Masticar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb masticar means to chew, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Masticar means to chew, and it is used for chewing food, chewing gum and chewing slowly at the table. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e, so the subjunctive is mastique, and the preterite first person is mastiqué. Like every Spanish verb, masticar 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 mastico la comida despacio, and in the preterite you say mastiqué el pan con calma. 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: masticar
- English: to chew
- Verb type: irregular verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: masticando
- Past participle: masticado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + masticado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for masticar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Masticar is a spelling-change verb: c becomes qu before e, so the subjunctive is mastique and the preterite is mastiqué.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for masticar. 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 | mastico |
| tú | masticas |
| él/ella/Ud. | mastica |
| nosotros/as | masticamos |
| vosotros/as | masticáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mastican |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | mastiqué |
| tú | masticaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | masticó |
| nosotros/as | masticamos |
| vosotros/as | masticasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | masticaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | masticaba |
| tú | masticabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | masticaba |
| nosotros/as | masticábamos |
| vosotros/as | masticabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | masticaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | masticaré |
| tú | masticarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | masticará |
| nosotros/as | masticaremos |
| vosotros/as | masticaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | masticarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | masticaría |
| tú | masticarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | masticaría |
| nosotros/as | masticaríamos |
| vosotros/as | masticaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | masticarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he masticado |
| tú | has masticado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha masticado |
| nosotros/as | hemos masticado |
| vosotros/as | habéis masticado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han masticado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había masticado |
| tú | habías masticado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había masticado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos masticado |
| vosotros/as | habíais masticado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían masticado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré masticado |
| tú | habrás masticado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá masticado |
| nosotros/as | habremos masticado |
| vosotros/as | habréis masticado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán masticado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría masticado |
| tú | habrías masticado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría masticado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos masticado |
| vosotros/as | habríais masticado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían masticado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | mastique |
| tú | mastiques |
| él/ella/Ud. | mastique |
| nosotros/as | mastiquemos |
| vosotros/as | mastiquéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mastiquen |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | masticara |
| tú | masticaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | masticara |
| nosotros/as | masticáramos |
| vosotros/as | masticarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | masticaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | mastica |
| él/ella/Ud. | mastique |
| nosotros/as | mastiquemos |
| vosotros/as | masticad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mastiquen |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | mastiques |
| él/ella/Ud. | mastique |
| nosotros/as | mastiquemos |
| vosotros/as | mastiquéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mastiquen |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | masticando | with estar for the progressive: estoy masticando |
| Past participle | masticado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he masticado |
How to use each tense
Present indicative
Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For masticar, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Mastico la comida despacio. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For masticar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, mastiqué chicle en clase. 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 masticar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, masticaba el pan con calma. 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 masticar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, masticaré bien antes de tragar. 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 masticar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Masticaría la comida despacio 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 masticar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, he masticado chicle en clase. 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 masticar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Había masticado el pan con calma 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 masticar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habré masticado bien antes de tragar. 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 masticar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría masticado la comida despacio 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: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For masticar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él mastique chicle en clase. 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 masticar, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él masticara el pan con calma, 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: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For masticar, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Mastica bien antes de tragar! 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: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For masticar, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No mastiques la comida despacio. 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 masticar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Mastico la comida despacio. — I chew the food slowly.
- Mastica chicle en clase. — He/she chews gum in class.
- Ayer, mastiqué el pan con calma. — Yesterday, I chewed the bread calmly.
- Antes, nosotros masticábamos bien antes de tragar. — Before, we used to chew well before swallowing.
- Mañana, tú masticarás la comida despacio. — Tomorrow, you will chew the food slowly.
- Yo masticaría chicle en clase si tuviera más tiempo. — I would chew gum in class if I had more time.
- Él ha masticado el pan con calma. — He has chewed the bread calmly.
- Espero que él mastique bien antes de tragar. — I hope he chews well before swallowing.
- Yo ya había masticado la comida despacio antes de salir. — I had already chewed the food slowly before leaving.
- Ellos masticaban chicle en clase cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to chew gum in class when they were young.
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Yo mastica la comida despacio. — Right: Yo mastico la comida despacio. — The person matters: mastica is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is mastico. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
- Wrong: Ayer yo masticé chicle en clase. — Right: Ayer yo mastiqué chicle en clase. — Masticar has an irregular preterite: the correct first-person form is mastiqué, not the regular masticé. Learn the preterite forms in the table as a set.
- Wrong: Treating masticar and tragar as identical in every context. — Right: Masticar means to chew, while tragar means to swallow. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: masticar fits sentences such as Mastico la comida despacio, while tragar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
- Wrong: Yo soy masticado chicle en clase. — Right: Yo he masticado chicle en clase. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he masticado, has masticado, ha masticado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: De niño, yo mastiqué el pan con calma todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo masticaba el pan con calma todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (masticaba), not the preterite. The preterite (mastiqué) is for one finished action.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on masticar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la comida despacio. (present tense) A. mastico B. masticas C. mastica D. masticamos
Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ chicle en clase. (preterite) A. mastiqué B. masticaste C. masticaron D. masticó
Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ el pan con calma. (imperfect) A. masticabas B. masticaban C. masticábamos D. masticaba
Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ bien antes de tragar. (future) A. masticaremos B. masticarás C. masticaré D. masticará
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la comida despacio si pudiera. (conditional) A. masticaría B. masticarías C. masticarían D. mastico
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ chicle en clase. (present subjunctive) A. mastiques B. mastiquemos C. mastico D. mastique
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ el pan con calma, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. masticáramos B. mastico C. masticara D. masticaras
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ bien antes de tragar. (present perfect) A. han masticado B. hemos masticado C. he masticado D. has masticado
Complete the command: ¡___ la comida despacio! (affirmative imperative, tú) A. mastica B. mastique C. mastiquemos D. masticad
Which is the gerund of masticar, used with estar for the progressive? A. masticado B. mastico C. mastiqué D. masticando
Answer key
- mastico — The first-person present of masticar is mastico. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
- masticó — The third-person preterite of masticar is masticó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
- masticábamos — The nosotros imperfect of masticar is masticábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
- masticarás — The second-person future of masticar is masticarás.
- masticaría — The first-person conditional of masticar is masticaría, the form for what would happen.
- mastique — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of masticar is mastique.
- masticara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of masticar is masticara.
- hemos masticado — The nosotros present perfect of masticar is hemos masticado: hemos + masticado.
- mastica — The affirmative tú imperative of masticar is mastica.
- masticando — The gerund of masticar is masticando: estoy masticando. The participle masticado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does masticar mean in English?
Masticar means to chew. It is used in everyday situations such as Mastico la comida despacio. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is masticar regular or irregular?
Masticar is a spelling-change verb: its stem changes spelling before e to keep the same consonant sound, for example in the preterite first person (mastiqué) and the present subjunctive (mastique). The rest of the verb follows the regular -ar pattern.
What is the difference between masticar and tragar?
Masticar means to chew, while tragar means to swallow. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use masticar when you mean to chew, as in Mastico la comida despacio, and use tragar for to swallow. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.
How do I say “I chew” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo mastiqué chicle en clase. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo masticaba el pan con calma. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo he masticado chicle en clase.
How do I practise masticar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the masticar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Masticar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for masticar.
- Masticar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for masticar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Saborear conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with masticar.
- Chupar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with masticar.
- Mamar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with masticar.
- Spanish Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.