Molestar Present Tense in Spanish
Introduction
molestar means "to bother, to annoy" in English, and the present tense is the form you use when you talk about what happens regularly, what is generally true, and what is happening now. This page gives you the full present-tense table for molestar, explains how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it, contrasts it with the closest tense, and finishes with examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the most common questions. A natural example is: Cada día, me molesta el ruido del vecino. — "Every day, the neighbour's noise bothers me." Once you can say that sentence confidently, try changing the person and the complement using the table below.
The present tense of molestar: full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| Yo | molesto |
| Tú | molestas |
| Él / Ella | molesta |
| Nosotros | molestamos |
| Vosotros | molestáis |
| Ellos | molestan |
The gerund of molestar is molestando and the past participle is molestado. The gerund is used for the progressive (estoy molestando), and the participle is used with haber in all perfect tenses (he molestado).
How the present tense of molestar is formed
The present tense of molestar is built from the stem molest- plus the regular -ar endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. Take the infinitive, remove the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person: yo molesto, tú molestas, él molesta, nosotros molestamos, vosotros molestáis and ellos molestan. Once you know the pattern for one regular -ar verb, you can apply it to hundreds of others.
In everyday use, molestar usually works like gustar: the thing that produces the feeling is the subject of the sentence, and you are the indirect object. So you say me molesta el ruido del vecino — literally, the thing is the subject and you are the person it affects — rather than starting with yo. The verb agrees with the thing, not with you: one thing takes the singular form molesta, and several things take the plural form molestan. The full table above still matters, because the transitive use (for example, molestar a alguien) uses the ordinary persons.
Two more forms belong with this tense. The gerund is molestando, used for the progressive with estar: estoy molestando. The past participle is molestado, used with haber in all perfect tenses: he molestado. Both forms appear constantly, so they are worth memorising on their own.
When to use the present tense with molestar
1. Noise and light
Me molesta el ruido del vecino is one of the most common complaints in Spanish. The noise is the subject, and you are the person it bothers, so the verb agrees with el ruido, not with you. For example: Me molesta el ruido del vecino. — "The neighbour's noise bothers me."
2. Repeated questions
Me molestan las preguntas repetidas shows the plural form. Las preguntas is plural, so the verb is molestan. This agreement rule catches many learners out. For example: Te molesta la luz fuerte. — "The bright light bothers you."
3. Asking not to be disturbed
No me molestes, por favor is the direct, personal use: it means do not disturb me. It is the same verb, but here the object is a person and the structure is the ordinary transitive one. For example: Le molestan las preguntas repetidas. — "Repeated questions bother him."
4. Plans and the near future
The present tense is also used for plans that are already fixed, especially with a time expression. Spanish speakers often say the present where English would use a future: the plan is so certain that it feels like a fact. For example, to talk about tomorrow's plan you can use the future — Mañana, me molestará el humo del tabaco. — "Tomorrow, cigarette smoke will bother me." — but in conversation you will also hear the present used the same way.
5. General truths and routines
Finally, the present tense states general truths and routines: what usually happens, what is always true, what people normally do. It is the tense of habits and of facts that do not belong to one moment. For example: Normalmente, le molesta el ruido del vecino. — "Normally, the neighbour's noise bothers him."
Present vs preterite: molestar
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the present describes habits, routines and general truths, while the preterite describes one action that started and finished in the past. The three pairs below show the difference with molestar.
Pair 1
- Present (habit): Cada día, me molesta el ruido del vecino. — "Every day, the neighbour's noise bothers me."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, me molestó el ruido del vecino. — "Yesterday, the neighbour's noise bothered me."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 2
- Present (habit): Cada día, me molesta la luz fuerte. — "Every day, the bright light bothers me."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, me molestó la luz fuerte. — "Yesterday, the bright light bothered me."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 3
- Present (habit): Cada día, me molestan las preguntas repetidas. — "Every day, repeated questions bother me."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, me molestaron las preguntas repetidas. — "Yesterday, repeated questions bothered me."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Examples: molestar in the present tense
These six sentences show molestar in the present tense with a different person each time. Read them aloud, then try changing the person and the complement to make your own versions.
- Me molesta el ruido del vecino. — "The neighbour's noise bothers me."
- Te molesta la luz fuerte. — "The bright light bothers you."
- Le molestan las preguntas repetidas. — "Repeated questions bother him."
- Nos molesta el humo del tabaco. — "Cigarette smoke bothers us."
- Os molesta el ruido del vecino. — "The neighbour's noise bothers you."
- Les molesta la luz fuerte. — "The bright light bothers them."
Common mistakes with molestar in the present tense
Mistake 1
- Wrong: Yo molesto el ruido.
- Right: Me molesta el ruido.
- Why: When something bothers you, molestar works like gustar: me molesta el ruido. Yo molesto would mean I bother someone.
Mistake 2
- Wrong: Me molesta las preguntas.
- Right: Me molestan las preguntas.
- Why: The verb agrees with the subject. Las preguntas is plural, so the verb must be molestan.
Mistake 3
- Wrong: Molestar es lo mismo que enojar.
- Right: Molestar means to bother; enojar means to make angry.
- Why: Molestar is a mild irritation. Enojar is stronger: it makes you angry. You can estar molesto without estar enojado.
Mistake 4
- Wrong: Ayer, me molesta el ruido del vecino.
- Right: Ayer, me molestó el ruido del vecino.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite. The present tense is for habits and routines, not for yesterday.
Mistake 5
- Wrong: Me molestais el ruido del vecino.
- Right: Me molestáis el ruido del vecino.
- Why: The form is molestáis, with a written accent. The accent is part of the spelling, and without it the word is misspelled.
Quiz: the present tense of molestar
Test yourself with eight questions on the present tense of molestar. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the i form of molestar in the present tense?
- (a) molesto
- (b) molestas
- (c) molesta
- (d) molestamos
Answer: (a) molesto. The i form is molesto. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
2. What is the you form of molestar in the present tense?
- (a) molesto
- (b) molesta
- (c) molestamos
- (d) molestas
Answer: (d) molestas. The you form is molestas. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
3. What is the he / she form of molestar in the present tense?
- (a) molestas
- (b) molestamos
- (c) molesta
- (d) molesto
Answer: (c) molesta. The he / she form is molesta. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
4. What is the we form of molestar in the present tense?
- (a) molesta
- (b) molestamos
- (c) molesto
- (d) molestas
Answer: (b) molestamos. The we form is molestamos. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
5. What is the they form of molestar in the present tense?
- (a) molestan
- (b) molesto
- (c) molestas
- (d) molesta
Answer: (a) molestan. The they form is molestan. The other options are the yo, tu, el forms, so check the person before you answer.
6. Complete the sentence: Cada día, me ___ el ruido del vecino.
- (a) molestó
- (b) molestaba
- (c) molesta
- (d) molestan
Answer: (c) molesta. The sentence needs the third-person form molesta (Every day, the neighbour's noise bothers me.)
7. What is the gerund of molestar?
- (a) molestado
- (b) molestar
- (c) molesta
- (d) molestando
Answer: (d) molestando. The gerund is molestando, used for the progressive: estoy molestando.
8. Which sentence describes a habit, something you do regularly?
- (a) Cada día, me molesta la luz fuerte.
- (b) Antes, me molestaba la luz fuerte.
- (c) Ayer, me molestó la luz fuerte.
- (d) Mañana, me molestará la luz fuerte.
Answer: (a) Cada día, me molesta la luz fuerte.. Cada día, me molesta la luz fuerte. (Every day, the bright light bothers me.) describes a habit, so it uses the present tense. Ayer, me molestó la luz fuerte. is a single completed action, and Mañana, me molestará la luz fuerte. is in the future.
Frequently asked questions about the present tense of molestar
Why is it 'me molesta' and not 'yo molesto'?
Because molestar usually works like gustar. The annoying thing is the subject and you are the indirect object: me molesta el ruido, me molestan las preguntas.
What does 'no molestar' mean?
It means 'do not disturb'. You see it on hotel doors, on office doors and in messages when someone needs quiet.
Is molestar regular?
Yes. Molestar is a regular -ar verb: molesto, molestaste, molestaba, molestaré. The difficulty is the sentence structure, not the forms.
When do I use the present tense instead of the preterite with molestar?
Use the present for habits and routines: Cada día, me molesta el ruido del vecino. — "Every day, the neighbour's noise bothers me." Use the preterite for one finished action: Ayer, me molestó el ruido del vecino. — "Yesterday, the neighbour's noise bothered me." If the action happens regularly, choose the present; if it happened once and is finished, choose the preterite.