Introduction
Despertar means “to wake (someone) up”, and this page covers exactly one thing: despertar in the present tense. The present is the tense Spanish speakers reach for when they talk about what happens regularly, what is true in general, and what is happening right now. On this page you will find the full present table for despertar, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the preterite, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about despertar in the present. Despertar is the verb for waking someone else up: a child, a partner, a friend. The person woken is the direct object, with the personal a. For example: “Yo despierto a mi hijo a las siete.” — I wake my son at seven. Everything on this page uses the forms of despertar exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.
Despertar in the Present Tense — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | despierto |
| tú | despiertas |
| él/ella/Ud. | despierta |
| nosotros/as | despertamos |
| vosotros/as | despertáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | despiertan |
Gerund: despertando · Past participle: despertado
The gerund is despertando, which you use with estar to say what is happening right now: “Estoy despertando” means the action of despertar is in progress at this very moment. The past participle is despertado, which you use with haber in the perfect tenses: “he despertado” is the present perfect, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the present is only one part of how despertar is used.
How the present of despertar is formed
Despertar is a stem-changing -ar verb: the stem vowel changes from e → ie in the stressed forms. That means yo, tú, él/ella/Ud. and ellos/ellas/Uds. take the changed stem, while nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem. Start from the stem despert and add the regular -ar endings -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an: you get despierto, despiertas, despierta, then back to the unchanged stem for despertamos and despertáis, and the changed stem again for despiertan. The nosotros and vosotros forms are the ones learners most often get wrong, because they expect the change everywhere — it is not there. Learn the four changed forms and the two unchanged forms as two groups and the pattern becomes automatic.
When to use the present of despertar
The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use despertar in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. Waking someone up
Despertar is the verb for waking someone else up: a child, a partner, a friend. The person woken is the direct object, with the personal a. Example: “Yo despierto a mi hijo a las siete.” — I wake my son at seven.
2. Waking with noise
Despertar also describes what wakes you: a noise, an alarm, the light. The subject is the thing that wakes you, and the verb works the same way. Example: “El ruido despierta a todo el barrio.” — The noise wakes the whole neighbourhood.
3. Awakening interest or feelings
Despertar can mean to awaken interest, curiosity or a memory. It is the figurative use of the verb, and it is common in writing and in conversation. Example: “El libro despierta mi interés por la historia.” — The book awakens my interest in history.
4. Habits and routines
The present tense is the tense of routine. When something happens every day, every week or every morning, the present is the natural choice, and despertar is no exception. Use time expressions such as todos los días, siempre or cada semana to make the routine explicit. Example: “Yo despierto a mi hijo a las siete.” — I wake my son at seven.
5. What is happening right now
The present also describes an action in progress at this very moment. Spanish often prefers the simple present where English would use the continuous form, so a sentence with despertar in the present can mean both “I do this” and “I am doing this now”. Context tells the listener which one you mean. Example: “Nosotros despertamos a los niños a las ocho.” — We wake the children at eight.
Present Tense vs Preterite: how to choose
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the present describes habits, general truths and what is happening now, while the preterite describes one finished action in the past. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the present sentences use words such as todos los días or siempre, while the preterite sentences use ayer or la semana pasada. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.
Present Tense: “Yo despierto a mi hijo todos los días a las siete.” — I wake my son every day at seven.
Preterite: “Ayer yo desperté a mi hijo a las seis.” — Yesterday I woke my son at six.
Todos los días describes a routine, so the present is right; ayer names one finished morning, so the preterite is right.
Present Tense: “El ruido despierta al barrio todas las mañanas.” — The noise wakes the neighbourhood every morning.
Preterite: “El ruido despertó al barrio ayer a las cinco.” — The noise woke the neighbourhood yesterday at five.
Todas las mañanas signals repetition, so the present fits; ayer names one finished morning, so the preterite fits.
Present Tense: “Yo despierto a mi hijo a las siete.” — I wake my son at seven.
Preterite: “Ayer, yo desperté a mi hijo a las siete.” — the same action, but finished yesterday instead of repeated as a habit.
The present sentence is true every day; the preterite sentence is true once, yesterday. That difference — routine versus one finished event — is the whole decision.
Example sentences: despertar in the present
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other verbs — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
“Yo despierto a mi hijo a las siete.” — I wake my son at seven.
“¿Tú despiertas a tu hermano?” — Do you wake your brother?
“El ruido despierta a todo el barrio.” — The noise wakes the whole neighbourhood.
“Nosotros despertamos a los niños a las ocho.” — We wake the children at eight.
“Vosotros despertáis al abuelo con la música.” — You wake Grandpa with the music.
“Ellos despiertan a los vecinos con el perro.” — They wake the neighbours with the dog.
“Yo despierto a mi marido con un café.” — I wake my husband with a coffee.
“La alarma despierta a toda la familia.” — The alarm wakes the whole family.
Common mistakes with despertar in the present
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo despertamos a mi hijo.” Right: “Yo despierto a mi hijo.” Why: The yo form is despierto, with the e → ie change, not despertamos. The change appears in yo, tú, él and ellos, while nosotros and vosotros keep the e: despertamos, despertáis.
Wrong: “Nosotros despiertan a los niños.” Right: “Nosotros despertamos a los niños.” Why: Nosotros keeps the unchanged stem: despertamos, not despiertan. The stem change never applies to nosotros or vosotros.
Wrong: “Yo despierto mi hijo.” Right: “Yo despierto a mi hijo.” Why: Waking a person needs the personal a: despierto a mi hijo. Without the a the sentence sounds unfinished to a native speaker.
Wrong: “Ellos despierta a los vecinos.” Right: “Ellos despiertan a los vecinos.” Why: Ellos needs the ellos form despiertan. The singular despierta belongs with él, ella or a singular noun such as el ruido.
Quiz: despertar in the present
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
1. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ a mi hijo a las siete.” (I wake my son at seven.)
- (a) despiertas
- (b) despierta
- (c) despierto
Answer: despierto — The yo form of despertar in the present is despierto. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
2. Complete the sentence: “¿Tú ______ a tu hermano?” (Do you wake your brother?)
- (a) despierta
- (b) despiertas
- (c) despierto
Answer: despiertas — The tú form of despertar in the present is despiertas. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
3. Complete the sentence: “El ruido ______ a todo el barrio.” (The noise wakes the whole neighbourhood.)
- (a) despierta
- (b) despierto
- (c) despiertas
Answer: despierta — The él/ella/Ud. form of despertar in the present is despierta. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
4. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ a los niños a las ocho.” (We wake the children at eight.)
- (a) despierto
- (b) despiertas
- (c) despertamos
Answer: despertamos — The nosotros/as form of despertar in the present is despertamos. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
5. What is the vosotros/as form of despertar in the present?
- (a) despiertas
- (b) despertáis
- (c) despierto
Answer: despertáis — From the table above: vosotros/as takes despertáis. Say it with the example sentence “Vosotros despertáis al abuelo con la música.” to fix it in your memory.
6. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ a los vecinos con el perro.” (They wake the neighbours with the dog.)
- (a) despierto
- (b) despiertas
- (c) despiertan
Answer: despiertan — The subject needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form, which is despiertan.
7. Despertar is a stem-changing verb (e → ie). Which form keeps the ORIGINAL stem?
- (a) despertamos
- (b) despierto
- (c) despiertan
Answer: despertamos — In a e → ie stem-changing verb, nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem, while yo, tú, él and ellos take the changed stem. So despertamos is the unchanged form.
8. Which sentence describes a habit, something that happens regularly?
- (a) Yo despierto a mi hijo todos los días a las siete.
- (b) Ayer yo desperté a mi hijo a las seis.
- (c) Ayer yo desperté a mi hijo a las seis.
Answer: Yo despierto a mi hijo todos los días a las siete. — “Yo despierto a mi hijo todos los días a las siete.” describes something repeated, so it takes the present tense. The other two sentences describe single finished occasions in the past, not habits.
Frequently asked questions
Is despertar regular in the present tense?
No. Despertar is a stem-changing -ar verb: the e of the stem becomes ie in the stressed forms yo, tú, él and ellos (despierto, despiertas, despierta, despiertan), while nosotros and vosotros keep the e (despertamos, despertáis). The endings are the regular -ar endings.
What is the difference between despertar and despertarse?
Despertar means to wake someone else up: 'Despierto a mi hijo'. Despertarse means to wake up yourself: 'Me despierto a las siete'. The reflexive pronoun changes the meaning from waking another person to waking yourself.
Does despertar need the personal a?
Yes, before a person: 'Despierto a mi hijo', 'Despierto a los niños'. The a is the personal a, and it is required whenever the direct object is a person. When the object is a thing, there is no a: 'El libro despierta mi interés' has no preposition before mi interés.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of despertar — every tense of despertar in one place.
- Despertar examples and quiz — more sentences with despertar and a ten-question quiz.
- Spanish present guide — how the present works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Present tense conjugator — conjugate any verb in the present instantly.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on despertar and other verbs.