The Presente is a Spanish tense that has some uses or meanings that does not have the English Present tense. In this article, you will learn 3 uses of the Spanish Present so that you can use it with confidence.
Habits and routines
The main use of the Present in Spanish is to describe habits or routines. You can use it with or without adverbs of frequency.
Miguel desayuna con su hijo todos los días.
Miguel has breakfast with his son every day.
A veces yo leo artículos en inglés.
I sometimes I read articles in English.
Mis hijos nunca hacen la cama.
My children never make the bed.
Tu hermano nunca se ducha en el gimnasio.
Your brother never has a shower in the gym.
Some adverbs of frequency in Spanish are
Phrases like
Actions happening right now
You can use the Spanish Present tense to describe actions that are currently happening.
¿Qué haces? ¿Por qué estás aquí?
What are you doing? Why are you here?
Me gusta la canción que tocas.
I like the song that you are playing.
Ana habla con su profesor en el aula.
Ana is talking to her teacher in the classroom.
Nuestros hijos bailan en el concierto.
Our children are dancing in the concert.
This can be confusing to some English learners since they use the Present Continuous in these situations. However, in Spanish you can use the Present tense to express an action that is happening at the moment of speaking. It is a very popular use.
Estar + gerund
A phrase you can also use in Spanish to describe an action that is currently happening is
Have a look at the following two sentences. They are synonyms.
La chica come una manzana ahora.
The girl is eating an apple now.
La chica está comiendo una manzana ahora.
The girl is eating an apple now.
Actions happening in the near future
You can use the Present tense in Spanish to describe actions or events that will happen in the near future.
Mañana vuelo a Londres.
I am flying to London tomorrow.
Celebramos mi cumpleaños el sábado.
We are celebrating my birthday on Saturday.
Mis primos vienen el próximo lunes.
My cousins arrive next Monday.
Esta noche ceno con mis hermanos.
Tonight I am having dinner with my brothers.
In English this meaning is expressed with the Present Continuous. However, In Spanish it is not possible to use
Present vs. Present Continuous
As you can see, you can use the Spanish Present tense to describe habits and routines. This meaning is expressed with the Present tense in English.
Paseo al perro todas las tardes.
I walk the dog every afternoon.
You can also use the Spanish Present tense to describe actions that are happening at the moment of speaking and to describe actions that will happen in the near future. Both of them would be translated into English with the Present Continuous.
El chico no juega con la pelota ahora.
The boy is not playing with the ball now.
Te mando los documentos mañana a la mañana.
I am sending you the documents tomorrow morning.
Keep in mind that only when you describe an action that is happening right now, you can use
Exercises
Let’s practice the Present forms and its uses with these exercises.
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