Apretar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb apretar means to press, to squeeze, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. 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. Like every Spanish verb, apretar 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 Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button". 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.

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.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: apretar
  • English: to press, to squeeze
  • Verb type: stem-changing -ar verb (e → ie)
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: apretando
  • Past participle: apretado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + apretado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for apretar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for apretar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem.

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | aprieto | | tú | aprietas | | él/ella/Ud. | aprieta | | nosotros/as | apretamos | | vosotros/as | apretáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | aprietan |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | apreté | | tú | apretaste | | él/ella/Ud. | apretó | | nosotros/as | apretamos | | vosotros/as | apretasteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | apretaron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | apretaba | | tú | apretabas | | él/ella/Ud. | apretaba | | nosotros/as | apretábamos | | vosotros/as | apretabais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | apretaban |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | apretaré | | tú | apretarás | | él/ella/Ud. | apretará | | nosotros/as | apretaremos | | vosotros/as | apretaréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | apretarán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | apretaría | | tú | apretarías | | él/ella/Ud. | apretaría | | nosotros/as | apretaríamos | | vosotros/as | apretaríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | apretarían |

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | apriete | | tú | aprietes | | él/ella/Ud. | apriete | | nosotros/as | apretemos | | vosotros/as | apretéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | aprieten |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | apretara | | tú | apretaras | | él/ella/Ud. | apretara | | nosotros/as | apretáramos | | vosotros/as | apretarais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | apretaran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | aprieta | | él/ella/Ud. | apriete | | nosotros/as | apretemos | | vosotros/as | apretad | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | aprieten |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | aprietes | | él/ella/Ud. | apriete | | nosotros/as | apretemos | | vosotros/as | apretéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | aprieten |

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund apretando with estar for the progressive: está apretando
Past participle apretado with haber for the perfect tenses: he apretado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. 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. For apretar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button".

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 apretar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo apreté la mano de su amigo — "Yesterday, I pressed his friend's hand".

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 apretar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo apretaba el tubo de pasta de dientes — "As a child, I used to press the toothpaste tube".

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 apretar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo apretaré el cinturón de seguridad — "Tomorrow, I will press the seat belt".

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 apretar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo apretaría el botón del ascensor si pudiera — "I would press the lift button if I could".

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 apretar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he apretado la mano de su amigo — "Today, I have pressed his friend's hand".

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 apretar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había apretado el tubo de pasta de dientes antes de salir — "I already had pressed the toothpaste tube before leaving".

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 apretar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré apretado el cinturón de seguridad — "By tomorrow, I will have pressed the seat belt".

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 apretar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría apretado el botón del ascensor con más tiempo — "I would have pressed the lift button with more time".

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. 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. For apretar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él apriete la mano de su amigo — "I hope he presses his friend's hand".

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past. The -ra forms are 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 apretar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo apretara el tubo de pasta de dientes, todo cambiaría — "If I pressed the toothpaste tube, everything would change".

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. 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. For apretar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Aprieta el cinturón de seguridad. — "Press the seat belt.".

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. 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. For apretar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No aprietes el botón del ascensor. — "Do not press the lift button.".

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with apretar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button"
  2. Mi amigo aprieta la mano de su amigo — "My friend presses his friend's hand"
  3. Ayer, yo apreté el tubo de pasta de dientes — "Yesterday, I pressed the toothpaste tube"
  4. Antes, nosotros apretábamos el cinturón de seguridad — "Before, we used to press the seat belt"
  5. Mañana, tú apretarás el gatillo con el dedo — "Tomorrow, you will press the trigger with his finger"
  6. Yo apretaría el botón del ascensor si tuviera más tiempo — "I would press the lift button if I had more time"
  7. Él ha apretado la mano de su amigo — "He has pressed his friend's hand"
  8. Espero que él apriete el tubo de pasta de dientes — "I hope he presses the toothpaste tube"
  9. Yo ya había apretado el cinturón de seguridad antes de salir — "I already had pressed the seat belt before leaving"
  10. Ellos apretaban el gatillo con el dedo cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to press the trigger with his finger when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo apreto la mano de su amigo. — Right: Yo aprieto la mano de su amigo. — 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.
  2. Wrong: Espero que él aprieta la mano de su amigo — Right: Espero que él apriete la mano de su amigo — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él apriete la mano de su amigo — not the indicative Espero que él aprieta la mano de su amigo.
  3. Wrong: Ayer, yo aprieto el tubo de pasta de dientes — Right: Ayer, yo apreté el tubo de pasta de dientes — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo apreté el tubo de pasta de dientes.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo apreté el cinturón de seguridad todos los días — Right: De niño, yo apretaba el cinturón de seguridad todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo apretaba el cinturón de seguridad todos los días.
  5. Wrong: Yo aprieto en el botón del ascensor. — Right: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor. — apretar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button" (present) A. aprietas B. aprieta C. apretamos D. aprieto

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ la mano de su amigo — "He pressed his friend's hand" (preterite) A. apretamos B. apretó C. apreté D. apretaste

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ el tubo de pasta de dientes — "We used to press the toothpaste tube" (imperfect) A. apretaba B. apretabas C. apretabais D. apretábamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ el cinturón de seguridad — "You will press the seat belt" (future) A. apretarás B. apretaré C. apretará D. apretaremos

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el gatillo con el dedo — "I would press the trigger with his finger" (conditional) A. apretaríais B. apretaría C. apretarías D. apretaríamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ el botón del ascensor — "I hope he presses the lift button" (present subjunctive) A. apretemos B. apretéis C. apriete D. aprietes

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ la mano de su amigo, todo cambiaría — "If I pressed his friend's hand, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. apretarais B. apretara C. apretaras D. apretáramos

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ el tubo de pasta de dientes — "We have pressed the toothpaste tube" (present perfect) A. he apretado B. has apretado C. ha apretado D. hemos apretado

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ el cinturón de seguridad. — "Do not press the seat belt." (negative imperative) A. aprietes B. apriete C. apretemos D. apretéis

  10. Which is the gerund of apretar, used with estar for the progressive? A. apretado B. aprieto C. apreté D. apretando

Answer key

  1. aprieto — The present form for yo is aprieto.
  2. apretó — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is apretó.
  3. apretábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is apretábamos.
  4. apretarás — The future form for tú is apretarás.
  5. apretaría — The conditional form for yo is apretaría.
  6. apriete — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is apriete.
  7. apretara — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is apretara.
  8. hemos apretado — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos apretado.
  9. aprietes — The negative imperative form is aprietes.
  10. apretando — The gerund of apretar is apretando: estoy apretando. The participle apretado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does apretar mean in English?

apretar means to press, to squeeze. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo aprieto el botón del ascensor — "I press the lift button". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is apretar regular?

No. apretar is a stem-changing -ar verb (e → ie). 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, which is the part learners most often get right by accident.

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 I say "I press" in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo apreté la mano de su amigo — "Yesterday, I pressed his friend's hand". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo apretaba el tubo de pasta de dientes — "As a child, I used to press the toothpaste tube". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he apretado la mano de su amigo — "Today, I have pressed his friend's hand".

What is the difference between apretar and presionar?

Presionar is the more formal verb for pressing, often used for buttons and in technical language. Apretar is the everyday verb for pressing and squeezing. 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.

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