Introduction

Learning to conjugate sobresalir — “to stand out” — 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, sobresalir is one of the verbs that carries those sentences, especially when the topic is in the team. On this page you will find the full conjugation of sobresalir 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. sobresalir is a irregular -ir verb; the gerund is sobresaliendo and the past participle is sobresalido, and both appear in the tables and examples below. For example: “Yo sobresalgo en el equipo todos los días.” — “I stand out in the team.” Read the tables first, then the notes, and finish with the quiz to check what you have learned.

Quick facts
Infinitive sobresalir
English to stand out
Verb type Irregular -ir verb
Gerund sobresaliendo
Past participle sobresalido
Auxiliary verb haber

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: sobresaliendo · Past participle: sobresalido

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo sobresalgo
tú sobresales
él/ella/Ud. sobresale
nosotros/as sobresalimos
vosotros/as sobresalís
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresalen

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresalgo, as in “Yo sobresalgo en el equipo.” — “I stand out in the team.” This is one of the tenses where sobresalir does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Preterite

Person Form
yo sobresalí
tú sobresaliste
él/ella/Ud. sobresalió
nosotros/as sobresalimos
vosotros/as sobresalisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresalieron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresalí, as in “Yo sobresalí en el equipo.” — “I stood out in the team.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo sobresalía
tú sobresalías
él/ella/Ud. sobresalía
nosotros/as sobresalíamos
vosotros/as sobresalíais
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresalían

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresalía, as in “Yo sobresalía en el equipo.” — “I used to stand out in the team.”

Future

Person Form
yo sobresaldré
tú sobresaldrás
él/ella/Ud. sobresaldrá
nosotros/as sobresaldremos
vosotros/as sobresaldréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresaldrán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresaldré, as in “Yo sobresaldré en el equipo.” — “I will stand out in the team.” This is one of the tenses where sobresalir does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Conditional

Person Form
yo sobresaldría
tú sobresaldrías
él/ella/Ud. sobresaldría
nosotros/as sobresaldríamos
vosotros/as sobresaldríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresaldrían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresaldría, as in “Yo sobresaldría en el equipo.” — “I would stand out in the team.” This is one of the tenses where sobresalir does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Present Perfect

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

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For sobresalir, the yo form is he sobresalido, as in “Yo he sobresalido en el equipo.” — “I have stood out in the team.”

Pluperfect

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

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For sobresalir, the yo form is había sobresalido, as in “Yo había sobresalido en el equipo.” — “I had stood out in the team.”

Future Perfect

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

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For sobresalir, the yo form is habré sobresalido, as in “Yo habré sobresalido en el equipo.” — “I will have stood out in the team.”

Conditional Perfect

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

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For sobresalir, the yo form is habría sobresalido, as in “Yo habría sobresalido en el equipo.” — “I would have stood out in the team.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo sobresalga
tú sobresalgas
él/ella/Ud. sobresalga
nosotros/as sobresalgamos
vosotros/as sobresalgáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresalgan

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresalga, as in “Espero que yo sobresalga en el equipo.” — “I hope that I stand out in the team.” This is one of the tenses where sobresalir does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo sobresaliera
tú sobresalieras
él/ella/Ud. sobresaliera
nosotros/as sobresaliéramos
vosotros/as sobresalierais
ellos/ellas/Uds. sobresalieran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For sobresalir, the yo form is sobresaliera, as in “Si yo sobresaliera en el equipo, ...” — “If I stood out in the team, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: sobresaliera becomes sobresaliese, 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 sobresal
Ud. sobresalga
nosotros/as sobresalgamos
vosotros/as sobresalid
Uds. sobresalgan

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú sobresalgas
Ud. sobresalga
nosotros/as sobresalgamos
vosotros/as sobresalgáis
Uds. sobresalgan

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is sobresal, as in “¡Sobresal en el equipo” — “Stand out in the team” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no sobresalgas. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with sobresalir. This is one of the tenses where sobresalir does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with sobresalir, 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 sobresalgo en el equipo cada día.” — “I stand out in the team.”
  2. “Él sobresale en el equipo todos los días.” — “He stands out in the team.”
  3. “Yo sobresalí en el equipo ayer.” — “I stood out in the team.”
  4. “Él sobresalió en el equipo ayer.” — “He stood out in the team.”
  5. “Yo sobresalía en el equipo cuando era joven.” — “I used to stand out in the team.”
  6. “Nosotros sobresaldremos en el equipo mañana.” — “We will stand out in the team.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo sobresaldría en el equipo.” — “If I could, i would stand out in the team.”
  8. “Yo he sobresalido en el equipo hoy.” — “I have stood out in the team.”
  9. “Espero que yo sobresalga en el equipo.” — “I hope that I stand out in the team.”
  10. “estoy sobresaliendo en el equipo ahora mismo.” — “I am standing out in the team.”

Common mistakes

Using the unchanged stem

Learners often write sobresalo for the yo form, keeping the infinitive stem unchanged. The correct form is sobresalgo. Because sobresalir changes its stem vowel, the change appears in the stressed syllables of the present: say the correct form out loud a few times — yo sobresalgo en el equipo — until the changed stem feels natural.

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is sobresalí, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — sobresali — 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 sobresalir.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For sobresalir, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: sobresalimos. 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 sobresalido en el equipo. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy sobresalido is not the present perfect of sobresalir — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing sobresalir with equivaler

sobresalir and equivaler 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 sobresalir — stand out — the sentence needs sobresalir; if it needs the meaning of equivaler, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo sobresalga en el equipo. Using the indicative — Espero que yo sobresalgo — is one of the most frequent learner errors with sobresalir. 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 sobresalir in the present?

  • A. sobresales
  • B. sobresale
  • C. sobresalimos
  • D. sobresalgo

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

  • A. sobresalimos
  • B. sobresaliste
  • C. sobresalí
  • D. sobresalió

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

  • A. sobresalías
  • B. sobresalíamos
  • C. sobresalíais
  • D. sobresalía

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

  • A. sobresaldrá
  • B. sobresaldremos
  • C. sobresaldré
  • D. sobresaldrás

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

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

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

  • A. sobresalga
  • B. sobresalgan
  • C. sobresalga
  • D. sobresalgas

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

  • A. sobresaliste
  • B. sobresalió
  • C. sobresalimos
  • D. sobresalí

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

  • A. sobresalíamos
  • B. sobresalías
  • C. sobresalía
  • D. sobresalía

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

  • A. sobresaldré
  • B. sobresaldrás
  • C. sobresaldremos
  • D. sobresaldrá

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

  • A. sobresaldría
  • B. sobresaldríamos
  • C. sobresaldría
  • D. sobresaldrías

Answer key

  1. sobresalgo — The present table gives yo = sobresalgo.
  2. sobresaliste — The preterite table gives tu = sobresaliste.
  3. sobresalía — The imperfect table gives el = sobresalía.
  4. sobresaldremos — The future table gives nosotros = sobresaldremos.
  5. habéis sobresalido — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis sobresalido.
  6. sobresalgan — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = sobresalgan.
  7. sobresalí — The preterite table gives yo = sobresalí.
  8. sobresalías — The imperfect table gives tu = sobresalías.
  9. sobresaldrá — The future table gives el = sobresaldrá.
  10. sobresaldríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = sobresaldríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is sobresalir regular or irregular?

sobresalir is a irregular -ir verb. It is irregular in these tenses: present, future, conditional, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The tables on this page show the correct form for every person, so use them rather than guessing.

What is the past participle of sobresalir?

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

What is the gerund of sobresalir?

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

What is the yo form of sobresalir in the present?

The yo form is sobresalgo — “Yo sobresalgo en el equipo.” means “I stand out in the team.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú sobresales, él sobresale, nosotros sobresalimos, ellos sobresalen.

What is the difference between sobresalir and equivaler?

sobresalir means “to stand out”, while equivaler means “to be equivalent to”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to stand out”, use sobresalir; if it is about the meaning of equivaler, use equivaler instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.

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