Introduction
Learning to conjugate cosechar — “to harvest” — opens up a whole set of sentences you will use in real Spanish. Whether you are talking about what you do every day, what happened yesterday, or what you plan to do tomorrow, cosechar is one of the verbs that carries those sentences, especially when the topic is the apples. On this page you will find the full conjugation of cosechar 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. cosechar is a regular -ar verb; the gerund is cosechando and the past participle is cosechado, and both appear in the tables and examples below. For example: “Yo cosecho las manzanas todos los días.” — “I harvest the apples.” Read the tables first, then the notes, and finish with the quiz to check what you have learned.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | cosechar |
| English | to harvest |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | cosechando |
| Past participle | cosechado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: cosechando · Past participle: cosechado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cosecho |
| tú | cosechas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cosecha |
| nosotros/as | cosechamos |
| vosotros/as | cosecháis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosechan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For cosechar, the yo form is cosecho, as in “Yo cosecho las manzanas.” — “I harvest the apples.”
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | coseché |
| tú | cosechaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | cosechó |
| nosotros/as | cosechamos |
| vosotros/as | cosechasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosecharon |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For cosechar, the yo form is coseché, as in “Yo coseché las manzanas.” — “I harvested the apples.”
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cosechaba |
| tú | cosechabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cosechaba |
| nosotros/as | cosechábamos |
| vosotros/as | cosechabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosechaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For cosechar, the yo form is cosechaba, as in “Yo cosechaba las manzanas.” — “I used to harvest the apples.”
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cosecharé |
| tú | cosecharás |
| él/ella/Ud. | cosechará |
| nosotros/as | cosecharemos |
| vosotros/as | cosecharéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosecharán |
The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For cosechar, the yo form is cosecharé, as in “Yo cosecharé las manzanas.” — “I will harvest the apples.”
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cosecharía |
| tú | cosecharías |
| él/ella/Ud. | cosecharía |
| nosotros/as | cosecharíamos |
| vosotros/as | cosecharíais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosecharían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For cosechar, the yo form is cosecharía, as in “Yo cosecharía las manzanas.” — “I would harvest the apples.”
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he cosechado |
| tú | has cosechado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha cosechado |
| nosotros/as | hemos cosechado |
| vosotros/as | habéis cosechado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han cosechado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For cosechar, the yo form is he cosechado, as in “Yo he cosechado las manzanas.” — “I have harvested the apples.”
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había cosechado |
| tú | habías cosechado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había cosechado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos cosechado |
| vosotros/as | habíais cosechado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían cosechado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For cosechar, the yo form is había cosechado, as in “Yo había cosechado las manzanas.” — “I had harvested the apples.”
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré cosechado |
| tú | habrás cosechado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá cosechado |
| nosotros/as | habremos cosechado |
| vosotros/as | habréis cosechado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán cosechado |
The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For cosechar, the yo form is habré cosechado, as in “Yo habré cosechado las manzanas.” — “I will have harvested the apples.”
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría cosechado |
| tú | habrías cosechado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría cosechado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos cosechado |
| vosotros/as | habríais cosechado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían cosechado |
The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For cosechar, the yo form is habría cosechado, as in “Yo habría cosechado las manzanas.” — “I would have harvested the apples.”
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | coseche |
| tú | coseches |
| él/ella/Ud. | coseche |
| nosotros/as | cosechemos |
| vosotros/as | cosechéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosechen |
The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For cosechar, the yo form is coseche, as in “Espero que yo coseche las manzanas.” — “I hope that I harvest the apples.”
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | cosechara |
| tú | cosecharas |
| él/ella/Ud. | cosechara |
| nosotros/as | cosecháramos |
| vosotros/as | cosecharais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cosecharan |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For cosechar, the yo form is cosechara, as in “Si yo cosechara las manzanas, ...” — “If I harvested the apples, ...”
The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: cosechara becomes cosechase, and the same change applies to every person. Both variants mean the same thing; -ra is more common in everyday speech.
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | cosecha |
| Ud. | coseche |
| nosotros/as | cosechemos |
| vosotros/as | cosechad |
| Uds. | cosechen |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | coseches |
| Ud. | coseche |
| nosotros/as | cosechemos |
| vosotros/as | cosechéis |
| Uds. | cosechen |
The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is cosecha, as in “¡Cosecha las manzanas” — “Harvest the apples” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no coseches. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with cosechar.
Example sentences
Here are ten sentences with cosechar, covering different tenses and persons. Read each one out loud, then read the translation, and notice how the verb form changes while the meaning stays the same.
- “Yo cosecho las manzanas cada día.” — “I harvest the apples.”
- “Él cosecha las manzanas todos los días.” — “He harvests the apples.”
- “Yo coseché las manzanas ayer.” — “I harvested the apples.”
- “Él cosechó las manzanas ayer.” — “He harvested the apples.”
- “Yo cosechaba las manzanas cuando era joven.” — “I used to harvest the apples.”
- “Nosotros cosecharemos las manzanas mañana.” — “We will harvest the apples.”
- “Si pudiera, yo cosecharía las manzanas.” — “If I could, i would harvest the apples.”
- “Yo he cosechado las manzanas hoy.” — “I have harvested the apples.”
- “Espero que yo coseche las manzanas.” — “I hope that I harvest the apples.”
- “estoy cosechando las manzanas ahora mismo.” — “I am harvesting the apples.”
Common mistakes
Forgetting the accent in the preterite
The yo preterite form is coseché, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — coseche — is a spelling error, and in speech the stress lands in the wrong place. Preterite yo forms that end in a vowel carry that accent, so check it every time you write the preterite of cosechar.
Mixing up present and preterite nosotros
For cosechar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: cosechamos. Only the context tells you which tense is meant, so pay attention to the time words around it — cada día points to the present, ayer points to the preterite. Do not invent a different form for one of the tenses.
Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses
Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he cosechado las manzanas. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy cosechado is not the present perfect of cosechar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.
Confusing cosechar with cuidarse
cosechar and cuidarse look similar, and learners mix them up. They are different verbs with different meanings, so check which one the sentence needs before you conjugate. If you can substitute the English meaning of cosechar — harvest — the sentence needs cosechar; if it needs the meaning of cuidarse, use that verb instead.
Using the indicative after "espero que"
After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo coseche las manzanas. Using the indicative — Espero que yo cosecho — is one of the most frequent learner errors with cosechar. Whenever the main clause expresses a wish, doubt or emotion, switch to the subjunctive.
Quiz
Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the best answer, then check the key below.
1. What is the yo form of cosechar in the present?
- A. cosechas
- B. cosecha
- C. cosechamos
- D. cosecho
2. What is the tu form of cosechar in the preterite?
- A. cosechamos
- B. cosechaste
- C. coseché
- D. cosechó
3. What is the el form of cosechar in the imperfect?
- A. cosechabas
- B. cosechábamos
- C. cosechabais
- D. cosechaba
4. What is the nosotros form of cosechar in the future?
- A. cosechará
- B. cosecharemos
- C. cosecharé
- D. cosecharás
5. What is the vosotros form of cosechar in the present perfect?
- A. he cosechado
- B. has cosechado
- C. ha cosechado
- D. habéis cosechado
6. What is the ellos form of cosechar in the present subjunctive?
- A. coseche
- B. cosechen
- C. coseche
- D. coseches
7. What is the yo form of cosechar in the preterite?
- A. cosechaste
- B. cosechó
- C. cosechamos
- D. coseché
8. What is the tu form of cosechar in the imperfect?
- A. cosechábamos
- B. cosechabas
- C. cosechaba
- D. cosechaba
9. What is the el form of cosechar in the future?
- A. cosecharé
- B. cosecharás
- C. cosecharemos
- D. cosechará
10. What is the nosotros form of cosechar in the conditional?
- A. cosecharía
- B. cosecharíamos
- C. cosecharía
- D. cosecharías
Answer key
- cosecho — The present table gives yo = cosecho.
- cosechaste — The preterite table gives tu = cosechaste.
- cosechaba — The imperfect table gives el = cosechaba.
- cosecharemos — The future table gives nosotros = cosecharemos.
- habéis cosechado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis cosechado.
- cosechen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = cosechen.
- coseché — The preterite table gives yo = coseché.
- cosechabas — The imperfect table gives tu = cosechabas.
- cosechará — The future table gives el = cosechará.
- cosecharíamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = cosecharíamos.
Frequently asked questions
Is cosechar regular or irregular?
cosechar is a regular -ar verb. It follows the regular patterns for its ending in every tense. The tables on this page show the correct form for every person, so use them rather than guessing.
What is the past participle of cosechar?
The past participle of cosechar is cosechado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he cosechado, había cosechado, habré cosechado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund cosechando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.
What is the gerund of cosechar?
The gerund of cosechar is cosechando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy cosechando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle cosechado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.
What is the yo form of cosechar in the present?
The yo form is cosecho — “Yo cosecho las manzanas.” means “I harvest the apples.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú cosechas, él cosecha, nosotros cosechamos, ellos cosechan.
What is the difference between cosechar and cuidarse?
cosechar means “to harvest”, while cuidarse means “to take care of oneself”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to harvest”, use cosechar; if it is about the meaning of cuidarse, use cuidarse instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.
Related links
- cosechar in the present tense — the full present-tense page for this verb.
- cosechar examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a second quiz.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub with every verb on VerbFlow.
- cuidarse conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- culpar conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- cultivar conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- Verb conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb instantly.
- Verb quiz — practise conjugations with timed questions.