Introduction

Learning to conjugate destinar — “to assign, to destine” — opens up a whole set of sentences you will use in real Spanish. Whether you are talking about what you do every day, what happened yesterday, or what you plan to do tomorrow, destinar is one of the verbs that carries those sentences, especially when the topic is the money to the project. On this page you will find the full conjugation of destinar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. destinar is a regular -ar verb; the gerund is destinando and the past participle is destinado, and both appear in the tables and examples below. For example: “Yo destino el dinero al proyecto todos los días.” — “I assign the money to the project.” Read the tables first, then the notes, and finish with the quiz to check what you have learned.

Quick facts
Infinitive destinar
English to assign, to destine
Verb type Regular -ar verb
Gerund destinando
Past participle destinado
Auxiliary verb haber

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: destinando · Past participle: destinado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo destino
tú destinas
él/ella/Ud. destina
nosotros/as destinamos
vosotros/as destináis
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinan

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For destinar, the yo form is destino, as in “Yo destino el dinero al proyecto.” — “I assign the money to the project.”

Preterite

Person Form
yo destiné
tú destinaste
él/ella/Ud. destinó
nosotros/as destinamos
vosotros/as destinasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinaron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For destinar, the yo form is destiné, as in “Yo destiné el dinero al proyecto.” — “I assigned the money to the project.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo destinaba
tú destinabas
él/ella/Ud. destinaba
nosotros/as destinábamos
vosotros/as destinabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinaban

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For destinar, the yo form is destinaba, as in “Yo destinaba el dinero al proyecto.” — “I used to assign the money to the project.”

Future

Person Form
yo destinaré
tú destinarás
él/ella/Ud. destinará
nosotros/as destinaremos
vosotros/as destinaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinarán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For destinar, the yo form is destinaré, as in “Yo destinaré el dinero al proyecto.” — “I will assign the money to the project.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo destinaría
tú destinarías
él/ella/Ud. destinaría
nosotros/as destinaríamos
vosotros/as destinaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinarían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For destinar, the yo form is destinaría, as in “Yo destinaría el dinero al proyecto.” — “I would assign the money to the project.”

Present Perfect

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

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For destinar, the yo form is he destinado, as in “Yo he destinado el dinero al proyecto.” — “I have assigned the money to the project.”

Pluperfect

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

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For destinar, the yo form is había destinado, as in “Yo había destinado el dinero al proyecto.” — “I had assigned the money to the project.”

Future Perfect

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

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For destinar, the yo form is habré destinado, as in “Yo habré destinado el dinero al proyecto.” — “I will have assigned the money to the project.”

Conditional Perfect

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

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For destinar, the yo form is habría destinado, as in “Yo habría destinado el dinero al proyecto.” — “I would have assigned the money to the project.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo destine
tú destines
él/ella/Ud. destine
nosotros/as destinemos
vosotros/as destinéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinen

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For destinar, the yo form is destine, as in “Espero que yo destine el dinero al proyecto.” — “I hope that I assign the money to the project.”

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo destinara
tú destinaras
él/ella/Ud. destinara
nosotros/as destináramos
vosotros/as destinarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. destinaran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For destinar, the yo form is destinara, as in “Si yo destinara el dinero al proyecto, ...” — “If I assigned the money to the project, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: destinara becomes destinase, 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 destina
Ud. destine
nosotros/as destinemos
vosotros/as destinad
Uds. destinen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú destines
Ud. destine
nosotros/as destinemos
vosotros/as destinéis
Uds. destinen

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is destina, as in “¡Destina el dinero al proyecto” — “Assign the money to the project” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no destines. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with destinar.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with destinar, 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 destino el dinero al proyecto cada día.” — “I assign the money to the project.”
  2. “Él destina el dinero al proyecto todos los días.” — “He assigns the money to the project.”
  3. “Yo destiné el dinero al proyecto ayer.” — “I assigned the money to the project.”
  4. “Él destinó el dinero al proyecto ayer.” — “He assigned the money to the project.”
  5. “Yo destinaba el dinero al proyecto cuando era joven.” — “I used to assign the money to the project.”
  6. “Nosotros destinaremos el dinero al proyecto mañana.” — “We will assign the money to the project.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo destinaría el dinero al proyecto.” — “If I could, i would assign the money to the project.”
  8. “Yo he destinado el dinero al proyecto hoy.” — “I have assigned the money to the project.”
  9. “Espero que yo destine el dinero al proyecto.” — “I hope that I assign the money to the project.”
  10. “estoy destinando el dinero al proyecto ahora mismo.” — “I am assigning the money to the project.”

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is destiné, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — destine — 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 destinar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For destinar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: destinamos. 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 destinado el dinero al proyecto. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy destinado is not the present perfect of destinar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing destinar with descubrir

destinar 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 destinar — assign — the sentence needs destinar; 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 destine el dinero al proyecto. Using the indicative — Espero que yo destino — is one of the most frequent learner errors with destinar. 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 destinar in the present?

  • A. destinas
  • B. destina
  • C. destinamos
  • D. destino

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

  • A. destinamos
  • B. destinaste
  • C. destiné
  • D. destinó

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

  • A. destinabas
  • B. destinábamos
  • C. destinabais
  • D. destinaba

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

  • A. destinará
  • B. destinaremos
  • C. destinaré
  • D. destinarás

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

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

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

  • A. destine
  • B. destinen
  • C. destine
  • D. destines

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

  • A. destinaste
  • B. destinó
  • C. destinamos
  • D. destiné

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

  • A. destinábamos
  • B. destinabas
  • C. destinaba
  • D. destinaba

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

  • A. destinaré
  • B. destinarás
  • C. destinaremos
  • D. destinará

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

  • A. destinaría
  • B. destinaríamos
  • C. destinaría
  • D. destinarías

Answer key

  1. destino — The present table gives yo = destino.
  2. destinaste — The preterite table gives tu = destinaste.
  3. destinaba — The imperfect table gives el = destinaba.
  4. destinaremos — The future table gives nosotros = destinaremos.
  5. habéis destinado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis destinado.
  6. destinen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = destinen.
  7. destiné — The preterite table gives yo = destiné.
  8. destinabas — The imperfect table gives tu = destinabas.
  9. destinará — The future table gives el = destinará.
  10. destinaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = destinaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is destinar regular or irregular?

destinar is a regular -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 destinar?

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

What is the gerund of destinar?

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

What is the yo form of destinar in the present?

The yo form is destino — “Yo destino el dinero al proyecto.” means “I assign the money to the project.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú destinas, él destina, nosotros destinamos, ellos destinan.

What is the difference between destinar and descubrir?

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

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