{"id":143479,"date":"2024-03-05T21:59:03","date_gmt":"2024-03-06T02:59:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/present-progressive-spanish\/"},"modified":"2025-06-02T05:54:11","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T09:54:11","slug":"present-progressive-spanish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/spanish\/present-progressive-spanish\/","title":{"rendered":"Using the Present Progressive in Spanish"},"content":{"rendered":"

We use the Spanish present progressive to talk about what we\u2019re doing right now.You form it by conjugating estar<\/em> (to be)<\/a> + the present progressive form of the verb.\u00a0For example, if you wanted to say, \u201cI\u2019m reading\u201d in Spanish, that would be \u201cEstoy leyendo.\u201d <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

But the biggest problem for English-speaking Spanish learners with the present progressive is actually the tendency to overuse\u00a0<\/em>it.\u00a0In this post, we\u2019ll go over what the present progressive in Spanish is, how to conjugate it and when and when\u00a0not<\/em> to use it.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Steps to Form the Spanish Present Progressive<\/h2>\n

The Spanish present progressive is formed by combining a conjugated version of\u00a0estar <\/em>(to be) with a present progressive gerund of the main verb.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s go through how this works, step by step.<\/p>\n

1. Conjugate\u00a0estar\u00a0<\/em>in the present tense<\/h3>\n

To form the present tense<\/a>, you\u2019re first going to need the present tense of estar<\/em> (to be).<\/p>\n

How you conjugate it depends on who is performing the action:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Pronoun<\/th>Estar Conjugation<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Yo<\/i><\/td>Estoy<\/em><\/td>I am<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
T\u00fa<\/i><\/td>Est\u00e1s<\/em><\/td>You are<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00c9l\/Ella\/Usted<\/i><\/td>Est\u00e1<\/em><\/td>He is\/she is\/you (formal) are<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Nosotros<\/i><\/td>Estamos<\/em><\/td>We are<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Vosotros<\/i><\/td>Est\u00e1is<\/em><\/td>You are (informal plural, Spain only)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ellos\/Ellas\/Ustedes<\/i><\/td>Est\u00e1n<\/em><\/td>They are, you (plural) are<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

2.\u00a0Add the gerund form of the second verb<\/h3>\n

Next, you\u2019ll need the gerund form<\/a> of the second verb, which is like the English verbs with the -ing ending tacked on.<\/p>\n

Unlike with the auxiliary verb<\/a>\u00a0estar,\u00a0<\/em>this Spanish verb form is not conjugated according to who is performing an action.<\/p>\n

Instead, there are two different present progressive endings for regular verbs.<\/p>\n

For verbs ending in -ar:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Take off the -ar<\/em> ending and add -ando<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

For verbs ending in -er<\/em> or -ir:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Take off the -er<\/em> or -ir<\/em> ending and add -iendo<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

Examples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t
Verb<\/th>Gerund<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Bailar<\/em><\/td>Bailando<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Dancing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Comer<\/em><\/td>Comiendo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Eating<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Escribir<\/em><\/td>Escribiendo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Writing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

3. Put the conjugated estar\u00a0<\/em>and second verb together<\/h3>\n

Put together the elements from steps one and two, and you have a present progressive phrase!<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

Ellos est\u00e1n bailando. <\/span><\/em> \u2014 They are dancing.<\/p>\n

Estoy comiendo. <\/span><\/em> \u2014 I am eating.<\/p>\n

Estamos escribiendo. <\/span><\/em> \u2014 We are writing.<\/p>\n

As with the regular present tense, you don\u2019t necessarily need to use pronouns (yo<\/em>, t\u00fa<\/em>, etc.) for these sentences if it\u2019s clear who you\u2019re talking about.<\/p>\n

Irregulars in the Spanish Present Progressive Tense<\/h2>\n

As usual with Spanish grammar rules, there are exceptions.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, in the case of gerunds, the irregular verbs aren\u2019t very different from the regular verbs.<\/p>\n

Verbs with gerunds ending in -yendo<\/em><\/h3>\n

We\u2019ve already seen one irregular verb in the introduction to this post: leyendo<\/em> (reading), which is from the verb\u00a0leer<\/em> (to read).<\/p>\n

This -yendo<\/em> ending is used when\u00a0an -er<\/em> or -ir<\/em> verb\u2019s stem ends in a vowel.<\/strong>\u00a0Here are some other common examples of this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Verb<\/th>Gerund<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Creer\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Creyendo<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Believing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Atraer\u00a0<\/em><\/td> Atrayendo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Attracting<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
O\u00edr\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Oyendo<\/strong> <\/em><\/td>Hearing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Huir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Huyendo<\/strong> <\/em><\/td>Escaping<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Destruir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Destruyendo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Destroying<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

The gerund for the verb\u00a0ir<\/em> (to go) is simply\u00a0yendo.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Stem-changing verbs<\/h3>\n

The stems of these \u201cstem-changing verbs\u201d undergo different spelling changes in the present progressive\u2014the vowel e<\/em> becomes i<\/em>, and the vowel\u00a0o<\/em>\u00a0becomes u<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

These forms are very common and worth memorizing. And you\u2019ll notice that these stems undergo the same change in the preterite<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here are some of the most common examples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Stem-changing Verb<\/th>Gerund<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Dormir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Du<\/strong>rmiendo<\/em><\/td>Sleeping<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pedir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Pi<\/strong>diendo<\/em><\/td>Asking for<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Decir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Di<\/strong>ciendo<\/em><\/td>Saying<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sentir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Si<\/strong>ntiendo<\/em><\/td>Feeling<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mentir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Mi<\/strong>ntiendo<\/em><\/td>Lying<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Morir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Mu<\/strong>riendo<\/em><\/td>Dying<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Venir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Vi<\/strong>niendo<\/em><\/td>Coming<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Seguir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Si<\/strong>guiendo<\/em><\/td>Following<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

The -er<\/em> verb\u00a0poder<\/em> also follows this pattern and becomes\u00a0pu<\/strong>diendo<\/em> (being able to).<\/p>\n

Verb stems ending in \u00f1\u00a0<\/em>or ll<\/em><\/h3>\n

If the verb stem ends in \u00f1<\/em>\u00a0or ll,<\/em> then -er<\/em> and -ir<\/em> verbs get the ending -endo<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

(The i<\/em> in the usual\u00a0-iendo<\/em> ending has disappeared because its sound is already \u201ccontained\u201d in the consonant \u00f1<\/em>\u00a0or ll<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t
Infinitive<\/th>Gerund<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Gru\u00f1ir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Gru\u00f1endo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Growling<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bullir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Bullendo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Boiling<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Te\u00f1ir\u00a0<\/em><\/td>Ti\u00f1endo<\/strong><\/em><\/td>Dyeing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Using the Spanish Present Progressive<\/h2>\n

With Pronouns<\/h3>\n

There are two ways to use pronouns with the present progressive in Spanish.<\/p>\n

First, pronouns can go before the verb estar<\/em> or at the end of the gerund.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

La<\/strong> estoy escribiendo.<\/em> \u2014 I’m writing it.<\/p>\n

Lo<\/strong> est\u00e1 cocinando. <\/em>\u2014 She is cooking it.<\/p>\n

The second way is to attach the pronoun at the end of the gerund. But doing this, you need to add an accent mark.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

Estoy escribi\u00e9<\/strong>ndola.<\/strong><\/em> \u2014 I’m writing it.<\/p>\n

Est\u00e1 cocin\u00e1<\/strong>ndolo.<\/strong> <\/em>\u2014 She is cooking it.<\/p>\n

Negating the Present Progressive\u00a0<\/h3>\n

It’s super easy to negate the present progressive tense. Just put\u00a0“no” before the conjugated form of “estar.”<\/em><\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

Yo estoy hablando.<\/em> \u2192 No<\/strong> estoy hablando.\u00a0<\/em>(I’m not talking.)<\/p>\n

T\u00fa est\u00e1s comiendo.<\/em> \u2192 No<\/strong> est\u00e1s comiendo.\u00a0<\/em>(You’re not eating.)<\/p>\n

Using the Present Progressive in a Question<\/h3>\n

Asking questions with the present progressive tense is very straightforward.<\/p>\n

The structure doesn’t change at all if you use intonation to ask the question. Or, you can place the subject pronoun before or after estar.<\/em><\/p>\n

Let’s look at some examples:<\/p>\n

\u00bfEst\u00e1s comiendo?<\/em> \u2014 Are you eating?<\/p>\n

\u00bfEst\u00e1 ella leyendo un libro?<\/em> \u2014 Is she reading a book?<\/p>\n

\u00bfNosotros estamos llegando a la fiesta?<\/em> \u2014 Are we arriving at the party?<\/p>\n

When to Use the Present Progressive in Spanish<\/h2>\n

The Spanish present progressive is used to talk about actions that are going on\u00a0right now<\/em>.<\/strong> This means the action is taking place as you\u2019re speaking.<\/p>\n

Take a look at these examples:<\/p>\n

\u00a1Mira! \u00a1El beb\u00e9<\/span> est\u00e1 caminando<\/strong>! <\/em> \u2014 Look! The baby is walking!<\/p>\n

Mois\u00e9s <\/span>est\u00e1 trabajando<\/strong> en el jard\u00edn y no puede hablar contigo. <\/span><\/em> \u2014 Moses is working in the garden (i.e., right now) and can\u2019t talk to you.<\/p>\n

No quiero salir\u00a0porque <\/span>est\u00e1 lloviendo<\/strong>. <\/em> \u2014 I don\u2019t want to go out because it\u2019s raining (i.e., the rain is falling now<\/em>, and I can see it if I look outside).<\/p>\n

When Not<\/em> to Use the Present Progressive<\/strong><\/p>\n

The trickiest thing about learning the Spanish present progressive as an English speaker is that you\u2019ll want to use it too much\u2014even when it\u2019s incorrect.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Here are a few situations where you shouldn\u2019t use the present progressive:<\/p>\n