Celebrar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of celebrar — “to celebrate” 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 celebrar 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. Celebrar means to celebrate, and it is used for birthdays, victories, Christmas, successes and anniversaries: you celebrate your birthday with friends, a team's victory, Christmas with family. It also means to hold a meeting or a ceremony, as in celebrar una reunión. Celebrar is a regular -ar verb, so the notes below explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To see it in a real sentence: Celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos.

Present tense conjugation table: celebrar

Every person of celebrar in the present tense. The gerund is celebrando and the past participle is celebrado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo celebro
tú celebras
él/ella/Ud. celebra
nosotros/as celebramos
vosotros/as celebráis
ellos/ellas/Uds. celebran

How the present of celebrar is formed

The present of celebrar is built from the stem celebr- 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 celebro
tú -as celebras
él/ella/Ud. -a celebra
nosotros/as -amos celebramos
vosotros/as -áis celebráis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an celebran

For celebrar there are no surprises in the present: every form is the stem celebr- plus the regular ending, so once you know the endings you know the whole tense.

When to use the present tense with celebrar

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Yo celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos. — I celebrate my birthday with friends.

General facts

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

Él/Ella celebra la victoria del equipo. — He celebrates the team's victory.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, Nosotros/as celebramos la Navidad en familia. — Right now, We celebrate Christmas with family.

Near-future plans

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

Mañana, Tú celebras el éxito con una cena. — Tomorrow, You celebrate success with a dinner.

Instructions and timeless statements

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

Él/Ella celebra mi cumpleaños con amigos. — He celebrates my birthday with friends.

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 celebrar.

  1. Yo celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos. — I celebrate my birthday with friends. / Ayer, Yo celebré mi cumpleaños con amigos. — Yesterday, I celebrated my birthday with friends.
  2. Yo celebro la victoria del equipo. — I celebrate the team's victory. / Ayer, Yo celebré la victoria del equipo. — Yesterday, I celebrated the team's victory.
  3. Yo celebro la Navidad en familia. — I celebrate Christmas with family. / Ayer, Yo celebré la Navidad en familia. — Yesterday, I celebrated Christmas with family.

Example sentences in the present tense

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

  1. Yo celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos. — I celebrate my birthday with friends.
  2. Tú celebras la victoria del equipo. — You celebrate the team's victory.
  3. Él/Ella celebra la Navidad en familia. — He celebrates Christmas with family.
  4. Nosotros/as celebramos el éxito con una cena. — We celebrate success with a dinner.
  5. Vosotros/as celebráis mi cumpleaños con amigos. — You celebrate my birthday with friends.
  6. Ellos/as celebran la victoria del equipo. — They celebrate the team's victory.
  7. Yo celebro la Navidad en familia. — I celebrate Christmas with family.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo celebra mi cumpleaños con amigos. — Right: Yo celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos. — The person matters: celebra is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is celebro.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo celebro la victoria del equipo. — Right: Ayer, yo celebré la victoria del equipo. — With ayer, use the preterite (celebré), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Using celebrar where festejar belongs. — Right: Celebrar means to celebrate, while festejar means to celebrate with a party. — Check the meaning before you choose: celebrar fits Celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él celebra la victoria del equipo. — Right: Espero que él celebre la victoria del equipo. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: celebre, not the present indicative celebra.

Quiz: the present tense of celebrar

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ mi cumpleaños con amigos. (present tense, yo) A. celebro B. celebras C. celebra D. celebramos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ la victoria del equipo. (present tense, tú) A. celebro B. celebra C. celebramos D. celebras

  3. Complete the sentence: Él/Ella ___ la Navidad en familia. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. celebras B. celebramos C. celebra D. celebro

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ el éxito con una cena. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. celebra B. celebramos C. celebro D. celebras

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros/as ___ mi cumpleaños con amigos. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. celebráis B. celebro C. celebras D. celebra

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ la victoria del equipo. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. celebro B. celebras C. celebra D. celebran

  7. Which is the gerund of celebrar? A. celebro B. celebré C. celebrando D. celebrado

  8. Which is the past participle of celebrar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. celebré B. celebrado C. celebrando D. celebro

Answer key

  1. celebro — The yo present form of celebrar is celebro.
  2. celebras — The tú present form of celebrar is celebras.
  3. celebra — The él/ella/Ud. present form of celebrar is celebra.
  4. celebramos — The nosotros/as present form of celebrar is celebramos.
  5. celebráis — The vosotros/as present form of celebrar is celebráis.
  6. celebran — The ellos/ellas/Uds. present form of celebrar is celebran.
  7. celebrando — The gerund of celebrar is celebrando: estoy celebrando.
  8. celebrado — The past participle of celebrar is celebrado: he celebrado, has celebrado, ha celebrado.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of celebrar formed?

Take the infinitive celebrar, drop the -ar ending to get the stem celebr-, then add the present endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. The full table is above, with every person. No, the present of celebrar is fully regular: the stem celebr- plus the standard -ar endings gives every form.

When do I use the present tense of celebrar?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Celebro mi cumpleaños con amigos.

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

The present (celebro) and the preterite (celebré) 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 celebrar?

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

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