Medir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of medir — "to measure" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for medir with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Medir means to measure: medir la habitación, medir la temperatura. It is also used figuratively: medir sus palabras means to weigh your words before speaking. To see it in a real sentence: Yo mido la habitación con una cinta — "I measure the room with a tape measure".
Present tense conjugation table: medir
Every person of medir in the present tense. The gerund is midiendo and the past participle is medido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | mido |
| tú | mides |
| él/ella/Ud. | mide |
| nosotros/as | medimos |
| vosotros/as | medís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | miden |
How the present of medir is formed
The present of medir is built from the stem med- plus the present endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | mido |
| tú | -es | mides |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | mide |
| nosotros/as | -imos | medimos |
| vosotros/as | -ís | medís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | miden |
The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: mido, mides, mide and miden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: medimos, medís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: midió, midieron, and the gerund is midiendo.
The gerund of medir is midiendo and the past participle is medido. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of medir
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and medir appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
Habits and routines
The present describes things that happen regularly, as a habit or routine.
"Cada día, yo mido la habitación con una cinta" — "Every day, I measure the room with a tape measure"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo mide la temperatura del agua" — "My friend measures the water temperature"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo mido dos metros de tela" — "Right now, I measure two metres of fabric"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros medimos el tiempo con un cronómetro" — "Tomorrow, we measure the time with a stopwatch"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos miden sus palabras antes de hablar" — "They measure his words before speaking"
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: {'pre_es': 'Cada día, ', 'pre_en': 'Every day, '}yo mido la habitación con una cinta — "I measure the room with a tape measure"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo medí la habitación con una cinta — "I measured the room with a tape measure"
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add "used to" in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: {}tú mides la temperatura del agua — "You measure the water temperature"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú medías la temperatura del agua — "You used to measure the water temperature"
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él mide dos metros de tela — "He measures two metres of fabric"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él medirá dos metros de tela — "He will measure two metres of fabric"
Examples: medir in the present tense
Seven sentences that show medir in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo mido la habitación con una cinta — "I measure the room with a tape measure"
- Tú mides la temperatura del agua — "You measure the water temperature"
- Él mide dos metros de tela — "He measures two metres of fabric"
- Nosotros medimos el tiempo con un cronómetro — "We measure the time with a stopwatch"
- Vosotros medís sus palabras antes de hablar — "You measure his words before speaking"
- Ellos miden la habitación con una cinta — "They measure the room with a tape measure"
- Yo mido la temperatura del agua — "I measure the water temperature"
Common mistakes with medir in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with medir in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo medo la habitación con una cinta.
✓ Correct: Yo mido la habitación con una cinta.
medir is a stem-changing verb (e → i): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is mido, not medo.
✗ *Tú mide la temperatura del agua.
✓ Correct: Tú mides la temperatura del agua.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes mides, él takes mide.
✗ *Cada día, yo medí dos metros de tela
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo mido dos metros de tela
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros medis el tiempo con un cronómetro.
✓ Correct: Vosotros medís el tiempo con un cronómetro.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: medís, not medis.
Quiz: medir in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of medir. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of medir for tú? A. mido B. mide C. medimos D. mides
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la habitación con una cinta — "I measure the room with a tape measure" (present) A. mides B. mide C. medimos D. mido
Complete the sentence: Él ______ la temperatura del agua — "He measures the water temperature" (present) A. mide B. mido C. mides D. medimos
Which is the correct present form of medir for nosotros? A. mide B. miden C. medimos D. mides
Which sentence uses medir correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo mide dos metros de tela B. Mi amigo mides dos metros de tela C. Mi amigo medía dos metros de tela D. Mi amigo medimos dos metros de tela
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ el tiempo con un cronómetro — "You measure the time with a stopwatch" (present) A. mide B. medís C. mido D. mides
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ sus palabras antes de hablar — "They measure his words before speaking" (present) A. mide B. miden C. mido D. mides
What is the gerund of medir? A. medí B. midiendo C. medido D. mido
Answer key
- mides — The tú form in the present is mides.
- mido — The present form for yo is mido.
- mide — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is mide.
- medimos — The nosotros form in the present is medimos.
- Mi amigo mide dos metros de tela — Mi amigo mide dos metros de tela is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- medís — The present form for vosotros/as is medís.
- miden — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is miden.
- midiendo — The gerund is midiendo. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle medido.
Frequently asked questions
Is medir regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: mido, mides, mide and miden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: medimos, medís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: midió, midieron, and the gerund is midiendo. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of medir?
The gerund is midiendo and the past participle is medido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I measure" in the present tense?
Say mido. For example: Yo mido la habitación con una cinta — "I measure the room with a tape measure".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of medir?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo mido la habitación con una cinta — "I measure the room with a tape measure". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo medí la habitación con una cinta — "Yesterday, I measured the room with a tape measure". Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once.
Related links
- Full conjugation of medir — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- medir examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.