried up to get to class on time.
  8. Espero que él se apresure porque llegamos tarde. — I hope he hurries up because we are late.
  9. Yo ya me había apresurado para coger el tren antes de salir. — I had already hurried up to catch the train before leaving.
  10. Ellos se apresuraban a terminar el trabajo cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to hurry up to finish the work when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo apresuro para coger el tren. — Right: Yo me apresuro para coger el tren. — Apresurarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Treating apresurarse and darse prisa as identical in every context. — Right: Apresurarse means to hurry up, while darse prisa means to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: apresurarse fits sentences such as Me apresuro para coger el tren, while darse prisa belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy apresurado a terminar el trabajo. — Right: Yo he apresurado a terminar el trabajo. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he apresurado, has apresurado, ha apresurado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo apresuraba a llegar a clase a tiempo todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (apresuraba), not the preterite. The preterite (apresuré) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ para coger el tren. (present tense) A. me apresuro B. te apresuras C. se apresura D. nos apresuramos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ a terminar el trabajo. (preterite) A. me apresuré B. te apresuraste C. se apresuraron D. se apresuró

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ a llegar a clase a tiempo. (imperfect) A. te apresurabas B. se apresuraban C. nos apresurábamos D. me apresuraba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ porque llegamos tarde. (future) A. nos apresuraremos B. te apresurarás C. me apresuraré D. se apresurará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ para coger el tren si pudiera. (conditional) A. me apresuraría B. te apresurarías C. se apresuraría D. se apresurarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ a terminar el trabajo. (present subjunctive) A. me apresure B. te apresures C. nos apresuremos D. se apresure

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ a llegar a clase a tiempo, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se apresurara B. nos apresuráramos C. me apresurara D. te apresuraras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ porque llegamos tarde. (present perfect) A. se han apresurado B. nos hemos apresurado C. me he apresurado D. te has apresurado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ para coger el tren. (negative imperative, tú) A. te apresures B. se apresure C. nos apresuremos D. os apresuréis

  10. Which is the gerund of apresurarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. apresurado B. apresuro C. apresuré D. apresurando

Answer key

  1. me apresuro — The first-person present of apresurarse is me apresuro. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se apresuró — The third-person preterite of apresurarse is se apresuró, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos apresurábamos — The nosotros imperfect of apresurarse is nos apresurábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te apresurarás — The second-person future of apresurarse is te apresurarás.
  5. me apresuraría — The first-person conditional of apresurarse is me apresuraría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se apresure — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of apresurarse is se apresure.
  7. me apresurara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of apresurarse is me apresurara.
  8. nos hemos apresurado — The nosotros present perfect of apresurarse is nos hemos apresurado: hemos + apresurado.
  9. te apresures — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te apresures.
  10. apresurando — The gerund of apresurarse is apresurando: estoy apresurando. The participle apresurado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does apresurarse mean in English?

Apresurarse means to hurry up. It is used in everyday situations such as Me apresuro para coger el tren. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is apresurarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Apresurarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me apresuro para coger el tren and él se apresura a terminar el trabajo. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between apresurarse and darse prisa?

Apresurarse means to hurry up, while darse prisa means to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use apresurarse when you mean to hurry up, as in Me apresuro para coger el tren, and use darse prisa for to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I hurry up” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me apresuré a terminar el trabajo. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me apresuraba a llegar a clase a tiempo. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he apresurado a terminar el trabajo.

How do I practise apresurarse?

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

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