Introduction
Cambiar means «to change». Cambiar means to change: your mind, the plan, your clothes, money into another currency. It is a regular -ar verb, and it is one of the most versatile verbs in Spanish, used for plans, opinions, clothes and money alike. It is a regular -ar verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of cambiar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example: «Yo cambio de opinión todos los días.» — I change my mind every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | cambiar |
| English | to change |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | cambiando |
| Past participle | cambiado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: cambiando · Past participle: cambiado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambio |
| tú | cambias |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambia |
| nosotros/as | cambiamos |
| vosotros/as | cambiáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambian |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For cambiar, the yo form is cambio, as in «Yo cambio» in the examples below. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambié |
| tú | cambiaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambió |
| nosotros/as | cambiamos |
| vosotros/as | cambiasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambiaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo cambié» is the classic use. Do not confuse it with the imperfect: the preterite moves the story forward, one finished event at a time.
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambiaba |
| tú | cambiabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambiaba |
| nosotros/as | cambiábamos |
| vosotros/as | cambiabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambiaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo cambiaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambiaré |
| tú | cambiarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambiará |
| nosotros/as | cambiaremos |
| vosotros/as | cambiaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambiarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For cambiar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo cambiaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambiaría |
| tú | cambiarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambiaría |
| nosotros/as | cambiaríamos |
| vosotros/as | cambiaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambiarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo cambiaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he cambiado |
| tú | has cambiado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha cambiado |
| nosotros/as | hemos cambiado |
| vosotros/as | habéis cambiado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han cambiado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. It is haber in the present plus the past participle: «Hoy yo he cambiado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había cambiado |
| tú | habías cambiado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había cambiado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos cambiado |
| vosotros/as | habíais cambiado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían cambiado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había cambiado». It is haber in the imperfect plus the past participle, and it is the tense for explaining what had already happened when something else took place.
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré cambiado |
| tú | habrás cambiado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá cambiado |
| nosotros/as | habremos cambiado |
| vosotros/as | habréis cambiado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán cambiado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré cambiado» is the pattern — haber in the future plus the past participle. It is less common in speech but regular in formal writing.
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría cambiado |
| tú | habrías cambiado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría cambiado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos cambiado |
| vosotros/as | habríais cambiado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían cambiado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría cambiado si hubiera podido». It is haber in the conditional plus the past participle, and it is the tense for regrets and missed chances.
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambie |
| tú | cambies |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambie |
| nosotros/as | cambiemos |
| vosotros/as | cambiéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambien |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él cambie». The trigger is in the main clause; the subjunctive is the mood of uncertainty, desire and influence. Learn the yo form first — most of the table follows from it.
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cambiara |
| tú | cambiaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambiara |
| nosotros/as | cambiáramos |
| vosotros/as | cambiarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambiaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él cambiara, todo sería distinto». The table above shows the -ra forms, the ones you will hear most often. There is also a less common -se set built on the same stem.
Imperative — Affirmative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | cambia |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambie |
| nosotros/as | cambiemos |
| vosotros/as | cambiad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambien |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Cambia!». There is no yo form — you cannot command yourself. The tú form is the one you will use with friends and family, and the usted form with people you address formally.
Imperative — Negative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | cambies |
| él/ella/Ud. | cambie |
| nosotros/as | cambiemos |
| vosotros/as | cambiéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cambien |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No cambies!». Unlike the affirmative imperative, the negative forms come from the present subjunctive, which is why they look different. Never use the affirmative form after no.
Example sentences
- Yo cambio de opinión todos los días. — I change my mind every day.
- Mi hermana cambia de opinión mucho. — My sister changes my mind a lot.
- Ayer yo cambié de opinión por la tarde. — Yesterday I changed my mind in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo cambiaba de opinión muchas veces. — As a child, I used to change my mind often.
- Mañana yo cambiaré de opinión sin falta. — Tomorrow I will change my mind without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo cambiaría de opinión ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would change my mind right now.
- Hoy yo he cambiado el plan dos veces. — Today I have changed the plan twice.
- Espero que él cambie de opinión pronto. — I hope he changes my mind soon.
- ¡Cambia de opinión si hace falta! — Change your mind if you need to!
- Ahora mismo estoy cambiando de opinión. — Right now I am changing my mind.
Common mistakes
1. Forgetting the accent in the preterite
Wrong: cambie
Right: cambié
The yo preterite of cambiar carries a written accent: cambié. Without it, cambie is the present subjunctive yo form, a completely different tense.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo cambiaba de opinión.
Right: Ayer yo cambié de opinión.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, cambié. The imperfect cambiaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Cambio ropa.
Right: Me cambio de ropa.
To change your clothes, Spanish uses the reflexive: me cambio de ropa. Cambio ropa on its own is not how natives say it.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú cambias de opinión.
Right: Espero que tú cambies de opinión.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: cambies, not the indicative cambias. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No cambia de opinión.
Right: No cambies de opinión.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no cambies. The affirmative cambia can never follow no.
Quiz
Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.
1. What is the yo form of cambiar in the present tense?
- (a) cambia
- (b) cambiamos
- (c) cambias
- (d) cambio
2. What is the él/ella form of cambiar in the preterite?
- (a) cambiamos
- (b) cambiaste
- (c) cambié
- (d) cambió
3. What is the nosotros form of cambiar in the imperfect?
- (a) cambiaba
- (b) cambiabas
- (c) cambiábamos
4. What is the tú form of cambiar in the future tense?
- (a) cambiaremos
- (b) cambiará
- (c) cambiarás
- (d) cambiaré
5. What is the ellos form of cambiar in the conditional?
- (a) cambiaría
- (b) cambiarían
- (c) cambiarías
6. What is the yo form of cambiar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha cambiado
- (b) has cambiado
- (c) he cambiado
- (d) hemos cambiado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of cambiar?
- (a) cambie
- (b) cambiemos
- (c) cambies
8. What is the nosotros form of cambiar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) cambiara
- (b) cambiáramos
- (c) cambiaras
9. What is the gerund of cambiar?
- (a) cambiado
- (b) cambiando
- (c) cambiar
- (d) cambio
10. What is the past participle of cambiar?
- (a) cambiado
- (b) cambiando
- (c) cambiar
- (d) cambié
Answer key
1. (d) cambio — In the present, the yo form of cambiar is cambio. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) cambió — In the preterite, the el form of cambiar is cambió. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) cambiábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of cambiar is cambiábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) cambiarás — In the future, the tu form of cambiar is cambiarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) cambiarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of cambiar is cambiarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he cambiado — In the present perfect, the yo form of cambiar is he cambiado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (c) cambies — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of cambiar is cambies. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) cambiáramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of cambiar is cambiáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (b) cambiando — The gerund of cambiar is cambiando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy cambiando».
10. (a) cambiado — The past participle of cambiar is cambiado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he cambiado».
Frequently asked questions
Is cambiar regular or irregular?
Yes, cambiar is a regular -ar verb. Every tense follows the standard -ar endings, so once you know the pattern you can generate the whole table. The only thing to watch is choosing the right tense, not the forms themselves.
What are the gerund and past participle of cambiar?
The gerund is cambiando and the past participle is cambiado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy cambiando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he cambiado»).
What is the difference between cambiar and cambiarse?
Cambiar and cambiarse are often confused. Cambiarse de ropa is to change your clothes; cambiar on its own is to change something.
How do I say «I change» in Spanish?
Say «Yo cambio». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.
Which tense do learners find hardest with cambiar?
Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (cambié) for a single finished event and the imperfect (cambiaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: cambiar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: cambiar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: comenzar
- Related verb: continuar
- Related verb: terminar
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz