Avergonzar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of avergonzar — “to shame, to embarrass” 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 avergonzar 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. Avergonzar means to shame or to embarrass, and it is the transitive verb for making someone feel ashamed: you embarrass your brother in front of everyone, a bad mark embarrasses a student. Its reflexive partner avergonzarse means to be ashamed yourself, and the two are a classic pair. Avergonzar is a spelling-changing verb, so the notes below explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To see it in a real sentence: Avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos.

Present tense conjugation table: avergonzar

Every person of avergonzar in the present tense. The gerund is avergonzando and the past participle is avergonzado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo avergüenzo
tú avergüenzas
él/ella/Ud. avergüenza
nosotros/as avergonzamos
vosotros/as avergonzáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. avergüenzan

How the present of avergonzar is formed

The present of avergonzar is built from the stem avergonz- 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 avergüenzo
tú -as avergüenzas
él/ella/Ud. -a avergüenza
nosotros/as -amos avergonzamos
vosotros/as -áis avergonzáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an avergüenzan

For avergonzar the present has one twist: the stem vowel changes o → üe after g in the stressed forms (avergüenzo, avergüenzas, avergüenza, avergüenzan), while nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem avergonz-.

When to use the present tense with avergonzar

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Yo avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos. — I embarrass my brother in front of everyone.

General facts

Use the present for facts and general truths that do not change.

Él/Ella avergüenza a mi madre con mis notas. — He embarrasses my mother with my marks.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, Nosotros/as avergonzamos al equipo con mi error. — Right now, We embarrass the team with my mistake.

Near-future plans

Use the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with mañana or la semana que viene.

Mañana, Tú avergüenzas a mi amigo en público. — Tomorrow, You embarrass my friend in public.

Instructions and timeless statements

Use the present for instructions, rules and statements that are always true.

Él/Ella avergüenza a mi hermano delante de todos. — He embarrasses my brother in front of everyone.

The present vs the preterite

The present and the preterite answer different questions: the present says what happens regularly or right now, while the preterite says what happened once and finished. Compare the same idea in both tenses with avergonzar.

  1. Yo avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos. — I embarrass my brother in front of everyone. / Ayer, Yo avergoncé a mi hermano delante de todos. — Yesterday, I embarrassed my brother in front of everyone.
  2. Yo avergüenzo a mi madre con mis notas. — I embarrass my mother with my marks. / Ayer, Yo avergoncé a mi madre con mis notas. — Yesterday, I embarrassed my mother with my marks.
  3. Yo avergüenzo al equipo con mi error. — I embarrass the team with my mistake. / Ayer, Yo avergoncé al equipo con mi error. — Yesterday, I embarrassed the team with my mistake.

Example sentences in the present tense

Seven sentences with avergonzar in the present tense only, covering all six persons.

  1. Yo avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos. — I embarrass my brother in front of everyone.
  2. Tú avergüenzas a mi madre con mis notas. — You embarrass my mother with my marks.
  3. Él/Ella avergüenza al equipo con mi error. — He embarrasses the team with my mistake.
  4. Nosotros/as avergonzamos a mi amigo en público. — We embarrass my friend in public.
  5. Vosotros/as avergonzáis a mi hermano delante de todos. — You embarrass my brother in front of everyone.
  6. Ellos/as avergüenzan a mi madre con mis notas. — They embarrass my mother with my marks.
  7. Yo avergüenzo al equipo con mi error. — I embarrass the team with my mistake.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo avergüenza a mi hermano delante de todos. — Right: Yo avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos. — The person matters: avergüenza is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is avergüenzo.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo avergüenzo a mi madre con mis notas. — Right: Ayer, yo avergoncé a mi madre con mis notas. — With ayer, use the preterite (avergoncé), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Using avergonzar where avergonzarse belongs. — Right: Avergonzar means to shame, to embarrass, while avergonzarse means to be ashamed yourself. — Check the meaning before you choose: avergonzar fits Avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él avergüenza a mi madre con mis notas. — Right: Espero que él avergüence a mi madre con mis notas. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: avergüence, not the present indicative avergüenza.

Quiz: the present tense of avergonzar

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a mi hermano delante de todos. (present tense, yo) A. avergüenzo B. avergüenzas C. avergüenza D. avergonzamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ a mi madre con mis notas. (present tense, tú) A. avergüenzo B. avergüenza C. avergonzamos D. avergüenzas

  3. Complete the sentence: Él/Ella ___ al equipo con mi error. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. avergüenzas B. avergonzamos C. avergüenza D. avergüenzo

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ a mi amigo en público. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. avergüenza B. avergonzamos C. avergüenzo D. avergüenzas

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros/as ___ a mi hermano delante de todos. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. avergonzáis B. avergüenzo C. avergüenzas D. avergüenza

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ a mi madre con mis notas. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. avergüenzo B. avergüenzas C. avergüenza D. avergüenzan

  7. Which is the gerund of avergonzar? A. avergüenzo B. avergoncé C. avergonzando D. avergonzado

  8. Which is the past participle of avergonzar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. avergoncé B. avergonzado C. avergonzando D. avergüenzo

Answer key

  1. avergüenzo — The yo present form of avergonzar is avergüenzo.
  2. avergüenzas — The tú present form of avergonzar is avergüenzas.
  3. avergüenza — The él/ella/Ud. present form of avergonzar is avergüenza.
  4. avergonzamos — The nosotros/as present form of avergonzar is avergonzamos.
  5. avergonzáis — The vosotros/as present form of avergonzar is avergonzáis.
  6. avergüenzan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. present form of avergonzar is avergüenzan.
  7. avergonzando — The gerund of avergonzar is avergonzando: estoy avergonzando.
  8. avergonzado — The past participle of avergonzar is avergonzado: he avergonzado, has avergonzado, ha avergonzado.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of avergonzar formed?

Take the infinitive avergonzar, drop the -ar ending to get the stem avergonz-, then add the present endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. The full table is above, with every person. No, the present of avergonzar is stem-changing: avergüenzo, avergüenzas, avergüenza and avergüenzan take the changed stem, while avergonzamos and avergonzáis keep the plain stem.

When do I use the present tense of avergonzar?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Avergüenzo a mi hermano delante de todos.

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

The present (avergüenzo) and the preterite (avergoncé) answer different questions: the present is for habits and for right now, while the preterite is for one finished action. Compare them in the contrast section above.

How do I practise the present of avergonzar?

Drill the six forms in the table until you can say them without looking, then use the full conjugation of avergonzar to see how the present fits with the other tenses, and the avergonzar examples and quiz page for more sentences. The Spanish Verb Quiz tests the forms under pressure.

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