Inferir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of inferir — "to infer" 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 inferir 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. Inferir means to infer or to deduce something from evidence: inferir la respuesta de los datos. It is a formal verb, common in academic and logical writing. To see it in a real sentence: Yo infiero la respuesta de los datos — "I infer the answer from the data".
Present tense conjugation table: inferir
Every person of inferir in the present tense. The gerund is infiriendo and the past participle is inferido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | infiero |
| tú | infieres |
| él/ella/Ud. | infiere |
| nosotros/as | inferimos |
| vosotros/as | inferís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | infieren |
How the present of inferir is formed
The present of inferir is built from the stem infer- plus the present endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir 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 | infiero |
| tú | -es | infieres |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | infiere |
| nosotros/as | -imos | inferimos |
| vosotros/as | -ís | inferís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | infieren |
The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: infiero, infieres, infiere and infieren — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: inferimos, inferís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: infirió, infirieron, and the gerund is infiriendo.
The gerund of inferir is infiriendo and the past participle is inferido. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of inferir
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and inferir 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.
Habits and routines
The present describes things that happen regularly, as a habit or routine.
"Cada día, yo infiero la respuesta de los datos" — "Every day, I infer the answer from the data"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo infiere su intención por sus gestos" — "My friend infers his intention from his gestures"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo infiero la verdad de sus palabras" — "Right now, I infer the truth from his words"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros inferimos el resultado del experimento" — "Tomorrow, we infer the result of the experiment"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos infieren una conclusión lógica" — "They infer a logical conclusion"
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: {'pre_es': 'Cada día, ', 'pre_en': 'Every day, '}yo infiero la respuesta de los datos — "I infer the answer from the data"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo inferí la respuesta de los datos — "I inferred the answer from the data"
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: {}tú infieres su intención por sus gestos — "You infer his intention from his gestures"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú inferías su intención por sus gestos — "You used to infer his intention from his gestures"
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: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él infiere la verdad de sus palabras — "He infers the truth from his words"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él inferirá la verdad de sus palabras — "He will infer the truth from his words"
Examples: inferir in the present tense
Seven sentences that show inferir in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo infiero la respuesta de los datos — "I infer the answer from the data"
- Tú infieres su intención por sus gestos — "You infer his intention from his gestures"
- Él infiere la verdad de sus palabras — "He infers the truth from his words"
- Nosotros inferimos el resultado del experimento — "We infer the result of the experiment"
- Vosotros inferís una conclusión lógica — "You infer a logical conclusion"
- Ellos infieren la respuesta de los datos — "They infer the answer from the data"
- Yo infiero su intención por sus gestos — "I infer his intention from his gestures"
Common mistakes with inferir in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with inferir in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo infero la respuesta de los datos.
✓ Correct: Yo infiero la respuesta de los datos.
inferir is a stem-changing verb (e → ie): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is infiero, not infero.
✗ *Tú infiere su intención por sus gestos.
✓ Correct: Tú infieres su intención por sus gestos.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes infieres, él takes infiere.
✗ *Cada día, yo inferí la verdad de sus palabras
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo infiero la verdad de sus palabras
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros inferis el resultado del experimento.
✓ Correct: Vosotros inferís el resultado del experimento.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: inferís, not inferis.
Quiz: inferir in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of inferir. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of inferir for tú? A. inferimos B. infieres C. infiero D. infiere
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la respuesta de los datos — "I infer the answer from the data" (present) A. infieres B. infiere C. inferimos D. infiero
Complete the sentence: Él ______ su intención por sus gestos — "He infers his intention from his gestures" (present) A. infiere B. infiero C. infieres D. inferimos
Which is the correct present form of inferir for nosotros? A. inferimos B. infieres C. infiere D. infieren
Which sentence uses inferir correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo infería la verdad de sus palabras B. Mi amigo inferimos la verdad de sus palabras C. Mi amigo infiere la verdad de sus palabras D. Mi amigo infieres la verdad de sus palabras
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ el resultado del experimento — "You infer the result of the experiment" (present) A. infiero B. infieres C. infiere D. inferís
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ una conclusión lógica — "They infer a logical conclusion" (present) A. infiere B. infieren C. infiero D. infieres
What is the gerund of inferir? A. inferido B. infiero C. inferí D. infiriendo
Answer key
- infieres — The tú form in the present is infieres.
- infiero — The present form for yo is infiero.
- infiere — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is infiere.
- inferimos — The nosotros form in the present is inferimos.
- Mi amigo infiere la verdad de sus palabras — Mi amigo infiere la verdad de sus palabras is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- inferís — The present form for vosotros/as is inferís.
- infieren — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is infieren.
- infiriendo — The gerund is infiriendo. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle inferido.
Frequently asked questions
Is inferir regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: infiero, infieres, infiere and infieren — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: inferimos, inferís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: infirió, infirieron, and the gerund is infiriendo. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of inferir?
The gerund is infiriendo and the past participle is inferido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I infer" in the present tense?
Say infiero. For example: Yo infiero la respuesta de los datos — "I infer the answer from the data".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of inferir?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo infiero la respuesta de los datos — "I infer the answer from the data". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo inferí la respuesta de los datos — "Yesterday, I inferred the answer from the data". Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once.
Related links
- Full conjugation of inferir — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- inferir 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.