Formar Conjugation in Spanish

formar means «to form». It is a regular -ar verb verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of formar 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: «Yo formo todos los días» — I form every day.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: formar
  • English: to form
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: formando
  • Past participle: formado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + formado)

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Gerund: formando · Past participle: formado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo formo
tú formas
él/ella/Ud. forma
nosotros/as formamos
vosotros/as formáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. forman

The present is the tense you will use most with formar. It covers daily routines, permanent facts and actions in progress. Learn the yo form formo first, then the tú and él forms, which are the ones that change the stem in stem-changing verbs.

Preterite

Person Form
yo formé
tú formaste
él/ella/Ud. formó
nosotros/as formamos
vosotros/as formasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. formaron

The preterite of formar reports what happened. «Ayer yo formé por la tarde» places the action firmly in finished time. It is the tense of stories and reports, not of background description.

Imperfect

Person Form
yo formaba
tú formabas
él/ella/Ud. formaba
nosotros/as formábamos
vosotros/as formabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. formaban

The imperfect of formar paints the background of a past scene: repeated actions, states and descriptions. «Antes, yo formaba todos los días» is the pattern. Pair it with the preterite when one event interrupts another.

Future

Person Form
yo formaré
tú formarás
él/ella/Ud. formará
nosotros/as formaremos
vosotros/as formaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. formarán

The future of formar looks forward: what will happen tomorrow, next week or next year. «Mañana yo formaré sin falta» is the pattern. Remember that the future can also express probability about the present in Spanish.

Conditional

Person Form
yo formaría
tú formarías
él/ella/Ud. formaría
nosotros/as formaríamos
vosotros/as formaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. formarían

The conditional of formar is the tense of «would»: what you would do, what would happen, what you would like. «Si pudiera, yo formaría sin dudarlo» shows the pattern. It is built on the infinitive, just like the future.

Present Perfect

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

The present perfect of formar says «have done»: the action is finished but its result still matters now. «Hoy yo he formado dos veces» is the pattern. Learn the participle formado well — every perfect tense depends on it.

Pluperfect

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

The pluperfect of formar steps one event further back than the preterite. «Antes de salir, yo había formado» is the pattern: first this happened, then the story moved on. It is haber in the imperfect plus formado.

Future Perfect

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

The future perfect of formar combines the future of haber with formado. «Para el viernes, yo habré formado ya» is the pattern. Use it when the completion matters more than the action itself.

Conditional Perfect

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

The conditional perfect of formar is the tense of «would have done». «Yo habría formado si hubiera podido» is the pattern. It is built from haber in the conditional plus formado.

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo forme
tú formes
él/ella/Ud. forme
nosotros/as formemos
vosotros/as forméis
ellos/ellas/Uds. formen

The present subjunctive of formar is the mood of what is wished, doubted or demanded rather than stated as fact. «Espero que tú formes» is the pattern. If the trigger is in the past, switch to the imperfect subjunctive instead.

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)

Person Form
yo formara
tú formaras
él/ella/Ud. formara
nosotros/as formáramos
vosotros/as formarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. formaran

The imperfect subjunctive of formar handles the hypothetical past and the polite conditional. «Ojalá yo formara más a menudo» is the pattern. The -ra forms in the table are the standard ones; the -se forms use the same stem with -se endings.

Imperative — Affirmative

Person Form
tú forma
él/ella/Ud. forme
nosotros/as formemos
vosotros/as formad
ellos/ellas/Uds. formen

There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.

The affirmative imperative of formar is for orders and instructions. «¡forma, por favor!» is the pattern. Remember there is no yo form in the imperative, and the nosotros form doubles as a suggestion: «¡formemos!» means «let's do it».

Imperative — Negative

Person Form
tú formes
él/ella/Ud. forme
nosotros/as formemos
vosotros/as forméis
ellos/ellas/Uds. formen

There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.

The negative imperative of formar is built on the present subjunctive: «¡No formes!». Learn it as a set with the subjunctive table above, and never follow no with the affirmative command form.

Example sentences

  1. Yo formo todos los días. — I form every day.
  2. Ayer yo formé por la tarde. — Yesterday I formed in the afternoon.
  3. Antes, yo formaba todos los días. — In the past, I used to form every day.
  4. Mañana yo formaré sin falta. — Tomorrow I will form without fail.
  5. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo formaría ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would form right now.
  6. Hoy yo he formado dos veces. — Today I have formed twice.
  7. Espero que tú formes pronto. — I hope You form soon.
  8. Si yo formara, todo sería distinto. — If I formed, everything would be different.
  9. Ahora mismo yo estoy formando. — Right now I am forming.
  10. ¡forma, por favor! — Form, please!

Common mistakes

1. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo formaba.

Right: Ayer yo formé.

Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, formé. The imperfect formaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.

2. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

Wrong: Espero que tú formas.

Right: Espero que tú formes.

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: formes, not the indicative formas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.

3. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No forma.

Right: No formes.

Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no formes. The affirmative forma can never follow no.

4. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo formar todos los días.

Right: Yo formo todos los días.

The infinitive formar names the action; it never works as the main verb of a sentence. Conjugate it for the person: yo formo.

5. Confusing the gerund with the past participle

Wrong: He formando.

Right: He formado.

The perfect tenses use haber plus the past participle: he formado. The gerund formando goes with estar for actions in progress («Estoy formando»), never with haber.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of formar in the present indicative?

- (a) formamos
- (b) forma
- (c) formas
- (d) formo

2. What is the nosotros/as form of formar in the preterite?

- (a) formó
- (b) formaste
- (c) formamos
- (d) formé

3. What is the vosotros/as form of formar in the imperfect?

- (a) formaba
- (b) formabas
- (c) formabais
- (d) formaba

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of formar in the future?

- (a) formaré
- (b) formarás
- (c) formarán
- (d) formará

5. What is the yo form of formar in the conditional?

- (a) formaría
- (b) formaríamos
- (c) formaría
- (d) formarías

6. What is the tú form of formar in the present perfect?

- (a) hemos formado
- (b) he formado
- (c) ha formado
- (d) has formado

7. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of formar in the present subjunctive?

- (a) formes
- (b) forme
- (c) forme
- (d) formemos

8. What is the nosotros/as form of formar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)?

- (a) formara
- (b) formara
- (c) formaras
- (d) formáramos

9. What is the gerund of formar?

- (a) formo
- (b) formar
- (c) formando
- (d) formado

10. What is the past participle of formar?

- (a) formando
- (b) formado
- (c) formé
- (d) formar

Answer key

1. (b) — In the present indicative, the él/ella/Ud. form of formar is forma. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (c) — In the preterite, the nosotros/as form of formar is formamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (c) — In the imperfect, the vosotros/as form of formar is formabais. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (c) — In the future, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of formar is formarán. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (a) — In the conditional, the yo form of formar is formaría. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (d) — In the present perfect, the tú form of formar is has formado. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 7. (b) — In the present subjunctive, the él/ella/Ud. form of formar is forme. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 8. (d) — In the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms), the nosotros/as form of formar is formáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 9. (c) — The gerund of formar is formando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy formando». 10. (b) — The past participle of formar is formado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he formado».

Frequently asked questions

Is formar regular or irregular?

Yes — formar is a regular -ar verb. Learn the endings once and they work in every tense, with the stem form unchanged throughout.

What are the gerund and past participle of formar?

The gerund is formando and the past participle is formado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy formando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he formado»).

How do I say «I form» in Spanish?

Say «Yo formo todos los días». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.

What is the difference between the preterite and the imperfect of formar?

Use the preterite (formé) for a single finished event and the imperfect (formaba) for habits and background. «Ayer yo formé» reports something that happened and ended; «Antes, yo formaba» describes what used to happen.

When do I use the subjunctive with formar?

Use the subjunctive after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions — for example «Espero que tú formes». The trigger sits in the main clause; once it is there, the subjunctive form is required, not a stylistic choice.

How do I use formar in the present perfect?

Put haber in the present before the past participle: «Hoy yo he formado». The participle formado never changes for person — only haber changes — so once you know the participle, the whole perfect tense follows.

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