Descansar Conjugation | How to Conjugate Descansar in Spanish

Descansar means “to rest,” “to take a break,” or “to recover from tiredness.” You will learn its fully regular -AR conjugation and its common time, place, purpose, and support patterns.

Descansar conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Regular AR. RAE gives descanso, descansas / descansás, descansa, descansamos, descansáis, descansan, with regular gerund descansando and participle descansado.

Descansar gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund supports progressive constructions, and the past participle combines with haber in compound forms. The participle descansado remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	descansar	to rest / take a break
Gerund	descansando	resting / taking a break
Past participle	descansado	rested / taken a break

Descansar meaning and essential uses

RAE’s central senses include stopping work or another activity to repair strength and becoming free from tiredness: Descanso después de trabajar. — “I rest after working.”

The verb can also mean physically resting or supporting something on something else. The everyday learner focus here is personal rest, recovery, and taking breaks.

Descansar regular conjugation pattern

The stem descans- remains unchanged throughout the core paradigm. Forms such as descanso, descansé, and descanse take ordinary -AR endings.

There is no stem change, spelling alternation, irregular preterite stem, irregular future stem, irregular gerund, or irregular participle.

Descansar indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Descansar present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current situations, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descanso	I rest / take a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansas	you rest / take a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansa	he / she rests / takes a break; you rest / take a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansamos	we rest / take a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansáis	you rest / take a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansan	they rest / take a break; you rest / take a break (plural)

• Descanso después de trabajar. — I rest after working.

Descansar preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descansé	I rested / took a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansaste	you rested / took a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansó	he / she rested / took a break; you rested / took a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansamos	we rested / took a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansasteis	you rested / took a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansaron	they rested / took a break; you rested / took a break (plural)

• Ayer descansé toda la tarde. — Yesterday I rested all afternoon.

Descansar imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descansaba	I used to rest / take a break / was resting / taking a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansabas	you used to rest / take a break / were resting / taking a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansaba	he / she used to rest / take a break / was resting / taking a break; you used to rest / take a break / were resting / taking a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansábamos	we used to rest / take a break / were resting / taking a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansabais	you used to rest / take a break / were resting / taking a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansaban	they used to rest / take a break / were resting / taking a break; you used to rest / take a break / were resting / taking a break (plural)

• Antes descansábamos después de comer. — We used to rest after lunch.

Descansar present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. Form it with present estar plus descansando.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	estoy descansando	I am resting / taking a break
Tú — you, singular informal	estás descansando	you are resting / taking a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	está descansando	he / she is resting / taking a break; you are resting / taking a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	estamos descansando	we are resting / taking a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	estáis descansando	you are resting / taking a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	están descansando	they are resting / taking a break; you are resting / taking a break (plural)

• Estoy descansando un momento. — I am resting for a moment.

Descansar near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis expresses an intention, plan, or expected event. Form it with present ir + a + descansar.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	voy a descansar	I am going to rest / take a break
Tú — you, singular informal	vas a descansar	you are going to rest / take a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	va a descansar	he / she is going to rest / take a break; you are going to rest / take a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	vamos a descansar	we are going to rest / take a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	vais a descansar	you are going to rest / take a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	van a descansar	they are going to rest / take a break; you are going to rest / take a break (plural)

• Voy a descansar después del viaje. — I am going to rest after the trip.

Descansar future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descansaré	I will rest / take a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansarás	you will rest / take a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansará	he / she will rest / take a break; you will rest / take a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansaremos	we will rest / take a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansaréis	you will rest / take a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansarán	they will rest / take a break; you will rest / take a break (plural)

• Descansaremos antes de continuar. — We will rest before continuing.

Descansar conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical outcomes, softened statements, or related conditional meanings. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descansaría	I would rest / take a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansarías	you would rest / take a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansaría	he / she would rest / take a break; you would rest / take a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansaríamos	we would rest / take a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansaríais	you would rest / take a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansarían	they would rest / take a break; you would rest / take a break (plural)

• Descansaría un poco más si pudiera. — I would rest a little longer if I could.

Descansar present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use it for completed events connected to a present reference frame; regional distribution varies. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	he descansado	I have rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	has descansado	you have rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ha descansado	he / she has rested / taken a break; you have rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hemos descansado	we have rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habéis descansado	you have rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	han descansado	they have rested / taken a break; you have rested / taken a break (plural)

• He descansado bien esta noche. — I have rested well tonight.

Descansar past perfect conjugation

Past perfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use it for an event completed before another past reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	había descansado	I had rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	habías descansado	you had rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	había descansado	he / she had rested / taken a break; you had rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habíamos descansado	we had rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habíais descansado	you had rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habían descansado	they had rested / taken a break; you had rested / taken a break (plural)

• Ya habíamos descansado antes de salir. — We had already rested before leaving.

Descansar future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro perfecto) — Use it for an event expected to be completed before a future reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habré descansado	I will have rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	habrás descansado	you will have rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habrá descansado	he / she will have rested / taken a break; you will have rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habremos descansado	we will have rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habréis descansado	you will have rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrán descansado	they will have rested / taken a break; you will have rested / taken a break (plural)

• Para entonces habrán descansado todos. — By then everyone will have rested.

Descansar conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto) — Use it for a hypothetical completed outcome. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habría descansado	I would have rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	habrías descansado	you would have rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habría descansado	he / she would have rested / taken a break; you would have rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habríamos descansado	we would have rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habríais descansado	you would have rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrían descansado	they would have rested / taken a break; you would have rested / taken a break (plural)

• Habría descansado más sin el ruido. — I would have rested more without the noise.

Descansar subjunctive conjugations

Descansar present subjunctive conjugation

Present subjunctive (el presente de subjuntivo) — Use it in subordinate environments involving wishes, influence, emotion, doubt or denial, evaluation, necessity, possibility, or non-specific reference. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descanse	that I rest / take a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descanses	that you rest / take a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descanse	that he / she rest / take a break; that you rest / take a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansemos	that we rest / take a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descanséis	that you rest / take a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansen	that they rest / take a break; that you rest / take a break (plural)

• Quiero que descanses un poco. — I want you to rest a little.

Descansar imperfect subjunctive conjugation

Imperfect subjunctive (el imperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses the -ra series. The accepted -se series is also valid in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descansara	that I rested / took a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansaras	that you rested / took a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansara	that he / she rested / took a break; that you rested / took a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansáramos	that we rested / took a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansarais	that you rested / took a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansaran	that they rested / took a break; that you rested / took a break (plural)

• Preferían que descansáramos antes de la caminata. — They preferred that we rest before the hike.
• Era mejor que descansases después del viaje. — It was better for you to rest after the trip.

Descansar future subjunctive conjugation

Future subjunctive (el futuro de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. It survives mainly in formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical contexts. These rare reference forms belong mainly to formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical registers.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	descansare	if / when I should rest / take a break
Tú — you, singular informal	descansares	if / when you should rest / take a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	descansare	if / when he / she should rest / take a break; if / when you should rest / take a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	descansáremos	if / when we should rest / take a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansareis	if / when you should rest / take a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	descansaren	if / when they should rest / take a break; if / when you should rest / take a break (plural)

• Quien descansare durante el turno deberá respetar el horario establecido. — Whoever should rest during the shift must follow the established schedule.

Descansar present perfect subjunctive conjugation

Present perfect subjunctive (el pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) — Use it when a completed event appears inside a present- or future-oriented subjunctive environment. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	haya descansado	that I have rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	hayas descansado	that you have rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	haya descansado	that he / she has rested / taken a break; that you have rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hayamos descansado	that we have rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hayáis descansado	that you have rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hayan descansado	that they have rested / taken a break; that you have rested / taken a break (plural)

• Me alegra que hayas descansado bien. — I am glad that you rested well.

Descansar past perfect subjunctive conjugation

Past perfect subjunctive (el pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses hubiera; hubiese is an accepted auxiliary alternative in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiera descansado	that I had rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieras descansado	that you had rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiera descansado	that he / she had rested / taken a break; that you had rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéramos descansado	that we had rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubierais descansado	that you had rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieran descansado	that they had rested / taken a break; that you had rested / taken a break (plural)

• Si hubiera descansado más, estaría menos cansado. — If I had rested more, I would be less tired.
• Si hubieses descansado antes del examen, te habrías concentrado mejor. — If you had rested before the exam, you would have concentrated better.

Descansar future perfect subjunctive conjugation

Future perfect subjunctive (el futuro perfecto de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. Treat it as a formal or historical reference form, not an everyday conversational target. Form it with the appropriate form of haber plus invariant descansado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiere descansado	if / when I should have rested / taken a break
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieres descansado	if / when you should have rested / taken a break
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiere descansado	if / when he / she should have rested / taken a break; if / when you should have rested / taken a break (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéremos descansado	if / when we should have rested / taken a break
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubiereis descansado	if / when you should have rested / taken a break (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieren descansado	if / when they should have rested / taken a break; if / when you should have rested / taken a break (plural)

• Si hubieren descansado lo suficiente, podrán continuar. — If they should have rested enough, they may continue.

Descansar imperative and commands

Commands address another person directly. The nosotros/nosotras row is a present-subjunctive form used with exhortative “let’s…” value.

Descansar affirmative commands

Use the verified affirmative command forms for direct instructions when the target meaning supports them naturally.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	descansa	rest
Usted — you, singular formal	descanse	rest (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	descansemos	let’s rest
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	descansad	rest (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	descansen	rest (plural)

• Descansa un poco antes de seguir. — Rest a little before continuing.

Descansar negative commands

Negative commands use subjunctive-based forms, with no before the verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no descanses	do not rest
Usted — you, singular formal	no descanse	do not rest (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no descansemos	let’s not rest
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no descanséis	do not rest (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no descansen	do not rest (plural)

• No descanses en una zona peligrosa. — Do not rest in a dangerous area.

Common constructions with Descansar

These patterns show sentence frames that materially affect how the target verb is used.

• descansar. — to rest / take a break.
• descansar después de / antes de + infinitive or event. — to rest after / before doing something.
• descansar durante + period. — to rest for / during a period.
• descansar sobre / en algo. — to rest or be supported on something.

Example sentences with Descansar

These examples reinforce useful forms and contexts already taught in the lesson.

• Necesito descansar. — I need to rest.
• Descansamos diez minutos. — We rest for ten minutes.
• Voy a descansar en el hotel. — I am going to rest at the hotel.
• Espero que descanses esta noche. — I hope you rest tonight.
• Han descansado después del viaje. — They have rested after the trip.
• Descansa antes de conducir. — Rest before driving.

Regional and usage notes for Descansar

The core tables retain tú, usted, vosotros/vosotras, and ustedes. Voseo changes some second-person singular forms where vos is used.

• Vos descansás después de trabajar. — You rest after working. (voseo)
• Descansá un rato. — Rest for a while. (affirmative vos command)

Descansar is fully regular. The main learner task is usage: it commonly stands alone for resting, then combines with time, place, or antes de / después de phrases to explain when and why the rest happens.