Introduction
Preguntar means «to ask (a question)». Preguntar means to ask a question: to the teacher, for directions, about the price. It is a regular -ar verb. Spanish separates preguntar (asking questions) from pedir (requesting things), which English covers with a single verb, to ask. It is a regular -ar verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of preguntar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example: «Yo pregunto una pregunta todos los días.» — I ask a question every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | preguntar |
| English | to ask (a question) |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | preguntando |
| Past participle | preguntado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: preguntando · Past participle: preguntado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | pregunto |
| tú | preguntas |
| él/ella/Ud. | pregunta |
| nosotros/as | preguntamos |
| vosotros/as | preguntáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | preguntan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For preguntar, the yo form is pregunto, as in «Yo pregunto» in the examples below. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | pregunté |
| tú | preguntaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | preguntó |
| nosotros/as | preguntamos |
| vosotros/as | preguntasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | preguntaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo pregunté» is the classic use. Do not confuse it with the imperfect: the preterite moves the story forward, one finished event at a time.
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | preguntaba |
| tú | preguntabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | preguntaba |
| nosotros/as | preguntábamos |
| vosotros/as | preguntabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | preguntaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo preguntaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | preguntaré |
| tú | preguntarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | preguntará |
| nosotros/as | preguntaremos |
| vosotros/as | preguntaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | preguntarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For preguntar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo preguntaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | preguntaría |
| tú | preguntarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | preguntaría |
| nosotros/as | preguntaríamos |
| vosotros/as | preguntaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | preguntarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo preguntaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he preguntado |
| tú | has preguntado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha preguntado |
| nosotros/as | hemos preguntado |
| vosotros/as | habéis preguntado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han preguntado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. It is haber in the present plus the past participle: «Hoy yo he preguntado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había preguntado |
| tú | habías preguntado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había preguntado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos preguntado |
| vosotros/as | habíais preguntado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían preguntado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había preguntado». It is haber in the imperfect plus the past participle, and it is the tense for explaining what had already happened when something else took place.
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré preguntado |
| tú | habrás preguntado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá preguntado |
| nosotros/as | habremos preguntado |
| vosotros/as | habréis preguntado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán preguntado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré preguntado» is the pattern — haber in the future plus the past participle. It is less common in speech but regular in formal writing.
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría preguntado |
| tú | habrías preguntado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría preguntado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos preguntado |
| vosotros/as | habríais preguntado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían preguntado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría preguntado si hubiera podido». It is haber in the conditional plus the past participle, and it is the tense for regrets and missed chances.
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | pregunte |
| tú | preguntes |
| él/ella/Ud. | pregunte |
| nosotros/as | preguntemos |
| vosotros/as | preguntéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | pregunten |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él pregunte». The trigger is in the main clause; the subjunctive is the mood of uncertainty, desire and influence. Learn the yo form first — most of the table follows from it.
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | preguntara |
| tú | preguntaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | preguntara |
| nosotros/as | preguntáramos |
| vosotros/as | preguntarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | preguntaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él preguntara, todo sería distinto». The table above shows the -ra forms, the ones you will hear most often. There is also a less common -se set built on the same stem.
Imperative — Affirmative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | pregunta |
| él/ella/Ud. | pregunte |
| nosotros/as | preguntemos |
| vosotros/as | preguntad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | pregunten |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Pregunta!». There is no yo form — you cannot command yourself. The tú form is the one you will use with friends and family, and the usted form with people you address formally.
Imperative — Negative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | preguntes |
| él/ella/Ud. | pregunte |
| nosotros/as | preguntemos |
| vosotros/as | preguntéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | pregunten |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No preguntes!». Unlike the affirmative imperative, the negative forms come from the present subjunctive, which is why they look different. Never use the affirmative form after no.
Example sentences
- Yo pregunto una pregunta todos los días. — I ask a question every day.
- Mi hermana pregunta una pregunta mucho. — My sister asks a question a lot.
- Ayer yo pregunté una pregunta por la tarde. — Yesterday I asked a question in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo preguntaba una pregunta muchas veces. — As a child, I used to ask a question often.
- Mañana yo preguntaré una pregunta sin falta. — Tomorrow I will ask a question without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo preguntaría una pregunta ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would ask a question right now.
- Hoy yo he preguntado al profesor dos veces. — Today I have asked to the teacher twice.
- Espero que él pregunte una pregunta pronto. — I hope he asks a question soon.
- ¡Pregunta al profesor si no entiendes! — Ask the teacher if you do not understand!
- Ahora mismo estoy preguntando una pregunta. — Right now I am asking a question.
Common mistakes
1. Forgetting the accent in the preterite
Wrong: pregunte
Right: pregunté
The yo preterite of preguntar carries a written accent: pregunté. Without it, pregunte is the present subjunctive yo form, a completely different tense.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo preguntaba una pregunta.
Right: Ayer yo pregunté una pregunta.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, pregunté. The imperfect preguntaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Pregunto un café, por favor.
Right: Pido un café, por favor.
Preguntar is for questions. To request something, use pedir: pido un café.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú preguntas una pregunta.
Right: Espero que tú preguntes una pregunta.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: preguntes, not the indicative preguntas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No pregunta una pregunta.
Right: No preguntes una pregunta.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no preguntes. The affirmative pregunta can never follow no.
Quiz
Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.
1. What is the yo form of preguntar in the present tense?
- (a) pregunta
- (b) preguntamos
- (c) preguntas
- (d) pregunto
2. What is the él/ella form of preguntar in the preterite?
- (a) preguntamos
- (b) preguntaste
- (c) pregunté
- (d) preguntó
3. What is the nosotros form of preguntar in the imperfect?
- (a) preguntaba
- (b) preguntabas
- (c) preguntábamos
4. What is the tú form of preguntar in the future tense?
- (a) preguntaremos
- (b) preguntará
- (c) preguntarás
- (d) preguntaré
5. What is the ellos form of preguntar in the conditional?
- (a) preguntaría
- (b) preguntarían
- (c) preguntarías
6. What is the yo form of preguntar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha preguntado
- (b) has preguntado
- (c) he preguntado
- (d) hemos preguntado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of preguntar?
- (a) pregunte
- (b) preguntemos
- (c) preguntes
8. What is the nosotros form of preguntar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) preguntara
- (b) preguntáramos
- (c) preguntaras
9. What is the gerund of preguntar?
- (a) preguntado
- (b) preguntando
- (c) preguntar
- (d) pregunto
10. What is the past participle of preguntar?
- (a) preguntado
- (b) preguntando
- (c) preguntar
- (d) pregunté
Answer key
1. (d) pregunto — In the present, the yo form of preguntar is pregunto. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) preguntó — In the preterite, the el form of preguntar is preguntó. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) preguntábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of preguntar is preguntábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) preguntarás — In the future, the tu form of preguntar is preguntarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) preguntarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of preguntar is preguntarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he preguntado — In the present perfect, the yo form of preguntar is he preguntado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (c) preguntes — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of preguntar is preguntes. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) preguntáramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of preguntar is preguntáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (b) preguntando — The gerund of preguntar is preguntando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy preguntando».
10. (a) preguntado — The past participle of preguntar is preguntado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he preguntado».
Frequently asked questions
Is preguntar regular or irregular?
Yes, preguntar is a regular -ar verb. Every tense follows the standard -ar endings, so once you know the pattern you can generate the whole table. The only thing to watch is choosing the right tense, not the forms themselves.
What are the gerund and past participle of preguntar?
The gerund is preguntando and the past participle is preguntado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy preguntando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he preguntado»).
What is the difference between preguntar and pedir?
Preguntar and pedir are often confused. Pedir is to ask for something (pido un café); preguntar is to ask a question.
How do I say «I ask» in Spanish?
Say «Yo pregunto». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.
Which tense do learners find hardest with preguntar?
Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (pregunté) for a single finished event and the imperfect (preguntaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: preguntar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: preguntar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: responder
- Related verb: explicar
- Related verb: escuchar
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz