Quemarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb quemarse means to burn oneself, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Quemarse means to burn yourself, and it is used for burning your hand on a hot pan, getting sunburnt and burning yourself with hot water. It is the reflexive partner of quemar, and it is fully regular. Like every Spanish verb, quemarse 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 quemo la mano con la sartén, and in the preterite you say me quemé con el agua caliente. 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: quemarse
  • English: to burn oneself
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb, reflexive
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: quemando
  • Past participle: quemado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + quemado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for quemarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Quemarse is reflexive: me quemo la mano. Quemar without the pronoun means burning something else.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for quemarse. 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 quemo
tú te quemas
él/ella/Ud. se quema
nosotros/as nos quemamos
vosotros/as os quemáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se queman

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me quemé
tú te quemaste
él/ella/Ud. se quemó
nosotros/as nos quemamos
vosotros/as os quemasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me quemaba
tú te quemabas
él/ella/Ud. se quemaba
nosotros/as nos quemábamos
vosotros/as os quemabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me quemaré
tú te quemarás
él/ella/Ud. se quemará
nosotros/as nos quemaremos
vosotros/as os quemaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me quemaría
tú te quemarías
él/ella/Ud. se quemaría
nosotros/as nos quemaríamos
vosotros/as os quemaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemarían

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me queme
tú te quemes
él/ella/Ud. se queme
nosotros/as nos quememos
vosotros/as os queméis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me quemara
tú te quemaras
él/ella/Ud. se quemara
nosotros/as nos quemáramos
vosotros/as os quemarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te quema
él/ella/Ud. se queme
nosotros/as nos quememos
vosotros/as os quemad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemen

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te quemes
él/ella/Ud. se queme
nosotros/as nos quememos
vosotros/as os queméis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se quemen

Gerund and past participle

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

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 quemarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me quemo la mano con la sartén. 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 quemarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me quemé al sol en la playa. 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 quemarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me quemaba con el agua caliente. 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 quemarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me quemaré el brazo en el horno. 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 quemarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me quemaría la mano con la sartén 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 quemarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he quemado al sol en la playa. 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 quemarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había quemado con el agua caliente 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 quemarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré quemado el brazo en el horno. 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 quemarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría quemado la mano con la sartén 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 quemarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se queme al sol en la playa. 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 quemarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se quemara con el agua caliente, 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 quemarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se queme el brazo en el horno. 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 quemarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te quemes la mano con la sartén. 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 quemarse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Me quemo la mano con la sartén. — I burn myself my hand on the frying pan.
  2. Se quema al sol en la playa. — He/she burns himself in the sun on the beach.
  3. Ayer, me quemé con el agua caliente. — Yesterday, I burned myself with the hot water.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos quemábamos el brazo en el horno. — Before, we used to burn ourselves my arm in the oven.
  5. Mañana, tú te quemarás la mano con la sartén. — Tomorrow, you will burn yourself my hand on the frying pan.
  6. Yo me quemaría al sol en la playa si tuviera más tiempo. — I would burn myself in the sun on the beach if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha quemado con el agua caliente. — He has burned himself with the hot water.
  8. Espero que él se queme el brazo en el horno. — I hope he burns himself my arm in the oven.
  9. Yo ya me había quemado la mano con la sartén antes de salir. — I had already burned myself my hand on the frying pan before leaving.
  10. Ellos se quemaban al sol en la playa cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to burn themselves in the sun on the beach when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo quemo la mano con la sartén. — Right: Yo me quemo la mano con la sartén. — Quemarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo quemo al sol en la playa. — Right: Ayer yo quemé al sol en la playa. — The present and the preterite are different tenses: quemo is happening now, while quemé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
  3. Wrong: Treating quemarse and quemar as identical in every context. — Right: Quemarse means to burn oneself, while quemar means to burn something. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: quemarse fits sentences such as Me quemo la mano con la sartén, while quemar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy quemado al sol en la playa. — Right: Yo he quemado al sol en la playa. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he quemado, has quemado, ha quemado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo quemé con el agua caliente todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo quemaba con el agua caliente todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (quemaba), not the preterite. The preterite (quemé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la mano con la sartén. (present tense) A. me quemo B. te quemas C. se quema D. nos quemamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ al sol en la playa. (preterite) A. me quemé B. te quemaste C. se quemaron D. se quemó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ con el agua caliente. (imperfect) A. te quemabas B. se quemaban C. nos quemábamos D. me quemaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ el brazo en el horno. (future) A. nos quemaremos B. te quemarás C. me quemaré D. se quemará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ la mano con la sartén si pudiera. (conditional) A. me quemaría B. te quemarías C. se quemaría D. se quemarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ al sol en la playa. (present subjunctive) A. me queme B. te quemes C. nos quememos D. se queme

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ con el agua caliente, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se quemara B. nos quemáramos C. me quemara D. te quemaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el brazo en el horno. (present perfect) A. se han quemado B. nos hemos quemado C. me he quemado D. te has quemado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ la mano con la sartén. (negative imperative, tú) A. te quemes B. se queme C. nos quememos D. os queméis

  10. Which is the gerund of quemarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. quemado B. quemo C. quemé D. quemando

Answer key

  1. me quemo — The first-person present of quemarse is me quemo. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se quemó — The third-person preterite of quemarse is se quemó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos quemábamos — The nosotros imperfect of quemarse is nos quemábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te quemarás — The second-person future of quemarse is te quemarás.
  5. me quemaría — The first-person conditional of quemarse is me quemaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se queme — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of quemarse is se queme.
  7. me quemara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of quemarse is me quemara.
  8. nos hemos quemado — The nosotros present perfect of quemarse is nos hemos quemado: hemos + quemado.
  9. te quemes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te quemes.
  10. quemando — The gerund of quemarse is quemando: estoy quemando. The participle quemado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does quemarse mean in English?

Quemarse means to burn oneself. It is used in everyday situations such as Me quemo la mano con la sartén. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is quemarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Quemarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me quemo la mano con la sartén and él se quema al sol en la playa. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between quemarse and quemar?

Quemarse means to burn oneself, while quemar means to burn something. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use quemarse when you mean to burn oneself, as in Me quemo la mano con la sartén, and use quemar for to burn something. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I burn oneself” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me quemé al sol en la playa. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me quemaba con el agua caliente. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he quemado al sol en la playa.

How do I practise quemarse?

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

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