Introduction
Caminar means «to walk». Caminar means to walk, to go on foot: to work, through a park, along the beach. It is regular and very common, and it is the natural verb for exercise, directions and describing how you got somewhere without a vehicle. 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 caminar 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 camino al trabajo todos los días.» — I walk to work every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | caminar |
| English | to walk |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | caminando |
| Past participle | caminado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: caminando · Past participle: caminado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | camino |
| tú | caminas |
| él/ella/Ud. | camina |
| nosotros/as | caminamos |
| vosotros/as | camináis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For caminar, the yo form is camino, as in «Yo camino» in the examples below. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | caminé |
| tú | caminaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | caminó |
| nosotros/as | caminamos |
| vosotros/as | caminasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo caminé» 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 | caminaba |
| tú | caminabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | caminaba |
| nosotros/as | caminábamos |
| vosotros/as | caminabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo caminaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | caminaré |
| tú | caminarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | caminará |
| nosotros/as | caminaremos |
| vosotros/as | caminaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For caminar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo caminaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | caminaría |
| tú | caminarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | caminaría |
| nosotros/as | caminaríamos |
| vosotros/as | caminaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo caminaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he caminado |
| tú | has caminado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha caminado |
| nosotros/as | hemos caminado |
| vosotros/as | habéis caminado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han caminado |
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 caminado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había caminado |
| tú | habías caminado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había caminado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos caminado |
| vosotros/as | habíais caminado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían caminado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había caminado». 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 caminado |
| tú | habrás caminado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá caminado |
| nosotros/as | habremos caminado |
| vosotros/as | habréis caminado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán caminado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré caminado» 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 caminado |
| tú | habrías caminado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría caminado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos caminado |
| vosotros/as | habríais caminado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían caminado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría caminado 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 | camine |
| tú | camines |
| él/ella/Ud. | camine |
| nosotros/as | caminemos |
| vosotros/as | caminéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminen |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él camine». 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 | caminara |
| tú | caminaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | caminara |
| nosotros/as | camináramos |
| vosotros/as | caminarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él caminara, 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 | camina |
| él/ella/Ud. | camine |
| nosotros/as | caminemos |
| vosotros/as | caminad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Camina!». 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 | camines |
| él/ella/Ud. | camine |
| nosotros/as | caminemos |
| vosotros/as | caminéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | caminen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No camines!». 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 camino al trabajo todos los días. — I walk to work every day.
- Mi hermana camina al trabajo mucho. — My sister walks to work a lot.
- Ayer yo caminé al trabajo por la tarde. — Yesterday I walked to work in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo caminaba al trabajo muchas veces. — As a child, I used to walk to work often.
- Mañana yo caminaré al trabajo sin falta. — Tomorrow I will walk to work without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo caminaría al trabajo ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would walk to work right now.
- Hoy yo he caminado por el parque dos veces. — Today I have walked through the park twice.
- Espero que él camine al trabajo pronto. — I hope he walks to work soon.
- ¡Camina por el parque conmigo! — Walk through the park with me!
- Ahora mismo estoy caminando al trabajo. — Right now I am walking to work.
Common mistakes
1. Forgetting the accent in the preterite
Wrong: camine
Right: caminé
The yo preterite of caminar carries a written accent: caminé. Without it, camine is the present subjunctive yo form, a completely different tense.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo caminaba al trabajo.
Right: Ayer yo caminé al trabajo.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, caminé. The imperfect caminaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Camino al perro.
Right: Paseo al perro.
To walk the dog, Spanish uses pasear, not caminar. Caminar describes your own walking.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú caminas al trabajo.
Right: Espero que tú camines al trabajo.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: camines, not the indicative caminas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No camina al trabajo.
Right: No camines al trabajo.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no camines. The affirmative camina 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 caminar in the present tense?
- (a) camina
- (b) caminamos
- (c) caminas
- (d) camino
2. What is the él/ella form of caminar in the preterite?
- (a) caminamos
- (b) caminaste
- (c) caminé
- (d) caminó
3. What is the nosotros form of caminar in the imperfect?
- (a) caminaba
- (b) caminabas
- (c) caminábamos
4. What is the tú form of caminar in the future tense?
- (a) caminaremos
- (b) caminará
- (c) caminarás
- (d) caminaré
5. What is the ellos form of caminar in the conditional?
- (a) caminaría
- (b) caminarían
- (c) caminarías
6. What is the yo form of caminar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha caminado
- (b) has caminado
- (c) he caminado
- (d) hemos caminado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of caminar?
- (a) camine
- (b) caminemos
- (c) camines
8. What is the nosotros form of caminar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) caminara
- (b) camináramos
- (c) caminaras
9. What is the gerund of caminar?
- (a) caminado
- (b) caminando
- (c) caminar
- (d) camino
10. What is the past participle of caminar?
- (a) caminado
- (b) caminando
- (c) caminar
- (d) caminé
Answer key
1. (d) camino — In the present, the yo form of caminar is camino. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) caminó — In the preterite, the el form of caminar is caminó. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) caminábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of caminar is caminábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) caminarás — In the future, the tu form of caminar is caminarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) caminarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of caminar is caminarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he caminado — In the present perfect, the yo form of caminar is he caminado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (c) camines — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of caminar is camines. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) camináramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of caminar is camináramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (b) caminando — The gerund of caminar is caminando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy caminando».
10. (a) caminado — The past participle of caminar is caminado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he caminado».
Frequently asked questions
Is caminar regular or irregular?
Yes, caminar 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 caminar?
The gerund is caminando and the past participle is caminado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy caminando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he caminado»).
What is the difference between caminar and andar?
Caminar and andar are often confused. Andar also means to walk, but it is irregular and often means to wander or to be about; caminar is the neutral verb for walking.
How do I say «I walk» in Spanish?
Say «Yo camino». 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 caminar?
Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (caminé) for a single finished event and the imperfect (caminaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: caminar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: caminar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: correr
- Related verb: nadar
- Related verb: viajar
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz