Dejar Conjugation in Spanish
dejar means “leave” in English, and it is one of the first verbs Spanish learners meet — it sits at number 22 in VerbFlow’s frequency list. You use it for leaving things in a place, for leaving a place or a job, and for giving up a habit (dejar de + infinitive). Because it comes up in everyday conversation so often, learning its forms properly pays off from the very first week. This page gives you the complete conjugation of dejar — every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Yo dejo las llaves en la mesa todos los días.” — “I leave the keys on the table every day.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: dejar
- English: to leave
- Verb type: Regular -ar verb
- Irregular in: no tense — fully regular
- Gerund: dejando
- Past participle: dejado
- Auxiliary: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + the past participle)
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for dejar. Learn the present tense first, then the preterite and the imperfect, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | dejo |
| tú | dejas |
| él/ella/Ud. | deja |
| nosotros/as | dejamos |
| vosotros/as | dejáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejan |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | dejé |
| tú | dejaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | dejó |
| nosotros/as | dejamos |
| vosotros/as | dejasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | dejaba |
| tú | dejabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | dejaba |
| nosotros/as | dejábamos |
| vosotros/as | dejabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | dejaré |
| tú | dejarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | dejará |
| nosotros/as | dejaremos |
| vosotros/as | dejaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | dejaría |
| tú | dejarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | dejaría |
| nosotros/as | dejaríamos |
| vosotros/as | dejaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he dejado |
| tú | has dejado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha dejado |
| nosotros/as | hemos dejado |
| vosotros/as | habéis dejado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han dejado |
Pluperfect (past perfect)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había dejado |
| tú | habías dejado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había dejado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos dejado |
| vosotros/as | habíais dejado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían dejado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré dejado |
| tú | habrás dejado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá dejado |
| nosotros/as | habremos dejado |
| vosotros/as | habréis dejado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán dejado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría dejado |
| tú | habrías dejado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría dejado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos dejado |
| vosotros/as | habríais dejado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían dejado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | deje |
| tú | dejes |
| él/ella/Ud. | deje |
| nosotros/as | dejemos |
| vosotros/as | dejéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejen |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | dejara |
| tú | dejaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | dejara |
| nosotros/as | dejáramos |
| vosotros/as | dejarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | deja |
| él/ella/Ud. | deje |
| nosotros/as | dejemos |
| vosotros/as | dejad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejen |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | dejes |
| él/ella/Ud. | deje |
| nosotros/as | dejemos |
| vosotros/as | dejéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | dejen |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Gerund | dejando |
| Past participle | dejado |
When to use each tense
Present indicative
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Yo dejo las llaves en la mesa todos los días.” — “I leave the keys on the table every day.”
Preterite
The preterite is used for completed actions in the past. For example: “Tú dejaste el trabajo ayer.” — “You left work yesterday.”
Imperfect
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and background description. For example: “Él dejaba de fumar antes.” — “He used to leave smoking before.”
Future
The future is used for what will happen, predictions and probability. For example: “Yo dejaré las llaves en la mesa mañana.” — “I will leave the keys on the table tomorrow.”
Conditional
The conditional is used for what would happen, polite requests and hypothetical situations. For example: “Tú dejarías el trabajo algún día.” — “You would leave work someday.”
Present perfect
The present perfect is used for recent past actions and life experience, formed with haber + the past participle. For example: “Él ha dejado de fumar esta semana.” — “He has left smoking this week.”
Pluperfect (past perfect)
The pluperfect (past perfect) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Yo había dejado las llaves en la mesa antes de la fiesta.” — “I had left the keys on the table before the party.”
Future perfect
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Tú habrás dejado el trabajo para mañana.” — “You will have left work by tomorrow.”
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Él habría dejado de fumar ayer.” — “He would have left smoking yesterday.”
Present subjunctive
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after que. For example: “Es importante que yo deje las llaves en la mesa.” — “It is important that i leave the keys on the table.”
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
The imperfect subjunctive (-ra) is used for the past subjunctive: wishes and hypotheticals about the past, and clauses after a past-tense trigger. For example: “Ojalá tú dejaras el trabajo.” — “I wish you left work.”
Imperative (affirmative)
The imperative (affirmative) is used for direct commands and instructions. The imperative of dejar gives a direct order; the negative forms use the present subjunctive pattern. For example: “¡Deja de fumar!” — “Leave smoking!”
Imperative (negative)
The imperative (negative) is used for prohibitions and negative commands. The imperative of dejar gives a direct order; the negative forms use the present subjunctive pattern. For example: “No dejes las llaves en la mesa.” — “Do not leave the keys on the table.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with dejar, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the Spanish and try to produce it from the English.
- “Yo dejo las llaves en la mesa todos los días.” — “I leave the keys on the table every day.”
- “Tú dejaste el trabajo ayer.” — “You left work yesterday.”
- “Él dejaba de fumar antes.” — “He used to leave smoking before.”
- “Yo dejaré el trabajo mañana.” — “I will leave work tomorrow.”
- “Tú dejarías las llaves en la mesa algún día.” — “You would leave the keys on the table someday.”
- “Él ha dejado de fumar esta semana.” — “He has left smoking this week.”
- “Yo había dejado las llaves en la mesa antes de la fiesta.” — “I had left the keys on the table before the party.”
- “Tú habrás dejado el trabajo para mañana.” — “You will have left work by tomorrow.”
- “Es importante que él deje de fumar.” — “It is important that he leave smoking.”
- “¡Deja las llaves en la mesa!” — “Leave the keys on the table!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Yo dejar las llaves en la mesa.”
✓ Right: “Yo dejo las llaves en la mesa.”
The infinitive dejar never takes a subject. After yo you need the conjugated present form dejo.
2. Confusing dejar with salir
✗ Wrong: “Yo salgo las llaves en la mesa.”
✓ Right: “Yo dejo las llaves en la mesa.”
Dejar is to leave something behind; salir is to go out.
3. Using the wrong auxiliary in perfect tenses
✗ Wrong: “Yo soy dejado las llaves en la mesa.”
✓ Right: “Yo he dejado las llaves en la mesa.”
Spanish perfect tenses are always built with haber, never with ser. The correct form is he + the participle dejado.
4. Dropping the written accent
✗ Wrong: “deje”
✓ Right: “dejé”
The accent on dejé is part of the spelling in the preterite. Without it the form looks like a different word, so always write the accent.
5. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “Ojalá tú dejas las llaves en la mesa.”
✓ Right: “Ojalá tú dejes las llaves en la mesa.”
After ojalá Spanish needs the subjunctive, so use dejes here, not the indicative dejas.
6. Using the preterite for a habitual past action
✗ Wrong: “Yo dejé las llaves en la mesa antes.” (said of a repeated habit)
✓ Right: “Yo dejaba las llaves en la mesa antes.”
The preterite dejé describes one finished action. For something you did regularly in the past, use the imperfect dejaba.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on dejar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the yo form of dejar in the Present indicative?
- A) dejas
- B) deja
- C) dejamos
- D) dejo
What is the él/ella/Ud. form of dejar in the Preterite?
- A) dejaste
- B) dejamos
- C) dejó
- D) dejé
What is the nosotros/as form of dejar in the Imperfect?
- A) dejabais
- B) dejábamos
- C) dejaba
- D) dejabas
What is the tú form of dejar in the Future?
- A) dejarás
- B) dejaré
- C) dejará
- D) dejaremos
What is the yo form of dejar in the Conditional?
- A) dejarías
- B) dejaríamos
- C) dejaríais
- D) dejaría
What is the él/ella/Ud. form of dejar in the Present subjunctive?
- A) dejemos
- B) dejéis
- C) deje
- D) dejes
What is the yo form of dejar in the Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- A) dejarais
- B) dejara
- C) dejaras
- D) dejáramos
What is the gerund of dejar?
- A) dejando
- B) llevando
- C) siguiendo
- D) encontrando
What is the past participle of dejar?
- A) llevado
- B) seguido
- C) encontrado
- D) dejado
What does dejar mean in English?
- A) to follow
- B) to find
- C) to leave
- D) to carry
Answer key
- D) dejo — the yo form of dejar in the present indicative is dejo. The other options (dejas, deja, dejamos) are the same tense for different persons.
- C) dejó — the él/ella/Ud. form of dejar in the preterite is dejó. The other options (dejé, dejaste, dejamos) are the same tense for different persons.
- B) dejábamos — the nosotros/as form of dejar in the imperfect is dejábamos. The other options (dejaba, dejabas, dejaba) are the same tense for different persons.
- A) dejarás — the tú form of dejar in the future is dejarás. The other options (dejaré, dejará, dejaremos) are the same tense for different persons.
- D) dejaría — the yo form of dejar in the conditional is dejaría. The other options (dejarías, dejaría, dejaríamos) are the same tense for different persons.
- C) deje — the él/ella/Ud. form of dejar in the present subjunctive is deje. The other options (deje, dejes, dejemos) are the same tense for different persons.
- B) dejara — the yo form of dejar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) is dejara. The other options (dejaras, dejara, dejáramos) are the same tense for different persons.
- A) dejando — the gerund of dejar is dejando; it is used with estar for the progressive. The other options are the gerunds of neighbouring verbs.
- D) dejado — the past participle of dejar is dejado; perfect tenses use haber + dejado. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
- C) to leave — dejar means “to leave” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.
Frequently asked questions
What does dejar mean in English?
dejar means “to leave”. You use it for leaving things in a place, for leaving a place or a job, and for giving up a habit (dejar de + infinitive). It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is dejar regular or irregular?
dejar is regular -ar verb, with no irregular tense — it follows the regular pattern throughout. The gerund is dejando and the past participle is dejado.
What are the gerund and past participle of dejar?
The gerund is dejando — use it with estar for actions in progress. The past participle is dejado — use it with haber for the perfect tenses, as in he dejado (I have left).
What is the difference between dejar and salir?
Dejar is to leave something behind; salir is to go out. If you are unsure, check the full table for salir and compare the meanings in context.
How do I say “I leave” in Spanish?
Say “Yo dejo las llaves en la mesa.” — “I leave the keys on the table every day.” The yo form of the present is dejo, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- dejar in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in its most practised tense.
- dejar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- Llevar conjugation — another everyday Spanish verb.
- Seguir conjugation — another everyday Spanish verb.
- Encontrar conjugation — another everyday Spanish verb.
- Present tense guide — how the present tense works for regular verbs.
- Preterite tense guide — how the preterite works, and when to choose it over the imperfect.
- Verb Conjugator — practise dejar with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise dejar with the interactive tool.