maquillar — Spanish conjugation
to make up
Indicative
Present (Presente) Regular
The present tense is the most versatile tense in Spanish. It covers actions happening right now, habitual actions, and even near-future plans. One form does the work of three English constructions.
Ella habla inglés — She speaks / is speaking English
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | maquillo | I make up |
| tú | maquillas | you make up |
| vos | maquillás | you make up |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquilla | he/she/it makes up |
| nosotros | maquillamos | we make up |
| vosotros | maquilláis | you (pl.) make up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillan | they make up |
Preterite (Pretérito indefinido) Regular
Used for completed past actions with a defined endpoint — a single event, a series of events, or an action that interrupted another. Common with time expressions like ayer, el lunes, una vez.
Ella habló de ti ayer — She spoke about you yesterday
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | maquillé | I made up |
| tú | maquillaste | you made up |
| vos | maquillaste | you made up |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquilló | he/she/it made up |
| nosotros | maquillamos | we made up |
| vosotros | maquillasteis | you (pl.) made up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillaron | they made up |
Imperfect (Pretérito imperfecto) Regular
Describes ongoing or habitual past states — what things were like, background context, what used to happen. Contrasts with the preterite which marks completed events.
Cuando era niño vivía en Valencia — When I was a child I lived in Valencia
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | maquillaba |
| tú | maquillabas |
| vos | maquillabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquillaba |
| nosotros | maquillábamos |
| vosotros | maquillabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillaban |
Conditional (Condicional) Regular
Expresses hypothetical actions, polite requests, and what would happen under certain conditions. Also used for reported speech about the future from a past perspective.
¿Podrías ayudarme? — Could you help me?
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | maquillaría | I would make up |
| tú | maquillarías | you would make up |
| vos | maquillarías | you would make up |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquillaría | he/she/it would make up |
| nosotros | maquillaríamos | we would make up |
| vosotros | maquillaríais | you (pl.) would make up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillarían | they would make up |
Future (Futuro) Regular
Expresses future actions, predictions, and probability about the present. Formed with the full infinitive as stem for most verbs. In spoken Spanish, ir a + infinitive is often preferred for near future.
Ella hablará en conferencia mañana — She will speak at the conference tomorrow
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | maquillaré | I will make up |
| tú | maquillarás | you will make up |
| vos | maquillarás | you will make up |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquillará | he/she/it will make up |
| nosotros | maquillaremos | we will make up |
| vosotros | maquillaréis | you (pl.) will make up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillarán | they will make up |
Present perfect (Pretérito perfecto) Regular
A compound past tense linking a past action to the present moment — something that has happened and still feels recent or relevant. More common in Spain than Latin America where preterite is preferred.
Hoy he hablado con el jefe — Today I have spoken with the boss
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | he maquillado | I have made up |
| tú | has maquillado | you have made up |
| vos | has maquillado | you have made up |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha maquillado | he/she/it has made up |
| nosotros | hemos maquillado | we have made up |
| vosotros | habéis maquillado | you (pl.) have made up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han maquillado | they have made up |
Pluperfect (Pretérito pluscuamperfecto) Regular
The past of the past — describes an action that was already completed before another past event happened. Always implies a reference point in the past.
Ya había hablado cuando llegaste — She had already spoken when you arrived
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | había maquillado | I had made up |
| tú | habías maquillado | you had made up |
| vos | habías maquillado | you had made up |
| él/ella/Ud. | había maquillado | he/she/it had made up |
| nosotros | habíamos maquillado | we had made up |
| vosotros | habíais maquillado | you (pl.) had made up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían maquillado | they had made up |
Conditional perfect (Condicional perfecto) Regular
Expresses what would have happened — actions that were possible but did not occur, or regrets about the past. Formed with conditional of haber + past participle.
Habría hablado, pero no me dejaron — I would have spoken, but they did not let me
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | habría maquillado |
| tú | habrías maquillado |
| vos | habrías maquillado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría maquillado |
| nosotros | habríamos maquillado |
| vosotros | habríais maquillado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían maquillado |
Future perfect (Futuro perfecto) Regular
Describes an action that will have been completed by a certain point in the future, or expresses probability about a recent past action.
Para el lunes habré terminado — By Monday I will have finished
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | habré maquillado | I will have made up |
| tú | habrás maquillado | you will have made up |
| vos | habrás maquillado | you will have made up |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá maquillado | he/she/it will have made up |
| nosotros | habremos maquillado | we will have made up |
| vosotros | habréis maquillado | you (pl.) will have made up |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán maquillado | they will have made up |
Subjunctive
Present subjunctive (Subjuntivo presente) Regular
Used in subordinate clauses after expressions of desire, doubt, emotion, necessity, or impersonal statements. Triggered by a change of subject between the main and subordinate clause.
Espero que hable — I hope she speaks
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | maquille |
| tú | maquilles |
| vos | maquilles |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquille |
| nosotros | maquillemos |
| vosotros | maquilléis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillen |
Imperfect subjunctive (-ra) (Subjuntivo imperfecto (-ra)) Regular
The past subjunctive used after past main verbs, in if-clauses with conditional, and for polite softening. The -ra form is more common in everyday speech than the -se form.
Si pudiera, lo haría — If I could, I would do it
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | maquillara |
| tú | maquillaras |
| vos | maquillaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquillara |
| nosotros | maquilláramos |
| vosotros | maquillarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillaran |
Imperfect subjunctive (-se) (Subjuntivo imperfecto (-se)) Regular
The alternative past subjunctive form. Interchangeable with -ra in most contexts but slightly more literary or formal. Both forms are grammatically correct in all regions.
Si pudiese, lo haría — If I could, I would do it
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | maquillase |
| tú | maquillases |
| vos | maquillases |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquillase |
| nosotros | maquillásemos |
| vosotros | maquillaseis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | maquillasen |
Perfect subjunctive (Pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) Regular
A compound subjunctive that expresses completed actions in a subjunctive context — used after present or future main verbs expressing doubt, emotion or desire.
Dudo que ya haya llegado — I doubt she has already arrived
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | haya maquillado |
| tú | hayas maquillado |
| vos | hayas maquillado |
| él/ella/Ud. | haya maquillado |
| nosotros | hayamos maquillado |
| vosotros | hayáis maquillado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | hayan maquillado |
Pluperfect subjunctive (Pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo) Regular
Expresses what had happened in hypothetical or unreal past contexts — the subjunctive equivalent of the pluperfect. Common in contrary-to-fact past conditions.
Si hubiera hablado, lo habrían creído — If she had spoken, they would have believed her
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | hubiera maquillado |
| tú | hubieras maquillado |
| vos | hubieras maquillado |
| él/ella/Ud. | hubiera maquillado |
| nosotros | hubiéramos maquillado |
| vosotros | hubierais maquillado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | hubieran maquillado |
Other forms
Imperative (affirmative) (Imperativo afirmativo) Regular
Direct commands and instructions. The imperative only exists for tú, usted, nosotros, vosotros and ustedes — yo has no command form. Affirmative and negative forms use different conjugations.
Habla más despacio — Speak more slowly
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| tú | maquilla |
| vos | maquillá |
| él/ella/Ud. | maquille |
| nosotros | maquillemos |
| vosotros | maquillad |
| ustedes | maquillen |
Imperative (negative) (Imperativo negativo) Regular
Negative commands use the subjunctive forms for all persons. Formed with no + present subjunctive. This applies to all persons including tú where the affirmative uses a different form.
No hables tan rápido — Do not speak so fast
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| tú | no maquilles |
| vos | no maquilles |
| él/ella/Ud. | no maquille |
| nosotros | no maquillemos |
| vosotros | no maquilléis |
| ustedes | no maquillen |
Present progressive (Presente progresivo) Regular
Emphasises that an action is happening right now at this very moment. Less common than in English since the present tense already covers ongoing actions in Spanish.
Estoy hablando contigo — I am speaking with you
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | estoy maquillando |
| tú | estás maquillando |
| vos | estás maquillando |
| él/ella/Ud. | está maquillando |
| nosotros | estamos maquillando |
| vosotros | estáis maquillando |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | están maquillando |
Preterite progressive (Pretérito indefinido progresivo) Regular
Describes an action that was in progress throughout a completed past period. Uses the preterite of estar + gerund to emphasise the ongoing nature within a defined timeframe.
Estuvo hablando toda la tarde — He was talking all afternoon
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | estuve maquillando |
| tú | estuviste maquillando |
| vos | estuviste maquillando |
| él/ella/Ud. | estuvo maquillando |
| nosotros | estuvimos maquillando |
| vosotros | estuvisteis maquillando |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | estuvieron maquillando |
Imperfect progressive (Pretérito imperfecto progresivo) Regular
Emphasises an ongoing background action using the imperfect of estar + gerund. Layered on top of the imperfect which already conveys continuity — used for extra emphasis on the progressive nature.
Estaba hablando cuando entró — I was speaking when he came in
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | estaba maquillando |
| tú | estabas maquillando |
| vos | estabas maquillando |
| él/ella/Ud. | estaba maquillando |
| nosotros | estábamos maquillando |
| vosotros | estabais maquillando |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | estaban maquillando |
Conditional progressive (Condicional progresivo) Regular
Expresses what would be in progress under hypothetical conditions. Uses the conditional of estar + gerund. Less common but used for emphasis on the ongoing nature of a hypothetical action.
Estaría hablando ahora si pudiera — I would be speaking now if I could
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | estaría maquillando |
| tú | estarías maquillando |
| vos | estarías maquillando |
| él/ella/Ud. | estaría maquillando |
| nosotros | estaríamos maquillando |
| vosotros | estaríais maquillando |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | estarían maquillando |
Future progressive (Futuro progresivo) Regular
Describes an action that will be in progress at a future point, or expresses probability about an ongoing present action. Uses the future of estar + gerund.
Mañana a esta hora estaré viajando — At this time tomorrow I will be travelling
| Pronoun | Spanish |
|---|---|
| yo | estaré maquillando |
| tú | estarás maquillando |
| vos | estarás maquillando |
| él/ella/Ud. | estará maquillando |
| nosotros | estaremos maquillando |
| vosotros | estaréis maquillando |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | estarán maquillando |