Investigar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of investigar — "to investigate" 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 investigar 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. Investigar means to investigate, and it is used for investigating a case with the police, a subject for a thesis, a road accident and a family history. It is a spelling-change verb: the g becomes gu before e. To see it in a real sentence: Él investiga el caso con la policía. — "He/she investigates the case with the police." Work through the table below, then the formation notes, the usage rules and the contrast with the preterite, and test yourself at the end.
Present tense conjugation table: investigar
Every person of investigar in the present tense. The gerund is investigando and the past participle is investigado.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | investigo |
| tú | investigas |
| él/ella/Ud. | investiga |
| nosotros/as | investigamos |
| vosotros/as | investigáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | investigan |
How the present indicative of investigar is formed
The present indicative of investigar is built from the stem investig- plus the present endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar 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 | investigo |
| tú | -as | investigas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | investiga |
| nosotros/as | -amos | investigamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | investigáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | investigan |
investigar is a spelling-change verb: g becomes gu before e. That is why the written form changes in some persons — the sound stays the same, and only the spelling adapts. In this tense, watch the first-person form investigo in particular.
The gerund of investigar is investigando and the past participle is investigado. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present tense of investigar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and investigar 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 tense describes things you do regularly. If you do it every day, every week or every morning, the present is the tense to use. For investigar, this use looks like this: "Yo investigo el caso con la policía." — "I investigate the case with the police." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
General facts
The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. It is the tense for definitions and permanent situations. For investigar, this use looks like this: "Él investiga un tema para la tesis." — "He/she investigates a subject for the thesis." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
What is happening now
The present tense also covers what is happening at this moment, especially with verbs that describe an action in progress. For investigar, this use looks like this: "Nosotros investigamos el accidente de la carretera." — "We investigate the road accident." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
Timetables and schedules
The present tense is used for fixed plans and timetables, such as trains, classes and opening times, even when they refer to the future. For investigar, this use looks like this: "Ellos investigan la historia de su familia." — "They investigate his family history." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
Instructions and requests
The present tense appears in instructions and polite requests, where it sounds softer than a direct command. For investigar, this use looks like this: "Tú investigas el caso con la policía." — "You investigate the case with the police." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.
The present tense vs the preterite
Learners often mix up the present and the preterite with investigar. The rule is simple: the present is for habits, facts and what is happening now, while the preterite is for one finished action in the past. The three pairs below show the same idea in both tenses, so you can feel the difference.
Pair 1: present vs preterite
- Present: "Yo investigo el caso con la policía." — "I investigate the case with the police."
- Preterite: "Yo investigué el caso con la policía." — "I investigated the case with the police." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.
Pair 2: present vs preterite
- Present: "Él investiga un tema para la tesis." — "He/she investigates a subject for the thesis."
- Preterite: "Él investigó un tema para la tesis." — "He/she investigated a subject for the thesis." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.
Pair 3: present vs preterite
- Present: "Nosotros investigamos el accidente de la carretera." — "We investigate the road accident."
- Preterite: "Nosotros investigamos el accidente de la carretera." — "We investigated the road accident." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.
Example sentences in the present tense
Eight natural sentences with investigar in the present tense only. Each one uses a form from the table above.
- Yo investigo el caso con la policía. — I investigate the case with the police.
- Tú investigas un tema para la tesis. — You investigate a subject for the thesis.
- Él investiga el accidente de la carretera. — He/she investigates the road accident.
- Nosotros investigamos la historia de su familia. — We investigate his family history.
- Vosotros investigáis el caso con la policía. — You all investigate the case with the police.
- Ellos investigan un tema para la tesis. — They investigate a subject for the thesis.
- Yo investigo el accidente de la carretera. — I investigate the road accident.
- Él investiga la historia de su familia. — He/she investigates his family history.
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Vosotros investigais un tema para la tesis. — Right: Vosotros investigáis un tema para la tesis. — The vosotros present form carries a written accent: investigáis, not investigais.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo investigo el accidente de la carretera. — Right: Ayer, yo investigué el accidente de la carretera. — Ayer means yesterday, so it needs the preterite (investigué), not the present (investigo). The present is for now, not for yesterday.
- Wrong: Yo investiga el caso con la policía. — Right: Yo investigo el caso con la policía. — The person matters: investiga is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is investigo.
- Wrong: Yo soy investigado un tema para la tesis. — Right: Yo he investigado un tema para la tesis. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he investigado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Quiz: test yourself
Eight questions on the present tense of investigar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el caso con la policía. (present tense) A. investigo B. investigas C. investiga D. investigamos
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ un tema para la tesis. (present tense) A. investigas B. investigo C. investiga D. investigamos
Complete the sentence: Él ___ el accidente de la carretera. (present tense) A. investiga B. investigo C. investigas D. investigamos
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ la historia de su familia. (present tense) A. investigamos B. investigo C. investigas D. investiga
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ___ el caso con la policía. (present tense) A. investigáis B. investigo C. investigas D. investiga
Complete the sentence: Ellos ___ un tema para la tesis. (present tense) A. investigan B. investigo C. investigas D. investiga
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el accidente de la carretera. (present tense) A. investigo B. investigas C. investiga D. investigamos
Complete the sentence: Él ___ la historia de su familia. (present tense) A. investiga B. investigo C. investigas D. investigamos
Answer key
- investigo — The yo present form of investigar is investigo. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investigas — The tu present form of investigar is investigas. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investiga — The el present form of investigar is investiga. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investigamos — The nosotros present form of investigar is investigamos. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investigáis — The vosotros present form of investigar is investigáis. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investigan — The ellos present form of investigar is investigan. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investigo — The yo present form of investigar is investigo. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
- investiga — The el present form of investigar is investiga. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
Frequently asked questions
When do I use the present tense of investigar?
Use the present tense of investigar for habits, facts and what is happening now. For example: Yo investigo el caso con la policía. — "I investigate the case with the police." The usage rules above give five situations with examples.
How is the present tense of investigar formed?
Take the stem investig- and add the present endings for -ar verbs. The full table is at the top of this page. Remember the spelling change: g becomes gu before e.
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of investigar?
The present describes a habit or a present fact, while the preterite describes a finished action. Compare Yo investigo un tema para la tesis. with Yo investigué un tema para la tesis. — the verb is the same, but the time meaning changes.
How do I practise the present tense of investigar?
Drill the six forms in the table above until you can say them without looking, then use the investigar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and test yourself with the Investigar conjugation page for the full picture across all tenses.
Related links
- Investigar conjugation — the full conjugation of investigar in every tense.
- Investigar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for investigar.
- Spanish Present tense guide — the full guide to the present tense in Spanish.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Spanish Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense on any verb.