Rellenar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb rellenar means to stuff — it also means to fill, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Rellenar 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 rellenar 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 relleno el pollo — "I stuff the chicken" — and in the preterite you say Yo rellené los pimientos — "I stuffed the peppers". 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: rellenar
- English: to stuff, to fill
- Verb type: regular -ar verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: rellenando
- Past participle: rellenado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + rellenado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for rellenar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for rellenar. 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: rellenando · Past participle: rellenado
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | relleno |
| tú | rellenas |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellena |
| nosotros/as | rellenamos |
| vosotros/as | rellenáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenan |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rellené |
| tú | rellenaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellenó |
| nosotros/as | rellenamos |
| vosotros/as | rellenasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rellenaba |
| tú | rellenabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellenaba |
| nosotros/as | rellenábamos |
| vosotros/as | rellenabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rellenaré |
| tú | rellenarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellenará |
| nosotros/as | rellenaremos |
| vosotros/as | rellenaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rellenaría |
| tú | rellenarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellenaría |
| nosotros/as | rellenaríamos |
| vosotros/as | rellenaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he rellenado |
| tú | has rellenado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha rellenado |
| nosotros/as | hemos rellenado |
| vosotros/as | habéis rellenado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han rellenado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había rellenado |
| tú | habías rellenado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había rellenado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos rellenado |
| vosotros/as | habíais rellenado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían rellenado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré rellenado |
| tú | habrás rellenado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá rellenado |
| nosotros/as | habremos rellenado |
| vosotros/as | habréis rellenado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán rellenado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría rellenado |
| tú | habrías rellenado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría rellenado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos rellenado |
| vosotros/as | habríais rellenado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían rellenado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rellene |
| tú | rellenes |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellene |
| nosotros/as | rellenemos |
| vosotros/as | rellenéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenen |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rellenara |
| tú | rellenaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellenara |
| nosotros/as | rellenáramos |
| vosotros/as | rellenarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | rellena |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellene |
| nosotros/as | rellenemos |
| vosotros/as | rellenad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenen |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | rellenes |
| él/ella/Ud. | rellene |
| nosotros/as | rellenemos |
| vosotros/as | rellenéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rellenen |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | rellenando | with estar for the progressive: estoy rellenando |
| Past participle | rellenado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he rellenado |
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 rellenar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo relleno los pimientos — "I stuff the peppers". 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 rellenar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rellené con arroz — "I stuffed with rice". 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 rellenar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rellenaba el pollo — "I used to stuff the chicken". 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 rellenar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rellenaré los pimientos — "I will stuff the peppers". 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 rellenar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rellenaría con arroz — "I would stuff with rice". 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 rellenar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo he rellenado el pollo — "I have stuffed the chicken". 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 rellenar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo había rellenado los pimientos — "I had stuffed the peppers". 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 rellenar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habré rellenado con arroz — "I will have stuffed with rice". 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 rellenar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría rellenado el pollo — "I would have stuffed the chicken". 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 rellenar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él rellene los pimientos — "I hope he stuffs the peppers". 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 rellenar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo rellenara con arroz, todo cambiaría — "If I stuffed with rice, 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 rellenar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Rellene el pollo — "Let him stuff the chicken". 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 rellenar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No rellenes los pimientos — "Don't stuff the peppers". 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 rellenar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Yo relleno con arroz — "I stuff with rice"
- Él rellena el pollo — "He stuffs the chicken"
- Yo rellené los pimientos — "I stuffed the peppers"
- Yo rellenaba con arroz — "I used to stuff with rice"
- Tú rellenarás el pollo — "You will stuff the chicken"
- Yo rellenaría los pimientos — "I would stuff the peppers"
- Él ha rellenado con arroz — "He has stuffed with rice"
- Espero que él rellene el pollo — "I hope he stuffs the chicken"
- Yo había rellenado los pimientos — "I had stuffed the peppers"
- Ellos rellenaban con arroz — "They used to stuff with rice"
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Ellos rellena el pollo — Right: Ellos rellenan el pollo — Ellos needs the ellos form rellenan. The singular rellena belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo relleno — Right: Ayer, yo rellené — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to rellené.
- Wrong: De niño, yo rellené todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo rellenaba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (rellenaba), not the preterite. The preterite (rellené) is for one finished action.
- Wrong: Yo soy rellenado los pimientos. — Right: Yo he rellenado los pimientos. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he rellenado, has rellenado, ha rellenado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: Espero que él rellena el pollo. — Right: Espero que él rellene el pollo. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: rellene. The indicative rellena is wrong here.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on rellenar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el pollo. (present tense) A. relleno B. rellenarías C. habíais rellenado D. rellenamos
Complete the sentence: Él ___ el pollo. (preterite) A. rellenó B. rellenaréis C. habríamos rellenado D. rellenaron
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el pollo. (imperfect) A. han rellenado B. rellenarás C. habríamos rellenado D. rellenábamos
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ el pollo. (future) A. rellenáramos B. rellenarás C. rellenaremos D. habría rellenado
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el pollo. (conditional) A. rellenaba B. rellenaría C. rellenaran D. rellenará
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ el pollo. (present subjunctive) A. rellene B. habríamos rellenado C. había rellenado D. rellenaste
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ el pollo, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. hemos rellenado B. habrían rellenado C. rellenara D. rellenaréis
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el pollo. (present perfect) A. rellenaría B. rellenaron C. hemos rellenado D. rellenáramos
Complete the command: No ___ el pollo. (negative imperative, tú) A. rellenes B. rellenen C. rellenemos D. rellene
Which is the gerund of rellenar, used with estar for the progressive? A. relleno B. rellenaré C. rellenando D. rellenaba
Answer key
- relleno — The yo present tense of rellenar is relleno.
- rellenó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of rellenar is rellenó.
- rellenábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of rellenar is rellenábamos.
- rellenarás — The tú future of rellenar is rellenarás.
- rellenaría — The yo conditional of rellenar is rellenaría.
- rellene — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of rellenar is rellene.
- rellenara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of rellenar is rellenara.
- hemos rellenado — The nosotros/as present perfect of rellenar is hemos rellenado.
- rellenes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: rellenes.
- rellenando — The gerund of rellenar is rellenando: estoy rellenando. The participle rellenado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does rellenar mean in English?
Rellenar means to stuff, to fill. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo relleno el pollo. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is rellenar regular?
Yes. Rellenar is a regular -ar verb: relleno, rellenas, rellena. 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 rellenar?
The gerund is rellenando, used with estar for the progressive: estoy rellenando. The past participle is rellenado, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he rellenado.
How do I say “I stuff” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo rellené los pimientos. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo rellenaba con arroz. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he rellenado el pollo.
How do I practise rellenar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the rellenar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Rellenar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for rellenar.
- Rellenar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for rellenar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Deshuesar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with rellenar.
- Filetear conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with rellenar.
- Trocear conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with rellenar.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.