Introduction

reservar means “to reserve, to book” in English, and it is a verb you will meet again and again once you start reading and speaking Spanish. It is used whenever you need to talk about a table — at home, at work, and in everyday conversation — which makes it a practical verb to learn early and to use confidently. This page gives you the complete conjugation of reservar in every tense and mood, with all six persons, plus the gerund and the past participle, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. Every form below comes from VerbFlow's verified conjugation tables, so you can trust the accents and the irregular forms. reservar is a regular -ar verb, and the notes under each tense explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To hear it in a real sentence: “Yo reservo una mesa todos los días.” — “I reserve a table.” Work through the tables, read the notes, then test yourself with the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts
Infinitive reservar
English to reserve, to book
Verb type Regular -ar verb
Gerund reservando
Past participle reservado
Auxiliary verb haber

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: reservando · Past participle: reservado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo reservo
tú reservas
él/ella/Ud. reserva
nosotros/as reservamos
vosotros/as reserváis
ellos/ellas/Uds. reservan

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For reservar, the yo form is reservo, as in “Yo reservo una mesa.” — “I reserve a table.”

Preterite

Person Form
yo reservé
tú reservaste
él/ella/Ud. reservó
nosotros/as reservamos
vosotros/as reservasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. reservaron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For reservar, the yo form is reservé, as in “Yo reservé una mesa.” — “I reserved a table.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo reservaba
tú reservabas
él/ella/Ud. reservaba
nosotros/as reservábamos
vosotros/as reservabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. reservaban

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For reservar, the yo form is reservaba, as in “Yo reservaba una mesa.” — “I used to reserve a table.”

Future

Person Form
yo reservaré
tú reservarás
él/ella/Ud. reservará
nosotros/as reservaremos
vosotros/as reservaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. reservarán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For reservar, the yo form is reservaré, as in “Yo reservaré una mesa.” — “I will reserve a table.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo reservaría
tú reservarías
él/ella/Ud. reservaría
nosotros/as reservaríamos
vosotros/as reservaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. reservarían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For reservar, the yo form is reservaría, as in “Yo reservaría una mesa.” — “I would reserve a table.”

Present Perfect

Person Form
yo he reservado
tú has reservado
él/ella/Ud. ha reservado
nosotros/as hemos reservado
vosotros/as habéis reservado
ellos/ellas/Uds. han reservado

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For reservar, the yo form is he reservado, as in “Yo he reservado una mesa.” — “I have reserved a table.”

Pluperfect

Person Form
yo había reservado
tú habías reservado
él/ella/Ud. había reservado
nosotros/as habíamos reservado
vosotros/as habíais reservado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habían reservado

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For reservar, the yo form is había reservado, as in “Yo había reservado una mesa.” — “I had reserved a table.”

Future Perfect

Person Form
yo habré reservado
tú habrás reservado
él/ella/Ud. habrá reservado
nosotros/as habremos reservado
vosotros/as habréis reservado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrán reservado

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For reservar, the yo form is habré reservado, as in “Yo habré reservado una mesa.” — “I will have reserved a table.”

Conditional Perfect

Person Form
yo habría reservado
tú habrías reservado
él/ella/Ud. habría reservado
nosotros/as habríamos reservado
vosotros/as habríais reservado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrían reservado

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For reservar, the yo form is habría reservado, as in “Yo habría reservado una mesa.” — “I would have reserved a table.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo reserve
tú reserves
él/ella/Ud. reserve
nosotros/as reservemos
vosotros/as reservéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. reserven

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For reservar, the yo form is reserve, as in “Espero que yo reserve una mesa.” — “I hope that I reserve a table.”

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo reservara
tú reservaras
él/ella/Ud. reservara
nosotros/as reserváramos
vosotros/as reservarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. reservaran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For reservar, the yo form is reservara, as in “Si yo reservara una mesa, ...” — “If I reserved a table, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: reservara becomes reservase, 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 reserva
Ud. reserve
nosotros/as reservemos
vosotros/as reservad
Uds. reserven

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú reserves
Ud. reserve
nosotros/as reservemos
vosotros/as reservéis
Uds. reserven

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is reserva, as in “¡Reserva una mesa” — “Reserve a table” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no reserves. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with reservar.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with reservar, 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.

  1. “Yo reservo una mesa cada día.” — “I reserve a table.”
  2. “Él reserva una mesa todos los días.” — “He reserves a table.”
  3. “Yo reservé una mesa ayer.” — “I reserved a table.”
  4. “Él reservó una mesa ayer.” — “He reserved a table.”
  5. “Yo reservaba una mesa cuando era joven.” — “I used to reserve a table.”
  6. “Nosotros reservaremos una mesa mañana.” — “We will reserve a table.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo reservaría una mesa.” — “If I could, i would reserve a table.”
  8. “Yo he reservado una mesa hoy.” — “I have reserved a table.”
  9. “Espero que yo reserve una mesa.” — “I hope that I reserve a table.”
  10. “estoy reservando una mesa ahora mismo.” — “I am reserving a table.”

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is reservé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — reserve — 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 reservar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For reservar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: reservamos. 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 reservado una mesa. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy reservado is not the present perfect of reservar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing reservar with resultar

reservar and resultar 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 reservar — reserve — the sentence needs reservar; if it needs the meaning of resultar, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo reserve una mesa. Using the indicative — Espero que yo reservo — is one of the most frequent learner errors with reservar. 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 reservar in the present?

  • A. reservas
  • B. reserva
  • C. reservamos
  • D. reservo

2. What is the tu form of reservar in the preterite?

  • A. reservamos
  • B. reservaste
  • C. reservé
  • D. reservó

3. What is the el form of reservar in the imperfect?

  • A. reservabas
  • B. reservábamos
  • C. reservabais
  • D. reservaba

4. What is the nosotros form of reservar in the future?

  • A. reservará
  • B. reservaremos
  • C. reservaré
  • D. reservarás

5. What is the vosotros form of reservar in the present perfect?

  • A. he reservado
  • B. has reservado
  • C. ha reservado
  • D. habéis reservado

6. What is the ellos form of reservar in the present subjunctive?

  • A. reserve
  • B. reserven
  • C. reserve
  • D. reserves

7. What is the yo form of reservar in the preterite?

  • A. reservaste
  • B. reservó
  • C. reservamos
  • D. reservé

8. What is the tu form of reservar in the imperfect?

  • A. reservábamos
  • B. reservabas
  • C. reservaba
  • D. reservaba

9. What is the el form of reservar in the future?

  • A. reservaré
  • B. reservarás
  • C. reservaremos
  • D. reservará

10. What is the nosotros form of reservar in the conditional?

  • A. reservaría
  • B. reservaríamos
  • C. reservaría
  • D. reservarías

Answer key

  1. reservo — The present table gives yo = reservo.
  2. reservaste — The preterite table gives tu = reservaste.
  3. reservaba — The imperfect table gives el = reservaba.
  4. reservaremos — The future table gives nosotros = reservaremos.
  5. habéis reservado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis reservado.
  6. reserven — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = reserven.
  7. reservé — The preterite table gives yo = reservé.
  8. reservabas — The imperfect table gives tu = reservabas.
  9. reservará — The future table gives el = reservará.
  10. reservaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = reservaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is reservar regular or irregular?

reservar 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 reservar?

The past participle of reservar is reservado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he reservado, había reservado, habré reservado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund reservando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.

What is the gerund of reservar?

The gerund of reservar is reservando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy reservando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle reservado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.

What is the yo form of reservar in the present?

The yo form is reservo — “Yo reservo una mesa.” means “I reserve a table.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú reservas, él reserva, nosotros reservamos, ellos reservan.

What is the difference between reservar and resultar?

reservar means “to reserve, to book”, while resultar means “to turn out, to result”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to reserve, to book”, use reservar; if it is about the meaning of resultar, use resultar instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.

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