Cepillarse Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb cepillarse means to brush (oneself), and this page covers it in the present tense — the tense for habits, facts and what is happening now. If you want the whole picture, start with the full cepillarse conjugation, which has every tense on one page. Here we go deep on one tense only: the full table, how it is formed, when to use it, how it differs from the closest tense, examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the questions people ask most. One example to start: Yo me cepillo los dientes después de comer. — "I brush my teeth after eating."

No pronunciation is given on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for cepillarse, so no pronunciation is shown rather than an invented one. All the forms below come from the verified conjugation tables, so you can trust every form you see here.

cepillarse is reflexive, so every form below is shown with its reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se). The pronoun is part of the verb, not an optional extra.

The cepillarse present tense table

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for cepillarse. The gerund is cepillando and the past participle is cepillado.

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepillo
tú te cepillas
él/ella/Ud. se cepilla
nosotros/as nos cepillamos
vosotros/as os cepilláis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillan

The gerund cepillando is used with estar for the progressive (estoy cepillando, I am brushing), and the past participle cepillado is used with haber for the perfect tenses (he cepillado, I have brushed).

How the present tense of cepillarse is formed

Start with the infinitive cepillar. Take off the -ar ending and you are left with the stem cepill-. Then add the present endings for -ar verbs: -o (yo), -as (tú), -a (él/ella/Ud.), -amos (nosotros/as), -áis (vosotros/as) and -an (ellos/ellas/Uds.). That gives you the six forms in the table above, and for most verbs in this group that is the whole story.

cepillarse is regular in the present: every form is exactly the stem plus the ending above, with no stem change and no spelling change. If you know the stem and the six endings, you can build the whole tense without memorising anything extra.

cepillarse is reflexive, so every form needs its reflexive pronoun in front of it: me, te, se, nos, os, se, matching the person. In the table above the pronoun is shown in its own column, and in a sentence it goes before the conjugated verb: Me cepillo los dientes después de comer.. Do not drop the pronoun: without it, you are talking about a different verb. In the infinitive the pronoun is attached to the end (cepillarse), and in the gerund it can go before the auxiliary or attached to the gerund: estoy cepillando or cepillándome.

Two details are worth fixing early. First, the vosotros form carries a written accent on the ending: cepilláis. Second, the present tense in Spanish has no auxiliary verb: me cepillo on its own means both "I brush" and "I am brushing" in English, so you do not need a separate word for the progressive unless you want to stress that something is happening right now.

When to use the present tense of cepillarse

Habits and routines

The present is the tense of what you do regularly. Talking about brushing your teeth, the most common use: cepillarse los dientes after meals and before bed.

  • Yo me cepillo los dientes después de comer. — "I brush my teeth after eating."
  • Tú te cepillas el pelo por la mañana. — "you brush my hair in the morning."

Facts and general truths

The present also states facts that are true in general, not just today. Talking about brushing your hair: cepillarse el pelo, usually in the morning.

  • Él se cepilla los dientes antes de dormir. — "he/she brushes my teeth before sleeping."
  • Nosotros nos cepillamos con una pasta nueva. — "we brush with a new toothpaste."

What is happening now

The present describes what is happening at this moment. Talking about children's routines, where cepillarse los dientes is a daily habit parents insist on.

  • Vosotros os cepilláis todos los días. — "you (all) brush every day."
  • Ellos se cepillan en el baño. — "they brush in the bathroom."

Plans in the near future

Spanish also uses the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with a time expression. A plan you have already decided on can be stated in the present, and it sounds more certain than the future tense.

  • Él se cepilla los dientes antes de dormir. — "he/she brushes my teeth before sleeping."
  • Nosotros nos cepillamos con una pasta nueva. — "we brush with a new toothpaste."

Cepillarse present vs present progressive

The present tense and the present progressive (estar + gerund) are close neighbours, and learners mix them up. The present describes a habit, a fact or a routine. The progressive describes something in progress right now, at this very moment. Compare the three pairs below: the first sentence in each pair is a habit, the second is happening now.

  • Present (habit): Yo me cepillo los dientes después de comer. — "I brush my teeth after eating."

  • Progressive (right now): Yo estoy cepillando los dientes después de comer. — "I am brushing my teeth after eating."

  • Present (habit): Tú te cepillas el pelo por la mañana. — "you brush my hair in the morning."

  • Progressive (right now): Tú estás cepillando el pelo por la mañana. — "you are brushing my hair in the morning."

  • Present (habit): Él se cepilla los dientes antes de dormir. — "he/she brushes my teeth before sleeping."

  • Progressive (right now): Él está cepillando los dientes antes de dormir. — "he/she is brushing my teeth before sleeping."

Use the present when you talk about what you usually do, and the progressive when you want to stress that it is happening as you speak. If you say me cepillo every day, that is a routine. If you say Estoy cepillando, you are doing it at this moment.

Examples of cepillarse in the present

Eight sentences in the present tense, so you can see the forms in real use. Read the Spanish first, guess the meaning, then check the translation.

  1. Me cepillo los dientes después de comer. — "I brush my teeth after eating."
  2. Mi hijo se cepilla el pelo por la mañana. — "My son brushes his hair in the morning."
  3. Anoche me cepillé los dientes antes de dormir. — "Last night I brushed my teeth before sleeping."
  4. De niña, me cepillaba los dientes con una pasta de fresa. — "As a girl, I used to brush my teeth with a strawberry toothpaste."
  5. Mañana me cepillaré los dientes después del desayuno. — "Tomorrow I will brush my teeth after breakfast."
  6. Si tuviera un cepillo nuevo, me cepillaría mejor los dientes. — "If I had a new toothbrush, I would brush my teeth better."
  7. Él se cepilla todos los días. — "he/she brushes every day."
  8. Nosotros nos cepillamos en el baño. — "we brush in the bathroom."

Common mistakes with cepillarse in the present

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why it is wrong.

1. Yo cepillo los dientes.

Wrong: Yo cepillo los dientes.

Right: Yo me cepillo los dientes.

Cepillarse is reflexive: you need the pronoun me. Cepillo without a pronoun means you brush something else, like a horse or a jacket.

2. Me cepillas los dientes.

Wrong: Me cepillas los dientes.

Right: Me cepillo los dientes.

Me pairs with the yo form cepillo. Cepillas is the tú form, so me cepillas mixes two different people.

3. Dropping the reflexive pronoun

Wrong: Yo cepillo los dientes después de comer.

Right: Me cepillo los dientes después de comer.

Without the pronoun you are using the non-reflexive verb, which means something else. The pronoun is part of cepillarse: me cepillo.

4. Using the present for a finished past action

Wrong: Ayer yo me cepillo los dientes después de comer.

Right: Ayer yo me cepillé los dientes después de comer.

Ayer (yesterday) signals a finished action, so it needs the preterite: me cepillé. The present me cepillo describes what you do now or usually, not what you did yesterday.

5. Forgetting the accent on the vosotros form

Wrong: Vosotros cepillais los dientes después de comer.

Right: Vosotros cepilláis los dientes después de comer.

The vosotros ending carries a written accent: cepilláis. Without it, the spelling is wrong, even though the pronunciation is close.

Quiz: test yourself on cepillarse in the present

Choose the right form for each sentence. The answers are at the end of this section, with an explanation for every question.

  1. Yo ___ los dientes después de comer
    • a) me cepillo
    • b) te cepillas
    • c) se cepilla
    • d) nos cepillamos
  2. Tú ___ el pelo por la mañana
    • a) me cepillo
    • b) se cepilla
    • c) nos cepillamos
    • d) te cepillas
  3. Él ___ los dientes antes de dormir
    • a) te cepillas
    • b) nos cepillamos
    • c) se cepilla
    • d) me cepillo
  4. Nosotros ___ con una pasta nueva
    • a) se cepilla
    • b) nos cepillamos
    • c) me cepillo
    • d) te cepillas
  5. Vosotros ___ todos los días
    • a) os cepilláis
    • b) me cepillo
    • c) te cepillas
    • d) se cepilla
  6. Ellos ___ en el baño
    • a) me cepillo
    • b) te cepillas
    • c) se cepilla
    • d) se cepillan
  7. Yo ___ los dientes después de comer
    • a) se cepilla
    • b) nos cepillamos
    • c) me cepillo
    • d) te cepillas
  8. Tú ___ el pelo por la mañana
    • a) nos cepillamos
    • b) te cepillas
    • c) me cepillo
    • d) se cepilla

Answers

  1. a) me cepillo — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  2. d) te cepillas — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.
  3. c) se cepilla — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form, because the subject is él/ella/Ud..
  4. b) nos cepillamos — The sentence needs the nosotros/as form, because the subject is nosotros/as.
  5. a) os cepilláis — The sentence needs the vosotros/as form, because the subject is vosotros/as.
  6. d) se cepillan — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form, because the subject is ellos/ellas/Uds..
  7. c) me cepillo — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  8. b) te cepillas — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.

Frequently asked questions about cepillarse in the present

Do I say cepillarse los dientes or cepillar los dientes?

Both are heard, but cepillarse los dientes is the standard reflexive form for brushing your own teeth. Cepillar los dientes without the pronoun is also possible, but the reflexive version is what learners should use first.

Is cepillarse regular?

Yes. It is a regular -ar reflexive verb: me cepillo, te cepillas, se cepilla, nos cepillamos, os cepilláis, se cepillan. The only thing to learn is the pronoun, which always matches the person.

Is cepillarse regular in the present?

Yes. cepillarse is regular in the present: the six forms are the stem cepill- plus the regular endings, with no stem change. The only thing to watch is the written accent on the stressed endings, for example cepillo.

What are the gerund and the past participle of cepillarse?

The gerund is cepillando, used with estar for the progressive (estoy cepillando), and the past participle is cepillado, used with haber for the perfect tenses (he cepillado).

How to remember cepillarse

Four small habits will fix cepillarse in your memory. First, say the present tense out loud, in order, three times: me cepillo, te cepillas, se cepilla, nos cepillamos, os cepilláis, se cepillan. Saying the forms is far more effective than reading them silently, because you hear the endings and the stem at the same time. Second, write three sentences about your own life: one about today with the present (me cepillo), one about yesterday with the preterite (me cepillé), and one about tomorrow with the future (me cepillaré). Personal sentences stick because they are about you, not about a textbook. Third, remember the difference from lavarse: Cepillarse is specifically brushing — teeth or hair. Lavarse is washing. You cepillarse los dientes and you lavarse las manos; do not swap them. Finally, learn the two key forms by heart: the gerund cepillando and the past participle cepillado. With those two and the present tense, you can already build the progressive (estoy cepillando) and the present perfect (he cepillado), which covers most everyday conversation.

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