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SPANISH VERB

preocuparse

to worry

  • #202 most used
  • Regular -ar verb
  • Gerund: preocupándose
  • Past participle: preocupado

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

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

Imperfect

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

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Past subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use preocuparse

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

  1. Present

    Mi mamá se preocupa cuando no llamo.

    My mom worries when I don't call.

  2. Past

    Nos preocupamos mucho cuando no llegaste.

    We worried a lot when you didn't arrive.

  3. Imperfect

    Antes me preocupaba por todo.

    I used to worry about everything.

  4. Future

    Tu papá se preocupará si llegas tan tarde.

    Your dad will worry if you come home so late.

  5. Conditional

    Yo no me preocuparía por ese examen.

    I wouldn't worry about that test.

  6. Present subjunctive

    No quiero que te preocupes por el dinero.

    I don't want you to worry about the money.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si se preocuparan menos, disfrutarían más el viaje.

    If they worried less, they'd enjoy the trip more.

  8. Imperative

    ¡No se preocupe, señora, yo le ayudo!

    Don't worry, ma'am, I'll help you!

Good to know

  • "Preocuparse por" is to worry about: "no te preocupes por mí".

Where you hear preocuparse

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

Spanish · Beginner Level 2

  • No te preocupes. Don't worry.
  • Me preocupé mucho por el niño. I worried a lot about the boy.
  • No se va a preocupar. You're not going to worry.

Spanish · Beginner Level 3

  • Me preocupo por ustedes. I worry about you.
  • Me preocupé mucho por la tormenta. I worried a lot about the storm.
  • No se preocupe, voy a estar bien. Don't worry, I'm going to be fine.
20
How Do You Feel?

Beginner Level 2 · No te preocupes. · No se preocupe.

Needs a subscription 14
I Forgot My Wallet

Beginner Level 3 · No te preocupes.

Needs a subscription 16
The Pink Flamingos

Beginner Level 3 · no se preocupen

Needs a subscription 20
The Whole Trip

Beginner Level 3 · No se preocupe.

Needs a subscription 18
No Water

Intermediate Level 1 · No se preocupen.

Needs a subscription 5
Don't Touch Anything

Advanced Level 1 · no os preocupéis

Needs a subscription 26
It's Not Wrong, It's Different

Advanced Level 1 · no me preocupo

Needs a subscription 3
Tomorrow Without Fail

Fluency Level 2 · Usted no se preocupe.

Needs a subscription

Verbs like this one

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