Introduction
Learning to conjugate resultar — “to turn out, to result” — opens up a whole set of sentences you will use in real Spanish. Whether you are talking about what you do every day, what happened yesterday, or what you plan to do tomorrow, resultar is one of the verbs that carries those sentences, especially when the topic is difficult. On this page you will find the full conjugation of resultar 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. resultar is a regular -ar verb; the gerund is resultando and the past participle is resultado, and both appear in the tables and examples below. For example: “El examen resulta difícil todos los días.” — “The exam turns out difficult.” Read the tables first, then the notes, and finish with the quiz to check what you have learned.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | resultar |
| English | to turn out, to result |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | resultando |
| Past participle | resultado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: resultando · Past participle: resultado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resulto |
| tú | resultas |
| él/ella/Ud. | resulta |
| nosotros/as | resultamos |
| vosotros/as | resultáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resultan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For resultar, the yo form is resulto, as in “El examen resulta difícil.” — “The exam turns out difficult.”
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resulté |
| tú | resultaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | resultó |
| nosotros/as | resultamos |
| vosotros/as | resultasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resultaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For resultar, the yo form is resulté, as in “El examen resultó difícil.” — “The exam turned out difficult.”
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resultaba |
| tú | resultabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | resultaba |
| nosotros/as | resultábamos |
| vosotros/as | resultabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resultaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For resultar, the yo form is resultaba, as in “El examen resultaba difícil.” — “The exam used to turn out difficult.”
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resultaré |
| tú | resultarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | resultará |
| nosotros/as | resultaremos |
| vosotros/as | resultaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resultarán |
The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For resultar, the yo form is resultaré, as in “El examen resultará difícil.” — “The exam will turn out difficult.”
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resultaría |
| tú | resultarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | resultaría |
| nosotros/as | resultaríamos |
| vosotros/as | resultaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resultarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For resultar, the yo form is resultaría, as in “El examen resultaría difícil.” — “The exam would turn out difficult.”
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he resultado |
| tú | has resultado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha resultado |
| nosotros/as | hemos resultado |
| vosotros/as | habéis resultado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han resultado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For resultar, the yo form is he resultado, as in “El examen ha resultado difícil.” — “The exam has turned out difficult.”
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había resultado |
| tú | habías resultado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había resultado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos resultado |
| vosotros/as | habíais resultado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían resultado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For resultar, the yo form is había resultado, as in “El examen había resultado difícil.” — “The exam had turned out difficult.”
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré resultado |
| tú | habrás resultado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá resultado |
| nosotros/as | habremos resultado |
| vosotros/as | habréis resultado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán resultado |
The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For resultar, the yo form is habré resultado, as in “El examen habrá resultado difícil.” — “The exam will have turned out difficult.”
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría resultado |
| tú | habrías resultado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría resultado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos resultado |
| vosotros/as | habríais resultado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían resultado |
The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For resultar, the yo form is habría resultado, as in “El examen habría resultado difícil.” — “The exam would have turned out difficult.”
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resulte |
| tú | resultes |
| él/ella/Ud. | resulte |
| nosotros/as | resultemos |
| vosotros/as | resultéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resulten |
The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For resultar, the yo form is resulte, as in “Espero que el examen resulte difícil.” — “I hope that the exam turns out difficult.”
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | resultara |
| tú | resultaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | resultara |
| nosotros/as | resultáramos |
| vosotros/as | resultarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | resultaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For resultar, the yo form is resultara, as in “Si el examen resultara difícil, ...” — “If The exam turned out difficult, ...”
The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: resultara becomes resultase, 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 | resulta |
| Ud. | resulte |
| nosotros/as | resultemos |
| vosotros/as | resultad |
| Uds. | resulten |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | resultes |
| Ud. | resulte |
| nosotros/as | resultemos |
| vosotros/as | resultéis |
| Uds. | resulten |
The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is resulta, as in “¡Resulta difícil” — “Turn out difficult” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no resultes. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with resultar.
Example sentences
Here are ten sentences with resultar, 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.
- “El examen resulta difícil cada día.” — “The exam turns out difficult.”
- “El examen resulta difícil todos los días.” — “The exam turns out difficult.”
- “El examen resultó difícil ayer.” — “The exam turned out difficult.”
- “El examen resultó difícil ayer.” — “The exam turned out difficult.”
- “El examen resultaba difícil cuando era joven.” — “The exam used to turn out difficult.”
- “El examen resultará difícil mañana.” — “The exam will turn out difficult.”
- “Si pudiera, el examen resultaría difícil.” — “If I could, the exam would turn out difficult.”
- “El examen ha resultado difícil hoy.” — “The exam has turned out difficult.”
- “Espero que el examen resulte difícil.” — “I hope that the exam turns out difficult.”
- “El examen está resultando difícil ahora mismo.” — “The exam is turning out difficult.”
Common mistakes
Forgetting the accent in the preterite
The yo preterite form is resulté, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — resulte — 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 resultar.
Mixing up present and preterite nosotros
For resultar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: resultamos. 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 resultado difícil. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy resultado is not the present perfect of resultar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.
Confusing resultar with resumir
resultar and resumir 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 resultar — turn out — the sentence needs resultar; if it needs the meaning of resumir, use that verb instead.
Using the indicative after "espero que"
After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo resulte difícil. Using the indicative — Espero que yo resulto — is one of the most frequent learner errors with resultar. 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 resultar in the present?
- A. resultas
- B. resulta
- C. resultamos
- D. resulto
2. What is the tu form of resultar in the preterite?
- A. resultamos
- B. resultaste
- C. resulté
- D. resultó
3. What is the el form of resultar in the imperfect?
- A. resultabas
- B. resultábamos
- C. resultabais
- D. resultaba
4. What is the nosotros form of resultar in the future?
- A. resultará
- B. resultaremos
- C. resultaré
- D. resultarás
5. What is the vosotros form of resultar in the present perfect?
- A. he resultado
- B. has resultado
- C. ha resultado
- D. habéis resultado
6. What is the ellos form of resultar in the present subjunctive?
- A. resulte
- B. resulten
- C. resulte
- D. resultes
7. What is the yo form of resultar in the preterite?
- A. resultaste
- B. resultó
- C. resultamos
- D. resulté
8. What is the tu form of resultar in the imperfect?
- A. resultábamos
- B. resultabas
- C. resultaba
- D. resultaba
9. What is the el form of resultar in the future?
- A. resultaré
- B. resultarás
- C. resultaremos
- D. resultará
10. What is the nosotros form of resultar in the conditional?
- A. resultaría
- B. resultaríamos
- C. resultaría
- D. resultarías
Answer key
- resulto — The present table gives yo = resulto.
- resultaste — The preterite table gives tu = resultaste.
- resultaba — The imperfect table gives el = resultaba.
- resultaremos — The future table gives nosotros = resultaremos.
- habéis resultado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis resultado.
- resulten — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = resulten.
- resulté — The preterite table gives yo = resulté.
- resultabas — The imperfect table gives tu = resultabas.
- resultará — The future table gives el = resultará.
- resultaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = resultaríamos.
Frequently asked questions
Is resultar regular or irregular?
resultar 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 resultar?
The past participle of resultar is resultado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he resultado, había resultado, habré resultado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund resultando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.
What is the gerund of resultar?
The gerund of resultar is resultando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy resultando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle resultado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.
What is the yo form of resultar in the present?
The yo form is resulto — “El examen resulta difícil.” means “The exam turns out difficult.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú resultas, él resulta, nosotros resultamos, ellos resultan.
What is the difference between resultar and resumir?
resultar means “to turn out, to result”, while resumir means “to summarise”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to turn out, to result”, use resultar; if it is about the meaning of resumir, use resumir instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.
Related links
- resultar in the present tense — the full present-tense page for this verb.
- resultar examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a second quiz.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub with every verb on VerbFlow.
- resumir conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- resaltar conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- reservar conjugation — another verb in the same family.
- Verb conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb instantly.
- Verb quiz — practise conjugations with timed questions.