Presionar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb presionar means to press, to pressure, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Presionar means to press or to put pressure on, and it covers pressing a button, pressing someone to decide, and putting pressure in a negotiation. It takes a for the person pressured: presionar a un compañero. It is fully regular. Like every Spanish verb, presionar 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 presiono el botón de la puerta, and in the preterite you say presioné mucho al equipo rival. 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: presionar
  • English: to press, to pressure
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: presionando
  • Past participle: presionado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + presionado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for presionar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Presionar is fully regular: presioné, presionaba, presionaré.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for presionar. 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 Form
yo presiono
tú presionas
él/ella/Ud. presiona
nosotros/as presionamos
vosotros/as presionáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionan

Preterite

Person Form
yo presioné
tú presionaste
él/ella/Ud. presionó
nosotros/as presionamos
vosotros/as presionasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionaron

Imperfect

Person Form
yo presionaba
tú presionabas
él/ella/Ud. presionaba
nosotros/as presionábamos
vosotros/as presionabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionaban

Future

Person Form
yo presionaré
tú presionarás
él/ella/Ud. presionará
nosotros/as presionaremos
vosotros/as presionaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionarán

Conditional

Person Form
yo presionaría
tú presionarías
él/ella/Ud. presionaría
nosotros/as presionaríamos
vosotros/as presionaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionarían

Present perfect

Person Form
yo he presionado
tú has presionado
él/ella/Ud. ha presionado
nosotros/as hemos presionado
vosotros/as habéis presionado
ellos/ellas/Uds. han presionado

Pluperfect

Person Form
yo había presionado
tú habías presionado
él/ella/Ud. había presionado
nosotros/as habíamos presionado
vosotros/as habíais presionado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habían presionado

Future perfect

Person Form
yo habré presionado
tú habrás presionado
él/ella/Ud. habrá presionado
nosotros/as habremos presionado
vosotros/as habréis presionado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrán presionado

Conditional perfect

Person Form
yo habría presionado
tú habrías presionado
él/ella/Ud. habría presionado
nosotros/as habríamos presionado
vosotros/as habríais presionado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrían presionado

Present subjunctive

Person Form
yo presione
tú presiones
él/ella/Ud. presione
nosotros/as presionemos
vosotros/as presionéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo presionara
tú presionaras
él/ella/Ud. presionara
nosotros/as presionáramos
vosotros/as presionarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú presiona
él/ella/Ud. presione
nosotros/as presionemos
vosotros/as presionad
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú presiones
él/ella/Ud. presione
nosotros/as presionemos
vosotros/as presionéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. presionen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund presionando with estar for the progressive: estoy presionando
Past participle presionado with haber for the perfect tenses: he presionado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For presionar, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Presiono el botón de la puerta. 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 presionar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, presioné a su hermano para decidir. 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 presionar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, presionaba mucho al equipo rival. 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 presionar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, presionaré el freno en el coche. 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 presionar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Presionaría el botón de la puerta 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 presionar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, he presionado a su hermano para decidir. 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 presionar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Había presionado mucho al equipo rival 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 presionar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, habré presionado el freno en el coche. 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 presionar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Habría presionado el botón de la puerta 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For presionar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él presione a su hermano para decidir. 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 presionar, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él presionara mucho al equipo rival, 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For presionar, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: ¡Presiona el freno en el coche! 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For presionar, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No presiones el botón de la puerta. 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 presionar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Presiono el botón de la puerta. — I press the door button.
  2. Presiona a su hermano para decidir. — He/she presses his brother to decide.
  3. Ayer, presioné mucho al equipo rival. — Yesterday, I pressed the rival team a lot.
  4. Antes, nosotros presionábamos el freno en el coche. — Before, we used to press the brake in the car.
  5. Mañana, tú presionarás el botón de la puerta. — Tomorrow, you will press the door button.
  6. Yo presionaría a su hermano para decidir si tuviera más tiempo. — I would press his brother to decide if I had more time.
  7. Él ha presionado mucho al equipo rival. — He has pressed the rival team a lot.
  8. Espero que él presione el freno en el coche. — I hope he presses the brake in the car.
  9. Yo ya había presionado el botón de la puerta antes de salir. — I had already pressed the door button before leaving.
  10. Ellos presionaban a su hermano para decidir cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to press his brother to decide when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo presiona el botón de la puerta. — Right: Yo presiono el botón de la puerta. — The person matters: presiona is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is presiono. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo presiono a su hermano para decidir. — Right: Ayer yo presioné a su hermano para decidir. — The present and the preterite are different tenses: presiono is happening now, while presioné is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
  3. Wrong: Treating presionar and apretar as identical in every context. — Right: Presionar means to press, to pressure, while apretar means to press, to squeeze. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: presionar fits sentences such as Presiono el botón de la puerta, while apretar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy presionado a su hermano para decidir. — Right: Yo he presionado a su hermano para decidir. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he presionado, has presionado, ha presionado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo presioné mucho al equipo rival todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo presionaba mucho al equipo rival todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (presionaba), not the preterite. The preterite (presioné) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el botón de la puerta. (present tense) A. presiono B. presionas C. presiona D. presionamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ a su hermano para decidir. (preterite) A. presioné B. presionaste C. presionamos D. presionó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ mucho al equipo rival. (imperfect) A. presionabas B. presiono C. presionábamos D. presionaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ el freno en el coche. (future) A. presionaremos B. presionarás C. presionaré D. presionará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el botón de la puerta si pudiera. (conditional) A. presionaría B. presionarías C. presionaríamos D. presiono

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ a su hermano para decidir. (present subjunctive) A. presiones B. presionemos C. presiono D. presione

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ mucho al equipo rival, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. presionáramos B. presiono C. presionara D. presionaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el freno en el coche. (present perfect) A. ha presionado B. hemos presionado C. he presionado D. has presionado

  9. Complete the command: ¡___ el botón de la puerta! (affirmative imperative, tú) A. presiona B. presione C. presionemos D. presionad

  10. Which is the gerund of presionar, used with estar for the progressive? A. presionado B. presiono C. presioné D. presionando

Answer key

  1. presiono — The yo present tense of presionar is presiono.
  2. presionó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of presionar is presionó.
  3. presionábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of presionar is presionábamos.
  4. presionarás — The tú future of presionar is presionarás.
  5. presionaría — The yo conditional of presionar is presionaría.
  6. presione — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of presionar is presione.
  7. presionara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of presionar is presionara.
  8. hemos presionado — The nosotros/as present perfect of presionar is hemos presionado.
  9. presiona — The affirmative tú imperative of presionar is presiona.
  10. presionando — The gerund of presionar is presionando: estoy presionando. The participle presionado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does presionar mean in English?

Presionar means to press, to pressure. It is used in everyday situations such as Presiono el botón de la puerta. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is presionar regular or irregular?

Presionar is a fully regular -ar verb, so every tense follows the standard endings for its class. Once you know the regular pattern, you can produce every form on this page, including presiono in the present and presioné in the preterite.

What is the difference between presionar and apretar?

Presionar means to press, to pressure, while apretar means to press, to squeeze. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use presionar when you mean to press, to pressure, as in Presiono el botón de la puerta, and use apretar for to press, to squeeze. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I press” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo presioné a su hermano para decidir. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo presionaba mucho al equipo rival. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo he presionado a su hermano para decidir.

How do I practise presionar?

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

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