Negarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb negarse means to refuse, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Negarse means to refuse, and it is used for refusing to do something, refusing an offer and refusing to talk about a subject. It is always used with a plus an infinitive, as in negarse a ayudar, and it is a stem-changing verb, e to ie, so the present tense is where learners most often slip. Like every Spanish verb, negarse 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 me niego a ayudar a su hermano, and in the preterite you say me negué a pagar el precio. 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: negarse
  • English: to refuse
  • Verb type: irregular verb, reflexive, stem-changing (e → ie)
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: negando
  • Past participle: negado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + negado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.
  • Stem change: e → ie in the present, present subjunctive and imperative; nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for negarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Negarse is a stem-changing verb (e to ie): yo me niego, tú te niegas, but nosotros nos negamos keeps the e.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for negarse. 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 Pronoun Form
yo me niego
tú te niegas
él/ella/Ud. se niega
nosotros/as nos negamos
vosotros/as os negáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se niegan

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me negué
tú te negaste
él/ella/Ud. se negó
nosotros/as nos negamos
vosotros/as os negasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se negaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me negaba
tú te negabas
él/ella/Ud. se negaba
nosotros/as nos negábamos
vosotros/as os negabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se negaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me negaré
tú te negarás
él/ella/Ud. se negará
nosotros/as nos negaremos
vosotros/as os negaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se negarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me negaría
tú te negarías
él/ella/Ud. se negaría
nosotros/as nos negaríamos
vosotros/as os negaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se negarían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he negado
tú te has negado
él/ella/Ud. se ha negado
nosotros/as nos hemos negado
vosotros/as os habéis negado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han negado

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había negado
tú te habías negado
él/ella/Ud. se había negado
nosotros/as nos habíamos negado
vosotros/as os habíais negado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían negado

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré negado
tú te habrás negado
él/ella/Ud. se habrá negado
nosotros/as nos habremos negado
vosotros/as os habréis negado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán negado

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría negado
tú te habrías negado
él/ella/Ud. se habría negado
nosotros/as nos habríamos negado
vosotros/as os habríais negado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían negado

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me niegue
tú te niegues
él/ella/Ud. se niegue
nosotros/as nos neguemos
vosotros/as os neguéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se nieguen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me negara
tú te negaras
él/ella/Ud. se negara
nosotros/as nos negáramos
vosotros/as os negarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se negaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te niega
él/ella/Ud. se niegue
nosotros/as nos neguemos
vosotros/as os negad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se nieguen

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te niegues
él/ella/Ud. se niegue
nosotros/as nos neguemos
vosotros/as os neguéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se nieguen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund negando with estar for the progressive: estoy negando (or me estoy negando for this reflexive verb)
Past participle negado with haber for the perfect tenses: he negado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. This tense is irregular for this verb: the stem changes e → ie in the singular and third-person plural forms, while nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem. For negarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me niego a ayudar a su hermano. 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 negarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me negué a salir de casa hoy. 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 negarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me negaba a pagar el precio. 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 negarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me negaré a hablar del tema. 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 negarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me negaría a ayudar a su hermano 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 negarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he negado a salir de casa hoy. 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 negarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había negado a pagar el precio 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 negarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré negado a hablar del tema. 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 negarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría negado a ayudar a su hermano 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. This tense is irregular for this verb: the stem changes e → ie in the singular and third-person plural forms, while nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem. For negarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se niegue a salir de casa hoy. 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 negarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se negara a pagar el precio, 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. This tense is irregular for this verb: the stem changes e → ie in the singular and third-person plural forms, while nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem. For negarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se niegue a hablar del tema. 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. This tense is irregular for this verb: the stem changes e → ie in the singular and third-person plural forms, while nosotros and vosotros keep the original stem. For negarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te niegues a ayudar a su hermano. 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 negarse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Me niego a ayudar a su hermano. — I refuse to help his brother.
  2. Se niega a salir de casa hoy. — He/she refuses to leave the house today.
  3. Ayer, me negué a pagar el precio. — Yesterday, I refused to pay the price.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos negábamos a hablar del tema. — Before, we used to refuse to talk about the subject.
  5. Mañana, tú te negarás a ayudar a su hermano. — Tomorrow, you will refuse to help his brother.
  6. Yo me negaría a salir de casa hoy si tuviera más tiempo. — I would refuse to leave the house today if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha negado a pagar el precio. — He has refused to pay the price.
  8. Espero que él se niegue a hablar del tema. — I hope he refuses to talk about the subject.
  9. Yo ya me había negado a ayudar a su hermano antes de salir. — I had already refused to help his brother before leaving.
  10. Ellos se negaban a salir de casa hoy cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to refuse to leave the house today when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo niego a ayudar a su hermano. — Right: Yo me niego a ayudar a su hermano. — Negarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Yo nego a salir de casa hoy. — Right: Yo niego a salir de casa hoy. — Negarse is a stem-changing verb (e → ie), so the stem changes in the present singular and third-person plural. The nosotros form keeps the original stem.
  3. Wrong: Treating negarse and rechazar as identical in every context. — Right: Negarse means to refuse, while rechazar means to reject. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: negarse fits sentences such as Me niego a ayudar a su hermano, while rechazar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy negado a salir de casa hoy. — Right: Yo he negado a salir de casa hoy. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he negado, has negado, ha negado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo negué a pagar el precio todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo negaba a pagar el precio todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (negaba), not the preterite. The preterite (negué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on negarse. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a ayudar a su hermano. (present tense) A. me niego B. te niegas C. se niega D. nos negamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ a salir de casa hoy. (preterite) A. me negué B. te negaste C. se negaron D. se negó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ a pagar el precio. (imperfect) A. te negabas B. se negaban C. nos negábamos D. me negaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ a hablar del tema. (future) A. nos negaremos B. te negarás C. me negaré D. se negará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a ayudar a su hermano si pudiera. (conditional) A. me negaría B. te negarías C. se negaría D. se negarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ a salir de casa hoy. (present subjunctive) A. me niegue B. te niegues C. nos neguemos D. se niegue

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ a pagar el precio, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se negara B. nos negáramos C. me negara D. te negaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ a hablar del tema. (present perfect) A. se han negado B. nos hemos negado C. me he negado D. te has negado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ a ayudar a su hermano. (negative imperative, tú) A. te niegues B. se niegue C. nos neguemos D. os neguéis

  10. Which is the gerund of negarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. negado B. niego C. negué D. negando

Answer key

  1. me niego — The first-person present of negarse is me niego. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se negó — The third-person preterite of negarse is se negó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos negábamos — The nosotros imperfect of negarse is nos negábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te negarás — The second-person future of negarse is te negarás.
  5. me negaría — The first-person conditional of negarse is me negaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se niegue — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of negarse is se niegue.
  7. me negara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of negarse is me negara.
  8. nos hemos negado — The nosotros present perfect of negarse is nos hemos negado: hemos + negado.
  9. te niegues — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te niegues.
  10. negando — The gerund of negarse is negando: estoy negando. The participle negado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does negarse mean in English?

Negarse means to refuse. It is used in everyday situations such as Me niego a ayudar a su hermano. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is negarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Negarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me niego a ayudar a su hermano and él se niega a salir de casa hoy. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between negarse and rechazar?

Negarse means to refuse, while rechazar means to reject. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use negarse when you mean to refuse, as in Me niego a ayudar a su hermano, and use rechazar for to reject. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I refuse” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me negué a salir de casa hoy. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me negaba a pagar el precio. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he negado a salir de casa hoy.

How do I practise negarse?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the negarse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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