Secarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb secarse means to dry oneself, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Secarse means to dry yourself, and it is used for drying your hands, your hair or your whole body after a shower, a swim or the rain. It takes the body part as its object with the definite article, as in secarse el pelo, and it is a spelling-change verb: the subjunctive is seque. Like every Spanish verb, secarse changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say me seco el pelo con la toalla, and in the preterite you say me sequé con la toalla después de nadar. 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: secarse
  • English: to dry oneself
  • Verb type: irregular verb, reflexive
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: secando
  • Past participle: secado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + secado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for secarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Secarse takes the body part with the definite article: me seco el pelo, not me seco mi pelo. The subjunctive is seque, never sece.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for secarse. 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.

Present indicative

Person Pronoun Form
yo me seco
tú te secas
él/ella/Ud. se seca
nosotros/as nos secamos
vosotros/as os secáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se secan

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me sequé
tú te secaste
él/ella/Ud. se secó
nosotros/as nos secamos
vosotros/as os secasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se secaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me secaba
tú te secabas
él/ella/Ud. se secaba
nosotros/as nos secábamos
vosotros/as os secabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se secaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me secaré
tú te secarás
él/ella/Ud. se secará
nosotros/as nos secaremos
vosotros/as os secaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se secarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me secaría
tú te secarías
él/ella/Ud. se secaría
nosotros/as nos secaríamos
vosotros/as os secaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se secarían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he secado
tú te has secado
él/ella/Ud. se ha secado
nosotros/as nos hemos secado
vosotros/as os habéis secado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han secado

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había secado
tú te habías secado
él/ella/Ud. se había secado
nosotros/as nos habíamos secado
vosotros/as os habíais secado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían secado

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré secado
tú te habrás secado
él/ella/Ud. se habrá secado
nosotros/as nos habremos secado
vosotros/as os habréis secado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán secado

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría secado
tú te habrías secado
él/ella/Ud. se habría secado
nosotros/as nos habríamos secado
vosotros/as os habríais secado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían secado

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me seque
tú te seques
él/ella/Ud. se seque
nosotros/as nos sequemos
vosotros/as os sequéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se sequen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me secara
tú te secaras
él/ella/Ud. se secara
nosotros/as nos secáramos
vosotros/as os secarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se secaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te seca
él/ella/Ud. se seque
nosotros/as nos sequemos
vosotros/as os secad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se sequen

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te seques
él/ella/Ud. se seque
nosotros/as nos sequemos
vosotros/as os sequéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se sequen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund secando with estar for the progressive: estoy secando (or me estoy secando for this reflexive verb)
Past participle secado with haber for the perfect tenses: he secado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me seco el pelo con la toalla. Learn the present 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 with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me sequé las manos antes de comer. 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 de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me secaba con la toalla después de nadar. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me secaré al sol en la playa. 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 with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me secaría el pelo con la toalla si pudiera. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he secado las manos antes de comer. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había secado con la toalla después de nadar antes de salir. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré secado al sol en la playa. 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. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría secado el pelo con la toalla con más tiempo. 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. Note the spelling change here: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For secarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se seque las manos antes de comer. 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 this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For secarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se secara con la toalla después de nadar, todo cambiaría. Learn the imperfect subjunctive 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. Note the spelling change here: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For secarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se seque al sol en la playa. Learn the affirmative imperative 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. Note the spelling change here: the final consonant of the stem changes before e to keep the same sound, so learn these forms from the table rather than copying the infinitive stem. For secarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te seques el pelo con la toalla. Learn the negative imperative 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 secarse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Me seco el pelo con la toalla. — I dry myself my hair with the towel.
  2. Se seca las manos antes de comer. — He/she dries himself my hands before eating.
  3. Ayer, me sequé con la toalla después de nadar. — Yesterday, I dried myself with the towel after swimming.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos secábamos al sol en la playa. — Before, we used to dry ourselves in the sun on the beach.
  5. Mañana, tú te secarás el pelo con la toalla. — Tomorrow, you will dry yourself my hair with the towel.
  6. Yo me secaría las manos antes de comer si tuviera más tiempo. — I would dry myself my hands before eating if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha secado con la toalla después de nadar. — He has dried himself with the towel after swimming.
  8. Espero que él se seque al sol en la playa. — I hope he dries himself in the sun on the beach.
  9. Yo ya me había secado el pelo con la toalla antes de salir. — I had already dried myself my hair with the towel before leaving.
  10. Ellos se secaban las manos antes de comer cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to dry themselves my hands before eating when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo seco el pelo con la toalla. — Right: Yo me seco el pelo con la toalla. — Secarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo secé las manos antes de comer. — Right: Ayer yo sequé las manos antes de comer. — Secarse has an irregular preterite: the correct first-person form is sequé, not the regular secé. Learn the preterite forms in the table as a set.
  3. Wrong: Treating secarse and mojarse as identical in every context. — Right: Secarse means to dry oneself, while mojarse means to get wet. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: secarse fits sentences such as Me seco el pelo con la toalla, while mojarse belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy secado las manos antes de comer. — Right: Yo he secado las manos antes de comer. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he secado, has secado, ha secado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo sequé con la toalla después de nadar todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo secaba con la toalla después de nadar todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (secaba), not the preterite. The preterite (sequé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on secarse. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el pelo con la toalla. (present tense) A. me seco B. te secas C. se seca D. nos secamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ las manos antes de comer. (preterite) A. me sequé B. te secaste C. se secaron D. se secó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ con la toalla después de nadar. (imperfect) A. te secabas B. se secaban C. nos secábamos D. me secaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ al sol en la playa. (future) A. nos secaremos B. te secarás C. me secaré D. se secará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el pelo con la toalla si pudiera. (conditional) A. me secaría B. te secarías C. se secaría D. se secarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ las manos antes de comer. (present subjunctive) A. me seque B. te seques C. nos sequemos D. se seque

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ con la toalla después de nadar, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se secara B. nos secáramos C. me secara D. te secaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ al sol en la playa. (present perfect) A. se han secado B. nos hemos secado C. me he secado D. te has secado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ el pelo con la toalla. (negative imperative, tú) A. te seques B. se seque C. nos sequemos D. os sequéis

  10. Which is the gerund of secarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. secado B. seco C. sequé D. secando

Answer key

  1. me seco — The first-person present of secarse is me seco. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se secó — The third-person preterite of secarse is se secó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos secábamos — The nosotros imperfect of secarse is nos secábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te secarás — The second-person future of secarse is te secarás.
  5. me secaría — The first-person conditional of secarse is me secaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se seque — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of secarse is se seque.
  7. me secara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of secarse is me secara.
  8. nos hemos secado — The nosotros present perfect of secarse is nos hemos secado: hemos + secado.
  9. te seques — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te seques.
  10. secando — The gerund of secarse is secando: estoy secando. The participle secado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does secarse mean in English?

Secarse means to dry oneself. It is used in everyday situations such as Me seco el pelo con la toalla. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is secarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Secarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me seco el pelo con la toalla and él se seca las manos antes de comer. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between secarse and mojarse?

Secarse means to dry oneself, while mojarse means to get wet. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use secarse when you mean to dry oneself, as in Me seco el pelo con la toalla, and use mojarse for to get wet. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I dry oneself” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me sequé las manos antes de comer. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me secaba con la toalla después de nadar. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he secado las manos antes de comer.

How do I practise secarse?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the secarse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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