Sonreír Conjugation in Spanish
sonreír means "to smile" in English, and it is one of the Spanish verbs you will use again and again in everyday conversation. It is used for talking about smiling — at friends, at babies, at good news and in photographs, which makes it a practical verb to learn early and to use confidently. This page gives you the complete conjugation of sonreír in every tense and mood — present, preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, the four perfect tenses, both subjunctive tenses and the imperative — with all six persons, plus the gerund and the past participle. Every form below comes from VerbFlow's verified conjugation tables, so you can trust the accents and the irregular forms. Sonreír is a stem-changing (e → i) -ir verb verb, and the notes under each tense explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To hear it in a real sentence: Yo sonrío a los niños siempre. — "I always smile at children.". Work through the tables, read the notes, then test yourself with the quiz at the end of the page.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: sonreír
- English: to smile
- Verb type: Stem-changing (e → i) -ir verb
- Gerund: sonriendo
- Past participle: sonreído
- Auxiliary verb: haber (all compound tenses use haber + sonreído)
- Stem change: e → i in the present, the present subjunctive and related forms (see the notes below).
Full conjugation table
Every tense of sonreír with all six persons. The gerund is sonriendo and the past participle is sonreído.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonrío |
| tú | sonríes |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonríe |
| nosotros/as | sonreímos |
| vosotros/as | sonreís |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonríen |
Preterite (past)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonreí |
| tú | sonreíste |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonrió |
| nosotros/as | sonreímos |
| vosotros/as | sonreísteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonrieron |
Imperfect (past)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonreía |
| tú | sonreías |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonreía |
| nosotros/as | sonreíamos |
| vosotros/as | sonreíais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonreían |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonreiré |
| tú | sonreirás |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonreirá |
| nosotros/as | sonreiremos |
| vosotros/as | sonreiréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonreirán |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonreiría |
| tú | sonreirías |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonreiría |
| nosotros/as | sonreiríamos |
| vosotros/as | sonreiríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonreirían |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he sonreído |
| tú | has sonreído |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha sonreído |
| nosotros/as | hemos sonreído |
| vosotros/as | habéis sonreído |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han sonreído |
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había sonreído |
| tú | habías sonreído |
| él/ella/Ud. | había sonreído |
| nosotros/as | habíamos sonreído |
| vosotros/as | habíais sonreído |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían sonreído |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré sonreído |
| tú | habrás sonreído |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá sonreído |
| nosotros/as | habremos sonreído |
| vosotros/as | habréis sonreído |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán sonreído |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría sonreído |
| tú | habrías sonreído |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría sonreído |
| nosotros/as | habríamos sonreído |
| vosotros/as | habríais sonreído |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían sonreído |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonría |
| tú | sonrías |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonría |
| nosotros/as | sonriamos |
| vosotros/as | sonriáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonrían |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | sonriera |
| tú | sonrieras |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonriera |
| nosotros/as | sonriéramos |
| vosotros/as | sonrierais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonrieran |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | sonríe |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonría |
| nosotros/as | sonriamos |
| vosotros/as | sonreíd |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonrían |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | sonrías |
| él/ella/Ud. | sonría |
| nosotros/as | sonriamos |
| vosotros/as | sonriáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | sonrían |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Gerund | sonriendo |
| Past participle | sonreído |
How to use each tense
Each tense below explains when to use it with sonreír, with one example sentence. The example forms are taken from the tables above.
Present indicative
The present tense talks about what happens now, habits, routines and general truths. It is the first tense every learner needs, because it covers daily life: what you do, what you like, where you live. For most verbs the present is also the base for the present subjunctive, so learning it well pays off twice.
sonreír is irregular in this tense, so memorise the forms in the table above instead of applying the regular endings.
Example: Yo sonrío a los niños.
Preterite (past)
The preterite talks about finished actions in the past — things that started and ended at a specific moment. Use it for events, for what happened yesterday, last year, or at a particular time. It answers the question "what happened?" and it is the tense of stories told as a sequence of events.
sonreír is irregular in this tense, so memorise the forms in the table above instead of applying the regular endings.
Example: Ayer yo sonreí a los niños.
Imperfect (past)
The imperfect talks about the past as background: habits, repeated actions, descriptions, and things that were in progress when something else happened. Use it for "used to", for setting a scene, and for age, time and weather in the past. It answers "what was going on?" rather than "what happened?".
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: En aquella época, yo sonreía a los niños.
Future
The future tense talks about what will happen: plans, predictions and promises. In everyday speech Spanish speakers often use "ir a + infinitive" instead, but the future tense is essential for formal writing, for promises, and for guessing about the present ("¿Dónde estará?").
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Mañana yo sonreiré a los niños.
Conditional
The conditional talks about what would happen: hypothetical situations, polite requests, and advice. It pairs with the imperfect subjunctive in "if" sentences ("Si pudiera, lo haría"). It is also the polite way to ask for things and to soften opinions.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo sonreiría a los niños si pudiera.
Present perfect
The present perfect (haber + past participle) talks about the recent past and about experience: what you have done, what has just happened, what you have never tried. It connects the past to the present moment, so it often appears with "hoy", "esta semana", "ya" and "todavía no".
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo ya he sonreído a los niños.
Pluperfect
The pluperfect (había + past participle) talks about the past before the past: what had already happened when something else happened. Use it to order two past events — the pluperfect one comes first in time. It appears constantly in stories and explanations.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo ya había sonreído a los niños antes.
Future perfect
The future perfect (habré + past participle) talks about something that will already be finished by a future moment: "Para mañana ya habré terminado". It is also used to guess about the past: "¿Dónde habrá ido?". It is less common in speech but regular in writing.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Para mañana yo ya habré sonreído a los niños.
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect (habría + past participle) talks about what would have happened: the past of the conditional. It appears in "if" sentences about a past that did not happen ("Si hubiera sabido, habría venido") and in polite regrets and reproaches.
This tense is regular for this verb — the endings follow the standard pattern for its verb class.
Example: Yo habría sonreído a los niños si hubiera podido.
Present subjunctive
The present subjunctive is the mood of wishes, doubts, emotions and influence: what you want, hope, doubt or demand. It appears after "quiero que", "espero que", "es posible que", "ojalá" and after verbs of emotion and doubt. It never stands alone — a trigger in the main clause calls for it.
sonreír is irregular in this tense, so memorise the forms in the table above instead of applying the regular endings.
Example: Espero que él sonría a los niños.
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)
The imperfect subjunctive is the past of the subjunctive: it follows past-tense triggers ("Quería que vinieras") and it is the tense of "if" clauses about unlikely or impossible situations ("Si tuviera dinero, viajaría"). The -ra forms shown here are the standard ones; -se forms exist too but -ra is far more common in speech.
sonreír is irregular in this tense, so memorise the forms in the table above instead of applying the regular endings.
Example: Si él sonriera a los niños, sería perfecto.
Imperative (affirmative)
Affirmative commands tell someone to do something: "¡Ven aquí!", "¡Siéntate!". The tú and vosotros forms are the ones you will use most, and they are also the ones that break the regular pattern most often — the tú affirmative command comes from the él/ella present form, not from the infinitive.
sonreír is irregular in this tense, so memorise the forms in the table above instead of applying the regular endings.
Example: ¡Sonríe a los niños!
Imperative (negative)
Negative commands tell someone not to do something: "¡No hables!", "¡No te vayas!". Unlike affirmative commands, negative commands always use the subjunctive forms, for every person. If you know the present subjunctive, you already know the negative imperative.
sonreír is irregular in this tense, so memorise the forms in the table above instead of applying the regular endings.
Example: No sonrías a los niños.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with sonreír, covering different tenses and persons. Read the Spanish first, then check the English.
- Yo sonrío a los niños siempre. — "I always smile at children."
- ¿Tú sonríes a los niños en el parque? — "Do you smile at children in the park?"
- Ayer sonreí a los niños en la fiesta. — "Yesterday I smiled at the children at the party."
- Ella sonreía a los niños cada mañana. — "She used to smile at children every morning."
- Mañana sonreiré a los niños en la escuela. — "Tomorrow I will smile at the children at school."
- Yo sonreiría a los niños si vinieran. — "I would smile at the children if they came."
- Ya he sonreído a los niños hoy. — "I have already smiled at the children today."
- Espero que sonría a los niños. — "I hope he smiles at the children."
Common mistakes
The errors learners actually make with sonreír — and how to fix them.
- Wrong: *Yo sonrío a los niños — learners often write sonrio without the accent. → Right: Yo sonrío a los niños.. The present yo form is sonrío, with an accent on the i. The same accent appears in sonríes, sonríe and sonríen.
- Wrong: *Ellos sonríen a los niños — learners sometimes write sonreien without the stem change. → Right: Ellos sonríen a los niños.. Sonreír is stem-changing (e → i): sonrío, sonríes, sonríe, sonríen. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the e: sonreímos, sonreís.
- Wrong: *Él sonrió a los niños — learners often write sonrio without the accent. → Right: Él sonrió a los niños.. The preterite third person is sonrió, with an accent. The preterite also changes the stem: sonreí, sonreíste, sonrió, sonreímos, sonreísteis, sonrieron.
- Wrong: *El gerundio es sonreiendo — the gerund changes too. → Right: Está sonriendo a los niños.. The gerund is sonriendo, with the e-to-i change: sonriendo, not sonreiendo. The same change appears in the preterite third person.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on sonreír. Answers are at the end, with a short explanation for each.
What is the yo form of sonreír in the present indicative?
- a) sonrío
- b) sonríe
- c) sonríes
- d) sonreímos
What is the él/ella/Ud. form of sonreír in the preterite (past)?
- a) sonrió
- b) sonreí
- c) sonreímos
- d) sonreíste
What is the nosotros/as form of sonreír in the imperfect (past)?
- a) sonreías
- b) sonreíamos
- c) sonreía
- d) sonreía
What is the tú form of sonreír in the future?
- a) sonreiré
- b) sonreirá
- c) sonreirás
- d) sonreiremos
What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of sonreír in the conditional?
- a) sonreirías
- b) sonreiría
- c) sonreirían
- d) sonreiría
What is the yo form of sonreír in the present subjunctive?
- a) sonría
- b) sonrías
- c) sonría
- d) sonriamos
What is the gerund of sonreír?
- a) sonreído
- b) sonreír
- c) sonríe
- d) sonriendo
What is the past participle of sonreír?
- a) sonreído
- b) sonrío
- c) sonriendo
- d) he sonreído
What does sonreír mean in English?
- a) to smile
- b) to improve, to get better
- c) to love, to delight in
- d) to hear
The form sonreí belongs to which tense?
- a) Future
- b) Present
- c) Preterite
- d) Imperfect
Answer key
- sonrío — The yo form in the present indicative is sonrío — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- sonrió — The él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite (past) is sonrió — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- sonreíamos — The nosotros/as form in the imperfect (past) is sonreíamos — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- sonreirás — The tú form in the future is sonreirás — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- sonreirían — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the conditional is sonreirían — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- sonría — The yo form in the present subjunctive is sonría — the other options are the same tense but different persons.
- sonriendo — The gerund is sonriendo — it is the form used with estar for the progressive (estoy sonriendo). The past participle is sonreído.
- sonreído — The past participle is sonreído — it is the form used after haber in the perfect tenses (he sonreído).
- to smile — sonreír means "to smile".
- Preterite — sonreí is the yo form of the preterite of sonreír — a finished past action. The imperfect yo form is sonreía.
Frequently asked questions
Is sonreír regular?
No. Sonreír is a stem-changing verb (e → i): sonrío, sonríes, sonríe, sonreímos, sonreís, sonríen. It also changes in the preterite third person (sonrió, sonrieron), the gerund (sonriendo) and the subjunctive (sonría, sonrías).
What is the difference between sonreír and reír?
Sonreír means to smile, with the mouth closed or slightly open and no sound. Reír means to laugh, out loud. You smile (sonríes) at a photo; you laugh (ríes) at a joke. Sonreír is the quieter of the two.
What is the past participle of sonreír?
Sonreído — spelled with an accent on the i: he sonreído, has sonreído, ha sonreído. It is used in the perfect tenses, for example: Nunca he sonreído tanto.
How do you say "to smile at someone" in Spanish?
Sonreír a alguien — for example: Le sonrío a los niños. The person takes the preposition a, and the indirect object pronoun le usually comes first.
Related pages
- Sonreír in the preterite tense — the preterite tense of sonreír in depth, with its own examples and quiz.
- Sonreír examples and quiz — more everyday sentences with sonreír and a second quiz.
- Spanish verbs — the Spanish hub: every verb, every tense guide and every tool in one place.
- Complete list of Spanish irregular verbs — where sonreír sits among the irregular verbs, grouped by pattern.
- Reír conjugation — another verb in the same family as sonreír.
- Llorar conjugation — another verb in the same family as sonreír.
- Spanish Verb Conjugator — practise sonreír with this tool.
- Stem Change Finder — practise sonreír with this tool.
- Present tense guide — how the present tense works for regular and irregular verbs.