Malgastar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb malgastar means to waste (money), and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Malgastar is a regular -ar verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of malgastar 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, in the present tense you say Yo malgasto el dinero — "I waste the money" — and in the preterite you say Yo malgasté su tiempo — "I wasted his time". 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: malgastar
- English: to waste (money)
- Verb type: regular -ar verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: malgastando
- Past participle: malgastado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + malgastado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for malgastar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for malgastar. 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.
Gerund: malgastando · Past participle: malgastado
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgasto |
| tú | malgastas |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgasta |
| nosotros/as | malgastamos |
| vosotros/as | malgastáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgastan |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgasté |
| tú | malgastaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgastó |
| nosotros/as | malgastamos |
| vosotros/as | malgastasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgastaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgastaba |
| tú | malgastabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgastaba |
| nosotros/as | malgastábamos |
| vosotros/as | malgastabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgastaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgastaré |
| tú | malgastarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgastará |
| nosotros/as | malgastaremos |
| vosotros/as | malgastaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgastarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgastaría |
| tú | malgastarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgastaría |
| nosotros/as | malgastaríamos |
| vosotros/as | malgastaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgastarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he malgastado |
| tú | has malgastado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha malgastado |
| nosotros/as | hemos malgastado |
| vosotros/as | habéis malgastado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han malgastado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había malgastado |
| tú | habías malgastado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había malgastado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos malgastado |
| vosotros/as | habíais malgastado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían malgastado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré malgastado |
| tú | habrás malgastado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá malgastado |
| nosotros/as | habremos malgastado |
| vosotros/as | habréis malgastado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán malgastado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría malgastado |
| tú | habrías malgastado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría malgastado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos malgastado |
| vosotros/as | habríais malgastado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían malgastado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgaste |
| tú | malgastes |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgaste |
| nosotros/as | malgastemos |
| vosotros/as | malgastéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgasten |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | malgastara |
| tú | malgastaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgastara |
| nosotros/as | malgastáramos |
| vosotros/as | malgastarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgastaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | malgasta |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgaste |
| nosotros/as | malgastemos |
| vosotros/as | malgastad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgasten |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | malgastes |
| él/ella/Ud. | malgaste |
| nosotros/as | malgastemos |
| vosotros/as | malgastéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | malgasten |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | malgastando | with estar for the progressive: estoy malgastando |
| Past participle | malgastado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he malgastado |
How to use each tense
Present indicative
Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. It is the tense you will use most often in everyday conversation, for habits with words like todos los días and for statements that are true in general. For malgastar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo malgasto su tiempo — "I waste his time". Learn the present indicative 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 in the past — things that started and ended, often with time words like ayer, anoche or la semana pasada. The preterite moves a story forward, one completed event at a time. For malgastar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo malgasté en tonterías — "I wasted on silly things". 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 words like antes, de niño or mientras. It describes how things used to be, not one finished event. For malgastar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo malgastaba el dinero — "I used to waste the money". 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. It talks about what will happen, not what is happening now. For malgastar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo malgastaré su tiempo — "I will waste his time". 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 in si clauses. It softens a request and describes imagined situations. For malgastar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo malgastaría en tonterías — "I would waste on silly things". 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. It connects the past with the present moment. For malgastar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo he malgastado el dinero — "I have wasted the money". 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. It is the past of the past, and it usually appears with antes de or ya. For malgastar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo había malgastado su tiempo — "I had wasted his time". 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, often with para mañana or para el viernes. For malgastar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habré malgastado en tonterías — "I will have wasted on silly things". 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. It looks back at a past that never happened. For malgastar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría malgastado el dinero — "I would have wasted the money". 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. The subjunctive does not state a fact; it states an attitude towards the action. For malgastar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él malgaste su tiempo — "I hope he wastes his time". 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 malgastar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo malgastara en tonterías, todo cambiaría — "If I wasted on silly things, everything would change". Learn the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) 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. It tells someone to do something, and it has no yo form. For malgastar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Malgaste el dinero — "Let him waste the money". Learn the imperative (affirmative) 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. It uses the subjunctive forms, so it looks different from the affirmative commands. For malgastar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No malgastes su tiempo — "Don't waste his time". Learn the imperative (negative) 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 malgastar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Yo malgasto en tonterías — "I waste on silly things"
- Él malgasta el dinero — "He wastes the money"
- Yo malgasté su tiempo — "I wasted his time"
- Yo malgastaba en tonterías — "I used to waste on silly things"
- Tú malgastarás el dinero — "You will waste the money"
- Yo malgastaría su tiempo — "I would waste his time"
- Él ha malgastado en tonterías — "He has wasted on silly things"
- Espero que él malgaste el dinero — "I hope he wastes the money"
- Yo había malgastado su tiempo — "I had wasted his time"
- Ellos malgastaban en tonterías — "They used to waste on silly things"
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Ellos malgasta el dinero — Right: Ellos malgastan el dinero — Ellos needs the ellos form malgastan. The singular malgasta belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo malgasto — Right: Ayer, yo malgasté — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to malgasté.
- Wrong: De niño, yo malgasté todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo malgastaba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (malgastaba), not the preterite. The preterite (malgasté) is for one finished action.
- Wrong: Yo soy malgastado su tiempo. — Right: Yo he malgastado su tiempo. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he malgastado, has malgastado, ha malgastado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: Espero que él malgasta el dinero. — Right: Espero que él malgaste el dinero. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: malgaste. The indicative malgasta is wrong here.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on malgastar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el dinero. (present tense) A. habríais malgastado B. malgasto C. malgastaste D. malgastarais
Complete the sentence: Él ___ el dinero. (preterite) A. malgastó B. malgastaras C. malgasté D. malgastaría
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el dinero. (imperfect) A. habré malgastado B. malgastara C. malgastará D. malgastábamos
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ el dinero. (future) A. malgastaran B. habías malgastado C. habíais malgastado D. malgastarás
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el dinero. (conditional) A. habían malgastado B. hemos malgastado C. malgastas D. malgastaría
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ el dinero. (present subjunctive) A. malgastéis B. malgaste C. habíais malgastado D. habrá malgastado
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ el dinero, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. malgastara B. habían malgastado C. habías malgastado D. he malgastado
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el dinero. (present perfect) A. habías malgastado B. malgastaba C. malgastes D. hemos malgastado
Complete the command: No ___ el dinero. (negative imperative, tú) A. malgasten B. malgastéis C. malgastemos D. malgastes
Which is the gerund of malgastar, used with estar for the progressive? A. malgastaba B. malgastando C. malgastaré D. malgastado
Answer key
- malgasto — The yo present tense of malgastar is malgasto.
- malgastó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of malgastar is malgastó.
- malgastábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of malgastar is malgastábamos.
- malgastarás — The tú future of malgastar is malgastarás.
- malgastaría — The yo conditional of malgastar is malgastaría.
- malgaste — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of malgastar is malgaste.
- malgastara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of malgastar is malgastara.
- hemos malgastado — The nosotros/as present perfect of malgastar is hemos malgastado.
- malgastes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: malgastes.
- malgastando — The gerund of malgastar is malgastando: estoy malgastando. The participle malgastado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does malgastar mean in English?
Malgastar means to waste (money). It is used in everyday situations such as Yo malgasto el dinero. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is malgastar regular?
Yes. Malgastar is a regular -ar verb: malgasto, malgastas, malgasta. The only thing to learn is the pattern of endings, which is the same for every regular -ar verb.
What is the gerund and the past participle of malgastar?
The gerund is malgastando, used with estar for the progressive: estoy malgastando. The past participle is malgastado, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he malgastado.
How do I say “I waste” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo malgasté su tiempo. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo malgastaba en tonterías. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he malgastado el dinero.
How do I practise malgastar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the malgastar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Malgastar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for malgastar.
- Malgastar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for malgastar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Despilfarrar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with malgastar.
- Legar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with malgastar.
- Actualizar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with malgastar.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.