Ascender Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb ascender means to ascend, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Ascender means to go up or to rise: ascender la montaña, ascender a director. It covers physical climbing, promotion at work and a team moving up a division. Like every Spanish verb, ascender 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 asciendo la montaña al amanecer — "I ascend the mountain at dawn". 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: asciendo, asciendes, asciende and ascienden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: ascendemos, ascendéis.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: ascender
  • English: to ascend
  • Verb type: stem-changing -er verb (e → ie)
  • Ending: -er
  • Gerund: ascendiendo
  • Past participle: ascendido
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + ascendido)

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | asciendo | | tú | asciendes | | él/ella/Ud. | asciende | | nosotros/as | ascendemos | | vosotros/as | ascendéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | ascienden |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | ascendí | | tú | ascendiste | | él/ella/Ud. | ascendió | | nosotros/as | ascendimos | | vosotros/as | ascendisteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | ascendieron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | ascendía | | tú | ascendías | | él/ella/Ud. | ascendía | | nosotros/as | ascendíamos | | vosotros/as | ascendíais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | ascendían |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | ascenderé | | tú | ascenderás | | él/ella/Ud. | ascenderá | | nosotros/as | ascenderemos | | vosotros/as | ascenderéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | ascenderán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | ascendería | | tú | ascenderías | | él/ella/Ud. | ascendería | | nosotros/as | ascenderíamos | | vosotros/as | ascenderíais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | ascenderían |

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | ascienda | | tú | asciendas | | él/ella/Ud. | ascienda | | nosotros/as | ascendamos | | vosotros/as | ascendáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | asciendan |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | ascendiera | | tú | ascendieras | | él/ella/Ud. | ascendiera | | nosotros/as | ascendiéramos | | vosotros/as | ascendierais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | ascendieran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | asciende | | él/ella/Ud. | ascienda | | nosotros/as | ascendamos | | vosotros/as | ascended | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | asciendan |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | asciendas | | él/ella/Ud. | ascienda | | nosotros/as | ascendamos | | vosotros/as | ascendáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | asciendan |

Gerund and past participle

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

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: asciendo, asciendes, asciende and ascienden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: ascendemos, ascendéis. For ascender, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo asciendo la montaña al amanecer — "I ascend the mountain at dawn".

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 ascender, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo ascendí de categoría en la liga — "Yesterday, I ascended a division in the league".

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 ascender, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo ascendía a director en la empresa — "As a child, I used to ascend to director in the company".

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 ascender, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo ascenderé por la escalera principal — "Tomorrow, I will ascend up the main staircase".

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 ascender, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ascendería la montaña al amanecer si pudiera — "I would ascend the mountain at dawn 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 ascender, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he ascendido de categoría en la liga — "Today, I have ascended a division in the league".

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 ascender, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había ascendido a director en la empresa antes de salir — "I already had ascended to director in the company 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 ascender, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré ascendido por la escalera principal — "By tomorrow, I will have ascended up the main staircase".

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 ascender, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría ascendido la montaña al amanecer con más tiempo — "I would have ascended the mountain at dawn 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: asciendo, asciendes, asciende and ascienden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: ascendemos, ascendéis. For ascender, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él ascienda de categoría en la liga — "I hope he ascends a division in the league".

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 ascender, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo ascendiera a director en la empresa, todo cambiaría — "If I ascended to director in the company, 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: asciendo, asciendes, asciende and ascienden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: ascendemos, ascendéis. For ascender, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Asciende por la escalera principal. — "Ascend up the main staircase.".

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: asciendo, asciendes, asciende and ascienden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: ascendemos, ascendéis. For ascender, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No asciendas la montaña al amanecer. — "Do not ascend the mountain at dawn.".

Example sentences

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

  1. Yo asciendo la montaña al amanecer — "I ascend the mountain at dawn"
  2. Mi amigo asciende de categoría en la liga — "My friend ascends a division in the league"
  3. Ayer, yo ascendí a director en la empresa — "Yesterday, I ascended to director in the company"
  4. Antes, nosotros ascendíamos por la escalera principal — "Before, we used to ascend up the main staircase"
  5. Mañana, tú ascenderás el globo sobre la ciudad — "Tomorrow, you will ascend the balloon over the city"
  6. Yo ascendería la montaña al amanecer si tuviera más tiempo — "I would ascend the mountain at dawn if I had more time"
  7. Él ha ascendido de categoría en la liga — "He has ascended a division in the league"
  8. Espero que él ascienda a director en la empresa — "I hope he ascends to director in the company"
  9. Yo ya había ascendido por la escalera principal antes de salir — "I already had ascended up the main staircase before leaving"
  10. Ellos ascendían el globo sobre la ciudad cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to ascend the balloon over the city when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo ascendo de categoría en la liga. — Right: Yo asciendo de categoría en la liga. — ascender is a stem-changing verb (e → ie): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is asciendo, not ascendo.
  2. Wrong: Espero que él asciende de categoría en la liga — Right: Espero que él ascienda de categoría en la liga — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él ascienda de categoría en la liga — not the indicative Espero que él asciende de categoría en la liga.
  3. Wrong: Ayer, yo asciendo a director en la empresa — Right: Ayer, yo ascendí a director en la empresa — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo ascendí a director en la empresa.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo ascendí por la escalera principal todos los días — Right: De niño, yo ascendía por la escalera principal todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo ascendía por la escalera principal todos los días.
  5. Wrong: Yo asciendo en la montaña al amanecer. — Right: Yo asciendo la montaña al amanecer. — ascender takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo asciendo la montaña al amanecer.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la montaña al amanecer — "I ascend the mountain at dawn" (present) A. asciende B. ascendemos C. asciendo D. asciendes

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ de categoría en la liga — "He ascended a division in the league" (preterite) A. ascendimos B. ascendió C. ascendí D. ascendiste

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ a director en la empresa — "We used to ascend to director in the company" (imperfect) A. ascendíamos B. ascendía C. ascendías D. ascendíais

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ por la escalera principal — "You will ascend up the main staircase" (future) A. ascenderá B. ascenderemos C. ascenderás D. ascenderé

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el globo sobre la ciudad — "I would ascend the balloon over the city" (conditional) A. ascenderíamos B. ascenderíais C. ascendería D. ascenderías

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ la montaña al amanecer — "I hope he ascends the mountain at dawn" (present subjunctive) A. ascendamos B. ascendáis C. ascienda D. asciendas

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ de categoría en la liga, todo cambiaría — "If I ascended a division in the league, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. ascendierais B. ascendiera C. ascendieras D. ascendiéramos

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ a director en la empresa — "We have ascended to director in the company" (present perfect) A. hemos ascendido B. he ascendido C. has ascendido D. ha ascendido

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ por la escalera principal. — "Do not ascend up the main staircase." (negative imperative) A. ascendamos B. ascendáis C. asciendas D. ascienda

  10. Which is the gerund of ascender, used with estar for the progressive? A. ascendí B. ascendiendo C. ascendido D. asciendo

Answer key

  1. asciendo — The present form for yo is asciendo.
  2. ascendió — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is ascendió.
  3. ascendíamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is ascendíamos.
  4. ascenderás — The future form for tú is ascenderás.
  5. ascendería — The conditional form for yo is ascendería.
  6. ascienda — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is ascienda.
  7. ascendiera — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is ascendiera.
  8. hemos ascendido — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos ascendido.
  9. asciendas — The negative imperative form is asciendas.
  10. ascendiendo — The gerund of ascender is ascendiendo: estoy ascendiendo. The participle ascendido is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does ascender mean in English?

ascender means to ascend. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo asciendo la montaña al amanecer — "I ascend the mountain at dawn". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is ascender regular?

No. ascender is a stem-changing -er verb (e → ie). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: asciendo, asciendes, asciende and ascienden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: ascendemos, ascendéis. 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 ascender?

The gerund is ascendiendo and the past participle is ascendido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.

How do I say "I ascend" in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo ascendí de categoría en la liga — "Yesterday, I ascended a division in the league". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo ascendía a director en la empresa — "As a child, I used to ascend to director in the company". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he ascendido de categoría en la liga — "Today, I have ascended a division in the league".

What is the difference between ascender and subir?

Subir is the everyday verb for going up. Ascender is more formal, and is the standard verb for promotion and for teams rising a division. Ascender means to go up or to rise: ascender la montaña, ascender a director. It covers physical climbing, promotion at work and a team moving up a division.

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