Licenciar in the Present Tense

Introduction

The present tense of licenciar — «to license» — is the form you will reach for most often. It talks about habits, facts and what is happening right now, and it is the first tense to master for this verb. licenciar is a regular -ar verb verb, so the present follows the -ar endings. On this page you will find the full present-tense table, how the forms are built, five usage rules with examples, a comparison with the preterite, more example sentences, the mistakes learners make in this tense, an eight-question quiz and answers to common questions. A good first sentence is «Yo licencio todos los días» — I license every day.

Licenciar in the Present Tense — full table

Person Form
yo licencio
tú licencias
él/ella/Ud. licencia
nosotros/as licenciamos
vosotros/as licenciáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. licencian

Gerund: licenciando · Past participle: licenciado

How the present tense of licenciar is formed

Take the stem licenci — the infinitive licenciar without its -ar ending — and add the present endings. The table below shows the build for every person, using the actual stem of each form:

Person Stem Ending Form
yo licenci -o licencio
tú licenci -as licencias
él/ella/Ud. licenci -a licencia
nosotros/as licenci -amos licenciamos
vosotros/as licenci -áis licenciáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. licenci -an licencian

The present is the only tense where the yo form ends in -o for all three verb classes, which makes it a useful anchor: if you know licencio, you can build the rest of the table from the stem and the endings above.

When to use the present tense of licenciar

1. Daily routines and habits

The most common use: things you do regularly. Time words like todos los días, siempre and a veces are the giveaway.

Yo licencio todos los días. — I license every day.

2. General truths and facts

Use the present for things that are true in general, not just today. No time expression is needed — the statement stands on its own.

Él licencia con mi familia. — He licenses with my family.

3. What is happening right now

For an action in progress, the present works on its own in Spanish, and you can also use estar + the gerund licenciando for emphasis. Both are correct; the gerund version stresses that it is happening this very moment.

Nosotros licenciamos por la mañana. — We license in the morning.

4. Scheduled near-future plans

Spanish often uses the present for a fixed plan in the near future, where English would say «going to». A time expression such as mañana or la semana que viene makes the future meaning clear.

Tú licencias en el trabajo. — You license at work.

5. Narrating and commenting

The present is the tense of live commentary and of stories told as if they were happening now. It keeps the listener in the moment, and it is the tense of instructions and explanations.

Ellos licencian a veces. — They license sometimes.

Present Tense vs Preterite: how to choose

The present and the preterite answer different questions. The present says what happens in general or what is happening now; the preterite says what happened once and is over. Compare the pairs below — same verb, different time frame:

  • Present: Yo licencio todos los días. — I license every day.

  • Preterite: Ayer yo licencié por la tarde. — Yesterday I licensed in the afternoon.

  • A routine against a single finished event. The present describes the habit; the preterite reports the one time it happened.

  • Present: Él licencia por la mañana. — He licenses in the morning.

  • Preterite: Ayer él licenció por la tarde. — Yesterday He licensed in the afternoon.

  • What happens in the morning in general, against what happened yesterday afternoon. The time expression decides the tense.

  • Present: Nosotros licenciamos con mi familia. — We license with my family.

  • Preterite: La semana pasada nosotros licenciamos dos veces. — Last week We licensed twice.

  • A shared habit against a shared finished event. If the action repeats, use the present; if it happened once and ended, use the preterite.

Example sentences: licenciar in the present

  1. Yo licencio todos los días. — I license every day.
  2. Tú licencias en el trabajo. — You license at work.
  3. Él licencia con mi familia. — He licenses with my family.
  4. Nosotros licenciamos por la mañana. — We license in the morning.
  5. Vosotros licenciáis cuando hay tiempo. — You license when there is time.
  6. Ellos licencian a veces. — They license sometimes.
  7. Yo licencio en el trabajo. — I license at work.
  8. Él licencia todos los días. — He licenses every day.

Common mistakes with licenciar in the present

1. Forgetting the accent on the vosotros form

Wrong: Vosotros licenciais.

Right: Vosotros licenciáis.

The vosotros form licenciáis carries a written accent on the ending. Without it the word is misspelled, and in speech the stress falls in the wrong place.

2. Using the present for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo licencio.

Right: Ayer yo licencié.

Ayer belongs with the preterite. The present licencio talks about now or about a habit; a finished yesterday needs licencié.

3. Using the yo form for every person

Wrong: Ellos licencio.

Right: Ellos licencian.

Each person has its own form: ellos take licencian, not the yo form licencio. The -n ending on licencian is what marks the third-person plural.

4. Using the present instead of the progressive

Wrong: Estoy licencio.

Right: Estoy licenciando.

After estar, Spanish needs the gerund: estoy licenciando. The conjugated present licencio never follows estar.

Quiz: licenciar in the present

Test yourself on the present tense of licenciar. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of licenciar in the present indicative?

- (a) licencia
- (b) licencio
- (c) licenciamos
- (d) licencias

2. What is the nosotros/as form of licenciar in the present indicative?

- (a) licenciamos
- (b) licencias
- (c) licencio
- (d) licencia

3. What is the vosotros/as form of licenciar in the present indicative?

- (a) licencias
- (b) licencio
- (c) licencia
- (d) licenciáis

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of licenciar in the present indicative?

- (a) licencian
- (b) licencia
- (c) licencio
- (d) licencias

5. What is the yo form of licenciar in the present indicative?

- (a) licencias
- (b) licenciamos
- (c) licencio
- (d) licencia

6. What is the tú form of licenciar in the present indicative?

- (a) licencio
- (b) licenciamos
- (c) licencia
- (d) licencias

7. What is the gerund of licenciar?

- (a) licenciar
- (b) licenciando
- (c) licencio
- (d) licenciado

8. What is the past participle of licenciar?

- (a) licenciar
- (b) licencié
- (c) licenciado
- (d) licenciando

Answer key

1. (a) — In the present indicative, the él/ella/Ud. form of licenciar is licencia. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (a) — In the present indicative, the nosotros/as form of licenciar is licenciamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (d) — In the present indicative, the vosotros/as form of licenciar is licenciáis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (a) — In the present indicative, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of licenciar is licencian. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (c) — In the present indicative, the yo form of licenciar is licencio. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (d) — In the present indicative, the tú form of licenciar is licencias. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 7. (b) — The gerund of licenciar is licenciando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy licenciando». 8. (c) — The past participle of licenciar is licenciado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he licenciado».

Frequently asked questions

Is licenciar regular in the present?

Yes — licenciar is regular in the present. The stem licenci never changes and the endings are -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an for -ar verbs (with the matching sets for -er and -ir verbs).

What is the yo form of licenciar in the present?

It is licencio. Use it for talking about yourself right now.

How is the present different from the preterite for licenciar?

The present (licencio) describes habits and what is happening now; the preterite (licencié) reports a single finished event. «Yo licencio todos los días» is a habit, while «Ayer yo licencié» is one event that ended yesterday.

Can I use the present of licenciar with estar and the gerund?

Yes — «Estoy licenciando» means «I am licensing right now», with the emphasis on the action in progress. The plain present «Yo licencio» is also correct for what is happening now; the gerund version simply stresses the moment.

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