Avergonzarse Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of avergonzarse — “to be ashamed” 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 avergonzarse 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. Avergonzarse means to be ashamed, and it is the reflexive partner of avergonzar: you are ashamed of a mistake, of your marks, of your behaviour. It takes de for the cause, as in avergonzarse de un error, and it is a verb of embarrassment and regret. Avergonzarse is a reflexive 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: Me avergüenzo de mi error en público.

Present tense conjugation table: avergonzarse

Every person of avergonzarse in the present tense, with the reflexive pronoun. The gerund is avergonzándose with the pronoun attached, and the past participle is avergonzado.

Present indicative

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

How the present of avergonzarse is formed

The present of avergonzarse is built from the stem avergonz- plus the present endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar ending and the reflexive -se, 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 me avergüenzo
tú -as te avergüenzas
él/ella/Ud. -a se avergüenza
nosotros/as -amos nos avergonzamos
vosotros/as -áis os avergonzáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an se avergüenzan

For avergonzarse 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-.

Because avergonzarse is reflexive, the pronoun goes before the verb in every form: me, te, se, nos, os, se. In the gerund the pronoun attaches to the end: avergonzándose.

When to use the present tense with avergonzarse

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Yo me avergüenzo de mi error en público. — I am ashamed of my mistake in public.

General facts

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

Él/Ella se avergüenza de mis notas del examen. — He is ashamed of my exam marks.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, Nosotros/as nos avergonzamos de mi comportamiento ayer. — Right now, We are ashamed of my behaviour yesterday.

Near-future plans

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

Mañana, Tú te avergüenzas de mi familia en la fiesta. — Tomorrow, You are ashamed of my family at the party.

Instructions and timeless statements

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

Él/Ella se avergüenza de mi error en público. — He is ashamed of my mistake in public.

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 avergonzarse.

  1. Yo me avergüenzo de mi error en público. — I am ashamed of my mistake in public. / Ayer, Yo me avergoncé de mi error en público. — Yesterday, I was ashamed of my mistake in public.
  2. Yo me avergüenzo de mis notas del examen. — I am ashamed of my exam marks. / Ayer, Yo me avergoncé de mis notas del examen. — Yesterday, I was ashamed of my exam marks.
  3. Yo me avergüenzo de mi comportamiento ayer. — I am ashamed of my behaviour yesterday. / Ayer, Yo me avergoncé de mi comportamiento ayer. — Yesterday, I was ashamed of my behaviour yesterday.

Example sentences in the present tense

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

  1. Yo me avergüenzo de mi error en público. — I am ashamed of my mistake in public.
  2. Tú te avergüenzas de mis notas del examen. — You are ashamed of my exam marks.
  3. Él/Ella se avergüenza de mi comportamiento ayer. — He is ashamed of my behaviour yesterday.
  4. Nosotros/as nos avergonzamos de mi familia en la fiesta. — We are ashamed of my family at the party.
  5. Vosotros/as os avergonzáis de mi error en público. — You are ashamed of my mistake in public.
  6. Ellos/as se avergüenzan de mis notas del examen. — They are ashamed of my exam marks.
  7. Yo me avergüenzo de mi comportamiento ayer. — I am ashamed of my behaviour yesterday.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo avergüenza de mi error en público. — Right: Yo avergüenzo de mi error en público. — The person matters: avergüenza is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is avergüenzo.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo avergüenzo de mis notas del examen. — Right: Ayer, yo avergoncé de mis notas del examen. — With ayer, use the preterite (avergoncé), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Yo avergüenzo de mi error en público. — Right: Yo me avergüenzo de mi error en público. — Avergonzarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required in the present tense too.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él avergüenza de mis notas del examen. — Right: Espero que él avergüence de mis notas del examen. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: avergüence, not the present indicative avergüenza.

Quiz: the present tense of avergonzarse

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ de mi error en público. (present tense, yo) A. me avergüenzo B. te avergüenzas C. se avergüenza D. nos avergonzamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ de mis notas del examen. (present tense, tú) A. me avergüenzo B. se avergüenza C. nos avergonzamos D. te avergüenzas

  3. Complete the sentence: Él/Ella ___ de mi comportamiento ayer. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. te avergüenzas B. nos avergonzamos C. se avergüenza D. me avergüenzo

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ de mi familia en la fiesta. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. se avergüenza B. nos avergonzamos C. me avergüenzo D. te avergüenzas

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros/as ___ de mi error en público. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. os avergonzáis B. me avergüenzo C. te avergüenzas D. se avergüenza

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ de mis notas del examen. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. me avergüenzo B. te avergüenzas C. se avergüenza D. se avergüenzan

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

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

Answer key

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

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of avergonzarse formed?

Take the infinitive avergonzarse, drop the -ar ending and the reflexive -se 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 avergonzarse 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 avergonzarse?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Me avergüenzo de mi error en público.

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

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 avergonzarse?

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

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