Introduction
relajar means “to relax”. It belongs to the group of Spanish verbs that express “to relax”, and once you can conjugate it you can say a surprising amount with a single verb. This page is the complete reference for relajar: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, with notes on usage, real example sentences, common mistakes, a quiz and frequently asked questions. relajar is a regular -ar verb. If it is irregular in a tense, the note under that table says so plainly, and the forms in the table are the correct ones — copy them, do not guess them from the infinitive. A first example to fix the verb in your mind: “Yo relajo los músculos todos los días.” — “I relax the muscles.”
Quick facts
| Infinitive | relajar |
| English | to relax |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | relajando |
| Past participle | relajado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: relajando · Past participle: relajado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relajo |
| tú | relajas |
| él/ella/Ud. | relaja |
| nosotros/as | relajamos |
| vosotros/as | relajáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For relajar, the yo form is relajo, as in “Yo relajo los músculos.” — “I relax the muscles.”
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relajé |
| tú | relajaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | relajó |
| nosotros/as | relajamos |
| vosotros/as | relajasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For relajar, the yo form is relajé, as in “Yo relajé los músculos.” — “I relaxed the muscles.”
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relajaba |
| tú | relajabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | relajaba |
| nosotros/as | relajábamos |
| vosotros/as | relajabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For relajar, the yo form is relajaba, as in “Yo relajaba los músculos.” — “I used to relax the muscles.”
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relajaré |
| tú | relajarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | relajará |
| nosotros/as | relajaremos |
| vosotros/as | relajaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajarán |
The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For relajar, the yo form is relajaré, as in “Yo relajaré los músculos.” — “I will relax the muscles.”
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relajaría |
| tú | relajarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | relajaría |
| nosotros/as | relajaríamos |
| vosotros/as | relajaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For relajar, the yo form is relajaría, as in “Yo relajaría los músculos.” — “I would relax the muscles.”
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he relajado |
| tú | has relajado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha relajado |
| nosotros/as | hemos relajado |
| vosotros/as | habéis relajado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han relajado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For relajar, the yo form is he relajado, as in “Yo he relajado los músculos.” — “I have relaxed the muscles.”
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había relajado |
| tú | habías relajado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había relajado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos relajado |
| vosotros/as | habíais relajado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían relajado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For relajar, the yo form is había relajado, as in “Yo había relajado los músculos.” — “I had relaxed the muscles.”
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré relajado |
| tú | habrás relajado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá relajado |
| nosotros/as | habremos relajado |
| vosotros/as | habréis relajado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán relajado |
The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For relajar, the yo form is habré relajado, as in “Yo habré relajado los músculos.” — “I will have relaxed the muscles.”
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría relajado |
| tú | habrías relajado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría relajado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos relajado |
| vosotros/as | habríais relajado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían relajado |
The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For relajar, the yo form is habría relajado, as in “Yo habría relajado los músculos.” — “I would have relaxed the muscles.”
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relaje |
| tú | relajes |
| él/ella/Ud. | relaje |
| nosotros/as | relajemos |
| vosotros/as | relajéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajen |
The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For relajar, the yo form is relaje, as in “Espero que yo relaje los músculos.” — “I hope that I relax the muscles.”
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relajara |
| tú | relajaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | relajara |
| nosotros/as | relajáramos |
| vosotros/as | relajarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | relajaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For relajar, the yo form is relajara, as in “Si yo relajara los músculos, ...” — “If I relaxed the muscles, ...”
The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: relajara becomes relajase, and the same change applies to every person. Both variants mean the same thing; -ra is more common in everyday speech.
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | relaja |
| Ud. | relaje |
| nosotros/as | relajemos |
| vosotros/as | relajad |
| Uds. | relajen |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | relajes |
| Ud. | relaje |
| nosotros/as | relajemos |
| vosotros/as | relajéis |
| Uds. | relajen |
The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is relaja, as in “¡Relaja los músculos” — “Relax the muscles” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no relajes. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with relajar.
Example sentences
Here are ten sentences with relajar, covering different tenses and persons. Read each one out loud, then read the translation, and notice how the verb form changes while the meaning stays the same.
- “Yo relajo los músculos cada día.” — “I relax the muscles.”
- “Él relaja los músculos todos los días.” — “He relaxes the muscles.”
- “Yo relajé los músculos ayer.” — “I relaxed the muscles.”
- “Él relajó los músculos ayer.” — “He relaxed the muscles.”
- “Yo relajaba los músculos cuando era joven.” — “I used to relax the muscles.”
- “Nosotros relajaremos los músculos mañana.” — “We will relax the muscles.”
- “Si pudiera, yo relajaría los músculos.” — “If I could, i would relax the muscles.”
- “Yo he relajado los músculos hoy.” — “I have relaxed the muscles.”
- “Espero que yo relaje los músculos.” — “I hope that I relax the muscles.”
- “estoy relajando los músculos ahora mismo.” — “I am relaxing the muscles.”
Common mistakes
Forgetting the accent in the preterite
The yo preterite form is relajé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — relaje — is a spelling error, and in speech the stress lands in the wrong place. Preterite yo forms that end in a vowel carry that accent, so check it every time you write the preterite of relajar.
Mixing up present and preterite nosotros
For relajar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: relajamos. Only the context tells you which tense is meant, so pay attention to the time words around it — cada día points to the present, ayer points to the preterite. Do not invent a different form for one of the tenses.
Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses
Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he relajado los músculos. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy relajado is not the present perfect of relajar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.
Confusing relajar with relacionar
relajar and relacionar look similar, and learners mix them up. They are different verbs with different meanings, so check which one the sentence needs before you conjugate. If you can substitute the English meaning of relajar — relax — the sentence needs relajar; if it needs the meaning of relacionar, use that verb instead.
Using the indicative after "espero que"
After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo relaje los músculos. Using the indicative — Espero que yo relajo — is one of the most frequent learner errors with relajar. Whenever the main clause expresses a wish, doubt or emotion, switch to the subjunctive.
Quiz
Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the best answer, then check the key below.
1. What is the yo form of relajar in the present?
- A. relajas
- B. relaja
- C. relajamos
- D. relajo
2. What is the tu form of relajar in the preterite?
- A. relajamos
- B. relajaste
- C. relajé
- D. relajó
3. What is the el form of relajar in the imperfect?
- A. relajabas
- B. relajábamos
- C. relajabais
- D. relajaba
4. What is the nosotros form of relajar in the future?
- A. relajará
- B. relajaremos
- C. relajaré
- D. relajarás
5. What is the vosotros form of relajar in the present perfect?
- A. he relajado
- B. has relajado
- C. ha relajado
- D. habéis relajado
6. What is the ellos form of relajar in the present subjunctive?
- A. relaje
- B. relajen
- C. relaje
- D. relajes
7. What is the yo form of relajar in the preterite?
- A. relajaste
- B. relajó
- C. relajamos
- D. relajé
8. What is the tu form of relajar in the imperfect?
- A. relajábamos
- B. relajabas
- C. relajaba
- D. relajaba
9. What is the el form of relajar in the future?
- A. relajaré
- B. relajarás
- C. relajaremos
- D. relajará
10. What is the nosotros form of relajar in the conditional?
- A. relajaría
- B. relajaríamos
- C. relajaría
- D. relajarías
Answer key
- relajo — The present table gives yo = relajo.
- relajaste — The preterite table gives tu = relajaste.
- relajaba — The imperfect table gives el = relajaba.
- relajaremos — The future table gives nosotros = relajaremos.
- habéis relajado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis relajado.
- relajen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = relajen.
- relajé — The preterite table gives yo = relajé.
- relajabas — The imperfect table gives tu = relajabas.
- relajará — The future table gives el = relajará.
- relajaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = relajaríamos.
Frequently asked questions
Is relajar regular or irregular?
relajar is a regular -ar verb. It follows the regular patterns for its ending in every tense. The tables on this page show the correct form for every person, so use them rather than guessing.
What is the past participle of relajar?
The past participle of relajar is relajado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he relajado, había relajado, habré relajado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund relajando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.
What is the gerund of relajar?
The gerund of relajar is relajando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy relajando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle relajado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.
What is the yo form of relajar in the present?
The yo form is relajo — “Yo relajo los músculos.” means “I relax the muscles.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú relajas, él relaja, nosotros relajamos, ellos relajan.
What is the difference between relajar and relacionar?
relajar means “to relax”, while relacionar means “to relate”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to relax”, use relajar; if it is about the meaning of relacionar, use relacionar instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.
Related links
- relajar in the present tense — the full present-tense page for this verb.
- relajar examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a second quiz.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub with every verb on VerbFlow.
- relacionar conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- releer conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- relevar conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- Verb conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb instantly.
- Verb quiz — practise conjugations with timed questions.