Dibujar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb dibujar means to draw, and this page covers it in the present tense — the tense for habits, facts and what is happening now. If you want the whole picture, start with the full dibujar conjugation, which has every tense on one page. Here we go deep on one tense only: the full table, how it is formed, when to use it, how it differs from the closest tense, examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the questions people ask most. One example to start: Yo dibujo un caballo. — "I draw a horse."

No pronunciation is given on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for dibujar, so no pronunciation is shown rather than an invented one. All the forms below come from the verified conjugation tables, so you can trust every form you see here.

The dibujar present tense table

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for dibujar. The gerund is dibujando and the past participle is dibujado.

Person Form
yo dibujo
tú dibujas
él/ella/Ud. dibuja
nosotros/as dibujamos
vosotros/as dibujáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. dibujan

The gerund dibujando is used with estar for the progressive (estoy dibujando, I am drawing), and the past participle dibujado is used with haber for the perfect tenses (he dibujado, I have drew).

How the present tense of dibujar is formed

Start with the infinitive dibujar. Take off the -ar ending and you are left with the stem dibuj-. Then add the present endings for -ar verbs: -o (yo), -as (tú), -a (él/ella/Ud.), -amos (nosotros/as), -áis (vosotros/as) and -an (ellos/ellas/Uds.). That gives you the six forms in the table above, and for most verbs in this group that is the whole story.

dibujar is regular in the present: every form is exactly the stem plus the ending above, with no stem change and no spelling change. If you know the stem and the six endings, you can build the whole tense without memorising anything extra.

Two details are worth fixing early. First, the vosotros form carries a written accent on the ending: dibujáis. Second, the present tense in Spanish has no auxiliary verb: dibujo on its own means both "I draw" and "I am drawing" in English, so you do not need a separate word for the progressive unless you want to stress that something is happening right now.

When to use the present tense of dibujar

Habits and routines

The present is the tense of what you do regularly. Talking about drawing as a hobby: what you draw, and what you draw with — pencil, pen, charcoal.

  • Yo dibujo un caballo. — "I draw a horse."
  • Tú dibujas un mapa. — "you draw a map."

Facts and general truths

The present also states facts that are true in general, not just today. Talking about drawing at school or at work: maps, plans, sketches.

  • Él dibuja en mi cuaderno. — "he/she draws in my notebook."
  • Nosotros dibujamos con lápiz. — "we draw with a pencil."

What is happening now

The present describes what is happening at this moment. Talking about children drawing, which is how most people first use this verb.

  • Vosotros dibujáis todos los días. — "you (all) draw every day."
  • Ellos dibujan una casa con jardín. — "they draw a house with a garden."

Plans in the near future

Spanish also uses the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with a time expression. A plan you have already decided on can be stated in the present, and it sounds more certain than the future tense.

  • Él dibuja en mi cuaderno. — "he/she draws in my notebook."
  • Nosotros dibujamos con lápiz. — "we draw with a pencil."

Dibujar present vs present progressive

The present tense and the present progressive (estar + gerund) are close neighbours, and learners mix them up. The present describes a habit, a fact or a routine. The progressive describes something in progress right now, at this very moment. Compare the three pairs below: the first sentence in each pair is a habit, the second is happening now.

  • Present (habit): Yo dibujo un caballo. — "I draw a horse."

  • Progressive (right now): Yo estoy dibujando un caballo. — "I am drawing a horse."

  • Present (habit): Tú dibujas un mapa. — "you draw a map."

  • Progressive (right now): Tú estás dibujando un mapa. — "you are drawing a map."

  • Present (habit): Él dibuja en mi cuaderno. — "he/she draws in my notebook."

  • Progressive (right now): Él está dibujando en mi cuaderno. — "he/she is drawing in my notebook."

Use the present when you talk about what you usually do, and the progressive when you want to stress that it is happening as you speak. If you say dibujo every day, that is a routine. If you say Estoy dibujando, you are doing it at this moment.

Examples of dibujar in the present

Eight sentences in the present tense, so you can see the forms in real use. Read the Spanish first, guess the meaning, then check the translation.

  1. Dibujo un caballo en mi cuaderno. — "I draw a horse in my notebook."
  2. Mi hija dibuja una casa con jardín todos los días. — "My daughter draws a house with a garden every day."
  3. Ayer dibujé un mapa para mis amigos. — "Yesterday I drew a map for my friends."
  4. De niño, dibujaba con lápiz en todos mis cuadernos. — "As a child, I used to draw with a pencil in all my notebooks."
  5. Mañana dibujaré un retrato de mi abuela. — "Tomorrow I will draw a portrait of my grandmother."
  6. Si tuviera más talento, dibujaría retratos de todo el mundo. — "If I had more talent, I would draw portraits of everyone."
  7. Él dibuja todos los días. — "he/she draws every day."
  8. Nosotros dibujamos una casa con jardín. — "we draw a house with a garden."

Common mistakes with dibujar in the present

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why it is wrong.

1. Yo dibuja un caballo.

Wrong: Yo dibuja un caballo.

Right: Yo dibujo un caballo.

The yo form ends in -o: dibujo. Dibuja is the él/ella form.

2. Ayer yo dibujo un mapa.

Wrong: Ayer yo dibujo un mapa.

Right: Ayer yo dibujé un mapa.

For a finished action yesterday you need the preterite: dibujé. Dibujo is the present, for what you do now or usually.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

Wrong: Ayer yo dibujo un caballo.

Right: Ayer yo dibujé un caballo.

Ayer (yesterday) signals a finished action, so it needs the preterite: dibujé. The present dibujo describes what you do now or usually, not what you did yesterday.

4. Forgetting the accent on the vosotros form

Wrong: Vosotros dibujais un caballo.

Right: Vosotros dibujáis un caballo.

The vosotros ending carries a written accent: dibujáis. Without it, the spelling is wrong, even though the pronunciation is close.

Quiz: test yourself on dibujar in the present

Choose the right form for each sentence. The answers are at the end of this section, with an explanation for every question.

  1. Yo ___ un caballo
    • a) dibujo
    • b) dibujas
    • c) dibuja
    • d) dibujamos
  2. Tú ___ un mapa
    • a) dibujo
    • b) dibuja
    • c) dibujamos
    • d) dibujas
  3. Él ___ en mi cuaderno
    • a) dibujas
    • b) dibujamos
    • c) dibuja
    • d) dibujo
  4. Nosotros ___ con lápiz
    • a) dibuja
    • b) dibujamos
    • c) dibujo
    • d) dibujas
  5. Vosotros ___ todos los días
    • a) dibujáis
    • b) dibujo
    • c) dibujas
    • d) dibuja
  6. Ellos ___ una casa con jardín
    • a) dibujo
    • b) dibujas
    • c) dibuja
    • d) dibujan
  7. Yo ___ un caballo
    • a) dibuja
    • b) dibujamos
    • c) dibujo
    • d) dibujas
  8. Tú ___ un mapa
    • a) dibujamos
    • b) dibujas
    • c) dibujo
    • d) dibuja

Answers

  1. a) dibujo — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  2. d) dibujas — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.
  3. c) dibuja — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form, because the subject is él/ella/Ud..
  4. b) dibujamos — The sentence needs the nosotros/as form, because the subject is nosotros/as.
  5. a) dibujáis — The sentence needs the vosotros/as form, because the subject is vosotros/as.
  6. d) dibujan — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form, because the subject is ellos/ellas/Uds..
  7. c) dibujo — The sentence needs the yo form, because the subject is yo.
  8. b) dibujas — The sentence needs the tú form, because the subject is tú.

Frequently asked questions about dibujar in the present

Is dibujar regular?

Yes, dibujar is a regular -ar verb: dibujo, dibujas, dibuja, dibujamos, dibujáis, dibujan. There are no surprises in any tense.

What is the difference between dibujar and pintar?

Dibujar is drawing, usually with a pencil or pen, making lines. Pintar is painting, with paint and colour. You dibujas a sketch and pintas a wall.

Is dibujar regular in the present?

Yes. dibujar is regular in the present: the six forms are the stem dibuj- plus the regular endings, with no stem change. The only thing to watch is the written accent on the stressed endings, for example dibujo.

What are the gerund and the past participle of dibujar?

The gerund is dibujando, used with estar for the progressive (estoy dibujando), and the past participle is dibujado, used with haber for the perfect tenses (he dibujado).

How to remember dibujar

Four small habits will fix dibujar in your memory. First, say the present tense out loud, in order, three times: dibujo, dibujas, dibuja, dibujamos, dibujáis, dibujan. Saying the forms is far more effective than reading them silently, because you hear the endings and the stem at the same time. Second, write three sentences about your own life: one about today with the present (dibujo), one about yesterday with the preterite (dibujé), and one about tomorrow with the future (dibujaré). Personal sentences stick because they are about you, not about a textbook. Third, remember the difference from pintar: Dibujar is drawing lines, usually in pencil. Pintar is painting with colour. A child dibuja a horse in a notebook and pinta a wall blue. Finally, learn the two key forms by heart: the gerund dibujando and the past participle dibujado. With those two and the present tense, you can already build the progressive (estoy dibujando) and the present perfect (he dibujado), which covers most everyday conversation.

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