Tutear Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of tutear — “to address as tú” in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for tutear with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Tutear means to address someone as tú, using the informal form instead of the formal usted. It is a social verb: friends tutean each other, and people agree to tutearse when a relationship becomes close. The verb matters because choosing tú or usted is one of the first social decisions a Spanish learner has to make. Tutear is a regular -ar verb, so the notes below explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To see it in a real sentence: Tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día.

Present tense conjugation table: tutear

Every person of tutear in the present tense. The gerund is tuteando and the past participle is tuteado.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo tuteo
tú tuteas
él/ella/Ud. tutea
nosotros/as tuteamos
vosotros/as tuteáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. tutean

How the present of tutear is formed

The present of tutear is built from the stem tute- plus the present endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.

Person Ending Form
yo -o tuteo
tú -as tuteas
él/ella/Ud. -a tutea
nosotros/as -amos tuteamos
vosotros/as -áis tuteáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -an tutean

For tutear there are no surprises in the present: every form is the stem tute- plus the regular ending, so once you know the endings you know the whole tense.

When to use the present tense with tutear

Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly.

Yo tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día. — I address my friends as tú from the first day.

General facts

Use the present for facts and general truths that do not change.

Él/Ella tutea a mis compañeros de trabajo. — He addresses my work colleagues as tú.

What is happening right now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment.

Ahora, Nosotros/as tuteamos a mi profesor con su permiso. — Right now, We address my teacher as tú, with his permission.

Near-future plans

Use the present for fixed plans in the near future, especially with mañana or la semana que viene.

Mañana, Tú tuteas a los clientes en la tienda. — Tomorrow, You address the customers in the shop as tú.

Instructions and timeless statements

Use the present for instructions, rules and statements that are always true.

Él/Ella tutea a mis amigos desde el primer día. — He addresses my friends as tú from the first day.

The present vs the preterite

The present and the preterite answer different questions: the present says what happens regularly or right now, while the preterite says what happened once and finished. Compare the same idea in both tenses with tutear.

  1. Yo tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día. — I address my friends as tú from the first day. / Ayer, Yo tuteé a mis amigos desde el primer día. — Yesterday, I addressed my friends as tú from the first day.
  2. Yo tuteo a mis compañeros de trabajo. — I address my work colleagues as tú. / Ayer, Yo tuteé a mis compañeros de trabajo. — Yesterday, I addressed my work colleagues as tú.
  3. Yo tuteo a mi profesor con su permiso. — I address my teacher as tú, with his permission. / Ayer, Yo tuteé a mi profesor con su permiso. — Yesterday, I addressed my teacher as tú, with his permission.

Example sentences in the present tense

Seven sentences with tutear in the present tense only, covering all six persons.

  1. Yo tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día. — I address my friends as tú from the first day.
  2. Tú tuteas a mis compañeros de trabajo. — You address my work colleagues as tú.
  3. Él/Ella tutea a mi profesor con su permiso. — He addresses my teacher as tú, with his permission.
  4. Nosotros/as tuteamos a los clientes en la tienda. — We address the customers in the shop as tú.
  5. Vosotros/as tuteáis a mis amigos desde el primer día. — You address my friends as tú from the first day.
  6. Ellos/as tutean a mis compañeros de trabajo. — They address my work colleagues as tú.
  7. Yo tuteo a mi profesor con su permiso. — I address my teacher as tú, with his permission.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo tutea a mis amigos desde el primer día. — Right: Yo tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día. — The person matters: tutea is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is tuteo.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo tuteo a mis compañeros de trabajo. — Right: Ayer, yo tuteé a mis compañeros de trabajo. — With ayer, use the preterite (tuteé), not the present. The present is for habits and for right now.
  3. Wrong: Using tutear where tratar de usted belongs. — Right: Tutear means to address as tú, while tratar de usted means to address someone formally as usted. — Check the meaning before you choose: tutear fits Tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día.
  4. Wrong: Espero que él tutea a mis compañeros de trabajo. — Right: Espero que él tutee a mis compañeros de trabajo. — After espero que, Spanish needs the subjunctive: tutee, not the present indicative tutea.

Quiz: the present tense of tutear

Eight questions on the present tense of tutear. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a mis amigos desde el primer día. (present tense, yo) A. tuteo B. tuteas C. tutea D. tuteamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ a mis compañeros de trabajo. (present tense, tú) A. tuteo B. tutea C. tuteamos D. tuteas

  3. Complete the sentence: Él/Ella ___ a mi profesor con su permiso. (present tense, él/ella/Ud.) A. tuteas B. tuteamos C. tutea D. tuteo

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ a los clientes en la tienda. (present tense, nosotros/as) A. tutea B. tuteamos C. tuteo D. tuteas

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros/as ___ a mis amigos desde el primer día. (present tense, vosotros/as) A. tuteáis B. tuteo C. tuteas D. tutea

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ a mis compañeros de trabajo. (present tense, ellos/ellas/Uds.) A. tuteo B. tuteas C. tutea D. tutean

  7. Which is the gerund of tutear? A. tuteo B. tuteé C. tuteando D. tuteado

  8. Which is the past participle of tutear, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. tuteé B. tuteado C. tuteando D. tuteo

Answer key

  1. tuteo — The yo present form of tutear is tuteo.
  2. tuteas — The tú present form of tutear is tuteas.
  3. tutea — The él/ella/Ud. present form of tutear is tutea.
  4. tuteamos — The nosotros/as present form of tutear is tuteamos.
  5. tuteáis — The vosotros/as present form of tutear is tuteáis.
  6. tutean — The ellos/ellas/Uds. present form of tutear is tutean.
  7. tuteando — The gerund of tutear is tuteando: estoy tuteando.
  8. tuteado — The past participle of tutear is tuteado: he tuteado, has tuteado, ha tuteado.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present tense of tutear formed?

Take the infinitive tutear, drop the -ar ending to get the stem tute-, then add the present endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. The full table is above, with every person. No, the present of tutear is fully regular: the stem tute- plus the standard -ar endings gives every form.

When do I use the present tense of tutear?

Use the present for habits, facts and what is happening right now. For example: Tuteo a mis amigos desde el primer día.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of tutear?

The present (tuteo) and the preterite (tuteé) answer different questions: the present is for habits and for right now, while the preterite is for one finished action. Compare them in the contrast section above.

How do I practise the present of tutear?

Drill the six forms in the table until you can say them without looking, then use the full conjugation of tutear to see how the present fits with the other tenses, and the tutear examples and quiz page for more sentences. The Spanish Verb Quiz tests the forms under pressure.

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