Introduction
Gustar means «to like», but it works backwards compared with English. In Spanish you do not say «I like chocolate» with gustar as the main action; you say that chocolate is pleasing to you: «Me gusta el chocolate». The thing you like is the subject of the sentence, and the person who likes it is an indirect object (me, te, le, nos, os, les). Gustar is a regular -ar verb — gusto, gustas, gusta — so the forms themselves are easy; the challenge is the sentence structure. Once that clicks, you can talk about everything you like and dislike, from food and music to films and holidays. On this page you will find the full conjugation of gustar in every tense, with examples built the way natives actually use it. For example: «Me gusta el chocolate.» — I like chocolate.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | gustar |
| English | to like, to be pleasing to |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | gustando |
| Past participle | gustado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: gustando · Past participle: gustado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | gusto |
| tú | gustas |
| él/ella/Ud. | gusta |
| nosotros/as | gustamos |
| vosotros/as | gustáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gustan |
Gustar in the present indicative works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Me gusta el chocolate» (singular) and «Me gustan las películas» (plural) — the verb agrees with the thing liked, not with the person.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | gusté |
| tú | gustaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | gustó |
| nosotros/as | gustamos |
| vosotros/as | gustasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gustaron |
Gustar in the preterite works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Ayer me gustó mucho la cena» — the preterite marks a finished reaction to one specific thing.
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | gustaba |
| tú | gustabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | gustaba |
| nosotros/as | gustábamos |
| vosotros/as | gustabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gustaban |
Gustar in the imperfect works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «De pequeño, me gustaba el helado» — the imperfect describes a liking that went on over time.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | gustaré |
| tú | gustarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | gustará |
| nosotros/as | gustaremos |
| vosotros/as | gustaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gustarán |
Gustar in the future works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Mañana me gustará la excursión» — the future states a liking you expect to feel.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | gustaría |
| tú | gustarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | gustaría |
| nosotros/as | gustaríamos |
| vosotros/as | gustaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gustarían |
Gustar in the conditional works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Me gustaría viajar a México» — the conditional is the polite way to say you would like something.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he gustado |
| tú | has gustado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha gustado |
| nosotros/as | hemos gustado |
| vosotros/as | habéis gustado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han gustado |
Gustar in the present perfect works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Me ha gustado mucho tu regalo» — the present perfect reports a liking that matters right now.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había gustado |
| tú | habías gustado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había gustado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos gustado |
| vosotros/as | habíais gustado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían gustado |
Gustar in the pluperfect works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Me había gustado la idea, pero cambié de opinión» — the pluperfect looks back at a liking before another past event.
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré gustado |
| tú | habrás gustado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá gustado |
| nosotros/as | habremos gustado |
| vosotros/as | habréis gustado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán gustado |
Gustar in the future perfect works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Para mañana, me habrá gustado el curso» — a rare form, used to look back from a future point.
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría gustado |
| tú | habrías gustado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría gustado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos gustado |
| vosotros/as | habríais gustado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían gustado |
Gustar in the conditional perfect works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Me habría gustado ir, pero no pude» — the conditional perfect expresses a liking that never happened.
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | guste |
| tú | gustes |
| él/ella/Ud. | guste |
| nosotros/as | gustemos |
| vosotros/as | gustéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gusten |
Gustar in the present subjunctive works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Espero que te guste la sopa» — after espero que, gustar takes the subjunctive: guste, not gusta.
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | gustara |
| tú | gustaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | gustara |
| nosotros/as | gustáramos |
| vosotros/as | gustarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gustaran |
Gustar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms) works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Si me gustara el fútbol, iría al estadio» — the -ra forms follow past-tense triggers and si-clauses.
Imperative — Affirmative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | gusta |
| él/ella/Ud. | guste |
| nosotros/as | gustemos |
| vosotros/as | gustad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gusten |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
Gustar in the imperative — affirmative works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «Guste o no, hay que probarlo» — the imperative of gustar is rare; natives usually rephrase with me gusta.
Imperative — Negative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | gustes |
| él/ella/Ud. | guste |
| nosotros/as | gustemos |
| vosotros/as | gustéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | gusten |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
Gustar in the imperative — negative works like the other tenses but with the backwards structure: the thing liked is the subject. «No te gustes» is not used for likes; to say you do not like something, use «No me gusta».
Example sentences
- Me gusta el chocolate. — I like chocolate.
- Me gustan las películas de acción. — I like action films.
- A María le gusta bailar. — María likes dancing.
- Ayer me gustó mucho la cena. — Yesterday I really liked the dinner.
- De pequeño, me gustaba el helado. — As a child, I used to like ice cream.
- Mañana me gustará la excursión, seguro. — Tomorrow I will like the trip, for sure.
- Me ha gustado mucho tu regalo. — I have really liked your present.
- Espero que te guste la sopa. — I hope you like the soup.
- Dime qué te gusta. — Tell me what you like.
- Nos gusta viajar en tren. — We like travelling by train.
Common mistakes
1. Saying «yo gusto» for «I like»
Wrong: Yo gusto el chocolate.
Right: Me gusta el chocolate.
Gustar works backwards: the thing liked is the subject and the person is an indirect object. «Yo gusto» would mean «I am pleasing» — almost never what you want to say.
2. Forgetting that the verb agrees with the thing liked
Wrong: Me gusta los libros.
Right: Me gustan los libros.
Gusta is for one thing, gustan for several. Los libros is plural, so the verb must be gustan, even though the person is singular.
3. Using the wrong pronoun
Wrong: Me gusto bailar.
Right: Me gusta bailar.
Before an infinitive, gustar stays in the third person singular: me gusta bailar, te gusta nadar. Me gusto would mean «I like myself».
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que te gustas la sopa.
Right: Espero que te guste la sopa.
After espero que, gustar takes the subjunctive: guste, not gustas. The same rule applies after ojalá and quiero que.
5. Using the imperfect for a finished reaction
Wrong: Ayer me gustaba la película.
Right: Ayer me gustó la película.
A single finished event — yesterday's film — needs the preterite gustó. The imperfect gustaba describes a liking that went on over time.
Quiz
Test yourself on gustar. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.
1. How do you say «I like chocolate» in Spanish?
- (a) Me gusta el chocolate.
- (b) Yo gusto el chocolate.
- (c) Me gusto el chocolate.
- (d) Yo gusto chocolate.
2. How do you say «I like action films»?
- (a) Me gustan las películas de acción.
- (b) Me gusta las películas de acción.
- (c) Yo gusto las películas de acción.
- (d) Me gusto las películas de acción.
3. How do you say «María likes dancing»?
- (a) A María le gusta bailar.
- (b) María gusta bailar.
- (c) A María le gustan bailar.
- (d) María le gusta bailar.
4. Yesterday you really liked the dinner. What do you say?
- (a) Ayer me gustó mucho la cena.
- (b) Ayer me gustaba mucho la cena.
- (c) Ayer me gusta mucho la cena.
- (d) Ayer yo gusté mucho la cena.
5. As a child, you used to like ice cream. What do you say?
- (a) De pequeño, me gustaba el helado.
- (b) De pequeño, me gustó el helado.
- (c) De pequeño, me gusta el helado.
- (d) De pequeño, yo gustaba el helado.
6. What is the él/ella form of gustar in the present subjunctive?
- (a) gusta
- (b) gustaba
- (c) guste
- (d) gustó
7. What is the past participle of gustar?
- (a) gustado
- (b) gustando
- (c) gustar
- (d) gusté
8. What is the gerund of gustar?
- (a) gustado
- (b) gustando
- (c) gustar
- (d) gusto
9. How do you say «We like travelling by train»?
- (a) Nos gusta viajar en tren.
- (b) Nos gustan viajar en tren.
- (c) Nosotros gustamos viajar en tren.
- (d) Nos gusta viajamos en tren.
10. What is the ellos form of gustar in the present tense?
- (a) gusta
- (b) gustaba
- (c) gustan
- (d) gustó
Answer key
1. (a) Me gusta el chocolate. — Me gusta el chocolate is the correct structure: the thing liked is the subject, and me is the indirect object.
2. (a) Me gustan las películas de acción. — Las películas is plural, so the verb must be gustan: me gustan las películas de acción.
3. (a) A María le gusta bailar. — A María le gusta bailar: le marks María as the person who likes it, and gusta agrees with the infinitive bailar.
4. (a) Ayer me gustó mucho la cena. — A single finished reaction takes the preterite: me gustó mucho la cena.
5. (a) De pequeño, me gustaba el helado. — A habitual liking in the past takes the imperfect: me gustaba el helado.
6. (c) guste — The present subjunctive él form of gustar is guste — the form you need after espero que and ojalá.
7. (a) gustado — The past participle of gustar is gustado: «Me ha gustado mucho tu regalo».
8. (b) gustando — The gerund of gustar is gustando, used with estar for the progressive.
9. (a) Nos gusta viajar en tren. — Nos gusta viajar en tren: nos marks the group, and gusta agrees with the infinitive viajar.
10. (c) gustan — The ellos form of gustar in the present tense is gustan — the form you need whenever the thing liked is plural: me gustan las películas.
Frequently asked questions
Is gustar regular or irregular?
Gustar is a regular -ar verb: gusto, gustas, gusta, gustamos, gustáis, gustan. The forms are completely regular. What is unusual is the syntax — the thing liked is the subject — not the conjugation.
What are the gerund and past participle of gustar?
The gerund is gustando and the past participle is gustado. You will meet the participle most often in the present perfect: «Me ha gustado mucho tu regalo».
Why is it «me gusta» and not «yo gusto»?
Because gustar literally means «to be pleasing to». The thing liked is the subject (el chocolate gusta = chocolate is pleasing), and the person is an indirect object (me = to me). English reverses the roles, which is why «yo gusto» feels natural to learners and is wrong.
When do I use gusta and when gustan?
Gusta is for one thing or an infinitive: me gusta el chocolate, me gusta bailar. Gustan is for two or more things: me gustan las películas, me gustan los libros. The verb agrees with what is liked, never with the person.
What is the difference between gustar and encantar?
Encantar means «to love» something — it is gustar turned up louder, with exactly the same backwards structure: me encanta el chocolate. Use gustar for ordinary likes and encantar for the things you love.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: gustar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: gustar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: amar
- Related verb: odiar
- Related verb: temer
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz