Llegar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of llegar — to arrive — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. Llegar means to arrive and to reach: llegar a casa, llegar a tiempo, llegar a ser (to become). It is a spelling-changing verb: the g becomes gu before e, so the yo preterite is llegué and the subjunctive is llegue. It never takes a direct object for the destination — always llegar a. This page gives you the complete present tense table for llegar, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “Yo llego a casa a las seis.” — “I arrive home at six”.

Present tense conjugation of llegar

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for llegar. Llegar is an irregular -ar verb, so watch out for the forms that break the pattern — they are the ones learners need to memorise.

Present tense indicative — llegar

Person Form
yo llego
tú llegas
él/ella/Ud. llega
nosotros/as llegamos
vosotros/as llegáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. llegan

The gerund of llegar is llegando and the past participle is llegado. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for the progressive with estar.

How the present tense of llegar is formed

The present tense of llegar does not follow the regular pattern. If llegar were regular, the present tense forms would be yo → llego, tú → llegas, él/ella/Ud. → llega, nosotros/as → llegamos, vosotros/as → llegáis, ellos/ellas/Uds. → llegan — but llegar breaks the pattern in this tense: the forms are llego, llegas, llega, llegamos, llegáis and llegan.

A note on spelling: the written accents in this tense are part of the form, not decoration. In the present tense, llegáis carries an accent, and leaving it out changes the pronunciation and, in writing, marks the form as wrong. Copy the forms from the table above exactly, accents included.

When to use the present tense of llegar

1. Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly. For example, with llegar: “Yo llego a casa a las seis.” — “I arrive home at six”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

2. General truths and facts

Use the present for things that are always true. For example, with llegar: “Ella llega tarde todos los días.” — “She arrives late every day”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

3. What is happening right now

Use the present for actions in progress at this moment. For example, with llegar: “Nosotros llegamos a tiempo siempre.” — “We always arrive on time”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

4. Scheduled plans and the near future

Use the present for fixed plans, especially with a time expression. For example, with llegar: “Ellos llegan en tren desde Sevilla.” — “They arrive by train from Seville”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Present vs future: llegar now, llegar later

The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.

  • Present tense tense: “Yo llego a casa todos los días.” — “I arrive home every day.”

  • Future: “Yo llegaré a casa mañana.” — “Tomorrow I will arrive home.”

  • Present tense tense: “Ella llega a casa ahora.” — “She arrives home now.”

  • Future: “Ella llegará a casa la semana que viene.” — “Next week she will arrive home.”

  • Present tense tense: “Nosotros llegamos a casa en clase.” — “We arrive home in class.”

  • Future: “Nosotros llegaremos a casa el lunes.” — “On Monday we will arrive home.”

Example sentences: llegar in the present tense

Six sentences using only the present tense of llegar, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “Yo llego a casa a las seis.” — “I arrive home at six.”
  • “Ella llega tarde todos los días.” — “She arrives late every day.”
  • “Nosotros llegamos a tiempo siempre.” — “We always arrive on time.”
  • “Ellos llegan en tren desde Sevilla.” — “They arrive by train from Seville.”
  • “¿Tú llegas pronto?” — “Will you arrive soon?”
  • “Vosotros llegáis a la reunión a las nueve.” — “You arrive at the meeting at nine.”

Common mistakes with llegar in the present tense

Mistake 1

Wrong: Ayer yo llegé tarde.

Right: Ayer yo llego tarde.

The preterite keeps the hard g sound with gu: llegué, not llegé.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Yo llego a casa — learners drop the a: llego casa.

Right: Yo llego a casa.

Llegar needs a before the destination: llegar a casa.

Quiz: llegar in the present tense

Eight questions on the present tense of llegar. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of llegar in the present tense?

  • A) llego
  • B) llegas
  • C) llega
  • D) llegamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is llego.

2. What is the tú form of llegar in the present tense?

  • A) llego
  • B) llega
  • C) llegamos
  • D) llegas

Answer: D — The tú form in the present tense is llegas.

3. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of llegar in the present tense?

  • A) llegas
  • B) llegamos
  • C) llega
  • D) llego

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is llega.

4. What is the nosotros/as form of llegar in the present tense?

  • A) llega
  • B) llegamos
  • C) llego
  • D) llegas

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present tense is llegamos.

5. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ a casa a las seis.” (I arrive home at six.)

  • A) llego
  • B) llegas
  • C) llega
  • D) llegamos

Answer: A — The sentence needs llego.

6. Fill in the blank: “Ella ___ tarde todos los días.” (She arrives late every day.)

  • A) llego
  • B) llegas
  • C) llegamos
  • D) llega

Answer: D — The sentence needs llega.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Ayer yo llegé tarde.
  • B) Ayer yo llego tarde.

Answer: B — The preterite keeps the hard g sound with gu: llegué, not llegé.

8. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo llego a casa.
  • B) Yo llego a casa — learners drop the a: llego casa.

Answer: A — Llegar needs a before the destination: llegar a casa.

Frequently asked questions

Is llegar regular in the present tense?

No. llegar is irregular in the present tense: the forms are llego, llegas, llega, llegamos, llegáis and llegan. There is no rule that produces them from the infinitive, so they have to be learnt as a set — the quiz above is a good place to start.

What is the yo form of llegar in the present tense?

It is llego. The yo form is the one learners use most and the one that most often breaks the pattern — for llegar it is the form to learn first, before the rest of the table.

When do I use the present tense of llegar instead of the preterite?

Use the present when the action is a habit, a fact, or happening now, and the preterite when it is a finished action in the past. If you can add “yesterday” to the sentence and it still makes sense, you almost certainly need the preterite, not the present.

How can I remember the present tense forms of llegar?

Say the six forms aloud in order — llego, llegas, llega, llegamos, llegáis, llegan — three times a day for a week, always in a sentence, never as a bare list. Then use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test yourself, and the full conjugation page for llegar to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo llego…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo llegué…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo llegaré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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