Domesticar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of domesticar — “to domesticate” in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for domesticar with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Domesticar means to domesticate, to tame a wild animal species over generations so it can live with humans. It is used for dogs, cats, horses and farm animals, and it is a spelling-change verb: c becomes qu before e. It is a spelling-change verb (c becomes qu before e), but the present tense itself is regular — the spelling change shows up in the subjunctive and the preterite. To see it in a real sentence: Domestico al perro durante miles de años. — “I domesticate the dog over thousands of years.” Learn the six forms in the table below, and the present tense of domesticar will be ready for everyday conversation.
Present tense conjugation table: domesticar
Every person of domesticar in the present tense. The gerund is domesticando and the past participle is domesticado.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | domestico |
| tú | domesticas |
| él/ella/Ud. | domestica |
| nosotros/as | domesticamos |
| vosotros/as | domesticáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | domestican |
How the present indicative of domesticar is formed
The present indicative of domesticar is built from the stem plus the present indicative endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | domestico |
| tú | -as | domesticas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | domestica |
| nosotros/as | -amos | domesticamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | domesticáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | domestican |
Domesticar is a spelling-change verb. In the present tense the forms are regular, so the table above follows the normal -ar endings. The spelling change appears when the ending starts with e: the present subjunctive is domestique and the preterite first person is domestiqué. The sound stays the same; only the spelling changes to keep it.
The gerund of domesticar is domesticando and the past participle is domesticado. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present tense of domesticar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and domesticar appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
Routines and habits
Use the present for things you do regularly, every day or every week. The present is the tense of routine, and domesticar fits naturally into daily life.
“Yo domestico al perro durante miles de años todos los días.” — “I domesticate the dog over thousands of years every day.”
General facts
Use the present for facts that are true in general, not just today. When you state how something is, the present is the tense to use.
“Él domestica al caballo para el trabajo.” — “He/she domesticates the horse for work.”
What is happening right now
Use the present for what is happening at this moment. Spanish often uses the simple present where English uses the progressive, so domestico can mean both “I domesticate” and “I am domesticateing”.
“Ahora mismo, yo domestico a los animales de la granja.” — “Right now, I domesticate the farm animals.”
Fixed plans in the near future
Use the present for a plan that is already fixed, such as something arranged for tomorrow. Spanish uses the present for near-future plans much more freely than English does.
“Mañana, yo domestico al gato para vivir en casa.” — “Tomorrow, I will domesticate the cat to live in the house.”
Questions and negatives
Use the present to ask about habits and to say what does not happen. The question and the negative use exactly the same forms as the statement.
“¿Tú domesticas al perro durante miles de años?” — “Do you domesticate the dog over thousands of years?”
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: Domestica al caballo para el trabajo. — “He/she domesticates the horse for work.”
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Domesticó al caballo para el trabajo. — the same idea, placed in the preterite.
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add “used to” in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: Domestican a los animales de la granja. — “They domesticate the farm animals.”
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Domesticaban a los animales de la granja. — the same idea, placed in the imperfect.
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: Domesticas al gato para vivir en casa. — “You domesticate the cat to live in the house.”
- Future — what will happen: Domesticarás al gato para vivir en casa. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: domesticar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show domesticar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo domestico al perro durante miles de años. — “I domesticate the dog over thousands of years.”
- Tú domesticas al caballo para el trabajo. — “You domesticate the horse for work.”
- Él domestica a los animales de la granja. — “He domesticates the farm animals.”
- Nosotros domesticamos al gato para vivir en casa. — “We domesticate the cat to live in the house.”
- Vosotros domesticáis al perro durante miles de años. — “You (plural) domesticate the dog over thousands of years.”
- Ellos domestican al caballo para el trabajo. — “They domesticate the horse for work.”
- ¿Tú domesticas a los animales de la granja? — “Do you domesticate the farm animals?”
Common mistakes with domesticar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with domesticar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ Yo domesticar al perro durante miles de años. (using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form).
✓ Correct: Yo domestico al perro durante miles de años.
The infinitive is not a conjugated form. With yo, the present tense of domesticar is domestico, not the infinitive domesticar.
✗ Vosotros domesticais al perro durante miles de años. (forgetting the accent on the vosotros form).
✓ Correct: Vosotros domesticáis al perro durante miles de años.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: domesticáis, not domesticais. The accent marks the stressed vowel, and leaving it out is a spelling mistake.
✗ Ayer, yo domestico al caballo para el trabajo. (using the present for a finished past action).
✓ Correct: Ayer, yo domestiqué al caballo para el trabajo.
The present and the preterite are different tenses: domestico is happening now, while domestiqué is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
✗ Treating domesticar and adiestrar as identical in every context. (confusing domesticar with adiestrar).
✓ Correct: Domesticar means to domesticate, while adiestrar means to train an animal.
They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: domesticar fits sentences such as Domestico al perro durante miles de años, while adiestrar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Quiz: domesticar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of domesticar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
1. Which is the correct present tense form of domesticar for tú?
- a) domesticas
- b) domestico
- c) domestica
- d) domestican
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ al perro durante miles de años. — “I domesticate the dog over thousands of years.”
- a) domestica
- b) domesticamos
- c) domesticas
- d) domestico
3. Complete the sentence: Él ______ al caballo para el trabajo. — “He/she domesticates the horse for work.” (present tense)
- a) domesticaba
- b) domesticará
- c) domestica
- d) domesticó
4. Which is the correct present tense form of domesticar for nosotros?
- a) domestican
- b) domesticamos
- c) domestico
- d) domestica
5. Which sentence uses domesticar correctly in the present tense?
- a) Él domesticó al caballo para el trabajo.
- b) Él domestica al caballo para el trabajo.
- c) Él domesticará al caballo para el trabajo.
- d) Ellos domestica al caballo para el trabajo.
6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ a los animales de la granja. — “They domesticate the farm animals.”
- a) domestico
- b) domestica
- c) domesticamos
- d) domestican
7. Complete the question: ¿Tú ______ al gato para vivir en casa? — “Do you domesticate the cat to live in the house?”
- a) domestica
- b) domesticarás
- c) domesticas
- d) domestico
8. What is the gerund of domesticar?
- a) domestiqué
- b) domesticando
- c) domesticado
- d) domestico
Answer key
a) domesticas — The tú form is domesticas. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; domestico is yo, domestica is él/ella and domestican is ellos/ellas.
d) domestico — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: domestico. The other options are the wrong person.
c) domestica — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: domestica. The other options are the preterite, the imperfect and the future.
b) domesticamos — Nosotros takes domesticamos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ar verbs is -amos, attached to the stem.
b) Él domestica al caballo para el trabajo. — Él domestica al caballo para el trabajo. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) domestican — The subject is ellos/ellas/Uds., so the present form is domestican.
c) domesticas — The question needs the tú form in the present: domesticas.
b) domesticando — The gerund is domesticando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle domesticado.
Frequently asked questions
Is domesticar regular in the present tense?
Yes. Domesticar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the forms follow the standard endings: domestico, domesticas, domestica, domesticamos, domesticáis and domestican.
What is the gerund and the past participle of domesticar?
The gerund is domesticando and the past participle is domesticado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say “I domesticate” in Spanish?
Say domestico. For example: Domestico al perro durante miles de años. — “I domesticate the dog over thousands of years.”
What is the difference between domesticar and adiestrar?
Domesticar means “to domesticate”, while adiestrar means “to train an animal”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use domesticar when you mean “to domesticate” and adiestrar when you mean “to train an animal”. The full conjugation of domesticar is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of domesticar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- domesticar examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.
- Complete list of Spanish irregular verbs — where this verb's pattern is listed.
- Adiestrar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with domesticar.
- Balar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with domesticar.
- Abonar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with domesticar.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise this verb in the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on Spanish verbs.