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SPANISH VERB

arrodillarse

to kneel, to get down on one knee

  • Regular -ar verb
  • Gerund: arrodillándose
  • Past participle: arrodillado

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I kneel
  2. tú you kneel
  3. usted, él, ella he/she kneels
  4. nosotros we kneel
  5. vosotros Spain you all kneel
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they kneel

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I knelt
  2. tú you knelt
  3. usted, él, ella he/she knelt
  4. nosotros we knelt
  5. vosotros Spain you all knelt
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they knelt

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I used to kneel
  2. tú you used to kneel
  3. usted, él, ella he/she used to kneel
  4. nosotros we used to kneel
  5. vosotros Spain you all used to kneel
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to kneel

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I will kneel
  2. tú you will kneel
  3. usted, él, ella he/she will kneel
  4. nosotros we will kneel
  5. vosotros Spain you all will kneel
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they will kneel

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I would kneel
  2. tú you would kneel
  3. usted, él, ella he/she would kneel
  4. nosotros we would kneel
  5. vosotros Spain you all would kneel
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they would kneel

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I kneel
  2. tú (that) you kneel
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she kneel
  4. nosotros (that) we kneel
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all kneel
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they kneel

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I knelt
  2. tú (if) you knelt
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she knelt
  4. nosotros (if) we knelt
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all knelt
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they knelt

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú kneel!
  2. usted kneel! (formal)
  3. nosotros kneel! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain kneel! (all of you)
  5. ustedes kneel! (all of you)

How to use arrodillarse

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    En la iglesia la gente se arrodilla para rezar.

    In church people kneel to pray.

  2. Past

    Diego se arrodilló frente a veinte mochileros y su abuela.

    Diego got down on one knee in front of twenty backpackers and his grandma.

  3. Imperfect

    Mi abuela se arrodillaba cada noche junto a la cama.

    My grandma knelt every night beside her bed.

  4. Future

    ¿Te arrodillarás cuando le pidas matrimonio?

    Will you get down on one knee when you propose?

  5. Conditional

    Yo me arrodillaría, pero me duele la rodilla.

    I'd get down on one knee, but my knee hurts.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Ella quiere que te arrodilles, como en las películas.

    She wants you to get down on one knee, like in the movies.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si se arrodillara en el restaurante, me moriría de pena.

    If he knelt down in the restaurant, I'd die of embarrassment.

  8. Imperative

    ¡Arrodíllate, así sale mejor la foto!

    Kneel down, the photo comes out better that way!

Good to know

  • "Arrodillarse" is also what you do to propose: se arrodilló delante de todos.

Where you hear arrodillarse

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Intermediate Level 2

  • En la iglesia, todos se arrodillan. In church, everyone kneels.
  • Me arrodillé en medio de la cocina. I got down on one knee in the middle of the kitchen.
  • Yo no me voy a arrodillar delante de veinte mochileros. I'm not going to get down on one knee in front of twenty backpackers.
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He Asked Me to Marry Him

Intermediate Level 2 · Se arrodilló.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -ar verb.