Cepillarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb cepillarse means to brush (oneself), and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Cepillarse means to brush, normally your teeth or your hair, and it is a daily-routine staple: cepillarse los dientes después de comer. The verb keeps the same meaning with or without an object, and it is fully regular, so the reflexive pronoun is the only thing to watch. Like every Spanish verb, cepillarse 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 cepillo los dientes después de comer, and in the preterite you say me cepillé con pasta de dientes. 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: cepillarse
  • English: to brush (oneself)
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb, reflexive
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: cepillando
  • Past participle: cepillado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + cepillado)
  • 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 cepillarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. The object is the body part with the definite article: me cepillo los dientes, and the pronoun changes with the person.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for cepillarse. 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 cepillo
tú te cepillas
él/ella/Ud. se cepilla
nosotros/as nos cepillamos
vosotros/as os cepilláis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillan

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepillé
tú te cepillaste
él/ella/Ud. se cepilló
nosotros/as nos cepillamos
vosotros/as os cepillasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepillaba
tú te cepillabas
él/ella/Ud. se cepillaba
nosotros/as nos cepillábamos
vosotros/as os cepillabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepillaré
tú te cepillarás
él/ella/Ud. se cepillará
nosotros/as nos cepillaremos
vosotros/as os cepillaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepillaría
tú te cepillarías
él/ella/Ud. se cepillaría
nosotros/as nos cepillaríamos
vosotros/as os cepillaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillarían

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepille
tú te cepilles
él/ella/Ud. se cepille
nosotros/as nos cepillemos
vosotros/as os cepilléis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me cepillara
tú te cepillaras
él/ella/Ud. se cepillara
nosotros/as nos cepilláramos
vosotros/as os cepillarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te cepilla
él/ella/Ud. se cepille
nosotros/as nos cepillemos
vosotros/as os cepillad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillen

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te cepilles
él/ella/Ud. se cepille
nosotros/as nos cepillemos
vosotros/as os cepilléis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se cepillen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund cepillando with estar for the progressive: estoy cepillando (or me estoy cepillando for this reflexive verb)
Past participle cepillado with haber for the perfect tenses: he cepillado

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 cepillarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me cepillo los dientes después de comer. 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 cepillarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me cepillé el pelo antes de salir. 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 cepillarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me cepillaba con pasta de dientes. 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 cepillarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me cepillaré tres veces al día. 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 cepillarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me cepillaría los dientes después de comer 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 cepillarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he cepillado el pelo antes de salir. 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 cepillarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había cepillado con pasta de dientes 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 cepillarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré cepillado tres veces al día. 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 cepillarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría cepillado los dientes después de comer 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 cepillarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se cepille el pelo antes de salir. 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 cepillarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se cepillara con pasta de dientes, 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 cepillarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se cepille tres veces al día. 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 cepillarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te cepilles los dientes después de comer. 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 cepillarse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Me cepillo los dientes después de comer. — I brush after eating.
  2. Se cepilla el pelo antes de salir. — He/she brushes before going out.
  3. Ayer, me cepillé con pasta de dientes. — Yesterday, I brushed with toothpaste.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos cepillábamos tres veces al día. — Before, we used to brush three times a day.
  5. Mañana, tú te cepillarás los dientes después de comer. — Tomorrow, you will brush after eating.
  6. Yo me cepillaría el pelo antes de salir si tuviera más tiempo. — I would brush before going out if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha cepillado con pasta de dientes. — He has brushed with toothpaste.
  8. Espero que él se cepille tres veces al día. — I hope he brushes three times a day.
  9. Yo ya me había cepillado los dientes después de comer antes de salir. — I had already brushed after eating before leaving.
  10. Ellos se cepillaban el pelo antes de salir cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to brush before going out when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo cepillo los dientes después de comer. — Right: Yo me cepillo los dientes después de comer. — Cepillarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo cepillo el pelo antes de salir. — Right: Ayer yo cepillé el pelo antes de salir. — The present and the preterite are different tenses: cepillo is happening now, while cepillé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
  3. Wrong: Treating cepillarse and cepillar as identical in every context. — Right: Cepillarse means to brush (oneself), while cepillar means to brush something else, such as a jacket. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: cepillarse fits sentences such as Me cepillo los dientes después de comer, while cepillar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy cepillado el pelo antes de salir. — Right: Yo he cepillado el pelo antes de salir. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he cepillado, has cepillado, ha cepillado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo cepillé con pasta de dientes todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo cepillaba con pasta de dientes todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (cepillaba), not the preterite. The preterite (cepillé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ los dientes después de comer. (present tense) A. me cepillo B. te cepillas C. se cepilla D. nos cepillamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ el pelo antes de salir. (preterite) A. me cepillé B. te cepillaste C. se cepillaron D. se cepilló

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ con pasta de dientes. (imperfect) A. te cepillabas B. se cepillaban C. nos cepillábamos D. me cepillaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ tres veces al día. (future) A. nos cepillaremos B. te cepillarás C. me cepillaré D. se cepillará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ los dientes después de comer si pudiera. (conditional) A. me cepillaría B. te cepillarías C. se cepillaría D. se cepillarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ el pelo antes de salir. (present subjunctive) A. me cepille B. te cepilles C. nos cepillemos D. se cepille

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ con pasta de dientes, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se cepillara B. nos cepilláramos C. me cepillara D. te cepillaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ tres veces al día. (present perfect) A. se han cepillado B. nos hemos cepillado C. me he cepillado D. te has cepillado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ los dientes después de comer. (negative imperative, tú) A. te cepilles B. se cepille C. nos cepillemos D. os cepilléis

  10. Which is the gerund of cepillarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. cepillado B. cepillo C. cepillé D. cepillando

Answer key

  1. me cepillo — The first-person present of cepillarse is me cepillo. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se cepilló — The third-person preterite of cepillarse is se cepilló, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos cepillábamos — The nosotros imperfect of cepillarse is nos cepillábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te cepillarás — The second-person future of cepillarse is te cepillarás.
  5. me cepillaría — The first-person conditional of cepillarse is me cepillaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se cepille — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of cepillarse is se cepille.
  7. me cepillara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of cepillarse is me cepillara.
  8. nos hemos cepillado — The nosotros present perfect of cepillarse is nos hemos cepillado: hemos + cepillado.
  9. te cepilles — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te cepilles.
  10. cepillando — The gerund of cepillarse is cepillando: estoy cepillando. The participle cepillado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does cepillarse mean in English?

Cepillarse means to brush (oneself). It is used in everyday situations such as Me cepillo los dientes después de comer. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is cepillarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Cepillarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me cepillo los dientes después de comer and él se cepilla el pelo antes de salir. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between cepillarse and cepillar?

Cepillarse means to brush (oneself), while cepillar means to brush something else, such as a jacket. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use cepillarse when you mean to brush (oneself), as in Me cepillo los dientes después de comer, and use cepillar for to brush something else, such as a jacket. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I brush (oneself)” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me cepillé el pelo antes de salir. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me cepillaba con pasta de dientes. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he cepillado el pelo antes de salir.

How do I practise cepillarse?

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

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