Introduction

cursar means “to take (a course)” in English, and it is a verb you will meet again and again once you start reading and speaking Spanish. It is used whenever you need to talk about a Spanish course — at home, at work, and in everyday conversation — which makes it a practical verb to learn early and to use confidently. This page gives you the complete conjugation of cursar in every tense and mood, with all six persons, plus the gerund and the past participle, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. Every form below comes from VerbFlow's verified conjugation tables, so you can trust the accents and the irregular forms. cursar is a regular -ar verb, and the notes under each tense explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To hear it in a real sentence: “Yo curso un curso de español todos los días.” — “I take a Spanish course.” Work through the tables, read the notes, then test yourself with the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts
Infinitive cursar
English to take (a course)
Verb type Regular -ar verb
Gerund cursando
Past participle cursado
Auxiliary verb haber

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: cursando · Past participle: cursado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo curso
tú cursas
él/ella/Ud. cursa
nosotros/as cursamos
vosotros/as cursáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursan

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For cursar, the yo form is curso, as in “Yo curso un curso de español.” — “I take a Spanish course.”

Preterite

Person Form
yo cursé
tú cursaste
él/ella/Ud. cursó
nosotros/as cursamos
vosotros/as cursasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursaron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For cursar, the yo form is cursé, as in “Yo cursé un curso de español.” — “I took a Spanish course.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo cursaba
tú cursabas
él/ella/Ud. cursaba
nosotros/as cursábamos
vosotros/as cursabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursaban

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For cursar, the yo form is cursaba, as in “Yo cursaba un curso de español.” — “I used to take a Spanish course.”

Future

Person Form
yo cursaré
tú cursarás
él/ella/Ud. cursará
nosotros/as cursaremos
vosotros/as cursaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursarán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For cursar, the yo form is cursaré, as in “Yo cursaré un curso de español.” — “I will take a Spanish course.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo cursaría
tú cursarías
él/ella/Ud. cursaría
nosotros/as cursaríamos
vosotros/as cursaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursarían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For cursar, the yo form is cursaría, as in “Yo cursaría un curso de español.” — “I would take a Spanish course.”

Present Perfect

Person Form
yo he cursado
tú has cursado
él/ella/Ud. ha cursado
nosotros/as hemos cursado
vosotros/as habéis cursado
ellos/ellas/Uds. han cursado

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For cursar, the yo form is he cursado, as in “Yo he cursado un curso de español.” — “I have taken a Spanish course.”

Pluperfect

Person Form
yo había cursado
tú habías cursado
él/ella/Ud. había cursado
nosotros/as habíamos cursado
vosotros/as habíais cursado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habían cursado

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For cursar, the yo form is había cursado, as in “Yo había cursado un curso de español.” — “I had taken a Spanish course.”

Future Perfect

Person Form
yo habré cursado
tú habrás cursado
él/ella/Ud. habrá cursado
nosotros/as habremos cursado
vosotros/as habréis cursado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrán cursado

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For cursar, the yo form is habré cursado, as in “Yo habré cursado un curso de español.” — “I will have taken a Spanish course.”

Conditional Perfect

Person Form
yo habría cursado
tú habrías cursado
él/ella/Ud. habría cursado
nosotros/as habríamos cursado
vosotros/as habríais cursado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrían cursado

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For cursar, the yo form is habría cursado, as in “Yo habría cursado un curso de español.” — “I would have taken a Spanish course.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo curse
tú curses
él/ella/Ud. curse
nosotros/as cursemos
vosotros/as curséis
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursen

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For cursar, the yo form is curse, as in “Espero que yo curse un curso de español.” — “I hope that I take a Spanish course.”

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo cursara
tú cursaras
él/ella/Ud. cursara
nosotros/as cursáramos
vosotros/as cursarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. cursaran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For cursar, the yo form is cursara, as in “Si yo cursara un curso de español, ...” — “If I took a Spanish course, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: cursara becomes cursase, 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 cursa
Ud. curse
nosotros/as cursemos
vosotros/as cursad
Uds. cursen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú curses
Ud. curse
nosotros/as cursemos
vosotros/as curséis
Uds. cursen

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is cursa, as in “¡Cursa un curso de español” — “Take a Spanish course” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no curses. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with cursar.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with cursar, 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.

  1. “Yo curso un curso de español cada día.” — “I take a Spanish course.”
  2. “Él cursa un curso de español todos los días.” — “He takes a Spanish course.”
  3. “Yo cursé un curso de español ayer.” — “I took a Spanish course.”
  4. “Él cursó un curso de español ayer.” — “He took a Spanish course.”
  5. “Yo cursaba un curso de español cuando era joven.” — “I used to take a Spanish course.”
  6. “Nosotros cursaremos un curso de español mañana.” — “We will take a Spanish course.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo cursaría un curso de español.” — “If I could, i would take a Spanish course.”
  8. “Yo he cursado un curso de español hoy.” — “I have taken a Spanish course.”
  9. “Espero que yo curse un curso de español.” — “I hope that I take a Spanish course.”
  10. “estoy cursando un curso de español ahora mismo.” — “I am taking a Spanish course.”

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is cursé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — curse — 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 cursar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For cursar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: cursamos. 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 cursado un curso de español. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy cursado is not the present perfect of cursar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing cursar with curar

cursar and curar 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 cursar — take — the sentence needs cursar; if it needs the meaning of curar, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo curse un curso de español. Using the indicative — Espero que yo curso — is one of the most frequent learner errors with cursar. 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 cursar in the present?

  • A. cursas
  • B. cursa
  • C. cursamos
  • D. curso

2. What is the tu form of cursar in the preterite?

  • A. cursamos
  • B. cursaste
  • C. cursé
  • D. cursó

3. What is the el form of cursar in the imperfect?

  • A. cursabas
  • B. cursábamos
  • C. cursabais
  • D. cursaba

4. What is the nosotros form of cursar in the future?

  • A. cursará
  • B. cursaremos
  • C. cursaré
  • D. cursarás

5. What is the vosotros form of cursar in the present perfect?

  • A. he cursado
  • B. has cursado
  • C. ha cursado
  • D. habéis cursado

6. What is the ellos form of cursar in the present subjunctive?

  • A. curse
  • B. cursen
  • C. curse
  • D. curses

7. What is the yo form of cursar in the preterite?

  • A. cursaste
  • B. cursó
  • C. cursamos
  • D. cursé

8. What is the tu form of cursar in the imperfect?

  • A. cursábamos
  • B. cursabas
  • C. cursaba
  • D. cursaba

9. What is the el form of cursar in the future?

  • A. cursaré
  • B. cursarás
  • C. cursaremos
  • D. cursará

10. What is the nosotros form of cursar in the conditional?

  • A. cursaría
  • B. cursaríamos
  • C. cursaría
  • D. cursarías

Answer key

  1. curso — The present table gives yo = curso.
  2. cursaste — The preterite table gives tu = cursaste.
  3. cursaba — The imperfect table gives el = cursaba.
  4. cursaremos — The future table gives nosotros = cursaremos.
  5. habéis cursado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis cursado.
  6. cursen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = cursen.
  7. cursé — The preterite table gives yo = cursé.
  8. cursabas — The imperfect table gives tu = cursabas.
  9. cursará — The future table gives el = cursará.
  10. cursaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = cursaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is cursar regular or irregular?

cursar 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 cursar?

The past participle of cursar is cursado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he cursado, había cursado, habré cursado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund cursando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.

What is the gerund of cursar?

The gerund of cursar is cursando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy cursando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle cursado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.

What is the yo form of cursar in the present?

The yo form is curso — “Yo curso un curso de español.” means “I take a Spanish course.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú cursas, él cursa, nosotros cursamos, ellos cursan.

What is the difference between cursar and curar?

cursar means “to take (a course)”, while curar means “to cure, to heal”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to take (a course)”, use cursar; if it is about the meaning of curar, use curar instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.

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