Debatir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of debatir — "to debate" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for debatir with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Debatir means to debate, and it is used for debating a topic in class, in parliament and in a public discussion. It suggests a structured exchange of arguments rather than a quarrel, and it is a regular -ir verb. To see it in a real sentence: Él debate el tema en clase. — "He/she debates the topic in class." Work through the table below, then the formation notes, the usage rules and the contrast with the preterite, and test yourself at the end.

Present tense conjugation table: debatir

Every person of debatir in the present tense. The gerund is debatiendo and the past participle is debatido.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo debato
tú debates
él/ella/Ud. debate
nosotros/as debatimos
vosotros/as debatís
ellos/ellas/Uds. debaten

How the present indicative of debatir is formed

The present indicative of debatir is built from the stem debat- plus the present endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.

Person Ending Form
yo -o debato
tú -es debates
él/ella/Ud. -e debate
nosotros/as -imos debatimos
vosotros/as -ís debatís
ellos/ellas/Uds. -en debaten

The gerund of debatir is debatiendo and the past participle is debatido. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.

When to use the present tense of debatir

The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and debatir appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.

Habits and routines

The present tense describes things you do regularly. If you do it every day, every week or every morning, the present is the tense to use. For debatir, this use looks like this: "Yo debato el tema en clase." — "I debate the topic in class." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

General facts

The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. It is the tense for definitions and permanent situations. For debatir, this use looks like this: "Él debate sobre el cambio climático." — "He/she debates climate change." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

What is happening now

The present tense also covers what is happening at this moment, especially with verbs that describe an action in progress. For debatir, this use looks like this: "Nosotros debatimos la propuesta en el parlamento." — "We debate the proposal in parliament." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

Timetables and schedules

The present tense is used for fixed plans and timetables, such as trains, classes and opening times, even when they refer to the future. For debatir, this use looks like this: "Ellos debaten con los alumnos cada semana." — "They debate with the students every week." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

Instructions and requests

The present tense appears in instructions and polite requests, where it sounds softer than a direct command. For debatir, this use looks like this: "Tú debates el tema en clase." — "You debate the topic in class." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

The present tense vs the preterite

Learners often mix up the present and the preterite with debatir. The rule is simple: the present is for habits, facts and what is happening now, while the preterite is for one finished action in the past. The three pairs below show the same idea in both tenses, so you can feel the difference.

Pair 1: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Yo debato el tema en clase." — "I debate the topic in class."
  • Preterite: "Yo debatí el tema en clase." — "I debated the topic in class." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Pair 2: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Él debate sobre el cambio climático." — "He/she debates climate change."
  • Preterite: "Él debatió sobre el cambio climático." — "He/she debated climate change." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Pair 3: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Nosotros debatimos la propuesta en el parlamento." — "We debate the proposal in parliament."
  • Preterite: "Nosotros debatimos la propuesta en el parlamento." — "We debated the proposal in parliament." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Example sentences in the present tense

Eight natural sentences with debatir in the present tense only. Each one uses a form from the table above.

  1. Yo debato el tema en clase. — I debate the topic in class.
  2. Tú debates sobre el cambio climático. — You debate climate change.
  3. Él debate la propuesta en el parlamento. — He/she debates the proposal in parliament.
  4. Nosotros debatimos con los alumnos cada semana. — We debate with the students every week.
  5. Vosotros debatís el tema en clase. — You all debate the topic in class.
  6. Ellos debaten sobre el cambio climático. — They debate climate change.
  7. Yo debato la propuesta en el parlamento. — I debate the proposal in parliament.
  8. Él debate con los alumnos cada semana. — He/she debates with the students every week.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Vosotros debatis sobre el cambio climático. — Right: Vosotros debatís sobre el cambio climático. — The vosotros present form carries a written accent: debatís, not debatis.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo debato la propuesta en el parlamento. — Right: Ayer, yo debatí la propuesta en el parlamento. — Ayer means yesterday, so it needs the preterite (debatí), not the present (debato). The present is for now, not for yesterday.
  3. Wrong: Yo debate el tema en clase. — Right: Yo debato el tema en clase. — The person matters: debate is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is debato.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy debatido sobre el cambio climático. — Right: Yo he debatido sobre el cambio climático. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he debatido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

Quiz: test yourself

Eight questions on the present tense of debatir. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el tema en clase. (present tense) A. debato B. debates C. debate D. debatimos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ sobre el cambio climático. (present tense) A. debates B. debato C. debate D. debatimos

  3. Complete the sentence: Él ___ la propuesta en el parlamento. (present tense) A. debate B. debato C. debates D. debatimos

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ con los alumnos cada semana. (present tense) A. debatimos B. debato C. debates D. debate

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros ___ el tema en clase. (present tense) A. debatís B. debato C. debates D. debate

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ___ sobre el cambio climático. (present tense) A. debaten B. debato C. debates D. debate

  7. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la propuesta en el parlamento. (present tense) A. debato B. debates C. debate D. debatimos

  8. Complete the sentence: Él ___ con los alumnos cada semana. (present tense) A. debate B. debato C. debates D. debatimos

Answer key

  1. debato — The yo present form of debatir is debato. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  2. debates — The tu present form of debatir is debates. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  3. debate — The el present form of debatir is debate. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  4. debatimos — The nosotros present form of debatir is debatimos. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  5. debatís — The vosotros present form of debatir is debatís. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  6. debaten — The ellos present form of debatir is debaten. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  7. debato — The yo present form of debatir is debato. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  8. debate — The el present form of debatir is debate. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present tense of debatir?

Use the present tense of debatir for habits, facts and what is happening now. For example: Yo debato el tema en clase. — "I debate the topic in class." The usage rules above give five situations with examples.

How is the present tense of debatir formed?

Take the stem debat- and add the present endings for -ir verbs. The full table is at the top of this page.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of debatir?

The present describes a habit or a present fact, while the preterite describes a finished action. Compare Yo debato sobre el cambio climático. with Yo debatí sobre el cambio climático. — the verb is the same, but the time meaning changes.

How do I practise the present tense of debatir?

Drill the six forms in the table above until you can say them without looking, then use the debatir examples and quiz page for more sentences, and test yourself with the Debatir conjugation page for the full picture across all tenses.

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