Endeudarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb endeudarse means to get into debt, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Endeudarse is a regular -ar, reflexive verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. Endeudarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, me endeudo hasta las cejas means "I get into debt up to the eyeballs". Without the pronoun, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of endeudarse 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. For example, in the present tense you say Yo me endeudo hasta las cejas — "I get into debt up to the eyeballs" — and in the preterite you say Yo me endeudé con el banco — "I got into debt with the bank". 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.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: endeudarse
  • English: to get into debt
  • Verb type: regular -ar, reflexive verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: endeudando
  • Past participle: endeudado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + endeudado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for endeudarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Endeudarse is reflexive: me endeudo, te endeudas. Without the pronoun, endeudar means something else — it acts on someone or something else, not on yourself.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for endeudarse. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.

Gerund: endeudando · Past participle: endeudado

Present indicative

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeudo
tú te endeudas
él/ella/Ud. se endeuda
nosotros/as nos endeudamos
vosotros/as os endeudáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeudan

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeudé
tú te endeudaste
él/ella/Ud. se endeudó
nosotros/as nos endeudamos
vosotros/as os endeudasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeudaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeudaba
tú te endeudabas
él/ella/Ud. se endeudaba
nosotros/as nos endeudábamos
vosotros/as os endeudabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeudaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeudaré
tú te endeudarás
él/ella/Ud. se endeudará
nosotros/as nos endeudaremos
vosotros/as os endeudaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeudarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeudaría
tú te endeudarías
él/ella/Ud. se endeudaría
nosotros/as nos endeudaríamos
vosotros/as os endeudaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeudarían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he endeudado
tú te has endeudado
él/ella/Ud. se ha endeudado
nosotros/as nos hemos endeudado
vosotros/as os habéis endeudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han endeudado

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había endeudado
tú te habías endeudado
él/ella/Ud. se había endeudado
nosotros/as nos habíamos endeudado
vosotros/as os habíais endeudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían endeudado

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré endeudado
tú te habrás endeudado
él/ella/Ud. se habrá endeudado
nosotros/as nos habremos endeudado
vosotros/as os habréis endeudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán endeudado

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría endeudado
tú te habrías endeudado
él/ella/Ud. se habría endeudado
nosotros/as nos habríamos endeudado
vosotros/as os habríais endeudado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían endeudado

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeude
tú te endeudes
él/ella/Ud. se endeude
nosotros/as nos endeudemos
vosotros/as os endeudéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeuden

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me endeudara
tú te endeudaras
él/ella/Ud. se endeudara
nosotros/as nos endeudáramos
vosotros/as os endeudarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeudaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te endeuda
él/ella/Ud. se endeude
nosotros/as nos endeudemos
vosotros/as os endeudad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeuden

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te endeudes
él/ella/Ud. se endeude
nosotros/as nos endeudemos
vosotros/as os endeudéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se endeuden

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund endeudando with estar for the progressive: estoy endeudando (or me estoy endeudando for this reflexive verb)
Past participle endeudado with haber for the perfect tenses: he endeudado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. It is the tense you will use most often in everyday conversation, for habits with words like todos los días and for statements that are true in general. For endeudarse, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me endeudo con el banco — "I get into debt with the bank". Learn the present indicative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions in the past — things that started and ended, often with time words like ayer, anoche or la semana pasada. The preterite moves a story forward, one completed event at a time. For endeudarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me endeudé por la hipoteca — "I got into debt because of the mortgage". Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with words like antes, de niño or mientras. It describes how things used to be, not one finished event. For endeudarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me endeudaba hasta las cejas — "I used to get into debt up to the eyeballs". Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. It talks about what will happen, not what is happening now. For endeudarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me endeudaré con el banco — "I will get into debt with the bank". Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often in si clauses. It softens a request and describes imagined situations. For endeudarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me endeudaría por la hipoteca — "I would get into debt because of the mortgage". Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. It connects the past with the present moment. For endeudarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me he endeudado hasta las cejas — "I have got into debt up to the eyeballs". Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. It is the past of the past, and it usually appears with antes de or ya. For endeudarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me había endeudado con el banco — "I had got into debt with the bank". Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time, often with para mañana or para el viernes. For endeudarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me habré endeudado por la hipoteca — "I will have got into debt because of the mortgage". Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. It looks back at a past that never happened. For endeudarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo me habría endeudado hasta las cejas — "I would have got into debt up to the eyeballs". Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The subjunctive does not state a fact; it states an attitude towards the action. For endeudarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se endeude con el banco — "I hope he gets into debt with the bank". Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For endeudarse, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo me endeudara por la hipoteca, todo cambiaría — "If I got into debt because of the mortgage, everything would change". Learn the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. It tells someone to do something, and it has no yo form. For endeudarse, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Que se endeude hasta las cejas — "Let him get into debt up to the eyeballs". Learn the imperative (affirmative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. It uses the subjunctive forms, so it looks different from the affirmative commands. For endeudarse, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No te endeudes con el banco — "Don't get into debt with the bank". Learn the imperative (negative) forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Example sentences

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

  1. Yo me endeudo por la hipoteca — "I get into debt because of the mortgage"
  2. Él se endeuda hasta las cejas — "He gets into debt up to the eyeballs"
  3. Yo me endeudé con el banco — "I got into debt with the bank"
  4. Yo me endeudaba por la hipoteca — "I used to get into debt because of the mortgage"
  5. Tú te endeudarás hasta las cejas — "You will get into debt up to the eyeballs"
  6. Yo me endeudaría con el banco — "I would get into debt with the bank"
  7. Él se ha endeudado por la hipoteca — "He has got into debt because of the mortgage"
  8. Espero que él se endeude hasta las cejas — "I hope he gets into debt up to the eyeballs"
  9. Yo me había endeudado con el banco — "I had got into debt with the bank"
  10. Ellos se endeudaban por la hipoteca — "They used to get into debt because of the mortgage"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo endeudo hasta las cejas — Right: Yo me endeudo hasta las cejas — Endeudarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo me endeudo — Right: Ayer, yo me endeudé — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to endeudé.
  3. Wrong: De niño, yo me endeudé todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo me endeudaba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (endeudaba), not the preterite. The preterite (endeudé) is for one finished action.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy endeudado con el banco. — Right: Yo me he endeudado con el banco. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he endeudado, has endeudado, ha endeudado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: Espero que él endeuda hasta las cejas. — Right: Espero que él se endeude hasta las cejas. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: endeude. The indicative endeuda is wrong here.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo me ___ hasta las cejas. (present tense) A. habría endeudado B. endeuda C. endeudo D. habían endeudado

  2. Complete the sentence: Él se ___ hasta las cejas. (preterite) A. endeudaste B. endeudó C. endeudarán D. habíamos endeudado

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros nos ___ hasta las cejas. (imperfect) A. endeudábamos B. endeudaríais C. endeudemos D. habré endeudado

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú te ___ hasta las cejas. (future) A. habíais endeudado B. endeudáis C. endeudemos D. endeudarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo me ___ hasta las cejas. (conditional) A. endeudaba B. endeudaremos C. endeudó D. endeudaría

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él se ___ hasta las cejas. (present subjunctive) A. endeudarían B. endeude C. endeuda D. habría endeudado

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo me ___ hasta las cejas, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. endeudara B. hemos endeudado C. endeudaréis D. endeudasteis

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros nos ___ hasta las cejas. (present perfect) A. he endeudado B. hemos endeudado C. habían endeudado D. endeuden

  9. Complete the command: No te ___ hasta las cejas. (negative imperative, tú) A. endeude B. endeudemos C. endeudes D. endeudéis

  10. Which is the gerund of endeudarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. endeudo B. endeudaré C. endeudé D. endeudando

Answer key

  1. me endeudo — The yo present tense of endeudarse is me endeudo.
  2. se endeudó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of endeudarse is se endeudó.
  3. nos endeudábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of endeudarse is nos endeudábamos.
  4. te endeudarás — The tú future of endeudarse is te endeudarás.
  5. me endeudaría — The yo conditional of endeudarse is me endeudaría.
  6. se endeude — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of endeudarse is se endeude.
  7. me endeudara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of endeudarse is me endeudara.
  8. nos hemos endeudado — The nosotros/as present perfect of endeudarse is nos hemos endeudado.
  9. te endeudes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te endeudes.
  10. endeudando — The gerund of endeudarse is endeudando: estoy endeudando. The participle endeudado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does endeudarse mean in English?

Endeudarse means to get into debt. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo me endeudo hasta las cejas. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is endeudarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Endeudarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Yo me endeudo hasta las cejas and Él se endeuda con el banco. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the gerund and the past participle of endeudarse?

The gerund is endeudando, used with estar for the progressive: estoy endeudando. The past participle is endeudado, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he endeudado.

How do I say “I get into debt” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo me endeudé con el banco. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo me endeudaba por la hipoteca. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo me he endeudado hasta las cejas.

How do I practise endeudarse?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the endeudarse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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