Quedar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of quedar — to stay — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. Quedar means to stay, to remain, to be left, and to meet up: quedarse en casa, quedan dos entradas, quedamos a las ocho. It is regular, but its meanings multiply — location of things (¿dónde queda?), meetings, and results (quedar bien). Context decides which sense you hear. This page gives you the complete present tense table for quedar, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “Yo quedo en casa esta noche.” — “I am staying at home tonight”.

Present tense conjugation of quedar

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for quedar. Quedar is a regular -ar verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.

Present tense indicative — quedar

Person Form
yo quedo
tú quedas
él/ella/Ud. queda
nosotros/as quedamos
vosotros/as quedáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. quedan

The gerund of quedar is quedando and the past participle is quedado. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for the progressive with estar.

How the present tense of quedar is formed

For a regular -ar verb, the present tense is built on the stem qued- (the infinitive quedar without its -ar ending) plus the present tense endings: yo → quedo, tú → quedas, él/ella/Ud. → queda, nosotros/as → quedamos, vosotros/as → quedáis, ellos/ellas/Uds. → quedan. So quedar gives quedo, quedas, queda, quedamos, quedáis and quedan. There is nothing irregular to memorise for this verb in this tense — the endings do all the work, and the stress falls where the endings put it.

A note on spelling: the written accents in this tense are part of the form, not decoration. In the present tense, quedáis carries an accent, and leaving it out changes the pronunciation and, in writing, marks the form as wrong. Copy the forms from the table above exactly, accents included.

When to use the present tense of quedar

1. Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly. For example, with quedar: “Yo quedo en casa esta noche.” — “I am staying at home tonight”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

2. General truths and facts

Use the present for things that are always true. For example, with quedar: “Ella queda con sus amigas después de clase.” — “She meets her friends after class”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

3. What is happening right now

Use the present for actions in progress at this moment. For example, with quedar: “Nosotros quedamos a las ocho en la plaza.” — “We meet at eight in the square”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

4. Scheduled plans and the near future

Use the present for fixed plans, especially with a time expression. For example, with quedar: “Les quedan pocos días de vacaciones.” — “They have few days of holiday left”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Present vs future: quedar now, quedar later

The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.

  • Present tense tense: “Yo quedo en casa todos los días.” — “I stay at home every day.”

  • Future: “Yo quedaré en casa mañana.” — “Tomorrow I will stay at home.”

  • Present tense tense: “Ella queda en casa ahora.” — “She stays at home now.”

  • Future: “Ella quedará en casa la semana que viene.” — “Next week she will stay at home.”

  • Present tense tense: “Nosotros quedamos en casa en clase.” — “We stay at home in class.”

  • Future: “Nosotros quedaremos en casa el lunes.” — “On Monday we will stay at home.”

Example sentences: quedar in the present tense

Six sentences using only the present tense of quedar, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “Yo quedo en casa esta noche.” — “I am staying at home tonight.”
  • “Ella queda con sus amigas después de clase.” — “She meets her friends after class.”
  • “Nosotros quedamos a las ocho en la plaza.” — “We meet at eight in the square.”
  • “Les quedan pocos días de vacaciones.” — “They have few days of holiday left.”
  • “¿Tú quedas conmigo en el café?” — “Will you meet me at the café?”
  • “Vosotros quedáis en el hotel hasta el lunes.” — “You are staying at the hotel until Monday.”

Common mistakes with quedar in the present tense

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo quedo en casa — learners confuse quedar with estar.

Right: Yo quedo en casa.

Quedarse means to stay deliberately; estar en casa is simply to be at home.

Mistake 2

Wrong: ¿Dónde queda el museo? — learners use estar.

Right: ¿Dónde queda el museo?

The location of a place or building takes quedar, not estar.

Quiz: quedar in the present tense

Eight questions on the present tense of quedar. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of quedar in the present tense?

  • A) quedo
  • B) quedas
  • C) queda
  • D) quedamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is quedo.

2. What is the tú form of quedar in the present tense?

  • A) quedo
  • B) queda
  • C) quedamos
  • D) quedas

Answer: D — The tú form in the present tense is quedas.

3. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of quedar in the present tense?

  • A) quedas
  • B) quedamos
  • C) queda
  • D) quedo

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is queda.

4. What is the nosotros/as form of quedar in the present tense?

  • A) queda
  • B) quedamos
  • C) quedo
  • D) quedas

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present tense is quedamos.

5. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ en casa esta noche.” (I am staying at home tonight.)

  • A) quedo
  • B) quedas
  • C) queda
  • D) quedamos

Answer: A — The sentence needs quedo.

6. Fill in the blank: “Ella ___ con sus amigas después de clase.” (She meets her friends after class.)

  • A) quedo
  • B) quedas
  • C) quedamos
  • D) queda

Answer: D — The sentence needs queda.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo quedo en casa — learners confuse quedar with estar.
  • B) Yo quedo en casa.

Answer: B — Quedarse means to stay deliberately; estar en casa is simply to be at home.

8. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) ¿Dónde queda el museo?
  • B) ¿Dónde queda el museo? — learners use estar.

Answer: A — The location of a place or building takes quedar, not estar.

Frequently asked questions

Is quedar regular in the present tense?

Yes. quedar is a regular -ar verb and its present tense follows the standard endings, so once you know the stem qued- you can build all six forms. The only thing to watch is the spelling of the endings themselves, including the accents.

What is the yo form of quedar in the present tense?

It is quedo. The yo form is the one learners use most and the one that most often breaks the pattern — for quedar it is the form to learn first, before the rest of the table.

When do I use the present tense of quedar instead of the preterite?

Use the present when the action is a habit, a fact, or happening now, and the preterite when it is a finished action in the past. If you can add “yesterday” to the sentence and it still makes sense, you almost certainly need the preterite, not the present.

How can I remember the present tense forms of quedar?

Say the six forms aloud in order — quedo, quedas, queda, quedamos, quedáis, quedan — three times a day for a week, always in a sentence, never as a bare list. Then use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test yourself, and the full conjugation page for quedar to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo quedo…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo quedé…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo quedaré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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