Sonar Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb sonar means to sound, to ring, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Sonar means to sound or to ring: suena el teléfono, suena la campana. It also means to sound like something: suena bien means it sounds good. Do not confuse it with soñar, to dream — one vowel changes the meaning completely. Like every Spanish verb, sonar 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 Yo sueno el teléfono en la cocina — "I ring the telephone in the kitchen". 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.

The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: sueno, suenas, suena and suenan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: sonamos, sonáis.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: sonar
  • English: to sound, to ring
  • Verb type: stem-changing -ar verb (o → ue)
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: sonando
  • Past participle: sonado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + sonado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for sonar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for sonar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem.

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | sueno | | tú | suenas | | él/ella/Ud. | suena | | nosotros/as | sonamos | | vosotros/as | sonáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | suenan |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | soné | | tú | sonaste | | él/ella/Ud. | sonó | | nosotros/as | sonamos | | vosotros/as | sonasteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonaron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | sonaba | | tú | sonabas | | él/ella/Ud. | sonaba | | nosotros/as | sonábamos | | vosotros/as | sonabais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonaban |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | sonaré | | tú | sonarás | | él/ella/Ud. | sonará | | nosotros/as | sonaremos | | vosotros/as | sonaréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonarán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | sonaría | | tú | sonarías | | él/ella/Ud. | sonaría | | nosotros/as | sonaríamos | | vosotros/as | sonaríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonarían |

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | suene | | tú | suenes | | él/ella/Ud. | suene | | nosotros/as | sonemos | | vosotros/as | sonéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | suenen |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | sonara | | tú | sonaras | | él/ella/Ud. | sonara | | nosotros/as | sonáramos | | vosotros/as | sonarais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonaran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | suena | | él/ella/Ud. | suene | | nosotros/as | sonemos | | vosotros/as | sonad | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | suenen |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | suenes | | él/ella/Ud. | suene | | nosotros/as | sonemos | | vosotros/as | sonéis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | suenen |

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund sonando with estar for the progressive: está sonando
Past participle sonado with haber for the perfect tenses: he sonado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: sueno, suenas, suena and suenan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: sonamos, sonáis. For sonar, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo sueno el teléfono en la cocina — "I ring the telephone in the kitchen".

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 sonar, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo soné la campana de la iglesia — "Yesterday, I rang the church bell".

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 sonar, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo sonaba la alarma a las siete — "As a child, I used to ring the alarm at seven".

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 sonar, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo sonaré la música en la calle — "Tomorrow, I will ring the music in the street".

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 sonar, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo sonaría el teléfono en la cocina si pudiera — "I would ring the telephone in the kitchen if I could".

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 sonar, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he sonado la campana de la iglesia — "Today, I have rung the church bell".

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 sonar, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había sonado la alarma a las siete antes de salir — "I already had rung the alarm at seven before leaving".

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 sonar, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré sonado la música en la calle — "By tomorrow, I will have rung the music in the street".

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 sonar, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría sonado el teléfono en la cocina con más tiempo — "I would have rung the telephone in the kitchen with more time".

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: sueno, suenas, suena and suenan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: sonamos, sonáis. For sonar, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él suene la campana de la iglesia — "I hope he rings the church bell".

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past. The -ra forms are 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 sonar, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo sonara la alarma a las siete, todo cambiaría — "If I rang the alarm at seven, everything would change".

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: sueno, suenas, suena and suenan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: sonamos, sonáis. For sonar, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Suena la música en la calle. — "Ring the music in the street.".

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: sueno, suenas, suena and suenan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: sonamos, sonáis. For sonar, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No suenes el teléfono en la cocina. — "Do not ring the telephone in the kitchen.".

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with sonar, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Yo sueno el teléfono en la cocina — "I ring the telephone in the kitchen"
  2. Mi amigo suena la campana de la iglesia — "My friend rings the church bell"
  3. Ayer, yo soné la alarma a las siete — "Yesterday, I rang the alarm at seven"
  4. Antes, nosotros sonábamos la música en la calle — "Before, we used to ring the music in the street"
  5. Mañana, tú sonarás el timbre de la puerta — "Tomorrow, you will ring the doorbell"
  6. Yo sonaría el teléfono en la cocina si tuviera más tiempo — "I would ring the telephone in the kitchen if I had more time"
  7. Él ha sonado la campana de la iglesia — "He has rung the church bell"
  8. Espero que él suene la alarma a las siete — "I hope he rings the alarm at seven"
  9. Yo ya había sonado la música en la calle antes de salir — "I already had rung the music in the street before leaving"
  10. Ellos sonaban el timbre de la puerta cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to ring the doorbell when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo sono la campana de la iglesia. — Right: Yo sueno la campana de la iglesia. — sonar is a stem-changing verb (o → ue): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is sueno, not sono.
  2. Wrong: Espero que él suena la campana de la iglesia — Right: Espero que él suene la campana de la iglesia — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él suene la campana de la iglesia — not the indicative Espero que él suena la campana de la iglesia.
  3. Wrong: Ayer, yo sueno la alarma a las siete — Right: Ayer, yo soné la alarma a las siete — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo soné la alarma a las siete.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo soné la música en la calle todos los días — Right: De niño, yo sonaba la música en la calle todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo sonaba la música en la calle todos los días.
  5. Wrong: Yo sueno en el teléfono en la cocina. — Right: Yo sueno el teléfono en la cocina. — sonar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo sueno el teléfono en la cocina.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el teléfono en la cocina — "I ring the telephone in the kitchen" (present) A. sonamos B. sueno C. suenas D. suena

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ la campana de la iglesia — "He rang the church bell" (preterite) A. soné B. sonaste C. sonamos D. sonó

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ la alarma a las siete — "We used to ring the alarm at seven" (imperfect) A. sonábamos B. sonaba C. sonabas D. sonabais

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ la música en la calle — "You will ring the music in the street" (future) A. sonarás B. sonaré C. sonará D. sonaremos

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el timbre de la puerta — "I would ring the doorbell" (conditional) A. sonaríais B. sonaría C. sonarías D. sonaríamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ el teléfono en la cocina — "I hope he rings the telephone in the kitchen" (present subjunctive) A. sonéis B. suene C. suenes D. sonemos

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ la campana de la iglesia, todo cambiaría — "If I rang the church bell, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. sonaras B. sonáramos C. sonarais D. sonara

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ la alarma a las siete — "We have rung the alarm at seven" (present perfect) A. ha sonado B. hemos sonado C. he sonado D. has sonado

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ la música en la calle. — "Do not ring the music in the street." (negative imperative) A. suenes B. suene C. sonemos D. sonéis

  10. Which is the gerund of sonar, used with estar for the progressive? A. sonado B. sueno C. soné D. sonando

Answer key

  1. sueno — The present form for yo is sueno.
  2. sonó — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is sonó.
  3. sonábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is sonábamos.
  4. sonarás — The future form for tú is sonarás.
  5. sonaría — The conditional form for yo is sonaría.
  6. suene — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is suene.
  7. sonara — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is sonara.
  8. hemos sonado — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos sonado.
  9. suenes — The negative imperative form is suenes.
  10. sonando — The gerund of sonar is sonando: estoy sonando. The participle sonado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does sonar mean in English?

sonar means to sound, to ring. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo sueno el teléfono en la cocina — "I ring the telephone in the kitchen". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is sonar regular?

No. sonar is a stem-changing -ar verb (o → ue). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: sueno, suenas, suena and suenan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: sonamos, sonáis. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem, which is the part learners most often get right by accident.

What is the gerund and the past participle of sonar?

The gerund is sonando and the past participle is sonado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.

How do I say "I ring" in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo soné la campana de la iglesia — "Yesterday, I rang the church bell". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo sonaba la alarma a las siete — "As a child, I used to ring the alarm at seven". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he sonado la campana de la iglesia — "Today, I have rung the church bell".

What is the difference between sonar and soñar?

Soñar, with an o in the first syllable after the s, means to dream. Sonar, with no o in the stem, means to sound or to ring. The two verbs are a classic pair of confusions. Sonar means to sound or to ring: suena el teléfono, suena la campana. It also means to sound like something: suena bien means it sounds good. Do not confuse it with soñar, to dream — one vowel changes the meaning completely.

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