The present continuous tense - Easy Learning Grammar Spanish
- In Spanish, the present continuous tense is used to talk about something that is happening at this very moment.
- The Spanish present continuous tense is formed from the present tense of estar and the gerund of the verb. The gerund is the form of the verb that ends in -ando (for -ar verbs) or -iendo (for -er and -ir verbs) and is the same as the -ing form of the verb in English (for example, walking, swimming).
| Estoy trabajando | I’m working. |
| No estamos comiendo. | We aren’t eating. |
| ¿Estás escribiendo? | Are you writing? |
- For more information on estar and the Gerund, see ser and estar and The gerund.
- To form the gerund of an -ar verb, take off the -ar ending of the infinitive and add -ando:
| Infinitive | Meaning | Stem (without -ar) | Gerund | Meaning |
| hablar | to speak | habl- | hablando | speaking |
| trabajar | to work | trabaj- | trabajando | working |
- To form the gerund of an -er or -ir verb, take off the -er or -ir ending of the infinitive and add -iendo:
| Infinitive | Meaning | Stem (without -er/-ir) | Gerund | Meaning |
| comer | to eat | com- | comiendo | eating |
| escribir | to write | escrib- | escribiendo | writing |
TipWhen in doubt, use the present continuous to talk about things that are in the middle of happening right now. Use the present simple tense to talk about activities which are current but which may not be happening at this minute.
| Lydia estudia medicina. | Lydia’s studying medicine. |
- For more information on the Present simple tense, see The present simple tense.
Key points
PreviousNext - Use the present continuous in Spanish for actions that are happening right now.
- To form the present continuous tense in Spanish, take the present tense of estar and add the gerund of the main verb.