Desayunar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb desayunar means to have breakfast, and this page covers it in the present tense — the tense for habits, facts and what is happening now. If you want the whole picture, start with the full desayunar conjugation, which has every tense on one page. Here we go deep on one tense only: the full table, how it is formed, when to use it, how it differs from the closest tense, examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the questions people ask most. One example to start: Yo desayuno a las siete. — "I have breakfast at seven o'clock."

No pronunciation is given on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for desayunar, so no pronunciation is shown rather than an invented one. All the forms below come from the verified conjugation tables, so you can trust every form you see here.

The desayunar present tense table

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for desayunar. The gerund is desayunando and the past participle is desayunado.

Person Form
yo desayuno
tú desayunas
él/ella/Ud. desayuna
nosotros/as desayunamos
vosotros/as desayunáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunan

The gerund desayunando is used with estar for the progressive (estoy desayunando, I am having breakfast), and the past participle desayunado is used with haber for the perfect tenses (he desayunado, I have had breakfast).

How the present tense of desayunar is formed

Start with the infinitive desayunar. Take off the -ar ending and you are left with the stem desayun-. Then add the present endings for -ar verbs: -o (yo), -as (tú), -a (él/ella/Ud.), -amos (nosotros/as), -áis (vosotros/as) and -an (ellos/ellas/Uds.). That gives you the six forms in the table above, and for most verbs in this group that is the whole story.

desayunar is regular in the present: every form is exactly the stem plus the ending above, with no stem change and no spelling change. If you know the stem and the six endings, you can build the whole tense without memorising anything extra.

Two details are worth fixing early. First, the vosotros form carries a written accent on the ending: desayunáis. Second, the present tense in Spanish has no auxiliary verb: desayuno on its own means both "I have breakfast" and "I am having breakfast" in English, so you do not need a separate word for the progressive unless you want to stress that something is happening right now.

When to use the present tense of desayunar

Habits and routines

The present is the tense of what you do regularly. Talking about your morning routine: what time you eat breakfast and what you usually eat, for example coffee and toast or cereal with milk.

  • Yo desayuno a las siete. — "I have breakfast at seven o'clock."
  • Tú desayunas en la cocina. — "you have breakfast in the kitchen."

Facts and general truths

The present also states facts that are true in general, not just today. Describing breakfast as a family or social moment, at home or in a café, and who you eat with.

  • Él desayuna con mi familia. — "he/she has breakfast with my family."
  • Nosotros desayunamos antes de ir al trabajo. — "we have breakfast before going to work."

What is happening now

The present describes what is happening at this moment. Talking about weekend breakfasts, which in Spain are often later and slower than weekday ones.

  • Vosotros desayunáis todos los días. — "you (all) have breakfast every day."
  • Ellos desayunan los domingos en la terraza. — "they have breakfast on the terrace on Sundays."

Plans in the near future

Spanish also uses the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with a time expression. A plan you have already decided on can be stated in the present, and it sounds more certain than the future tense.

  • Él desayuna con mi familia. — "he/she has breakfast with my family."
  • Nosotros desayunamos antes de ir al trabajo. — "we have breakfast before going to work."

Desayunar present vs present progressive

The present tense and the present progressive (estar + gerund) are close neighbours, and learners mix them up. The present describes a habit, a fact or a routine. The progressive describes something in progress right now, at this very moment. Compare the three pairs below: the first sentence in each pair is a habit, the second is happening now.

  • Present (habit): Yo desayuno a las siete. — "I have breakfast at seven o'clock."

  • Progressive (right now): Yo estoy desayunando a las siete. — "I am having breakfast at seven o'clock."

  • Present (habit): Tú desayunas en la cocina. — "you have breakfast in the kitchen."

  • Progressive (right now): Tú estás desayunando en la cocina. — "you are having breakfast in the kitchen."

  • Present (habit): Él desayuna con mi familia. — "he/she has breakfast with my family."

  • Progressive (right now): Él está desayunando con mi familia. — "he/she is having breakfast with my family."

Use the present when you talk about what you usually do, and the progressive when you want to stress that it is happening as you speak. If you say desayuno every day, that is a routine. If you say Estoy desayunando, you are doing it at this moment.

Examples of desayunar in the present

Eight sentences in the present tense, so you can see the forms in real use. Read the Spanish first, guess the meaning, then check the translation.

  1. Desayuno a las siete con un café y una tostada. — "I have breakfast at seven with a coffee and a piece of toast."
  2. Mis hijos desayunan cereales con leche antes del colegio. — "My children have cereal with milk for breakfast before school."
  3. Ayer desayuné en un bar cerca de la estación. — "Yesterday I had breakfast in a café near the station."
  4. De niño, desayunaba pan con chocolate todos los días. — "As a child, I used to have bread with chocolate for breakfast every day."
  5. Mañana desayunaré con mis abuelos en su casa. — "Tomorrow I will have breakfast with my grandparents at their house."
  6. Si tuviera más tiempo, desayunaría con calma cada mañana. — "If I had more time, I would have breakfast calmly every morning."
  7. Él desayuna todos los días. — "he/she has breakfast every day."
  8. Nosotros desayunamos los domingos en la terraza. — "we have breakfast on the terrace on Sundays."

Common mistakes with desayunar in the present

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why it is wrong.

1. Yo desayuna a las ocho.

Wrong: Yo desayuna a las ocho.

Right: Yo desayuno a las ocho.

The yo form of a regular -ar verb ends in -o, not -a: desayuno, never desayuna for yo.

2. Mis hijos desayuna cereales.

Wrong: Mis hijos desayuna cereales.

Right: Mis hijos desayunan cereales.

The subject is plural (mis hijos), so the verb needs the -n ending: desayunan.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

Wrong: Ayer yo desayuno a las siete.

Right: Ayer yo desayuné a las siete.

Ayer (yesterday) signals a finished action, so it needs the preterite: desayuné. The present desayuno describes what you do now or usually, not what you did yesterday.

4. Forgetting the accent on the vosotros form

Wrong: Vosotros desayunais a las siete.

Right: Vosotros desayunáis a las siete.

The vosotros ending carries a written accent: desayunáis. Without it, the spelling is wrong, even though the pronunciation is close.

Quiz: test yourself on desayunar in the present

Choose the right form for each sentence. The answers are at the end of this section, with an explanation for every question.

  1. Yo ___ a las siete
    • a) desayuno
    • b) desayunas
    • c) desayuna
    • d) desayunamos
  2. Tú ___ en la cocina
    • a) desayuno
    • b) desayuna
    • c) desayunamos
    • d) desayunas
  3. Él ___ con mi familia
    • a) desayunas
    • b) desayunamos
    • c) desayuna
    • d) desayuno
  4. Nosotros ___ antes de ir al trabajo
    • a) desayuna
    • b) desayunamos
    • c) desayuno
    • d) desayunas
  5. Vosotros ___ todos los días
    • a) desayunáis
    • b) desayuno
    • c) desayunas
    • d) desayuna
  6. Ellos ___ los domingos en la terraza
    • a) desayuno
    • b) desayunas
    • c) desayuna
    • d) desayunan
  7. Yo ___ a las siete
    • a) desayuna
    • b) desayunamos
    • c) desayuno
    • d) desayunas
  8. Tú ___ en la cocina
    • a) desayunamos
    • b) desayunas
    • c) desayuno
    • d) desayuna

Answers

  1. a) desayuno — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  2. d) desayunas — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.
  3. c) desayuna — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form, because the subject is él/ella/Ud..
  4. b) desayunamos — The sentence needs the nosotros/as form, because the subject is nosotros/as.
  5. a) desayunáis — The sentence needs the vosotros/as form, because the subject is vosotros/as.
  6. d) desayunan — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form, because the subject is ellos/ellas/Uds..
  7. c) desayuno — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  8. b) desayunas — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.

Frequently asked questions about desayunar in the present

Is desayunar a regular verb?

Yes. Desayunar is a regular -ar verb: take off -ar, add -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an in the present. There are no stem changes and no spelling changes in any tense.

Can I say tomar el desayuno instead of desayunar?

Yes, both are used. Tomo el desayuno means the same thing, but desayunar is the single verb and the more natural choice in everyday speech.

Is desayunar regular in the present?

Yes. desayunar is regular in the present: the six forms are the stem desayun- plus the regular endings, with no stem change. The only thing to watch is the written accent on the stressed endings, for example desayuno.

What are the gerund and the past participle of desayunar?

The gerund is desayunando, used with estar for the progressive (estoy desayunando), and the past participle is desayunado, used with haber for the perfect tenses (he desayunado).

How to remember desayunar

Four small habits will fix desayunar in your memory. First, say the present tense out loud, in order, three times: desayuno, desayunas, desayuna, desayunamos, desayunáis, desayunan. Saying the forms is far more effective than reading them silently, because you hear the endings and the stem at the same time. Second, write three sentences about your own life: one about today with the present (desayuno), one about yesterday with the preterite (desayuné), and one about tomorrow with the future (desayunaré). Personal sentences stick because they are about you, not about a textbook. Third, remember the difference from almorzar: Desayunar is the first meal of the day, in the morning. Almorzar is the midday meal, lunch. Do not use desayunar for a meal at two in the afternoon. Finally, learn the two key forms by heart: the gerund desayunando and the past participle desayunado. With those two and the present tense, you can already build the progressive (estoy desayunando) and the present perfect (he desayunado), which covers most everyday conversation.

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