Ayudarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb ayudarse means to help oneself, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Ayudarse means to help oneself, and it is the reflexive partner of ayudar: you help yourself to food, people help each other, you manage with a map or with notes. It takes con for the tool used and de for the thing taken, as in ayudarse con un mapa. Like every Spanish verb, ayudarse 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 me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión, and in the preterite you say me ayudé con las notas de clase. 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.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: ayudarse
  • English: to help oneself
  • Verb type: reflexive regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: ayudando
  • Past participle: ayudado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + ayudado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for ayudarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Ayudarse is reflexive: me ayudo, te ayudas. Without the pronoun, ayudar means to help someone else.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for ayudarse. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.

Present indicative

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayudo
tú te ayudas
él/ella/Ud. se ayuda
nosotros/as nos ayudamos
vosotros/as os ayudáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayudan

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayudé
tú te ayudaste
él/ella/Ud. se ayudó
nosotros/as nos ayudamos
vosotros/as os ayudasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayudaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayudaba
tú te ayudabas
él/ella/Ud. se ayudaba
nosotros/as nos ayudábamos
vosotros/as os ayudabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayudaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayudaré
tú te ayudarás
él/ella/Ud. se ayudará
nosotros/as nos ayudaremos
vosotros/as os ayudaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayudarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayudaría
tú te ayudarías
él/ella/Ud. se ayudaría
nosotros/as nos ayudaríamos
vosotros/as os ayudaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayudarían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he ayudado
tú te has ayudado
él/ella/Ud. se ha ayudado
nosotros/as nos hemos ayudado
vosotros/as os habéis ayudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han ayudado

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había ayudado
tú te habías ayudado
él/ella/Ud. se había ayudado
nosotros/as nos habíamos ayudado
vosotros/as os habíais ayudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían ayudado

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré ayudado
tú te habrás ayudado
él/ella/Ud. se habrá ayudado
nosotros/as nos habremos ayudado
vosotros/as os habréis ayudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán ayudado

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría ayudado
tú te habrías ayudado
él/ella/Ud. se habría ayudado
nosotros/as nos habríamos ayudado
vosotros/as os habríais ayudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían ayudado

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayude
tú te ayudes
él/ella/Ud. se ayude
nosotros/as nos ayudemos
vosotros/as os ayudéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayuden

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me ayudara
tú te ayudaras
él/ella/Ud. se ayudara
nosotros/as nos ayudáramos
vosotros/as os ayudarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayudaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te ayuda
él/ella/Ud. se ayude
nosotros/as nos ayudemos
vosotros/as os ayudad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayuden

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te ayudes
él/ella/Ud. se ayude
nosotros/as nos ayudemos
vosotros/as os ayudéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se ayuden

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund ayudando with estar for the progressive: estoy ayudando (with the pronoun attached: ayudándose)
Past participle ayudado with haber for the perfect tenses: he ayudado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For ayudarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión. Learn the present forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me ayudé entre todos en el trabajo. Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me ayudaba con las notas de clase. Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me ayudaré mutuamente en el examen. Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me ayudaría con un mapa en la excursión si pudiera. Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he ayudado entre todos en el trabajo. Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había ayudado con las notas de clase antes de salir. Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré ayudado mutuamente en el examen. Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

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 ayudarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría ayudado con un mapa en la excursión con más tiempo. Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For ayudarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se ayude entre todos en el trabajo. Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms 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 ayudarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se ayudara con las notas de clase, todo cambiaría. Learn the imperfect subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For ayudarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se ayude mutuamente en el examen. Learn the affirmative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For ayudarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te ayudes con un mapa en la excursión. Learn the negative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Example sentences

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

  1. Me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión. — I help oneself with a map on the trip.
  2. Se ayuda entre todos en el trabajo. — He/she helps oneself among ourselves at work.
  3. Ayer, me ayudé con las notas de clase. — Yesterday, I helped oneself with the class notes.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos ayudábamos mutuamente en el examen. — Before, we used to help oneself each other in the exam.
  5. Mañana, tú te ayudarás con un mapa en la excursión. — Tomorrow, you will help oneself with a map on the trip.
  6. Yo me ayudaría entre todos en el trabajo si tuviera más tiempo. — I would help oneself among ourselves at work if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha ayudado con las notas de clase. — He has helped oneself with the class notes.
  8. Espero que él se ayude mutuamente en el examen. — I hope he helps oneself each other in the exam.
  9. Yo ya me había ayudado con un mapa en la excursión antes de salir. — I had already helped oneself with a map on the trip before leaving.
  10. Ellos se ayudaban entre todos en el trabajo cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to help oneself among ourselves at work when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo ayudo con un mapa en la excursión. — Right: Yo me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión. — Ayudarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Treating ayudarse and ayudar as identical in every context. — Right: Ayudarse means to help oneself, while ayudar means to help someone else. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: ayudarse fits sentences such as Me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión, while ayudar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy ayudado entre todos en el trabajo. — Right: Yo he ayudado entre todos en el trabajo. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he ayudado, has ayudado, ha ayudado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo ayudé con las notas de clase todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo ayudaba con las notas de clase todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (ayudaba), not the preterite. The preterite (ayudé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ con un mapa en la excursión. (present tense) A. me ayudo B. te ayudas C. se ayuda D. nos ayudamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ entre todos en el trabajo. (preterite) A. me ayudé B. te ayudaste C. se ayudaron D. se ayudó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ con las notas de clase. (imperfect) A. te ayudabas B. se ayudaban C. nos ayudábamos D. me ayudaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ mutuamente en el examen. (future) A. nos ayudaremos B. te ayudarás C. me ayudaré D. se ayudará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ con un mapa en la excursión si pudiera. (conditional) A. me ayudaría B. te ayudarías C. se ayudaría D. se ayudarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ entre todos en el trabajo. (present subjunctive) A. me ayude B. te ayudes C. nos ayudemos D. se ayude

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ con las notas de clase, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se ayudara B. nos ayudáramos C. me ayudara D. te ayudaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ mutuamente en el examen. (present perfect) A. se han ayudado B. nos hemos ayudado C. me he ayudado D. te has ayudado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ con un mapa en la excursión. (negative imperative, tú) A. te ayudes B. se ayude C. nos ayudemos D. os ayudéis

  10. Which is the gerund of ayudarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. ayudado B. ayudo C. ayudé D. ayudando

Answer key

  1. me ayudo — The first-person present of ayudarse is me ayudo. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se ayudó — The third-person preterite of ayudarse is se ayudó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos ayudábamos — The nosotros imperfect of ayudarse is nos ayudábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te ayudarás — The second-person future of ayudarse is te ayudarás.
  5. me ayudaría — The first-person conditional of ayudarse is me ayudaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se ayude — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of ayudarse is se ayude.
  7. me ayudara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of ayudarse is me ayudara.
  8. nos hemos ayudado — The nosotros present perfect of ayudarse is nos hemos ayudado: hemos + ayudado.
  9. te ayudes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te ayudes.
  10. ayudando — The gerund of ayudarse is ayudando: estoy ayudando. The participle ayudado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does ayudarse mean in English?

Ayudarse means to help oneself. It is used in everyday situations such as Me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is ayudarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Ayudarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión and él se ayuda entre todos en el trabajo. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between ayudarse and ayudar?

Ayudarse means to help oneself, while ayudar means to help someone else. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use ayudarse when you mean to help oneself, as in Me ayudo con un mapa en la excursión, and use ayudar for to help someone else. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I help oneself” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me ayudé entre todos en el trabajo. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me ayudaba con las notas de clase. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he ayudado entre todos en el trabajo.

How do I practise ayudarse?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the ayudarse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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