Rodar Conjugation in Spanish
The Spanish verb rodar means to roll, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Rodar 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 rodar 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 rodo por el suelo — "I roll along the floor" — and in the preterite you say Yo rodé cuesta abajo — "I rolled downhill". 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: rodar
- English: to roll
- Verb type: regular -ar verb
- Ending: -ar
- Gerund: rodando
- Past participle: rodado
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + rodado)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for rodar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for rodar. 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: rodando · Past participle: rodado
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rodo |
| tú | rodas |
| él/ella/Ud. | roda |
| nosotros/as | rodamos |
| vosotros/as | rodáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rodan |
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rodé |
| tú | rodaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | rodó |
| nosotros/as | rodamos |
| vosotros/as | rodasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rodaron |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rodaba |
| tú | rodabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | rodaba |
| nosotros/as | rodábamos |
| vosotros/as | rodabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rodaban |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rodaré |
| tú | rodarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | rodará |
| nosotros/as | rodaremos |
| vosotros/as | rodaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rodarán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rodaría |
| tú | rodarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | rodaría |
| nosotros/as | rodaríamos |
| vosotros/as | rodaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rodarían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he rodado |
| tú | has rodado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha rodado |
| nosotros/as | hemos rodado |
| vosotros/as | habéis rodado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han rodado |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había rodado |
| tú | habías rodado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había rodado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos rodado |
| vosotros/as | habíais rodado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían rodado |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré rodado |
| tú | habrás rodado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá rodado |
| nosotros/as | habremos rodado |
| vosotros/as | habréis rodado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán rodado |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría rodado |
| tú | habrías rodado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría rodado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos rodado |
| vosotros/as | habríais rodado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían rodado |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rode |
| tú | rodes |
| él/ella/Ud. | rode |
| nosotros/as | rodemos |
| vosotros/as | rodéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | roden |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | rodara |
| tú | rodaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | rodara |
| nosotros/as | rodáramos |
| vosotros/as | rodarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | rodaran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | roda |
| él/ella/Ud. | rode |
| nosotros/as | rodemos |
| vosotros/as | rodad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | roden |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | rodes |
| él/ella/Ud. | rode |
| nosotros/as | rodemos |
| vosotros/as | rodéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | roden |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Gerund | rodando | with estar for the progressive: estoy rodando |
| Past participle | rodado | with haber for the perfect tenses: he rodado |
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 rodar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rodo cuesta abajo — "I roll downhill". 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 rodar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rodé por la calle — "I rolled down the street". 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 rodar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rodaba por el suelo — "I used to roll along the floor". 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 rodar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rodaré cuesta abajo — "I will roll downhill". 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 rodar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo rodaría por la calle — "I would roll down the street". 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 rodar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo he rodado por el suelo — "I have rolled along the floor". 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 rodar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo había rodado cuesta abajo — "I had rolled downhill". 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 rodar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habré rodado por la calle — "I will have rolled down the street". 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 rodar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría rodado por el suelo — "I would have rolled along the floor". 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 rodar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él rode cuesta abajo — "I hope he rolls downhill". 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 rodar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo rodara por la calle, todo cambiaría — "If I rolled down the street, 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 rodar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Rode por el suelo — "Let him roll along the floor". 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 rodar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No rodes cuesta abajo — "Don't roll downhill". 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 rodar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.
- Yo rodo por la calle — "I roll down the street"
- Él roda por el suelo — "He rolls along the floor"
- Yo rodé cuesta abajo — "I rolled downhill"
- Yo rodaba por la calle — "I used to roll down the street"
- Tú rodarás por el suelo — "You will roll along the floor"
- Yo rodaría cuesta abajo — "I would roll downhill"
- Él ha rodado por la calle — "He has rolled down the street"
- Espero que él rode por el suelo — "I hope he rolls along the floor"
- Yo había rodado cuesta abajo — "I had rolled downhill"
- Ellos rodaban por la calle — "They used to roll down the street"
Common mistakes
- Wrong: Ellos roda por el suelo — Right: Ellos rodan por el suelo — Ellos needs the ellos form rodan. The singular roda belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
- Wrong: Ayer, yo rodo — Right: Ayer, yo rodé — The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to rodé.
- Wrong: De niño, yo rodé todos los días. — Right: Todos los días, yo rodaba — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (rodaba), not the preterite. The preterite (rodé) is for one finished action.
- Wrong: Yo soy rodado cuesta abajo. — Right: Yo he rodado cuesta abajo. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he rodado, has rodado, ha rodado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
- Wrong: Espero que él roda por el suelo. — Right: Espero que él rode por el suelo. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: rode. The indicative roda is wrong here.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on rodar. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ por el suelo. (present tense) A. rodas B. habías rodado C. rodo D. rodáramos
Complete the sentence: Él ___ por el suelo. (preterite) A. rodaréis B. habrá rodado C. habría rodado D. rodó
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ por el suelo. (imperfect) A. rodarás B. rodas C. roda D. rodábamos
Complete the sentence: Tú ___ por el suelo. (future) A. he rodado B. rodarías C. hemos rodado D. rodarás
Complete the sentence: Yo ___ por el suelo. (conditional) A. rodan B. rodarán C. había rodado D. rodaría
Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ por el suelo. (present subjunctive) A. rodó B. rodaba C. rode D. habremos rodado
Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ por el suelo, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. habían rodado B. habéis rodado C. roda D. rodara
Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ por el suelo. (present perfect) A. rodasteis B. rodáramos C. hemos rodado D. rodáis
Complete the command: No ___ por el suelo. (negative imperative, tú) A. rodes B. rode C. roden D. rodéis
Which is the gerund of rodar, used with estar for the progressive? A. rodé B. rodo C. rodado D. rodando
Answer key
- rodo — The yo present tense of rodar is rodo.
- rodó — The él/ella/Ud. preterite of rodar is rodó.
- rodábamos — The nosotros/as imperfect of rodar is rodábamos.
- rodarás — The tú future of rodar is rodarás.
- rodaría — The yo conditional of rodar is rodaría.
- rode — The él/ella/Ud. present subjunctive of rodar is rode.
- rodara — The yo imperfect subjunctive, -ra form of rodar is rodara.
- hemos rodado — The nosotros/as present perfect of rodar is hemos rodado.
- rodes — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: rodes.
- rodando — The gerund of rodar is rodando: estoy rodando. The participle rodado is used with haber instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does rodar mean in English?
Rodar means to roll. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo rodo por el suelo. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.
Is rodar regular?
Yes. Rodar is a regular -ar verb: rodo, rodas, roda. 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 rodar?
The gerund is rodando, used with estar for the progressive: estoy rodando. The past participle is rodado, used with haber in the perfect tenses: he rodado.
How do I say “I roll” in the past?
It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo rodé cuesta abajo. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo rodaba por la calle. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he rodado por el suelo.
How do I practise rodar?
Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the rodar examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.
Related links
- Rodar in the present tense — the full present-tense table for rodar.
- Rodar examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice for rodar.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub, with every verb and tense guide.
- Rodear conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with rodar.
- Roncar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with rodar.
- Rozar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with rodar.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Verb Conjugator — conjugate any Spanish verb in every tense.