Olvidar Conjugation in Spanish
olvidar means "to forget" in English, and it is one of the Spanish verbs you will use again and again in everyday conversation. It is used for talking about forgetting — keys, names, dates, appointments and anything that slips your mind, which makes it a practical verb to learn early and to use confidently. This page gives you the complete conjugation of olvidar in every tense and mood — present, preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, the four perfect tenses, both subjunctive tenses and the imperative — with all six persons, plus the gerund and the past participle. Every form below comes from VerbFlow's verified conjugation tables, so you can trust the accents and the irregular forms. Olvidar is a regular -ar verb verb, and the notes under each tense explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To hear it in a real sentence: Yo siempre olvido las llaves en casa. — "I always forget the keys at home.". Work through the tables, read the notes, then test yourself with the quiz at the end of the page.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: olvidar
- English: to forget
- Verb type: Regular -ar verb
- Gerund: olvidando
- Past participle: olvidado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all compound tenses use haber + olvidado)
Full conjugation table
Every tense of olvidar with all six persons. The gerund is olvidando and the past participle is olvidado.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvido |
| tú | olvidas |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvida |
| nosotros/as | olvidamos |
| vosotros/as | olvidáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olvidan |
Preterite (past)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvidé |
| tú | olvidaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvidó |
| nosotros/as | olvidamos |
| vosotros/as | olvidasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olvidaron |
Imperfect (past)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvidaba |
| tú | olvidabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvidaba |
| nosotros/as | olvidábamos |
| vosotros/as | olvidabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olvidaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvidaré |
| tú | olvidarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvidará |
| nosotros/as | olvidaremos |
| vosotros/as | olvidaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olvidarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvidaría |
| tú | olvidarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvidaría |
| nosotros/as | olvidaríamos |
| vosotros/as | olvidaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olvidarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he olvidado |
| tú | has olvidado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha olvidado |
| nosotros/as | hemos olvidado |
| vosotros/as | habéis olvidado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han olvidado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había olvidado |
| tú | habías olvidado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había olvidado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos olvidado |
| vosotros/as | habíais olvidado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían olvidado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré olvidado |
| tú | habrás olvidado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá olvidado |
| nosotros/as | habremos olvidado |
| vosotros/as | habréis olvidado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán olvidado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría olvidado |
| tú | habrías olvidado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría olvidado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos olvidado |
| vosotros/as | habríais olvidado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían olvidado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvide |
| tú | olvides |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvide |
| nosotros/as | olvidemos |
| vosotros/as | olvidéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olviden |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | olvidara |
| tú | olvidaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvidara |
| nosotros/as | olvidáramos |
| vosotros/as | olvidarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olvidaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | olvida |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvide |
| nosotros/as | olvidemos |
| vosotros/as | olvidad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olviden |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | olvides |
| él/ella/Ud. | olvide |
| nosotros/as | olvidemos |
| vosotros/as | olvidéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | olviden |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Gerund | olvidando |
| Past participle | olvidado |
How to use each tense
Each tense below explains when to use it with olvidar, with one example sentence. The example forms are taken from the tables above.
Present indicative
The present tense talks about what happens now, habits, routines and general truths. It is the first tense every learner needs, because it covers daily life: what you do, what you like, where you live. For most verbs the present is also the base for the present subjunctive, so learning it well pays off twice.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo olvido las llaves.
Preterite (past)
The preterite talks about finished actions in the past — things that started and ended at a specific moment. Use it for events, for what happened yesterday, last year, or at a particular time. It answers the question "what happened?" and it is the tense of stories told as a sequence of events.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Ayer yo olvidé las llaves.
Imperfect (past)
The imperfect talks about the past as background: habits, repeated actions, descriptions, and things that were in progress when something else happened. Use it for "used to", for setting a scene, and for age, time and weather in the past. It answers "what was going on?" rather than "what happened?".
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: En aquella época, yo olvidaba las llaves.
Future
The future tense talks about what will happen: plans, predictions and promises. In everyday speech Spanish speakers often use "ir a + infinitive" instead, but the future tense is essential for formal writing, for promises, and for guessing about the present ("¿Dónde estará?").
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Mañana yo olvidaré las llaves.
Conditional
The conditional talks about what would happen: hypothetical situations, polite requests, and advice. It pairs with the imperfect subjunctive in "if" sentences ("Si pudiera, lo haría"). It is also the polite way to ask for things and to soften opinions.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo olvidaría las llaves si pudiera.
Present perfect
The present perfect (haber + past participle) talks about the recent past and about experience: what you have done, what has just happened, what you have never tried. It connects the past to the present moment, so it often appears with "hoy", "esta semana", "ya" and "todavía no".
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo ya he olvidado las llaves.
Pluperfect
The pluperfect (había + past participle) talks about the past before the past: what had already happened when something else happened. Use it to order two past events — the pluperfect one comes first in time. It appears constantly in stories and explanations.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo ya había olvidado las llaves antes.
Future perfect
The future perfect (habré + past participle) talks about something that will already be finished by a future moment: "Para mañana ya habré terminado". It is also used to guess about the past: "¿Dónde habrá ido?". It is less common in speech but regular in writing.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Para mañana yo ya habré olvidado las llaves.
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect (habría + past participle) talks about what would have happened: the past of the conditional. It appears in "if" sentences about a past that did not happen ("Si hubiera sabido, habría venido") and in polite regrets and reproaches.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo habría olvidado las llaves si hubiera podido.
Present subjunctive
The present subjunctive is the mood of wishes, doubts, emotions and influence: what you want, hope, doubt or demand. It appears after "quiero que", "espero que", "es posible que", "ojalá" and after verbs of emotion and doubt. It never stands alone — a trigger in the main clause calls for it.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Espero que él olvide las llaves.
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
The imperfect subjunctive is the past of the subjunctive: it follows past-tense triggers ("Quería que vinieras") and it is the tense of "if" clauses about unlikely or impossible situations ("Si tuviera dinero, viajaría"). The -ra forms shown here are the standard ones; -se forms exist too but -ra is far more common in speech.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Si él olvidara las llaves, sería perfecto.
Imperative (affirmative)
Affirmative commands tell someone to do something: "¡Ven aquí!", "¡Siéntate!". The tú and vosotros forms are the ones you will use most, and they are also the ones that break the regular pattern most often — the tú affirmative command comes from the él/ella present form, not from the infinitive.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: ¡Olvida las llaves!
Imperative (negative)
Negative commands tell someone not to do something: "¡No hables!", "¡No te vayas!". Unlike affirmative commands, negative commands always use the subjunctive forms, for every person. If you know the present subjunctive, you already know the negative imperative.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: No olvides las llaves.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with olvidar, covering different tenses and persons. Read the Spanish first, then check the English.
- Yo siempre olvido las llaves en casa. — "I always forget the keys at home."
- ¿Tú olvidas mi cumpleaños este año? — "Will you forget my birthday this year?"
- Ayer olvidé las llaves en el coche. — "Yesterday I forgot the keys in the car."
- Ella olvidaba las llaves cada semana cuando era joven. — "She used to forget the keys every week when she was young."
- No olvidarás las llaves si las pones en la mesa. — "You will not forget the keys if you put them on the table."
- Yo olvidaría las llaves si no tuviera una lista. — "I would forget the keys if I didn't have a list."
- Nunca he olvidado las llaves dos veces en un día. — "I have never forgotten the keys twice in one day."
- ¡No olvides las llaves otra vez! — "Don't forget the keys again!"
Common mistakes
The errors learners actually make with olvidar — and how to fix them.
- Wrong: *Yo olvidé las llaves ayer — learners often write olvidé correctly but forget the accent: olvide. → Right: Yo olvidé las llaves ayer.. The preterite yo form is olvidé, with an accent on the e. Olvidar is regular, so only the accent is at stake — but it changes the pronunciation.
- Wrong: *Se me olvidó las llaves. → Right: Se me olvidó las llaves.. With se me olvidó, the verb agrees with the thing forgotten (las llaves is plural, so use olvidaron: Se me olvidaron las llaves). The singular olvidó only works with a singular object.
- Wrong: *Espero que no olvides las llaves — learners sometimes use the indicative olvidas after espero que. → Right: Espero que no olvides las llaves.. After espero que, use the subjunctive olvides. The good news is that olvidar is regular, so the subjunctive is simply olvide, olvides, olvide.
- Wrong: *Yo he olvidado las llaves — some learners say he olvido instead of the participle. → Right: Yo he olvidado las llaves.. The perfect tenses need the past participle olvidado after haber: he olvidado, not he olvido.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on olvidar. Answers are at the end, with a short explanation for each.
What is the yo form of olvidar in the present indicative?
- a) olvida
- b) olvidamos
- c) olvidas
- d) olvido
What is the él/ella/Ud. form of olvidar in the preterite (past)?
- a) olvidamos
- b) olvidaste
- c) olvidó
- d) olvidé
What is the nosotros/as form of olvidar in the imperfect (past)?
- a) olvidaba
- b) olvidábamos
- c) olvidabas
- d) olvidaba
What is the tú form of olvidar in the future?
- a) olvidaremos
- b) olvidará
- c) olvidaré
- d) olvidarás
What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of olvidar in the conditional?
- a) olvidaría
- b) olvidarían
- c) olvidaría
- d) olvidarías
What is the yo form of olvidar in the present subjunctive?
- a) olvidemos
- b) olvides
- c) olvide
- d) olvide
What is the gerund of olvidar?
- a) olvidar
- b) olvidado
- c) olvidando
- d) olvida
What is the past participle of olvidar?
- a) he olvidado
- b) olvidando
- c) olvido
- d) olvidado
What does olvidar mean in English?
- a) to understand
- b) to calm down
- c) to choose, to elect
- d) to forget
The form olvidé belongs to which tense?
- a) Preterite
- b) Present
- c) Future
- d) Imperfect
Answer key
- olvido — The yo form in the present indicative is olvido — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- olvidó — The él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite (past) is olvidó — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- olvidábamos — The nosotros/as form in the imperfect (past) is olvidábamos — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- olvidarás — The tú form in the future is olvidarás — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- olvidarían — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the conditional is olvidarían — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- olvide — The yo form in the present subjunctive is olvide — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- olvidando — The gerund is olvidando — it is the form used with estar for the progressive (estoy olvidando). The past participle is olvidado.
- olvidado — The past participle is olvidado — it is the form used after haber in the perfect tenses (he olvidado).
- to forget — olvidar means "to forget".
- Preterite — olvidé is the yo form of the preterite of olvidar — a finished past action. The imperfect yo form is olvidaba.
Frequently asked questions
Is olvidar regular?
Yes, olvidar is a regular -ar verb with no stem changes and no spelling changes: olvido, olvidas, olvida, olvidamos, olvidáis, olvidan. The only thing to watch is the written accent in the preterite (olvidé, olvidó).
What is the difference between olvidar and olvidarse?
Olvidar takes a direct object (Olvidé las llaves), while olvidarse is used with se me / se te to say something slipped your mind: Se me olvidaron las llaves. The second version is more common in everyday speech and sounds less like blame.
How do you say "I forgot" in Spanish?
Olvidé — the preterite yo form. Or, more naturally, Se me olvidó (for one thing) or Se me olvidaron (for several things). Both are correct; the se me version is what native speakers say most often.
Does olvidar take a preposition?
Olvidar usually takes a direct object with no preposition: olvidar las llaves, olvidar una cita. With olvidarse, use olvidarse de + infinitive or noun: Me olvidé de llamar a mi madre.
Related pages
- Olvidar in the present tense — the present tense of olvidar in depth, with its own examples and quiz.
- Olvidar examples and quiz — more everyday sentences with olvidar and a second quiz.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub: every verb, every tense guide and every tool in one place.
- Recordar conjugation — another verb in the same family as olvidar.
- Aprender conjugation — another verb in the same family as olvidar.
- Spanish Verb Conjugator — practise olvidar with this tool.
- Conjugation Practice — practise olvidar with this tool.
- Present tense guide — how the present tense works for regular and irregular verbs.