Introduction

desdeñar means “to disdain”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. It is the verb for expressing “to disdain” in everyday Spanish — in conversation, at work, and at home. This page shows desdeñar in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make most often, and it finishes with a ten-question quiz so you can test yourself. Every sentence below comes with its English translation, and every form is the correct form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo desdeño la oferta por la mañana.” — “I disdain the offer.”

desdeñar in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how desdeñar is used. Read each one out loud, then read the translation. If a sentence feels useful, copy it into your own notebook with one small change — a different time, a different person, a different place — and you have a new sentence of your own.

In the present: everyday use

These sentences use {verb} in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Yo desdeño la oferta cada día.” — “I disdain the offer.”
  2. “Tú desdeñas la oferta cada día.” — “you disdain the offer.”
  3. “Él desdeña la oferta siempre.” — “He disdains the offer.”
  4. “Nosotros desdeñamos la oferta todos los días.” — “We disdain the offer.”

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show {verb} in the past, so you can talk about what already happened. 5. “Yo desdeñé la oferta ayer.” — “I disdained the offer.” (preterite) 6. “Él desdeñó la oferta ayer.” — “He disdained the offer.” (preterite) 7. “Yo desdeñaba la oferta cuando era joven.” — “I used to disdain the offer.” (imperfect)

Plans and things already done

These sentences look forward, or look back at something already finished. Notice how the verb form changes while the meaning of {verb} stays the same. 8. “Nosotros desdeñaremos la oferta mañana.” — “We will disdain the offer.” (future) 9. “Tú has desdeñado la oferta hoy.” — “you have disdained the offer.” (present-perfect) 10. “Espero que yo desdeñe la oferta.” — “I hope that I disdain the offer.” (present-subjunctive)

More everyday uses

Two more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action. 11. “Vosotros desdeñáis la oferta cada semana.” — “You disdain the offer.” 12. “Ellos desdeñan la oferta normalmente.” — “They disdain the offer.”

desdeñar in context

Single sentences teach you the forms. Dialogues teach you when to use them. Read the short conversation below, then the paragraph that follows, and notice how desdeñar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

Dialogue at home in the evening

Ana: “¿Tú desdeñas la oferta?” — Do you disdain the offer?

Luis: “Sí, yo desdeño la oferta cada día. Es parte de mi rutina.” — Yes, I disdain the offer every day. It is part of my routine.

Ana: “¿Y ayer? ¿También desdeñas la oferta?” — And yesterday? Did you disdain the offer too?

Luis: “Sí, ayer yo desdeñé la oferta. Mañana nosotros desdeñaremos la oferta otra vez.” — Yes, yesterday I disdained the offer. Tomorrow we will disdain the offer again.

A short paragraph

Él desdeña la oferta cada día — that one sentence already tells you a lot about how desdeñar works in real Spanish: who does it, when, and with what. Around it you can build a whole paragraph: what happened yesterday, what is happening now, and what will happen tomorrow, all with the same verb. When you write your own paragraph, start with the present — yo desdeño la oferta — then add one past sentence and one future sentence, and you have practised three tenses with one verb. That is the fastest way to make desdeñar yours: use it in a story, not only in a table.

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is desdeñé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — desdeñe — 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 desdeñar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For desdeñar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: desdeñamos. 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 desdeñado la oferta. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy desdeñado is not the present perfect of desdeñar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing desdeñar with descubrir

desdeñar and descubrir 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 desdeñar — disdain — the sentence needs desdeñar; if it needs the meaning of descubrir, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo desdeñe la oferta. Using the indicative — Espero que yo desdeño — is one of the most frequent learner errors with desdeñar. 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 desdeñar in the present?

  • A. desdeñas
  • B. desdeña
  • C. desdeñamos
  • D. desdeño

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

  • A. desdeñamos
  • B. desdeñaste
  • C. desdeñé
  • D. desdeñó

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

  • A. desdeñabas
  • B. desdeñábamos
  • C. desdeñabais
  • D. desdeñaba

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

  • A. desdeñará
  • B. desdeñaremos
  • C. desdeñaré
  • D. desdeñarás

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

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

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

  • A. desdeñe
  • B. desdeñen
  • C. desdeñe
  • D. desdeñes

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

  • A. desdeñaste
  • B. desdeñó
  • C. desdeñamos
  • D. desdeñé

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

  • A. desdeñábamos
  • B. desdeñabas
  • C. desdeñaba
  • D. desdeñaba

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

  • A. desdeñaré
  • B. desdeñarás
  • C. desdeñaremos
  • D. desdeñará

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

  • A. desdeñaría
  • B. desdeñaríamos
  • C. desdeñaría
  • D. desdeñarías

Answer key

  1. desdeño — The present table gives yo = desdeño.
  2. desdeñaste — The preterite table gives tu = desdeñaste.
  3. desdeñaba — The imperfect table gives el = desdeñaba.
  4. desdeñaremos — The future table gives nosotros = desdeñaremos.
  5. habéis desdeñado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis desdeñado.
  6. desdeñen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = desdeñen.
  7. desdeñé — The preterite table gives yo = desdeñé.
  8. desdeñabas — The imperfect table gives tu = desdeñabas.
  9. desdeñará — The future table gives el = desdeñará.
  10. desdeñaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = desdeñaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use desdeñar in a sentence?

Put the subject first, then the conjugated form, then the rest: “Yo desdeño la oferta.” — “I disdain the offer.” Change the form for the person and the tense, but keep the sentence pattern the same.

What is the most useful form of desdeñar to learn first?

Learn the present yo form desdeño first, then the preterite yo form desdeñé and the participle desdeñado. With those three you can talk about the present, the past and the perfect tenses. Add the gerund desdeñando next, and you can describe actions in progress too.

Is desdeñar reflexive?

No — desdeñar is not reflexive. It takes a direct object, not a reflexive pronoun: yo desdeño la oferta. Do not add me or se to it unless the sentence genuinely needs a pronoun for another reason.

Where can I see the full conjugation of desdeñar?

On the main conjugation page for desdeñar, which has every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, plus notes, examples and a quiz. The present-tense page covers one tense in depth if that is what you need right now.

Related links