Introduction

retrasar means “to delay”. It belongs to the group of Spanish verbs that express “to delay”, and once you can conjugate it you can say a surprising amount with a single verb. This page is the complete reference for retrasar: 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. retrasar 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 retraso la reunión todos los días.” — “I delay the meeting.”

Quick facts
Infinitive retrasar
English to delay
Verb type Regular -ar verb
Gerund retrasando
Past participle retrasado
Auxiliary verb haber

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: retrasando · Past participle: retrasado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo retraso
tú retrasas
él/ella/Ud. retrasa
nosotros/as retrasamos
vosotros/as retrasáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasan

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For retrasar, the yo form is retraso, as in “Yo retraso la reunión.” — “I delay the meeting.”

Preterite

Person Form
yo retrasé
tú retrasaste
él/ella/Ud. retrasó
nosotros/as retrasamos
vosotros/as retrasasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasaron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For retrasar, the yo form is retrasé, as in “Yo retrasé la reunión.” — “I delayed the meeting.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo retrasaba
tú retrasabas
él/ella/Ud. retrasaba
nosotros/as retrasábamos
vosotros/as retrasabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasaban

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For retrasar, the yo form is retrasaba, as in “Yo retrasaba la reunión.” — “I used to delay the meeting.”

Future

Person Form
yo retrasaré
tú retrasarás
él/ella/Ud. retrasará
nosotros/as retrasaremos
vosotros/as retrasaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasarán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For retrasar, the yo form is retrasaré, as in “Yo retrasaré la reunión.” — “I will delay the meeting.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo retrasaría
tú retrasarías
él/ella/Ud. retrasaría
nosotros/as retrasaríamos
vosotros/as retrasaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasarían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For retrasar, the yo form is retrasaría, as in “Yo retrasaría la reunión.” — “I would delay the meeting.”

Present Perfect

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

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For retrasar, the yo form is he retrasado, as in “Yo he retrasado la reunión.” — “I have delayed the meeting.”

Pluperfect

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

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For retrasar, the yo form is había retrasado, as in “Yo había retrasado la reunión.” — “I had delayed the meeting.”

Future Perfect

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

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For retrasar, the yo form is habré retrasado, as in “Yo habré retrasado la reunión.” — “I will have delayed the meeting.”

Conditional Perfect

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

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For retrasar, the yo form is habría retrasado, as in “Yo habría retrasado la reunión.” — “I would have delayed the meeting.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo retrase
tú retrases
él/ella/Ud. retrase
nosotros/as retrasemos
vosotros/as retraséis
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasen

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For retrasar, the yo form is retrase, as in “Espero que yo retrase la reunión.” — “I hope that I delay the meeting.”

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo retrasara
tú retrasaras
él/ella/Ud. retrasara
nosotros/as retrasáramos
vosotros/as retrasarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. retrasaran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For retrasar, the yo form is retrasara, as in “Si yo retrasara la reunión, ...” — “If I delayed the meeting, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: retrasara becomes retrasase, 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 retrasa
Ud. retrase
nosotros/as retrasemos
vosotros/as retrasad
Uds. retrasen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú retrases
Ud. retrase
nosotros/as retrasemos
vosotros/as retraséis
Uds. retrasen

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is retrasa, as in “¡Retrasa la reunión” — “Delay the meeting” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no retrases. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with retrasar.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with retrasar, 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 retraso la reunión cada día.” — “I delay the meeting.”
  2. “Él retrasa la reunión todos los días.” — “He delays the meeting.”
  3. “Yo retrasé la reunión ayer.” — “I delayed the meeting.”
  4. “Él retrasó la reunión ayer.” — “He delayed the meeting.”
  5. “Yo retrasaba la reunión cuando era joven.” — “I used to delay the meeting.”
  6. “Nosotros retrasaremos la reunión mañana.” — “We will delay the meeting.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo retrasaría la reunión.” — “If I could, i would delay the meeting.”
  8. “Yo he retrasado la reunión hoy.” — “I have delayed the meeting.”
  9. “Espero que yo retrase la reunión.” — “I hope that I delay the meeting.”
  10. “estoy retrasando la reunión ahora mismo.” — “I am delaying the meeting.”

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is retrasé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — retrase — 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 retrasar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For retrasar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: retrasamos. 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 retrasado la reunión. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy retrasado is not the present perfect of retrasar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing retrasar with retirar

retrasar and retirar 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 retrasar — delay — the sentence needs retrasar; if it needs the meaning of retirar, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo retrase la reunión. Using the indicative — Espero que yo retraso — is one of the most frequent learner errors with retrasar. 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 retrasar in the present?

  • A. retrasas
  • B. retrasa
  • C. retrasamos
  • D. retraso

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

  • A. retrasamos
  • B. retrasaste
  • C. retrasé
  • D. retrasó

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

  • A. retrasabas
  • B. retrasábamos
  • C. retrasabais
  • D. retrasaba

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

  • A. retrasará
  • B. retrasaremos
  • C. retrasaré
  • D. retrasarás

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

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

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

  • A. retrase
  • B. retrasen
  • C. retrase
  • D. retrases

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

  • A. retrasaste
  • B. retrasó
  • C. retrasamos
  • D. retrasé

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

  • A. retrasábamos
  • B. retrasabas
  • C. retrasaba
  • D. retrasaba

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

  • A. retrasaré
  • B. retrasarás
  • C. retrasaremos
  • D. retrasará

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

  • A. retrasaría
  • B. retrasaríamos
  • C. retrasaría
  • D. retrasarías

Answer key

  1. retraso — The present table gives yo = retraso.
  2. retrasaste — The preterite table gives tu = retrasaste.
  3. retrasaba — The imperfect table gives el = retrasaba.
  4. retrasaremos — The future table gives nosotros = retrasaremos.
  5. habéis retrasado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis retrasado.
  6. retrasen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = retrasen.
  7. retrasé — The preterite table gives yo = retrasé.
  8. retrasabas — The imperfect table gives tu = retrasabas.
  9. retrasará — The future table gives el = retrasará.
  10. retrasaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = retrasaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is retrasar regular or irregular?

retrasar 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 retrasar?

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

What is the gerund of retrasar?

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

What is the yo form of retrasar in the present?

The yo form is retraso — “Yo retraso la reunión.” means “I delay the meeting.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú retrasas, él retrasa, nosotros retrasamos, ellos retrasan.

What is the difference between retrasar and retirar?

retrasar means “to delay”, while retirar means “to withdraw, to remove”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to delay”, use retrasar; if it is about the meaning of retirar, use retirar instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.

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