Desayunar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb desayunar means to have breakfast, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Desayunar means to have breakfast, and it is one of the three meal verbs that structure the Spanish day, alongside almorzar and cenar. It takes a direct object for the food — desayunar tostadas — and it is a classic first verb for learners because it appears in every daily-routine text. Like every Spanish verb, desayunar changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana, and in the preterite you say desayuné con la familia el domingo. Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: desayunar
  • English: to have breakfast
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: desayunando
  • Past participle: desayunado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + desayunado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for desayunar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Desayunar can take the food as its object — desayuno café con tostadas — with no preposition needed.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for desayunar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.

Present indicative

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

Preterite

Person Form
yo desayuné
tú desayunaste
él/ella/Ud. desayunó
nosotros/as desayunamos
vosotros/as desayunasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunaron

Imperfect

Person Form
yo desayunaba
tú desayunabas
él/ella/Ud. desayunaba
nosotros/as desayunábamos
vosotros/as desayunabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunaban

Future

Person Form
yo desayunaré
tú desayunarás
él/ella/Ud. desayunará
nosotros/as desayunaremos
vosotros/as desayunaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunarán

Conditional

Person Form
yo desayunaría
tú desayunarías
él/ella/Ud. desayunaría
nosotros/as desayunaríamos
vosotros/as desayunaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunarían

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

Person Form
yo desayune
tú desayunes
él/ella/Ud. desayune
nosotros/as desayunemos
vosotros/as desayunéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo desayunara
tú desayunaras
él/ella/Ud. desayunara
nosotros/as desayunáramos
vosotros/as desayunarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú desayuna
él/ella/Ud. desayune
nosotros/as desayunemos
vosotros/as desayunad
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú desayunes
él/ella/Ud. desayune
nosotros/as desayunemos
vosotros/as desayunéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desayunen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund desayunando with estar for the progressive: estoy desayunando
Past participle desayunado with haber for the perfect tenses: he desayunado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana. Learn the present forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, desayuné a las siete en casa. Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, desayunaba con la familia el domingo. Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, desayunaré fruta y yogur antes de salir. Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Desayunaría café con tostadas por la mañana si pudiera. Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, he desayunado a las siete en casa. Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Había desayunado con la familia el domingo antes de salir. Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habré desayunado fruta y yogur antes de salir. Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría desayunado café con tostadas por la mañana con más tiempo. Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él desayune a las siete en casa. Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él desayunara con la familia el domingo, todo cambiaría. Learn the imperfect subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Desayuna fruta y yogur antes de salir! Learn the affirmative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For desayunar, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No desayunes café con tostadas por la mañana. Learn the negative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with desayunar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana. — I have breakfast coffee with toast in the morning.
  2. Desayuna a las siete en casa. — He/she has breakfast at seven at home.
  3. Ayer, desayuné con la familia el domingo. — Yesterday, I had breakfast with the family on Sundays.
  4. Antes, nosotros desayunábamos fruta y yogur antes de salir. — Before, we used to have breakfast fruit and yoghurt before leaving.
  5. Mañana, tú desayunarás café con tostadas por la mañana. — Tomorrow, you will have breakfast coffee with toast in the morning.
  6. Yo desayunaría a las siete en casa si tuviera más tiempo. — I would have breakfast at seven at home if I had more time.
  7. Él ha desayunado con la familia el domingo. — He has had breakfast with the family on Sundays.
  8. Espero que él desayune fruta y yogur antes de salir. — I hope he has breakfast fruit and yoghurt before leaving.
  9. Yo ya había desayunado café con tostadas por la mañana antes de salir. — I had already had breakfast coffee with toast in the morning before leaving.
  10. Ellos desayunaban a las siete en casa cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to have breakfast at seven at home when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo desayuna café con tostadas por la mañana. — Right: Yo desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana. — The person matters: desayuna is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is desayuno. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo desayuno a las siete en casa. — Right: Ayer yo desayuné a las siete en casa. — The present and the preterite are different tenses: desayuno is happening now, while desayuné is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
  3. Wrong: Treating desayunar and almorzar as identical in every context. — Right: Desayunar means to have breakfast, while almorzar means to have lunch. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: desayunar fits sentences such as Desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana, while almorzar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy desayunado a las siete en casa. — Right: Yo he desayunado a las siete en casa. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he desayunado, has desayunado, ha desayunado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo desayuné con la familia el domingo todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo desayunaba con la familia el domingo todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (desayunaba), not the preterite. The preterite (desayuné) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on desayunar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ café con tostadas por la mañana. (present tense) A. desayuno B. desayunas C. desayuna D. desayunamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ a las siete en casa. (preterite) A. desayuné B. desayunaste C. desayunaron D. desayunó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ con la familia el domingo. (imperfect) A. desayunabas B. desayunaban C. desayunábamos D. desayunaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ fruta y yogur antes de salir. (future) A. desayunaremos B. desayunarás C. desayunaré D. desayunará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ café con tostadas por la mañana si pudiera. (conditional) A. desayunaría B. desayunarías C. desayunarían D. desayuno

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ a las siete en casa. (present subjunctive) A. desayunes B. desayunemos C. desayuno D. desayune

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ con la familia el domingo, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. desayunáramos B. desayuno C. desayunara D. desayunaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ fruta y yogur antes de salir. (present perfect) A. han desayunado B. hemos desayunado C. he desayunado D. has desayunado

  9. Complete the command: ¡___ café con tostadas por la mañana! (affirmative imperative, tú) A. desayuna B. desayune C. desayunemos D. desayunad

  10. Which is the gerund of desayunar, used with estar for the progressive? A. desayunado B. desayuno C. desayuné D. desayunando

Answer key

  1. desayuno — The first-person present of desayunar is desayuno. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. desayunó — The third-person preterite of desayunar is desayunó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. desayunábamos — The nosotros imperfect of desayunar is desayunábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. desayunarás — The second-person future of desayunar is desayunarás.
  5. desayunaría — The first-person conditional of desayunar is desayunaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. desayune — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of desayunar is desayune.
  7. desayunara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of desayunar is desayunara.
  8. hemos desayunado — The nosotros present perfect of desayunar is hemos desayunado: hemos + desayunado.
  9. desayuna — The affirmative tú imperative of desayunar is desayuna.
  10. desayunando — The gerund of desayunar is desayunando: estoy desayunando. The participle desayunado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does desayunar mean in English?

Desayunar means to have breakfast. It is used in everyday situations such as Desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is desayunar regular or irregular?

Desayunar is a fully regular -ar verb, so every tense follows the standard endings for its class. Once you know the regular pattern, you can produce every form on this page, including desayuno in the present and desayuné in the preterite.

What is the difference between desayunar and almorzar?

Desayunar means to have breakfast, while almorzar means to have lunch. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use desayunar when you mean to have breakfast, as in Desayuno café con tostadas por la mañana, and use almorzar for to have lunch. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I have breakfast” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo desayuné a las siete en casa. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo desayunaba con la familia el domingo. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo he desayunado a las siete en casa.

How do I practise desayunar?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the desayunar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

Related links