Arreglar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb arreglar means to fix, to arrange, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Arreglar means to fix, to mend or to arrange, and it covers repairing a bicycle, fixing a tap, arranging papers and sorting out a problem. It is one of the most versatile everyday verbs, and it is fully regular, so learners can use it freely once they know the -ar endings. Like every Spanish verb, arreglar 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 arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño, and in the preterite you say arreglé el pelo antes de salir. 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: arreglar
  • English: to fix, to arrange
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: arreglando
  • Past participle: arreglado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + arreglado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for arreglar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Arreglar is fully regular: arreglé, arreglaba, arreglaré. Use it for fixing things and for sorting things out.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for arreglar. 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 arreglo
tú arreglas
él/ella/Ud. arregla
nosotros/as arreglamos
vosotros/as arregláis
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglan

Preterite

Person Form
yo arreglé
tú arreglaste
él/ella/Ud. arregló
nosotros/as arreglamos
vosotros/as arreglasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglaron

Imperfect

Person Form
yo arreglaba
tú arreglabas
él/ella/Ud. arreglaba
nosotros/as arreglábamos
vosotros/as arreglabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglaban

Future

Person Form
yo arreglaré
tú arreglarás
él/ella/Ud. arreglará
nosotros/as arreglaremos
vosotros/as arreglaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglarán

Conditional

Person Form
yo arreglaría
tú arreglarías
él/ella/Ud. arreglaría
nosotros/as arreglaríamos
vosotros/as arreglaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglarían

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

Person Form
yo arregle
tú arregles
él/ella/Ud. arregle
nosotros/as arreglemos
vosotros/as arregléis
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo arreglara
tú arreglaras
él/ella/Ud. arreglara
nosotros/as arregláramos
vosotros/as arreglarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú arregla
él/ella/Ud. arregle
nosotros/as arreglemos
vosotros/as arreglad
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú arregles
él/ella/Ud. arregle
nosotros/as arreglemos
vosotros/as arregléis
ellos/ellas/Uds. arreglen

Gerund and past participle

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

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 arreglar, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño. 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 arreglar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, arreglé el grifo de la cocina. 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 arreglar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, arreglaba el pelo antes de salir. 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 arreglar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, arreglaré los papeles para el viaje. 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 arreglar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Arreglaría la bicicleta rota del niño 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 arreglar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, he arreglado el grifo de la cocina. 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 arreglar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Había arreglado el pelo antes de salir 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 arreglar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habré arreglado los papeles para el viaje. 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 arreglar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría arreglado la bicicleta rota del niño 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 arreglar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él arregle el grifo de la cocina. 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 arreglar, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él arreglara el pelo antes de salir, 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 arreglar, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Arregla los papeles para el viaje! 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 arreglar, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No arregles la bicicleta rota del niño. 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 arreglar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño. — I fix the child's broken bicycle.
  2. Arregla el grifo de la cocina. — He/she fixes the kitchen tap.
  3. Ayer, arreglé el pelo antes de salir. — Yesterday, I fixed my hair before going out.
  4. Antes, nosotros arreglábamos los papeles para el viaje. — Before, we used to fix the papers for the trip.
  5. Mañana, tú arreglarás la bicicleta rota del niño. — Tomorrow, you will fix the child's broken bicycle.
  6. Yo arreglaría el grifo de la cocina si tuviera más tiempo. — I would fix the kitchen tap if I had more time.
  7. Él ha arreglado el pelo antes de salir. — He has fixed my hair before going out.
  8. Espero que él arregle los papeles para el viaje. — I hope he fixes the papers for the trip.
  9. Yo ya había arreglado la bicicleta rota del niño antes de salir. — I had already fixed the child's broken bicycle before leaving.
  10. Ellos arreglaban el grifo de la cocina cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to fix the kitchen tap when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo arregla la bicicleta rota del niño. — Right: Yo arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño. — The person matters: arregla is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is arreglo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo arreglo el grifo de la cocina. — Right: Ayer yo arreglé el grifo de la cocina. — The present and the preterite are different tenses: arreglo is happening now, while arreglé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
  3. Wrong: Treating arreglar and reparar as identical in every context. — Right: Arreglar means to fix, to arrange, while reparar means to repair, the more formal synonym. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: arreglar fits sentences such as Arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño, while reparar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy arreglado el grifo de la cocina. — Right: Yo he arreglado el grifo de la cocina. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he arreglado, has arreglado, ha arreglado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo arreglé el pelo antes de salir todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo arreglaba el pelo antes de salir todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (arreglaba), not the preterite. The preterite (arreglé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la bicicleta rota del niño. (present tense) A. arreglo B. arreglas C. arregla D. arreglamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ el grifo de la cocina. (preterite) A. arreglé B. arreglaste C. arreglaron D. arregló

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ el pelo antes de salir. (imperfect) A. arreglabas B. arreglaban C. arreglábamos D. arreglaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ los papeles para el viaje. (future) A. arreglaremos B. arreglarás C. arreglaré D. arreglará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la bicicleta rota del niño si pudiera. (conditional) A. arreglaría B. arreglarías C. arreglarían D. arreglo

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ el grifo de la cocina. (present subjunctive) A. arregles B. arreglemos C. arreglo D. arregle

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ el pelo antes de salir, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. arregláramos B. arreglo C. arreglara D. arreglaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ los papeles para el viaje. (present perfect) A. han arreglado B. hemos arreglado C. he arreglado D. has arreglado

  9. Complete the command: ¡___ la bicicleta rota del niño! (affirmative imperative, tú) A. arregla B. arregle C. arreglemos D. arreglad

  10. Which is the gerund of arreglar, used with estar for the progressive? A. arreglado B. arreglo C. arreglé D. arreglando

Answer key

  1. arreglo — The first-person present of arreglar is arreglo. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. arregló — The third-person preterite of arreglar is arregló, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. arreglábamos — The nosotros imperfect of arreglar is arreglábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. arreglarás — The second-person future of arreglar is arreglarás.
  5. arreglaría — The first-person conditional of arreglar is arreglaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. arregle — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of arreglar is arregle.
  7. arreglara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of arreglar is arreglara.
  8. hemos arreglado — The nosotros present perfect of arreglar is hemos arreglado: hemos + arreglado.
  9. arregla — The affirmative tú imperative of arreglar is arregla.
  10. arreglando — The gerund of arreglar is arreglando: estoy arreglando. The participle arreglado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does arreglar mean in English?

Arreglar means to fix, to arrange. It is used in everyday situations such as Arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is arreglar regular or irregular?

Arreglar is a fully regular -ar verb, so every tense follows the standard endings for its class. Once you know the regular pattern, you can produce every form on this page, including arreglo in the present and arreglé in the preterite.

What is the difference between arreglar and reparar?

Arreglar means to fix, to arrange, while reparar means to repair, the more formal synonym. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use arreglar when you mean to fix, to arrange, as in Arreglo la bicicleta rota del niño, and use reparar for to repair, the more formal synonym. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I fix” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo arreglé el grifo de la cocina. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo arreglaba el pelo antes de salir. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo he arreglado el grifo de la cocina.

How do I practise arreglar?

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

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