Introduction
Cocinar means «to cook». Cocinar means to cook: rice, dinner, a cake, a whole meal for the family. It is a regular -ar verb, and it is the centre of every kitchen conversation, recipe and restaurant discussion in Spanish. 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 cocinar 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 cocino arroz todos los días.» — I cook rice every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | cocinar |
| English | to cook |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | cocinando |
| Past participle | cocinado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: cocinando · Past participle: cocinado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cocino |
| tú | cocinas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocina |
| nosotros/as | cocinamos |
| vosotros/as | cocináis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For cocinar, the yo form is cocino, as in «Yo cocino» in the examples below. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cociné |
| tú | cocinaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocinó |
| nosotros/as | cocinamos |
| vosotros/as | cocinasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo cociné» 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 | cocinaba |
| tú | cocinabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocinaba |
| nosotros/as | cocinábamos |
| vosotros/as | cocinabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo cocinaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cocinaré |
| tú | cocinarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocinará |
| nosotros/as | cocinaremos |
| vosotros/as | cocinaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For cocinar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo cocinaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cocinaría |
| tú | cocinarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocinaría |
| nosotros/as | cocinaríamos |
| vosotros/as | cocinaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo cocinaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he cocinado |
| tú | has cocinado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha cocinado |
| nosotros/as | hemos cocinado |
| vosotros/as | habéis cocinado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han cocinado |
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 cocinado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había cocinado |
| tú | habías cocinado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había cocinado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos cocinado |
| vosotros/as | habíais cocinado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían cocinado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había cocinado». 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 cocinado |
| tú | habrás cocinado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá cocinado |
| nosotros/as | habremos cocinado |
| vosotros/as | habréis cocinado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán cocinado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré cocinado» 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 cocinado |
| tú | habrías cocinado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría cocinado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos cocinado |
| vosotros/as | habríais cocinado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían cocinado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría cocinado 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 | cocine |
| tú | cocines |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocine |
| nosotros/as | cocinemos |
| vosotros/as | cocinéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinen |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él cocine». 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 | cocinara |
| tú | cocinaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocinara |
| nosotros/as | cocináramos |
| vosotros/as | cocinarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él cocinara, 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 | cocina |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocine |
| nosotros/as | cocinemos |
| vosotros/as | cocinad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Cocina!». 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 | cocines |
| él/ella/Ud. | cocine |
| nosotros/as | cocinemos |
| vosotros/as | cocinéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cocinen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No cocines!». 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 cocino arroz todos los días. — I cook rice every day.
- Mi hermana cocina arroz mucho. — My sister cooks rice a lot.
- Ayer yo cociné arroz por la tarde. — Yesterday I cooked rice in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo cocinaba arroz muchas veces. — As a child, I used to cook rice often.
- Mañana yo cocinaré arroz sin falta. — Tomorrow I will cook rice without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo cocinaría arroz ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would cook rice right now.
- Hoy yo he cocinado para la familia dos veces. — Today I have cooked for the family twice.
- Espero que él cocine arroz pronto. — I hope he cooks rice soon.
- ¡Cocina arroz para todos! — Cook rice for everyone!
- Ahora mismo estoy cocinando arroz. — Right now I am cooking rice.
Common mistakes
1. Forgetting the accent in the preterite
Wrong: cocine
Right: cociné
The yo preterite of cocinar carries a written accent: cociné. Without it, cocine is the present subjunctive yo form, a completely different tense.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo cocinaba arroz.
Right: Ayer yo cociné arroz.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, cociné. The imperfect cocinaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Cocino a arroz.
Right: Cocino arroz.
Cocinar takes a direct object with no preposition: cocinar arroz, cocinar la cena.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú cocinas arroz.
Right: Espero que tú cocines arroz.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: cocines, not the indicative cocinas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No cocina arroz.
Right: No cocines arroz.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no cocines. The affirmative cocina 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 cocinar in the present tense?
- (a) cocina
- (b) cocinamos
- (c) cocinas
- (d) cocino
2. What is the él/ella form of cocinar in the preterite?
- (a) cocinamos
- (b) cocinaste
- (c) cociné
- (d) cocinó
3. What is the nosotros form of cocinar in the imperfect?
- (a) cocinaba
- (b) cocinabas
- (c) cocinábamos
4. What is the tú form of cocinar in the future tense?
- (a) cocinaremos
- (b) cocinará
- (c) cocinarás
- (d) cocinaré
5. What is the ellos form of cocinar in the conditional?
- (a) cocinaría
- (b) cocinarían
- (c) cocinarías
6. What is the yo form of cocinar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha cocinado
- (b) has cocinado
- (c) he cocinado
- (d) hemos cocinado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of cocinar?
- (a) cocine
- (b) cocinemos
- (c) cocines
8. What is the nosotros form of cocinar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) cocinara
- (b) cocináramos
- (c) cocinaras
9. What is the gerund of cocinar?
- (a) cocinado
- (b) cocinando
- (c) cocinar
- (d) cocino
10. What is the past participle of cocinar?
- (a) cocinado
- (b) cocinando
- (c) cocinar
- (d) cociné
Answer key
1. (d) cocino — In the present, the yo form of cocinar is cocino. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) cocinó — In the preterite, the el form of cocinar is cocinó. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) cocinábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of cocinar is cocinábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) cocinarás — In the future, the tu form of cocinar is cocinarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) cocinarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of cocinar is cocinarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he cocinado — In the present perfect, the yo form of cocinar is he cocinado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (c) cocines — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of cocinar is cocines. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) cocináramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of cocinar is cocináramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (b) cocinando — The gerund of cocinar is cocinando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy cocinando».
10. (a) cocinado — The past participle of cocinar is cocinado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he cocinado».
Frequently asked questions
Is cocinar regular or irregular?
Yes, cocinar 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 cocinar?
The gerund is cocinando and the past participle is cocinado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy cocinando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he cocinado»).
What is the difference between cocinar and hacer la comida?
Cocinar and hacer la comida are often confused. Hacer la comida is the idiom for making lunch; cocinar is the plain verb for cooking.
How do I say «I cook» in Spanish?
Say «Yo cocino». 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 cocinar?
Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (cociné) for a single finished event and the imperfect (cocinaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: cocinar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: cocinar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: comer
- Related verb: beber
- Related verb: limpiar
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz