Vestir Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb vestir means to dress, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Vestir means to dress someone or to wear clothes: vestir un traje, vestir a sus hijos. For getting dressed yourself, Spanish uses vestirse: me visto cada mañana. Like every Spanish verb, vestir 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 visto un traje elegante para la boda — "I dress an elegant suit for the wedding". 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: visto, vistes, viste and visten — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: vestimos, vestís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: vistió, vistieron, and the gerund is vistiendo.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: vestir
  • English: to dress
  • Verb type: stem-changing -ir verb (e → i)
  • Ending: -ir
  • Gerund: vistiendo
  • Past participle: vestido
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + vestido)

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Present indicative

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | visto | | tú | vistes | | él/ella/Ud. | viste | | nosotros/as | vestimos | | vosotros/as | vestís | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | visten |

Preterite

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | vestí | | tú | vestiste | | él/ella/Ud. | vistió | | nosotros/as | vestimos | | vosotros/as | vestisteis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vistieron |

Imperfect

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | vestía | | tú | vestías | | él/ella/Ud. | vestía | | nosotros/as | vestíamos | | vosotros/as | vestíais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vestían |

Future

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | vestiré | | tú | vestirás | | él/ella/Ud. | vestirá | | nosotros/as | vestiremos | | vosotros/as | vestiréis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vestirán |

Conditional

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | vestiría | | tú | vestirías | | él/ella/Ud. | vestiría | | nosotros/as | vestiríamos | | vosotros/as | vestiríais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vestirían |

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | vista | | tú | vistas | | él/ella/Ud. | vista | | nosotros/as | vistamos | | vosotros/as | vistáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vistan |

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | yo | vistiera | | tú | vistieras | | él/ella/Ud. | vistiera | | nosotros/as | vistiéramos | | vosotros/as | vistierais | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vistieran |

Imperative (affirmative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | viste | | él/ella/Ud. | vista | | nosotros/as | vistamos | | vosotros/as | vestid | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vistan |

Imperative (negative)

| Person | Form | |---|---|---| | tú | vistas | | él/ella/Ud. | vista | | nosotros/as | vistamos | | vosotros/as | vistáis | | ellos/ellas/Uds. | vistan |

Gerund and past participle

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

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: visto, vistes, viste and visten — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: vestimos, vestís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: vistió, vistieron, and the gerund is vistiendo. For vestir, the present indicative looks like this in a real sentence: Yo visto un traje elegante para la boda — "I dress an elegant suit for the wedding".

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. In this tense the stem changes in the third person: vistió, vistieron. The gerund changes too: vistiendo. For vestir, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, yo vestí a sus hijos cada mañana — "Yesterday, I dressed his children every morning".

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 vestir, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, yo vestía de negro en el funeral — "As a child, I used to dress in black for the funeral".

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 vestir, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, yo vestiré ropa cómoda en casa — "Tomorrow, I will dress comfortable clothes at home".

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 vestir, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Yo vestiría un traje elegante para la boda si pudiera — "I would dress an elegant suit for the wedding 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 vestir, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, yo he vestido a sus hijos cada mañana — "Today, I have dressed his children every morning".

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 vestir, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo ya había vestido de negro en el funeral antes de salir — "I already had dressed in black for the funeral 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 vestir, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, yo habré vestido ropa cómoda en casa — "By tomorrow, I will have dressed comfortable clothes at home".

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 vestir, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Yo habría vestido un traje elegante para la boda con más tiempo — "I would have dressed an elegant suit for the wedding 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: visto, vistes, viste and visten — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: vestimos, vestís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: vistió, vistieron, and the gerund is vistiendo. For vestir, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él vista a sus hijos cada mañana — "I hope he dresses his children every morning".

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 irregular — see the table above. For vestir, the imperfect subjunctive (-ra) looks like this in a real sentence: Si yo vistiera de negro en el funeral, todo cambiaría — "If I dressed in black for the funeral, 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: visto, vistes, viste and visten — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: vestimos, vestís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: vistió, vistieron, and the gerund is vistiendo. For vestir, the imperative (affirmative) looks like this in a real sentence: Viste ropa cómoda en casa. — "Dress comfortable clothes at home.".

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: visto, vistes, viste and visten — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: vestimos, vestís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: vistió, vistieron, and the gerund is vistiendo. For vestir, the imperative (negative) looks like this in a real sentence: No vistas un traje elegante para la boda. — "Do not dress an elegant suit for the wedding.".

Example sentences

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

  1. Yo visto un traje elegante para la boda — "I dress an elegant suit for the wedding"
  2. Mi amigo viste a sus hijos cada mañana — "My friend dresses his children every morning"
  3. Ayer, yo vestí de negro en el funeral — "Yesterday, I dressed in black for the funeral"
  4. Antes, nosotros vestíamos ropa cómoda en casa — "Before, we used to dress comfortable clothes at home"
  5. Mañana, tú vestirás un vestido rojo para la fiesta — "Tomorrow, you will dress a red dress for the party"
  6. Yo vestiría un traje elegante para la boda si tuviera más tiempo — "I would dress an elegant suit for the wedding if I had more time"
  7. Él ha vestido a sus hijos cada mañana — "He has dressed his children every morning"
  8. Espero que él vista de negro en el funeral — "I hope he dresses in black for the funeral"
  9. Yo ya había vestido ropa cómoda en casa antes de salir — "I already had dressed comfortable clothes at home before leaving"
  10. Ellos vestían un vestido rojo para la fiesta cuando eran jóvenes — "They used to dress a red dress for the party when they were young"

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo vesto a sus hijos cada mañana. — Right: Yo visto a sus hijos cada mañana. — vestir is a stem-changing verb (e → i): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is visto, not vesto.
  2. Wrong: Espero que él viste a sus hijos cada mañana — Right: Espero que él vista a sus hijos cada mañana — After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él vista a sus hijos cada mañana — not the indicative Espero que él viste a sus hijos cada mañana.
  3. Wrong: Ayer, yo visto de negro en el funeral — Right: Ayer, yo vestí de negro en el funeral — Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo vestí de negro en el funeral.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo vestí ropa cómoda en casa todos los días — Right: De niño, yo vestía ropa cómoda en casa todos los días — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo vestía ropa cómoda en casa todos los días.
  5. Wrong: Yo visto en un traje elegante para la boda. — Right: Yo visto un traje elegante para la boda. — vestir takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo visto un traje elegante para la boda.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ un traje elegante para la boda — "I dress an elegant suit for the wedding" (present) A. viste B. vestimos C. visto D. vistes

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ______ a sus hijos cada mañana — "He dressed his children every morning" (preterite) A. vestimos B. vistió C. vestí D. vestiste

  3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ de negro en el funeral — "We used to dress in black for the funeral" (imperfect) A. vestía B. vestías C. vestíais D. vestíamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ ropa cómoda en casa — "You will dress comfortable clothes at home" (future) A. vestiré B. vestirá C. vestiremos D. vestirás

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ un vestido rojo para la fiesta — "I would dress a red dress for the party" (conditional) A. vestiríamos B. vestiríais C. vestiría D. vestirías

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ un traje elegante para la boda — "I hope he dresses an elegant suit for the wedding" (present subjunctive) A. vistáis B. vista C. vistas D. vistamos

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ______ a sus hijos cada mañana, todo cambiaría — "If I dressed his children every morning, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. vistierais B. vistiera C. vistieras D. vistiéramos

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ de negro en el funeral — "We have dressed in black for the funeral" (present perfect) A. he vestido B. has vestido C. ha vestido D. hemos vestido

  9. Complete the sentence: No ______ ropa cómoda en casa. — "Do not dress comfortable clothes at home." (negative imperative) A. vista B. vistamos C. vistáis D. vistas

  10. Which is the gerund of vestir, used with estar for the progressive? A. vestí B. vistiendo C. vestido D. visto

Answer key

  1. visto — The present form for yo is visto.
  2. vistió — The preterite form for él/ella/Ud. is vistió.
  3. vestíamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is vestíamos.
  4. vestirás — The future form for tú is vestirás.
  5. vestiría — The conditional form for yo is vestiría.
  6. vista — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is vista.
  7. vistiera — The imperfect subjunctive form for yo is vistiera.
  8. hemos vestido — The present perfect form for nosotros/as is hemos vestido.
  9. vistas — The negative imperative form is vistas.
  10. vistiendo — The gerund of vestir is vistiendo: estoy vistiendo. The participle vestido is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does vestir mean in English?

vestir means to dress. It is used in everyday situations such as Yo visto un traje elegante para la boda — "I dress an elegant suit for the wedding". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is vestir regular?

No. vestir is a stem-changing -ir verb (e → i). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: visto, vistes, viste and visten — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: vestimos, vestís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: vistió, vistieron, and the gerund is vistiendo. 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 vestir?

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

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

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: Ayer, yo vestí a sus hijos cada mañana — "Yesterday, I dressed his children every morning". For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: De niño, yo vestía de negro en el funeral — "As a child, I used to dress in black for the funeral". For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Hoy, yo he vestido a sus hijos cada mañana — "Today, I have dressed his children every morning".

What is the difference between vestir and llevar?

Llevar is the everyday verb for wearing clothes: llevo un traje. Vestir is more about dressing, and often takes a person as its object. Vestir means to dress someone or to wear clothes: vestir un traje, vestir a sus hijos. For getting dressed yourself, Spanish uses vestirse: me visto cada mañana.

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