Encerrar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb encerrar means to lock up, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Encerrar means to lock something or someone up: encerrar al perro en el jardín, encerrar las llaves en el cajón. With se it means to shut yourself in: encerrarse en su habitación. Like every Spanish verb, encerrar changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say Yo encierro al perro en el jardín — "I lock up the dog in the garden". Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: encierro, encierras, encierra and encierran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: encerramos, encerráis.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: encerrar
  • English: to lock up
  • Verb type: stem-changing -ar verb (e → ie)
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: encerrando
  • Past participle: encerrado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + encerrado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for encerrar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for encerrar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem.

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encierro | | tú | encierras | | él/ella/Ud. | encierra | | nosotros/as | encerramos | | vosotros/as | encerráis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encierran |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encerré | | tú | encerraste | | él/ella/Ud. | encerró | | nosotros/as | encerramos | | vosotros/as | encerrasteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encerraron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encerraba | | tú | encerrabas | | él/ella/Ud. | encerraba | | nosotros/as | encerrábamos | | vosotros/as | encerrabais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encerraban |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encerraré | | tú | encerrarás | | él/ella/Ud. | encerrará | | nosotros/as | encerraremos | | vosotros/as | encerraréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encerrarán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encerraría | | tú | encerrarías | | él/ella/Ud. | encerraría | | nosotros/as | encerraríamos | | vosotros/as | encerraríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encerrarían |

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encierre | | tú | encierres | | él/ella/Ud. | encierre | | nosotros/as | encerremos | | vosotros/as | encerréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encierren |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | encerrara | | tú | encerraras | | él/ella/Ud. | encerrara | | nosotros/as | encerráramos | | vosotros/as | encerrarais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encerraran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | encierra | | él/ella/Ud. | encierre | | nosotros/as | encerremos | | vosotros/as | encerrad | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encierren |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | encierres | | él/ella/Ud. | encierre | | nosotros/as | encerremos | | vosotros/as | encerréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | encierren |

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund encerrando with estar for the progressive: está encerrando
Past participle encerrado with haber for the perfect tenses: he encerrado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: encierro, encierras, encierra and encierran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: encerramos, encerráis. For encerrar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo encierro al perro en el jardín — "I lock up the dog in the garden".

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo encerré las llaves en el cajón — "Yesterday, I locked up the keys in the drawer".

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo encerraba al prisionero en su celda — "As a child, I used to lock up the prisoner in his cell".

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo encerraré el secreto en su corazón — "Tomorrow, I will lock up the secret in his heart".

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo encerraría al perro en el jardín si pudiera — "I would lock up the dog in the garden if I could".

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he encerrado las llaves en el cajón — "Today, I have locked up the keys in the drawer".

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había encerrado al prisionero en su celda antes de salir — "I already had locked up the prisoner in his cell before leaving".

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré encerrado el secreto en su corazón — "By tomorrow, I will have locked up the secret in his heart".

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría encerrado al perro en el jardín con más tiempo — "I would have locked up the dog in the garden with more time".

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: encierro, encierras, encierra and encierran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: encerramos, encerráis. For encerrar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él encierre las llaves en el cajón — "I hope he locks up the keys in the drawer".

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past. The -ra forms are shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For encerrar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo encerrara al prisionero en su celda, todo cambiaría — "If I locked up the prisoner in his cell, everything would change".

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: encierro, encierras, encierra and encierran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: encerramos, encerráis. For encerrar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Encierra el secreto en su corazón. — "Lock up the secret in his heart.".

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: encierro, encierras, encierra and encierran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: encerramos, encerráis. For encerrar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No encierres al perro en el jardín. — "Do not lock up the dog in the garden.".

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with encerrar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Yo encierro al perro en el jardín — "I lock up the dog in the garden"
  2. Mi amigo encierra las llaves en el cajón — "My friend locks up the keys in the drawer"
  3. Ayer, yo encerré al prisionero en su celda — "Yesterday, I locked up the prisoner in his cell"
  4. Antes, nosotros encerrábamos el secreto en su corazón — "Before, we used to lock up the secret in his heart"
  5. Mañana, tú encerrarás a los niños en la habitación — "Tomorrow, you will lock up the children in the room"
  6. Yo encerraría al perro en el jardín si tuviera más tiempo — "I would lock up the dog in the garden if I had more time"
  7. Él ha encerrado las llaves en el cajón — "He has locked up the keys in the drawer"
  8. Espero que él encierre al prisionero en su celda — "I hope he locks up the prisoner in his cell"
  9. Yo ya había encerrado el secreto en su corazón antes de salir — "I already had locked up the secret in his heart before leaving"
  10. Ellos encerraban a los niños en la habitación cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to lock up the children in the room when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo encerro las llaves en el cajón. — Right: Yo encierro las llaves en el cajón. — encerrar is a stem-changing verb (e → ie): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is encierro, not encerro.
  2. Wrong: Espero que él encierra las llaves en el cajón — Right: Espero que él encierre las llaves en el cajón — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él encierre las llaves en el cajón — not the indicative Espero que él encierra las llaves en el cajón.
  3. Wrong: Ayer, yo encierro al prisionero en su celda — Right: Ayer, yo encerré al prisionero en su celda — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo encerré al prisionero en su celda.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo encerré el secreto en su corazón todos los días — Right: De niño, yo encerraba el secreto en su corazón todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo encerraba el secreto en su corazón todos los días.
  5. Wrong: Yo encierro perro en el jardín. — Right: Yo encierro al perro en el jardín. — encerrar takes al before this complement: Yo encierro al perro en el jardín. Dropping the preposition is a common learner error.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on encerrar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ al perro en el jardín — "I lock up the dog in the garden" (present) A. encierras B. encierra C. encerramos D. encierro

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ las llaves en el cajón — "He locked up the keys in the drawer" (preterite) A. encerré B. encerraste C. encerramos D. encerró

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ al prisionero en su celda — "We used to lock up the prisoner in his cell" (imperfect) A. encerraba B. encerrabas C. encerrabais D. encerrábamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ el secreto en su corazón — "You will lock up the secret in his heart" (future) A. encerraremos B. encerrarás C. encerraré D. encerrará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ a los niños en la habitación — "I would lock up the children in the room" (conditional) A. encerraría B. encerrarías C. encerraríamos D. encerraríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ al perro en el jardín — "I hope he locks up the dog in the garden" (present subjunctive) A. encierres B. encerremos C. encerréis D. encierre

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ las llaves en el cajón, todo cambiaría — "If I locked up the keys in the drawer, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. encerraras B. encerráramos C. encerrarais D. encerrara

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ al prisionero en su celda — "We have locked up the prisoner in his cell" (present perfect) A. he encerrado B. has encerrado C. ha encerrado D. hemos encerrado

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ el secreto en su corazón. — "Do not lock up the secret in his heart." (negative imperative) A. encerréis B. encierres C. encierre D. encerremos

  10. Which is the gerund of encerrar, used with estar for the progressive? A. encerrando B. encerrado C. encierro D. encerré

Answer key

  1. encierro — The present form for yo is encierro.
  2. encerró — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is encerró.
  3. encerrábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is encerrábamos.
  4. encerrarás — The future form for tú is encerrarás.
  5. encerraría — The conditional form for yo is encerraría.
  6. encierre — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is encierre.
  7. encerrara — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is encerrara.
  8. hemos encerrado — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos encerrado.
  9. encierres — The negative imperative form is encierres.
  10. encerrando — The gerund of encerrar is encerrando: estoy encerrando. The participle encerrado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does encerrar mean in English?

encerrar means to lock up. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo encierro al perro en el jardín — "I lock up the dog in the garden". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is encerrar regular?

No. encerrar is a stem-changing -ar verb (e → ie). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: encierro, encierras, encierra and encierran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: encerramos, encerráis. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem, which is the part learners most often get right by accident.

What is the gerund and the past participle of encerrar?

The gerund is encerrando and the past participle is encerrado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.

How do I say "I lock up" in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo encerré las llaves en el cajón — "Yesterday, I locked up the keys in the drawer". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo encerraba al prisionero en su celda — "As a child, I used to lock up the prisoner in his cell". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he encerrado las llaves en el cajón — "Today, I have locked up the keys in the drawer".

What is the difference between encerrar and guardar?

Guardar is to keep or put something away. Encerrar adds the idea of locking it in — behind a door, in a drawer, in a cell. Encerrar means to lock something or someone up: encerrar al perro en el jardín, encerrar las llaves en el cajón. With se it means to shut yourself in: encerrarse en su habitación.

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