Present
Presente · now, habits and facts
- yo I dance
- tú you dance
- usted, él, ella he/she dances
- nosotros we dance
- vosotros Spain you all dance
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they dance
SPANISH VERB
bailar
to dance
- #209 most used
- Regular -ar verb
- Gerund: bailando
- Past participle: bailado
Conjugation
Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.
Past
Pretérito indefinido · finished actions
- yo I danced
- tú you danced
- usted, él, ella he/she danced
- nosotros we danced
- vosotros Spain you all danced
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they danced
Imperfect
Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”
- yo I used to dance
- tú you used to dance
- usted, él, ella he/she used to dance
- nosotros we used to dance
- vosotros Spain you all used to dance
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to dance
Future
Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common
- yo I will dance
- tú you will dance
- usted, él, ella he/she will dance
- nosotros we will dance
- vosotros Spain you all will dance
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they will dance
Conditional
Condicional · “would”
- yo I would dance
- tú you would dance
- usted, él, ella he/she would dance
- nosotros we would dance
- vosotros Spain you all would dance
- ustedes, ellos, ellas they would dance
Present subjunctive
Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”
- yo (that) I dance
- tú (that) you dance
- usted, él, ella (that) he/she dance
- nosotros (that) we dance
- vosotros Spain (that) you all dance
- ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they dance
Past subjunctive
Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”
- yo (if) I danced
- tú (if) you danced
- usted, él, ella (if) he/she danced
- nosotros (if) we danced
- vosotros Spain (if) you all danced
- ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they danced
Imperative
Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)
- tú dance!
- usted dance! (formal)
- nosotros dance! (let’s)
- vosotros Spain dance! (all of you)
- ustedes dance! (all of you)
How to use bailar
One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.
-
Present
¿Bailas salsa o prefieres la cumbia?
Do you dance salsa or do you prefer cumbia?
-
Past
Bailamos hasta las tres de la mañana.
We danced until three in the morning.
-
Imperfect
Mis abuelos bailaban danzón en el parque.
My grandparents danced danzón in the park.
-
Future
En la fiesta bailaremos toda la noche.
At the party we will dance all night.
-
Conditional
Bailaría contigo, pero me duelen los pies.
I would dance with you, but my feet hurt.
-
Present subjunctive
Quiero que bailes conmigo esta canción.
I want you to dance this song with me.
-
Past subjunctive
Si bailara mejor, iría a más fiestas.
If I danced better, I would go to more parties.
-
Imperative
¡Baila, Lucía, esta es tu canción!
Dance, Lucía, this is your song!
Where you hear bailar
The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.
Spanish · Beginner Level 1
- Bailo muy bien. I dance very well.
- Anoche bailé con Valeria. Last night I danced with Valeria.
- Esta noche vamos a bailar. Tonight we're going to dance.
Spanish · Beginner Level 2
- Todos están bailando. Everybody is dancing.
- Bailé toda la noche. I danced all night.
- Vamos a bailar el sábado. We're going to go dancing on Saturday.
27
Happy Birthday!
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16
Beginner Level 1 · bailar · ¿Bailamos? · Bailas muy bien.
We Climbed the Mountain
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21
Beginner Level 2 · bailaron · bailamos
What Is the Day of the Dead?
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25
Beginner Level 2 · se baila
Have You Ever Tried Them?
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26
Beginner Level 2 · bailado
Everybody Was Dancing
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9
Beginner Level 2 · bailar · bailando · estaba bailando · bailé
Even If You Step on My Feet
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24
Intermediate Level 3 · ¿Bailamos?
Already Friends
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Advanced Level 3 · en la boda se baila el baile del guajolote
Verbs like this one
The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -ar verb.