Autorizar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of autorizar — "to authorise" 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 autorizar 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. Autorizar means to authorise, and it covers authorising building work, authorising the use of a photo, authorising entry to a building and authorising the publication of a book. It is a spelling-change verb: the z becomes c before e, so the preterite is autoricé. To see it in a real sentence: Él autoriza la obra en el centro. — "He/she authorises the work in the centre." Work through the table below, then the formation notes, the usage rules and the contrast with the preterite, and test yourself at the end.

Present tense conjugation table: autorizar

Every person of autorizar in the present tense. The gerund is autorizando and the past participle is autorizado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo autorizo
tú autorizas
él/ella/Ud. autoriza
nosotros/as autorizamos
vosotros/as autorizáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. autorizan

How the present indicative of autorizar is formed

The present indicative of autorizar is built from the stem autoriz- 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 autorizo
tú -as autorizas
él/ella/Ud. -a autoriza
nosotros/as -amos autorizamos
vosotros/as -áis autorizáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an autorizan

autorizar is a spelling-change verb: z becomes c before e. That is why the written form changes in some persons — the sound stays the same, and only the spelling adapts. In this tense, watch the first-person form autorizo in particular.

The gerund of autorizar is autorizando and the past participle is autorizado. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.

When to use the present tense of autorizar

The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and autorizar 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 tense describes things you do regularly. If you do it every day, every week or every morning, the present is the tense to use. For autorizar, this use looks like this: "Yo autorizo la obra en el centro." — "I authorise the work in the centre." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

General facts

The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. It is the tense for definitions and permanent situations. For autorizar, this use looks like this: "Él autoriza el uso de la foto." — "He/she authorises the use of the photo." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

What is happening now

The present tense also covers what is happening at this moment, especially with verbs that describe an action in progress. For autorizar, this use looks like this: "Nosotros autorizamos la entrada al edificio." — "We authorise entry to the building." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

Timetables and schedules

The present tense is used for fixed plans and timetables, such as trains, classes and opening times, even when they refer to the future. For autorizar, this use looks like this: "Ellos autorizan la publicación del libro." — "They authorise the publication of the book." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

Instructions and requests

The present tense appears in instructions and polite requests, where it sounds softer than a direct command. For autorizar, this use looks like this: "Tú autorizas la obra en el centro." — "You authorise the work in the centre." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

The present tense vs the preterite

Learners often mix up the present and the preterite with autorizar. The rule is simple: the present is for habits, facts and what is happening now, while the preterite is for one finished action in the past. The three pairs below show the same idea in both tenses, so you can feel the difference.

Pair 1: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Yo autorizo la obra en el centro." — "I authorise the work in the centre."
  • Preterite: "Yo autoricé la obra en el centro." — "I authorised the work in the centre." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Pair 2: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Él autoriza el uso de la foto." — "He/she authorises the use of the photo."
  • Preterite: "Él autorizó el uso de la foto." — "He/she authorised the use of the photo." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Pair 3: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Nosotros autorizamos la entrada al edificio." — "We authorise entry to the building."
  • Preterite: "Nosotros autorizamos la entrada al edificio." — "We authorised entry to the building." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Example sentences in the present tense

Eight natural sentences with autorizar in the present tense only. Each one uses a form from the table above.

  1. Yo autorizo la obra en el centro. — I authorise the work in the centre.
  2. Tú autorizas el uso de la foto. — You authorise the use of the photo.
  3. Él autoriza la entrada al edificio. — He/she authorises entry to the building.
  4. Nosotros autorizamos la publicación del libro. — We authorise the publication of the book.
  5. Vosotros autorizáis la obra en el centro. — You all authorise the work in the centre.
  6. Ellos autorizan el uso de la foto. — They authorise the use of the photo.
  7. Yo autorizo la entrada al edificio. — I authorise entry to the building.
  8. Él autoriza la publicación del libro. — He/she authorises the publication of the book.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Vosotros autorizais el uso de la foto. — Right: Vosotros autorizáis el uso de la foto. — The vosotros present form carries a written accent: autorizáis, not autorizais.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo autorizo la entrada al edificio. — Right: Ayer, yo autoricé la entrada al edificio. — Ayer means yesterday, so it needs the preterite (autoricé), not the present (autorizo). The present is for now, not for yesterday.
  3. Wrong: Yo autoriza la obra en el centro. — Right: Yo autorizo la obra en el centro. — The person matters: autoriza is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is autorizo.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy autorizado el uso de la foto. — Right: Yo he autorizado el uso de la foto. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he autorizado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

Quiz: test yourself

Eight questions on the present tense of autorizar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la obra en el centro. (present tense) A. autorizo B. autorizas C. autoriza D. autorizamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ el uso de la foto. (present tense) A. autorizas B. autorizo C. autoriza D. autorizamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Él ___ la entrada al edificio. (present tense) A. autoriza B. autorizo C. autorizas D. autorizamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ la publicación del libro. (present tense) A. autorizamos B. autorizo C. autorizas D. autoriza

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros ___ la obra en el centro. (present tense) A. autorizáis B. autorizo C. autorizas D. autoriza

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ___ el uso de la foto. (present tense) A. autorizan B. autorizo C. autorizas D. autoriza

  7. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la entrada al edificio. (present tense) A. autorizo B. autorizas C. autoriza D. autorizamos

  8. Complete the sentence: Él ___ la publicación del libro. (present tense) A. autoriza B. autorizo C. autorizas D. autorizamos

Answer key

  1. autorizo — The yo present form of autorizar is autorizo. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  2. autorizas — The tu present form of autorizar is autorizas. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  3. autoriza — The el present form of autorizar is autoriza. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  4. autorizamos — The nosotros present form of autorizar is autorizamos. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  5. autorizáis — The vosotros present form of autorizar is autorizáis. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  6. autorizan — The ellos present form of autorizar is autorizan. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  7. autorizo — The yo present form of autorizar is autorizo. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  8. autoriza — The el present form of autorizar is autoriza. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present tense of autorizar?

Use the present tense of autorizar for habits, facts and what is happening now. For example: Yo autorizo la obra en el centro. — "I authorise the work in the centre." The usage rules above give five situations with examples.

How is the present tense of autorizar formed?

Take the stem autoriz- and add the present endings for -ar verbs. The full table is at the top of this page. Remember the spelling change: z becomes c before e.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of autorizar?

The present describes a habit or a present fact, while the preterite describes a finished action. Compare Yo autorizo el uso de la foto. with Yo autoricé el uso de la foto. — the verb is the same, but the time meaning changes.

How do I practise the present tense of autorizar?

Drill the six forms in the table above until you can say them without looking, then use the autorizar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and test yourself with the Autorizar conjugation page for the full picture across all tenses.

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