Atribuir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of atribuir — “to attribute” 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 atribuir 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. Atribuir means to attribute or to ascribe, and it is used for giving credit or blame: atribuir el éxito al equipo, atribuir el error a la lluvia. It takes a for the person or cause. It is a -uir verb: yo atribuyo, with y before the vowel endings. To see it in a real sentence: Atribuyo el éxito al equipo. — “I attribute success to the team.”
Present tense conjugation table: atribuir
Every person of atribuir in the present tense. The gerund is atribuyendo and the past participle is atribuido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | atribuyo |
| tú | atribuyes |
| él/ella/Ud. | atribuye |
| nosotros/as | atribuimos |
| vosotros/as | atribuís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | atribuyen |
The gerund is atribuyendo, which you use with estar to say what is happening right now: “Estoy atribuyendo” means the action of atribuir is in progress at this very moment. The past participle is atribuido, which you use with haber in the perfect tenses: “he atribuido” is the present perfect, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the present is only one part of how atribuir is used.
How the present of atribuir is formed
The present of atribuir is built from the stem atribu plus the present endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir 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 | atribuyo |
| tú | -es | atribuyes |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | atribuye |
| nosotros/as | -imos | atribuimos |
| vosotros/as | -ís | atribuís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | atribuyen |
atribuir is not fully regular in form: this verb is a -uir verb: the stem vowel i becomes y before a vowel ending, so the present is atribuyo and atribuye, and the gerund is atribuyendo. The endings in the table above are the regular -ir endings, so once you know the pattern, the whole tense follows. The forms that show the pattern most clearly are atribuyo and atribuye.
The gerund of atribuir is atribuyendo and the past participle is atribuido. Both are the forms you need for the progressive and the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present of atribuir
The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use atribuir in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. A routine or habit
The present tense of atribuir is the tense for what happens regularly. When something is part of your routine, your week or your normal life, the present is the right choice, and atribuir is no exception. The time words that go with it are todos los días, cada semana, siempre and a menudo.
Example: “Atribuyo el éxito al equipo.” — I attribute success to the team.
2. A general fact
The present tense also states facts that are true in general, not just today. When you describe what atribuir means in the world — what it does, who it affects, how it works — the present is the tense to use. There is no time limit on the statement, so no past or future form is needed.
Example: “Atribuye el error a la lluvia.” — He/she attributes the mistake to the rain.
3. Something happening right now
The present tense describes what is happening at this very moment. You do not need the progressive (estar plus the gerund) to say what is going on now: the simple present does the job in Spanish, and it is the more common choice in everyday speech.
Example: “Atribuyo la cita al autor.” — I attribute the quote to the author.
4. A plan or arrangement
Spanish uses the present tense for plans that are already fixed, especially with a time expression such as mañana or el lunes. When the arrangement is made, the present tense states it as a fact, and atribuir follows the same rule as every other verb.
Example: “Mañana, nosotros atribuimos el incendio a un rayo.” — Tomorrow, we attribute the fire to lightning.
5. Asking and answering questions
Questions in the present tense ask about routines, facts and what is happening now. The answer uses the same tense, so a question and its answer stay in the present together. This is the pattern you will hear most often in conversation.
Example: “¿Atribuyes el error a la lluvia?” — Do you attribute the mistake to the rain?
The present vs the preterite: how to choose
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and choosing between them is one of the first decisions in Spanish. The rule is simple: the present reports what happens now, what happens regularly, or what is generally true, while the preterite reports one finished action in the past. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is whether the action is happening now or is already finished. Time words help: ahora and todos los días point to the present, while ayer and anoche point to the preterite.
Present: “Atribuyo el éxito al equipo.” — I attribute success to the team.
Preterite: “Atribuí el éxito al equipo.” — I attributed success to the team.
The present sentence describes what happens now or regularly; the preterite sentence reports one finished action in the past. That difference — now versus finished — is the whole decision.
Present: “Atribuye el error a la lluvia.” — He/she attributes the mistake to the rain.
Preterite: “Atribuyó el error a la lluvia.” — He/she attributed the mistake to the rain.
The present sentence describes what happens now or regularly; the preterite sentence reports one finished action in the past. That difference — now versus finished — is the whole decision.
Present: “Atribuimos la cita al autor.” — We attribute the quote to the author.
Preterite: “Atribuimos la cita al autor.” — We attributed the quote to the author.
The present sentence describes what happens now or regularly; the preterite sentence reports one finished action in the past. That difference — now versus finished — is the whole decision.
Example sentences: atribuir in the present
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other verbs — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
“Atribuyo el éxito al equipo.” — I attribute success to the team.
“Atribuyes el error a la lluvia.” — You attribute the mistake to the rain.
“Atribuye la cita al autor.” — He/she attributes the quote to the author.
“Atribuimos el incendio a un rayo.” — We attribute the fire to lightning.
“Atribuís el éxito al equipo.” — You attribute success to the team.
“Atribuyen el error a la lluvia.” — They attribute the mistake to the rain.
“Atribuyo la cita al autor.” — I attribute the quote to the author.
“Atribuye el incendio a un rayo.” — He/she attributes the fire to lightning.
Common mistakes with atribuir in the present
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo atribuye el éxito al equipo.” Right: “Yo atribuyo el éxito al equipo.” Why: Yo needs the yo form atribuyo. The form atribuye belongs with él, ella or Ud.
Wrong: “Yo atribuo el error a la lluvia.” Right: “Yo atribuyo el error a la lluvia.” Why: Atribuir is a -uir verb: the stem vowel i becomes y before a vowel ending, so the present is atribuyo and atribuye, and the gerund is atribuyendo, so the first-person present is atribuyo, not atribuo.
Wrong: “Ayer yo atribuyo el error a la lluvia.” Right: “Ayer yo atribuí el error a la lluvia.” Why: The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to atribuí.
Wrong: “Ellos atribuye el error a la lluvia.” Right: “Ellos atribuyen el error a la lluvia.” Why: Ellos needs the ellos form atribuyen. The singular atribuye belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
Quiz: atribuir in the present
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
1. Complete the sentence: “Yo ___ el éxito al equipo.”
- (a) atribuyo
- (b) atribuyes
- (c) atribuye
Answer: atribuyo — The yo form of atribuir in the present is atribuyo.
2. Complete the sentence: “Tú ___ el error a la lluvia.”
- (a) atribuyo
- (b) atribuye
- (c) atribuyes
Answer: atribuyes — The tú form of atribuir in the present is atribuyes.
3. Complete the sentence: “Él/ella ___ la cita al autor.”
- (a) atribuyes
- (b) atribuye
- (c) atribuyo
Answer: atribuye — The él/ella form of atribuir in the present is atribuye.
4. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros/as ___ el incendio a un rayo.”
- (a) atribuimos
- (b) atribuyo
- (c) atribuyes
Answer: atribuimos — The nosotros/as form of atribuir in the present is atribuimos.
5. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros/as ___ el éxito al equipo.”
- (a) atribuyo
- (b) atribuyes
- (c) atribuís
Answer: atribuís — The vosotros/as form of atribuir in the present is atribuís.
6. Complete the sentence: “Ellos/ellas ___ el error a la lluvia.”
- (a) atribuyes
- (b) atribuyen
- (c) atribuyo
Answer: atribuyen — The ellos/ellas form of atribuir in the present is atribuyen.
7. What does atribuir mean in English?
- (a) to attribute
- (b) to blame
- (c) to be about
Answer: to attribute — Atribuir means to attribute.
8. Which sentence is in the present?
- (a) Atribuí el éxito al equipo.
- (b) Atribuiré el éxito al equipo.
- (c) Atribuyo el éxito al equipo.
Answer: Atribuyo el éxito al equipo. — “Atribuyo el éxito al equipo.” is in the present. The other two use different tenses.
Frequently asked questions
Is atribuir regular in the present?
Atribuir is a spelling-change verb in the present: it is a -uir verb: the stem vowel i becomes y before a vowel ending, so the present is atribuyo and atribuye, and the gerund is atribuyendo. The endings are the regular -ir endings, so the table above follows the pattern exactly.
What is the gerund and the past participle of atribuir?
The gerund is atribuyendo, used with estar for the progressive: estoy atribuyendo. The past participle is atribuido, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he atribuido.
What should I watch out for with atribuir?
Atribuir is a -uir verb: yo atribuyo, él atribuye, with y before the vowel endings. In the present, the form to fix in your memory first is atribuyo, because the yo form shows the stem pattern for the whole tense.
How do I practise atribuir in the present?
Say the six forms in the table out loud with the examples above, then use the atribuir examples and quiz page for more sentences, and the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of atribuir — every tense of atribuir in one place.
- Atribuir examples and quiz — more sentences with atribuir and a ten-question quiz.
- Spanish present guide — how the present works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Present tense conjugator — conjugate any verb in the present instantly.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on atribuir and other verbs.