Introduction
Jugar means «to play (a game, sport)». Jugar is for playing games and sports: football, cards, chess, video games. For playing a musical instrument Spanish uses tocar, not jugar, which is a classic learner trap. Jugar is a u → ue stem-changing verb with an irregular yo form, juego. It is a irregular -ar verb, stem-changing (u → ue), so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of jugar 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 juego al fútbol todos los días.» — I play football every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | jugar |
| English | to play (a game, sport) |
| Verb type | Irregular -ar verb, stem-changing (u → ue) |
| Gerund | jugando |
| Past participle | jugado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: jugando · Past participle: jugado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | juego |
| tú | juegas |
| él/ella/Ud. | juega |
| nosotros/as | jugamos |
| vosotros/as | jugáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | juegan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For jugar, the yo form is juego, as in «Yo juego» in the examples below. This is one of the tenses where jugar does not follow the regular -ar pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | jugué |
| tú | jugaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | jugó |
| nosotros/as | jugamos |
| vosotros/as | jugasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jugaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo jugué» is the classic use. Do not confuse it with the imperfect: the preterite moves the story forward, one finished event at a time.
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | jugaba |
| tú | jugabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | jugaba |
| nosotros/as | jugábamos |
| vosotros/as | jugabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jugaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo jugaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | jugaré |
| tú | jugarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | jugará |
| nosotros/as | jugaremos |
| vosotros/as | jugaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jugarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For jugar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo jugaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | jugaría |
| tú | jugarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | jugaría |
| nosotros/as | jugaríamos |
| vosotros/as | jugaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jugarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo jugaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he jugado |
| tú | has jugado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha jugado |
| nosotros/as | hemos jugado |
| vosotros/as | habéis jugado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han jugado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. It is haber in the present plus the past participle: «Hoy yo he jugado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había jugado |
| tú | habías jugado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había jugado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos jugado |
| vosotros/as | habíais jugado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían jugado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había jugado». It is haber in the imperfect plus the past participle, and it is the tense for explaining what had already happened when something else took place.
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré jugado |
| tú | habrás jugado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá jugado |
| nosotros/as | habremos jugado |
| vosotros/as | habréis jugado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán jugado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré jugado» is the pattern — haber in the future plus the past participle. It is less common in speech but regular in formal writing.
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría jugado |
| tú | habrías jugado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría jugado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos jugado |
| vosotros/as | habríais jugado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían jugado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría jugado si hubiera podido». It is haber in the conditional plus the past participle, and it is the tense for regrets and missed chances.
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | juegue |
| tú | juegues |
| él/ella/Ud. | juegue |
| nosotros/as | juguemos |
| vosotros/as | juguéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jueguen |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él juegue». The trigger is in the main clause; the subjunctive is the mood of uncertainty, desire and influence. Learn the yo form first — most of the table follows from it. This is one of the tenses where jugar does not follow the regular -ar pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | jugara |
| tú | jugaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | jugara |
| nosotros/as | jugáramos |
| vosotros/as | jugarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jugaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él jugara, todo sería distinto». The table above shows the -ra forms, the ones you will hear most often. There is also a less common -se set built on the same stem.
Imperative — Affirmative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | juega |
| él/ella/Ud. | juegue |
| nosotros/as | juguemos |
| vosotros/as | jugad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jueguen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Juega!». There is no yo form — you cannot command yourself. The tú form is the one you will use with friends and family, and the usted form with people you address formally. This is one of the tenses where jugar does not follow the regular -ar pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.
Imperative — Negative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | juegues |
| él/ella/Ud. | juegue |
| nosotros/as | juguemos |
| vosotros/as | juguéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | jueguen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No juegues!». Unlike the affirmative imperative, the negative forms come from the present subjunctive, which is why they look different. Never use the affirmative form after no. This is one of the tenses where jugar does not follow the regular -ar pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.
Example sentences
- Yo juego al fútbol todos los días. — I play football every day.
- Mi hermana juega al fútbol mucho. — My sister plays football a lot.
- Ayer yo jugué al fútbol por la tarde. — Yesterday I played football in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo jugaba al fútbol muchas veces. — As a child, I used to play football often.
- Mañana yo jugaré al fútbol sin falta. — Tomorrow I will play football without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo jugaría al fútbol ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would play football right now.
- Hoy yo he jugado a las cartas dos veces. — Today I have played cards twice.
- Espero que él juegue al fútbol pronto. — I hope he plays football soon.
- ¡Juega al fútbol con nosotros! — Play football with us!
- Ahora mismo estoy jugando al fútbol. — Right now I am playing football.
Common mistakes
1. Using the regular stem in the present
Wrong: jugo
Right: juego
Jugar does not keep its infinitive stem here. The correct form is juego; the regular-looking jugo is a form learners invent by applying the standard endings to the wrong stem.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo jugaba al fútbol.
Right: Ayer yo jugué al fútbol.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, jugué. The imperfect jugaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Juego el fútbol.
Right: Juego al fútbol.
Jugar is followed by a + the game: jugar al fútbol, jugar a las cartas. The preposition is obligatory.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú juegas al fútbol.
Right: Espero que tú juegues al fútbol.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: juegues, not the indicative juegas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No juega al fútbol.
Right: No juegues al fútbol.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no juegues. The affirmative juega can never follow no.
Quiz
Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.
1. What is the yo form of jugar in the present tense?
- (a) juega
- (b) juegas
- (c) juego
- (d) jugamos
2. What is the él/ella form of jugar in the preterite?
- (a) jugamos
- (b) jugaste
- (c) jugué
- (d) jugó
3. What is the nosotros form of jugar in the imperfect?
- (a) jugaba
- (b) jugabas
- (c) jugábamos
4. What is the tú form of jugar in the future tense?
- (a) jugaremos
- (b) jugará
- (c) jugarás
- (d) jugaré
5. What is the ellos form of jugar in the conditional?
- (a) jugaría
- (b) jugarían
- (c) jugarías
6. What is the yo form of jugar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha jugado
- (b) has jugado
- (c) he jugado
- (d) hemos jugado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of jugar?
- (a) juegue
- (b) juegues
- (c) juguemos
8. What is the nosotros form of jugar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) jugara
- (b) jugáramos
- (c) jugaras
9. What is the gerund of jugar?
- (a) juego
- (b) jugado
- (c) jugando
- (d) jugar
10. What is the past participle of jugar?
- (a) jugado
- (b) jugando
- (c) jugar
- (d) jugué
Answer key
1. (c) juego — In the present, the yo form of jugar is juego. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) jugó — In the preterite, the el form of jugar is jugó. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) jugábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of jugar is jugábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) jugarás — In the future, the tu form of jugar is jugarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) jugarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of jugar is jugarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he jugado — In the present perfect, the yo form of jugar is he jugado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (b) juegues — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of jugar is juegues. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) jugáramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of jugar is jugáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (c) jugando — The gerund of jugar is jugando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy jugando».
10. (a) jugado — The past participle of jugar is jugado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he jugado».
Frequently asked questions
Is jugar regular or irregular?
No — jugar is a stem-changing verb (u → ue). The stem vowel changes in the present tense, the present subjunctive and the imperative, and the tenses affected are: present, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the original stem.
What are the gerund and past participle of jugar?
The gerund is jugando and the past participle is jugado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy jugando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he jugado»).
What is the difference between jugar and tocar?
Jugar and tocar are often confused. Tocar is for playing an instrument (tocar la guitarra); jugar is for games and sports.
How do I say «I play» in Spanish?
Say «Yo juego». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.
Which forms of jugar change the stem?
The stem changes (u → ue) in the present tense, the present subjunctive and the imperative — everywhere except the nosotros and vosotros forms. The preterite, imperfect, future and conditional keep the infinitive stem, except where the verb has an extra preterite change.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: jugar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: jugar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Full list of irregular verbs: spanish-irregular-verbs
- Related verb: cantar
- Related verb: bailar
- Related verb: correr
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz