Introduction

desesperarse means “to despair, to lose hope”. It belongs to the group of Spanish verbs that express “to despair, to lose hope”, and once you can conjugate it you can say a surprising amount with a single verb. This page is the complete reference for desesperarse: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, with notes on usage, real example sentences, common mistakes, a quiz and frequently asked questions. desesperarse is a reflexive -ar verb. If it is irregular in a tense, the note under that table says so plainly, and the forms in the table are the correct ones — copy them, do not guess them from the infinitive. A first example to fix the verb in your mind: “Yo me desespero con el tráfico todos los días.” — “I despair with the traffic.”

Quick facts
Infinitive desesperarse
English to despair, to lose hope
Verb type Reflexive -ar verb
Gerund desesperando
Past participle desesperado
Auxiliary verb haber
  • Reflexive: yes — always use it with the reflexive pronouns me, te, se, nos, os, se.

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: desesperando · Past participle: desesperado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo desespero
tú desesperas
él/ella/Ud. desespera
nosotros/as desesperamos
vosotros/as desesperáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperan

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For desesperarse, the yo form is desespero, as in “Yo me desespero con el tráfico.” — “I despair with the traffic.”

Preterite

Person Form
yo desesperé
tú desesperaste
él/ella/Ud. desesperó
nosotros/as desesperamos
vosotros/as desesperasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperaron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For desesperarse, the yo form is desesperé, as in “Yo me desesperé con el tráfico.” — “I despaired with the traffic.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo desesperaba
tú desesperabas
él/ella/Ud. desesperaba
nosotros/as desesperábamos
vosotros/as desesperabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperaban

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For desesperarse, the yo form is desesperaba, as in “Yo me desesperaba con el tráfico.” — “I used to despair with the traffic.”

Future

Person Form
yo desesperaré
tú desesperarás
él/ella/Ud. desesperará
nosotros/as desesperaremos
vosotros/as desesperaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperarán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For desesperarse, the yo form is desesperaré, as in “Yo me desesperaré con el tráfico.” — “I will despair with the traffic.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo desesperaría
tú desesperarías
él/ella/Ud. desesperaría
nosotros/as desesperaríamos
vosotros/as desesperaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperarían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For desesperarse, the yo form is desesperaría, as in “Yo me desesperaría con el tráfico.” — “I would despair with the traffic.”

Present Perfect

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

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For desesperarse, the yo form is he desesperado, as in “Yo me he desesperado con el tráfico.” — “I have despaired with the traffic.”

Pluperfect

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

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For desesperarse, the yo form is había desesperado, as in “Yo me había desesperado con el tráfico.” — “I had despaired with the traffic.”

Future Perfect

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

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For desesperarse, the yo form is habré desesperado, as in “Yo me habré desesperado con el tráfico.” — “I will have despaired with the traffic.”

Conditional Perfect

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

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For desesperarse, the yo form is habría desesperado, as in “Yo me habría desesperado con el tráfico.” — “I would have despaired with the traffic.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo desespere
tú desesperes
él/ella/Ud. desespere
nosotros/as desesperemos
vosotros/as desesperéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperen

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For desesperarse, the yo form is desespere, as in “Espero que yo me desespere con el tráfico.” — “I hope that I despair with the traffic.”

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo desesperara
tú desesperaras
él/ella/Ud. desesperara
nosotros/as desesperáramos
vosotros/as desesperarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. desesperaran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For desesperarse, the yo form is desesperara, as in “Si yo me desesperara con el tráfico, ...” — “If I despaired with the traffic, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: desesperara becomes desesperase, and the same change applies to every person. Both variants mean the same thing; -ra is more common in everyday speech.

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú desespera
Ud. desespere
nosotros/as desesperemos
vosotros/as desesperad
Uds. desesperen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú desesperes
Ud. desespere
nosotros/as desesperemos
vosotros/as desesperéis
Uds. desesperen

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is desespera, as in “No te desesperes con el tráfico” — “Do not despair with the traffic” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no desesperes. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with desesperarse.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with desesperarse, covering different tenses and persons. Read each one out loud, then read the translation, and notice how the verb form changes while the meaning stays the same.

  1. “Yo me desespero con el tráfico cada día.” — “I despair with the traffic.”
  2. “Él se desespera con el tráfico todos los días.” — “He despairs with the traffic.”
  3. “Yo me desesperé con el tráfico ayer.” — “I despaired with the traffic.”
  4. “Él se desesperó con el tráfico ayer.” — “He despaired with the traffic.”
  5. “Yo me desesperaba con el tráfico cuando era joven.” — “I used to despair with the traffic.”
  6. “Nosotros nos desesperaremos con el tráfico mañana.” — “We will despair with the traffic.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo me desesperaría con el tráfico.” — “If I could, i would despair with the traffic.”
  8. “Yo me he desesperado con el tráfico hoy.” — “I have despaired with the traffic.”
  9. “Espero que yo me desespere con el tráfico.” — “I hope that I despair with the traffic.”
  10. “Me estoy desesperando con el tráfico ahora mismo.” — “I am despairing with the traffic.”

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is desesperé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — desespere — 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 desesperarse.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For desesperarse, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: desesperamos. 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.

Dropping the reflexive pronoun

Because desesperarse is reflexive, it always needs its pronoun: yo me desespero con el tráfico, not yo desespero con el tráfico. Without me, the sentence either means something else or means nothing at all. The pronouns are me, te, se, nos, os, se — learn them with the verb, not as an afterthought.

Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses

Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he desesperado con el tráfico. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy desesperado is not the present perfect of desesperarse — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing desesperarse with descubrir

desesperarse 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 desesperarse — despair — the sentence needs desesperarse; 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 desespere con el tráfico. Using the indicative — Espero que yo desespero — is one of the most frequent learner errors with desesperarse. 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 desesperarse in the present?

  • A. desesperas
  • B. desespera
  • C. desesperamos
  • D. desespero

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

  • A. desesperamos
  • B. desesperaste
  • C. desesperé
  • D. desesperó

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

  • A. desesperabas
  • B. desesperábamos
  • C. desesperabais
  • D. desesperaba

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

  • A. desesperará
  • B. desesperaremos
  • C. desesperaré
  • D. desesperarás

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

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

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

  • A. desespere
  • B. desesperen
  • C. desespere
  • D. desesperes

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

  • A. desesperaste
  • B. desesperó
  • C. desesperamos
  • D. desesperé

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

  • A. desesperábamos
  • B. desesperabas
  • C. desesperaba
  • D. desesperaba

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

  • A. desesperaré
  • B. desesperarás
  • C. desesperaremos
  • D. desesperará

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

  • A. desesperaría
  • B. desesperaríamos
  • C. desesperaría
  • D. desesperarías

Answer key

  1. desespero — The present table gives yo = desespero.
  2. desesperaste — The preterite table gives tu = desesperaste.
  3. desesperaba — The imperfect table gives el = desesperaba.
  4. desesperaremos — The future table gives nosotros = desesperaremos.
  5. habéis desesperado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis desesperado.
  6. desesperen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = desesperen.
  7. desesperé — The preterite table gives yo = desesperé.
  8. desesperabas — The imperfect table gives tu = desesperabas.
  9. desesperará — The future table gives el = desesperará.
  10. desesperaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = desesperaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is desesperarse regular or irregular?

desesperarse is a reflexive -ar verb. It follows the regular patterns for its ending in every tense. The tables on this page show the correct form for every person, so use them rather than guessing.

What is the past participle of desesperarse?

The past participle of desesperarse is desesperado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he desesperado, había desesperado, habré desesperado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund desesperando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.

What is the gerund of desesperarse?

The gerund of desesperarse is desesperando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy desesperando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle desesperado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.

What is the yo form of desesperarse in the present?

The yo form is desespero — “Yo me desespero con el tráfico.” means “I despair with the traffic.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú desesperas, él desespera, nosotros desesperamos, ellos desesperan.

What is the difference between desesperarse and descubrir?

desesperarse means “to despair, to lose hope”, while descubrir means “to discover”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to despair, to lose hope”, use desesperarse; if it is about the meaning of descubrir, use descubrir instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.

Do I always need the pronoun with desesperarse?

Yes. desesperarse is reflexive, so the pronoun is part of the verb: me, te, se, nos, os, se. You say yo me desespero, tú te desesperas, él se desespera. Leaving the pronoun out changes the meaning or makes the sentence wrong, so learn the pronoun together with each form.

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