Justificar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb justificar means to justify, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Justificar means to justify, and it is used for justifying an absence with a certificate, justifying an expense and justifying a decision in a report. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. Like every Spanish verb, justificar changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say justifico su ausencia con un certificado, and in the preterite you say justifiqué la decisión en el informe. Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: justificar
  • English: to justify
  • Verb type: irregular verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: justificando
  • Past participle: justificado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + justificado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for justificar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Spelling change: c becomes qu before e, so the preterite is justifiqué and the subjunctive is justifique.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for justificar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo justifico
tú justificas
él/ella/Ud. justifica
nosotros/as justificamos
vosotros/as justificáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. justifican

Preterite

Person Form
yo justifiqué
tú justificaste
él/ella/Ud. justificó
nosotros/as justificamos
vosotros/as justificasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. justificaron

Imperfect

Person Form
yo justificaba
tú justificabas
él/ella/Ud. justificaba
nosotros/as justificábamos
vosotros/as justificabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. justificaban

Future

Person Form
yo justificaré
tú justificarás
él/ella/Ud. justificará
nosotros/as justificaremos
vosotros/as justificaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. justificarán

Conditional

Person Form
yo justificaría
tú justificarías
él/ella/Ud. justificaría
nosotros/as justificaríamos
vosotros/as justificaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. justificarían

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

Person Form
yo justifique
tú justifiques
él/ella/Ud. justifique
nosotros/as justifiquemos
vosotros/as justifiquéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. justifiquen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo justificara
tú justificaras
él/ella/Ud. justificara
nosotros/as justificáramos
vosotros/as justificarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. justificaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú justifica
él/ella/Ud. justifique
nosotros/as justifiquemos
vosotros/as justificad
ellos/ellas/Uds. justifiquen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú justifiques
él/ella/Ud. justifique
nosotros/as justifiquemos
vosotros/as justifiquéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. justifiquen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund justificando with estar for the progressive: estoy justificando
Past participle justificado with haber for the perfect tenses: he justificado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. Note the spelling change here: c becomes qu before e, so the forms keep the same sound as the infinitive. For justificar, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Justifico su ausencia con un certificado. Learn the present forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. Note the spelling change in the first person: c becomes qu before e, so the preterite first person is justifiqué. For justificar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, justifiqué el gasto ante el jefe. Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, justificaba la decisión en el informe. Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, justificaré su retraso por el tráfico. Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Justificaría su ausencia con un certificado si pudiera. Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, he justificado el gasto ante el jefe. Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Había justificado la decisión en el informe antes de salir. Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habré justificado su retraso por el tráfico. Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría justificado su ausencia con un certificado con más tiempo. Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. Note the spelling change here: c becomes qu before e, so the forms keep the same sound as the infinitive. For justificar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él justifique el gasto ante el jefe. Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For justificar, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él justificara la decisión en el informe, todo cambiaría. Learn the imperfect subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. Note the spelling change here: c becomes qu before e, so the forms keep the same sound as the infinitive. For justificar, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Justifica su retraso por el tráfico! Learn the affirmative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. Note the spelling change here: c becomes qu before e, so the forms keep the same sound as the infinitive. For justificar, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No justifiques su ausencia con un certificado. Learn the negative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with justificar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Justifico su ausencia con un certificado. — I justify his absence with a certificate.
  2. Justifica el gasto ante el jefe. — He/she justifies the expense to the boss.
  3. Ayer, justifiqué la decisión en el informe. — Yesterday, I justified the decision in the report.
  4. Antes, nosotros justificábamos su retraso por el tráfico. — Before, we used to justify his delay because of the traffic.
  5. Mañana, tú justificarás su ausencia con un certificado. — Tomorrow, you will justify his absence with a certificate.
  6. Yo justificaría el gasto ante el jefe si tuviera más tiempo. — I would justify the expense to the boss if I had more time.
  7. Él ha justificado la decisión en el informe. — He has justified the decision in the report.
  8. Espero que él justifique su retraso por el tráfico. — I hope he justifies his delay because of the traffic.
  9. Yo ya había justificado su ausencia con un certificado antes de salir. — I had already justified his absence with a certificate before leaving.
  10. Ellos justificaban el gasto ante el jefe cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to justify the expense to the boss when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo justifica su ausencia con un certificado. — Right: Yo justifico su ausencia con un certificado. — The person matters: justifica is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is justifico. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Yo justificé el gasto ante el jefe. — Right: Yo justifiqué el gasto ante el jefe. — In the preterite, the correct first-person form is justifiqué, not justificé. justificar is a spelling-change verb: c becomes qu before e, so the written form changes to keep the same sound. The regular-looking form is wrong.
  3. Wrong: Treating justificar and explicar as identical in every context. — Right: Justificar means to justify, while explicar means to explain, the close verb. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: justificar fits sentences such as Justifico su ausencia con un certificado, while explicar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy justificado el gasto ante el jefe. — Right: Yo he justificado el gasto ante el jefe. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he justificado, has justificado, ha justificado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo justifiqué la decisión en el informe todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo justificaba la decisión en el informe todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (justificaba), not the preterite. The preterite (justifiqué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on justificar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ su ausencia con un certificado. (present tense) A. justifico B. justificas C. justifica D. justificamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ el gasto ante el jefe. (preterite) A. justifiqué B. justificaste C. justificaron D. justificó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ la decisión en el informe. (imperfect) A. justificabas B. justificaban C. justificábamos D. justificaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ su retraso por el tráfico. (future) A. justificaremos B. justificarás C. justificaré D. justificará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ su ausencia con un certificado si pudiera. (conditional) A. justificaría B. justificarías C. justificarían D. justifico

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ el gasto ante el jefe. (present subjunctive) A. justifiques B. justifiquemos C. justifico D. justifique

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ la decisión en el informe, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. justificáramos B. justifico C. justificara D. justificaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ su retraso por el tráfico. (present perfect) A. han justificado B. hemos justificado C. he justificado D. has justificado

  9. Complete the command: ¡___ su ausencia con un certificado! (affirmative imperative, tú) A. justifica B. justifique C. justifiquemos D. justificad

  10. Which is the gerund of justificar, used with estar for the progressive? A. justificado B. justifico C. justifiqué D. justificando

Answer key

  1. justifico — The first-person present of justificar is justifico. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. justificó — The third-person preterite of justificar is justificó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. justificábamos — The nosotros imperfect of justificar is justificábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. justificarás — The second-person future of justificar is justificarás.
  5. justificaría — The first-person conditional of justificar is justificaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. justifique — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of justificar is justifique.
  7. justificara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of justificar is justificara.
  8. hemos justificado — The nosotros present perfect of justificar is hemos justificado: hemos + justificado.
  9. justifica — The affirmative tú imperative of justificar is justifica.
  10. justificando — The gerund of justificar is justificando: estoy justificando. The participle justificado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does justificar mean in English?

Justificar means to justify. It is used in everyday situations such as Justifico su ausencia con un certificado. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is justificar regular or irregular?

Justificar is a fully regular -ar verb, so every tense follows the standard endings for its class. Once you know the regular pattern, you can produce every form on this page, including justifico in the present and justifiqué in the preterite.

What is the difference between justificar and explicar?

Justificar means to justify, while explicar means to explain, the close verb. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use justificar when you mean to justify, as in Justifico su ausencia con un certificado, and use explicar for to explain, the close verb. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I justify” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo justifiqué el gasto ante el jefe. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo justificaba la decisión en el informe. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo he justificado el gasto ante el jefe.

How do I practise justificar?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the justificar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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