Apretar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of apretar — "to press, to squeeze" 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 apretar 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. Apretar means to press or squeeze: apretar el botón, apretar la mano. It is also used for things that fit too tightly: los zapatos aprietan means the shoes are tight. To see it in a real sentence: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button".
Present tense conjugation table: apretar
Every person of apretar in the present tense. The gerund is apretando and the past participle is apretado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | aprieto |
| tú | aprietas |
| él/ella/Ud. | aprieta |
| nosotros/as | apretamos |
| vosotros/as | apretáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | aprietan |
How the present of apretar is formed
The present of apretar is built from the stem apret- 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 | aprieto |
| tú | -as | aprietas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | aprieta |
| nosotros/as | -amos | apretamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | apretáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | aprietan |
The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: aprieto, aprietas, aprieta and aprietan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: apretamos, apretáis.
The gerund of apretar is apretando and the past participle is apretado. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of apretar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and apretar 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 aprieto el botón del ascensor" — "Every day, I press the lift button"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo aprieta la mano de su amigo" — "My friend presses his friend's hand"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo aprieto el tubo de pasta de dientes" — "Right now, I press the toothpaste tube"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros apretamos el cinturón de seguridad" — "Tomorrow, we press the seat belt"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos aprietan el gatillo con el dedo" — "They press the trigger with his finger"
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 aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo apreté el botón del ascensor — "I pressed the lift button"
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 aprietas la mano de su amigo — "You press his friend's hand"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú apretabas la mano de su amigo — "You used to press his friend's hand"
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 aprieta el tubo de pasta de dientes — "He presses the toothpaste tube"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él apretará el tubo de pasta de dientes — "He will press the toothpaste tube"
Examples: apretar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show apretar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button"
- Tú aprietas la mano de su amigo — "You press his friend's hand"
- Él aprieta el tubo de pasta de dientes — "He presses the toothpaste tube"
- Nosotros apretamos el cinturón de seguridad — "We press the seat belt"
- Vosotros apretáis el gatillo con el dedo — "You press the trigger with his finger"
- Ellos aprietan el botón del ascensor — "They press the lift button"
- Yo aprieto la mano de su amigo — "I press his friend's hand"
Common mistakes with apretar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with apretar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo apreto el botón del ascensor.
✓ Correct: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor.
apretar is a stem-changing verb (e → ie): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is aprieto, not apreto.
✗ *Tú aprieta la mano de su amigo.
✓ Correct: Tú aprietas la mano de su amigo.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes aprietas, él takes aprieta.
✗ *Cada día, yo apreté el tubo de pasta de dientes
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo aprieto el tubo de pasta de dientes
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros apretais el cinturón de seguridad.
✓ Correct: Vosotros apretáis el cinturón de seguridad.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: apretáis, not apretais.
Quiz: apretar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of apretar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of apretar for tú? A. apretamos B. aprietas C. aprieto D. aprieta
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button" (present) A. aprietas B. aprieta C. apretamos D. aprieto
Complete the sentence: Él ______ la mano de su amigo — "He presses his friend's hand" (present) A. apretamos B. aprieta C. aprieto D. aprietas
Which is the correct present form of apretar for nosotros? A. apretamos B. aprietas C. aprieta D. aprietan
Which sentence uses apretar correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo apretaba el tubo de pasta de dientes B. Mi amigo apretamos el tubo de pasta de dientes C. Mi amigo aprieta el tubo de pasta de dientes D. Mi amigo aprietas el tubo de pasta de dientes
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ el cinturón de seguridad — "You press the seat belt" (present) A. aprieta B. apretáis C. aprieto D. aprietas
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ el gatillo con el dedo — "They press the trigger with his finger" (present) A. aprieto B. aprietas C. aprieta D. aprietan
What is the gerund of apretar? A. apretado B. aprieto C. apreté D. apretando
Answer key
- aprietas — The tú form in the present is aprietas.
- aprieto — The present form for yo is aprieto.
- aprieta — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is aprieta.
- apretamos — The nosotros form in the present is apretamos.
- Mi amigo aprieta el tubo de pasta de dientes — Mi amigo aprieta el tubo de pasta de dientes is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- apretáis — The present form for vosotros/as is apretáis.
- aprietan — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is aprietan.
- apretando — The gerund is apretando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle apretado.
Frequently asked questions
Is apretar regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: aprieto, aprietas, aprieta and aprietan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: apretamos, apretáis. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of apretar?
The gerund is apretando and the past participle is apretado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I press" in the present tense?
Say aprieto. For example: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of apretar?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo apreté el botón del ascensor — "Yesterday, I pressed the lift button". 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 apretar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- apretar 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.