Recetar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb recetar means to prescribe, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Recetar 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 recetar 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, in the present tense you say Yo receto un jarabe — "I prescribe a syrup" — and in the preterite you say Yo receté antibióticos — "I prescribed antibiotics". 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: recetar
- English: to prescribe
- Verb type: regular -ar verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: recetando
- Past participle: recetado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + recetado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for recetar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for recetar. 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.
Gerund: recetando · Past participle: recetado
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | receto |
| tú | recetas |
| él/ella/Ud. | receta |
| nosotros/as | recetamos |
| vosotros/as | recetáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | recetan |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | receté |
| tú | recetaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | recetó |
| nosotros/as | recetamos |
| vosotros/as | recetasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | recetaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | recetaba |
| tú | recetabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | recetaba |
| nosotros/as | recetábamos |
| vosotros/as | recetabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | recetaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | recetaré |
| tú | recetarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | recetará |
| nosotros/as | recetaremos |
| vosotros/as | recetaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | recetarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | recetaría |
| tú | recetarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | recetaría |
| nosotros/as | recetaríamos |
| vosotros/as | recetaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | recetarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he recetado |
| tú | has recetado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha recetado |
| nosotros/as | hemos recetado |
| vosotros/as | habéis recetado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han recetado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había recetado |
| tú | habías recetado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había recetado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos recetado |
| vosotros/as | habíais recetado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían recetado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré recetado |
| tú | habrás recetado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá recetado |
| nosotros/as | habremos recetado |
| vosotros/as | habréis recetado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán recetado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría recetado |
| tú | habrías recetado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría recetado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos recetado |
| vosotros/as | habríais recetado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían recetado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | recete |
| tú | recetes |
| él/ella/Ud. | recete |
| nosotros/as | recetemos |
| vosotros/as | recetéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | receten |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | recetara |
| tú | recetaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | recetara |
| nosotros/as | recetáramos |
| vosotros/as | recetarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | recetaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | receta |
| él/ella/Ud. | recete |
| nosotros/as | recetemos |
| vosotros/as | recetad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | receten |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | recetes |
| él/ella/Ud. | recete |
| nosotros/as | recetemos |
| vosotros/as | recetéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | receten |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | recetando | with estar for the progressive: estoy recetando |
| Past participle | recetado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he recetado |
How to use each tense
Present indicative
Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. It is the tense you will use most often in everyday conversation, for habits with words like todos los días and for statements that are true in general. For recetar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo receto antibióticos — "I prescribe antibiotics". Learn the present indicative 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 in the past — things that started and ended, often with time words like ayer, anoche or la semana pasada. The preterite moves a story forward, one completed event at a time. For recetar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo receté pastillas para el dolor — "I prescribed pills for the pain". 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 words like antes, de niño or mientras. It describes how things used to be, not one finished event. For recetar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo recetaba un jarabe — "I used to prescribe a syrup". 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. It talks about what will happen, not what is happening now. For recetar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo recetaré antibióticos — "I will prescribe antibiotics". 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 in si clauses. It softens a request and describes imagined situations. For recetar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo recetaría pastillas para el dolor — "I would prescribe pills for the pain". 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. It connects the past with the present moment. For recetar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo he recetado un jarabe — "I have prescribed a syrup". 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. It is the past of the past, and it usually appears with antes de or ya. For recetar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo había recetado antibióticos — "I had prescribed antibiotics". 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, often with para mañana or para el viernes. For recetar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habré recetado pastillas para el dolor — "I will have prescribed pills for the pain". 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. It looks back at a past that never happened. For recetar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría recetado un jarabe — "I would have prescribed a syrup". 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. The subjunctive does not state a fact; it states an attitude towards the action. For recetar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él recete antibióticos — "I hope he prescribes antibiotics". 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 recetar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo recetara pastillas para el dolor, todo cambiaría — "If I prescribed pills for the pain, everything would change". Learn the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) 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. It tells someone to do something, and it has no yo form. For recetar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Recete un jarabe — "Let him prescribe a syrup". Learn the imperative (affirmative) 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. It uses the subjunctive forms, so it looks different from the affirmative commands. For recetar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No recetes antibióticos — "Don't prescribe antibiotics". Learn the imperative (negative) 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 recetar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Yo receto pastillas para el dolor — "I prescribe pills for the pain"
- Él receta un jarabe — "He prescribes a syrup"
- Yo receté antibióticos — "I prescribed antibiotics"
- Yo recetaba pastillas para el dolor — "I used to prescribe pills for the pain"
- Tú recetarás un jarabe — "You will prescribe a syrup"
- Yo recetaría antibióticos — "I would prescribe antibiotics"
- Él ha recetado pastillas para el dolor — "He has prescribed pills for the pain"
- Espero que él recete un jarabe — "I hope he prescribes a syrup"
- Yo había recetado antibióticos — "I had prescribed antibiotics"
- Ellos recetaban pastillas para el dolor — "They used to prescribe pills for the pain"
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Ellos receta un jarabe — Right: Ellos recetan un jarabe — Ellos needs the ellos form recetan. The singular receta belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo receto — Right: Ayer, yo receté — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to receté.
- Wrong: De niño, yo receté todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo recetaba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (recetaba), not the preterite. The preterite (receté) is for one finished action.
- Wrong: Yo soy recetado antibióticos. — Right: Yo he recetado antibióticos. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he recetado, has recetado, ha recetado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: Espero que él receta un jarabe. — Right: Espero que él recete un jarabe. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: recete. The indicative receta is wrong here.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on recetar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ un jarabe. (present tense) A. recetamos B. habré recetado C. receto D. habéis recetado
Complete the sentence: Él ___ un jarabe. (preterite) A. receten B. recetó C. recetabais D. recetaremos
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ un jarabe. (imperfect) A. recetábamos B. recetará C. recetarías D. habríais recetado
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ un jarabe. (future) A. habremos recetado B. recetábamos C. recetarás D. recetaremos
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ un jarabe. (conditional) A. recetabas B. habréis recetado C. recetaría D. habíamos recetado
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ un jarabe. (present subjunctive) A. recetaran B. recete C. habréis recetado D. recetara
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ un jarabe, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. receté B. recetemos C. recetara D. habremos recetado
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ un jarabe. (present perfect) A. has recetado B. recetaras C. habréis recetado D. hemos recetado
Complete the command: No ___ un jarabe. (negative imperative, tú) A. recetemos B. recetes C. recetéis D. recete
Which is the gerund of recetar, used with estar for the progressive? A. receto B. receté C. recetando D. recetaré
Answer key
- receto — The yo present tense of recetar is receto.
- recetó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of recetar is recetó.
- recetábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of recetar is recetábamos.
- recetarás — The tú future of recetar is recetarás.
- recetaría — The yo conditional of recetar is recetaría.
- recete — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of recetar is recete.
- recetara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of recetar is recetara.
- hemos recetado — The nosotros/as present perfect of recetar is hemos recetado.
- recetes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: recetes.
- recetando — The gerund of recetar is recetando: estoy recetando. The participle recetado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does recetar mean in English?
Recetar means to prescribe. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo receto un jarabe. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is recetar regular?
Yes. Recetar is a regular -ar verb: receto, recetas, receta. The only thing to learn is the pattern of endings, which is the same for every regular -ar verb.
What is the gerund and the past participle of recetar?
The gerund is recetando, used with estar for the progressive: estoy recetando. The past participle is recetado, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he recetado.
How do I say “I prescribe” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo receté antibióticos. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo recetaba pastillas para el dolor. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he recetado un jarabe.
How do I practise recetar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the recetar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Recetar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for recetar.
- Recetar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for recetar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Rascar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with recetar.
- Rascarse conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with recetar.
- Pellizcar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with recetar.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.