Esperar Conjugation | How to Conjugate Esperar in Spanish

Esperar means “to wait,” “to hope,” or “to expect.” You will learn its regular -AR forms and the sentence patterns that distinguish waiting, hoping, expecting, and waiting for an event.

Esperar conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Regular AR. Esperar keeps the stable stem esper- and takes regular -AR endings. Its gerund esperando — “waiting / hoping / expecting” — and participle esperado — “waited / hoped for / expected” — are regular.

Esperar gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund is its non-finite -ing form, and the past participle combines with haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — in compound forms. The participle esperado remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	esperar	to wait / hope / expect
Gerund	esperando	waiting / hoping / expecting
Past participle	esperado	waited / hoped / expected

Esperar meaning and essential uses

Esperar has several common uses. It can mean “to wait for”: Espero el autobús. — “I am waiting for the bus.” It can also mean “to hope” or “to expect”: Espero buenas noticias. — “I hope for / expect good news.”

Before a clause, esperar que often introduces a hoped-for event and commonly takes the subjunctive when the subject changes: Espero que llegues pronto. — “I hope you arrive soon.” RAE also records esperar a que + subjunctive for waiting until something happens.

Esperar regular conjugation pattern

The stem esper- remains stable through the core paradigm. Present espero — “I wait / hope / expect,” preterite esperé — “I waited / hoped / expected,” and present subjunctive espere — “that I wait / hope / expect” — use regular -AR endings.

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

Esperar indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Esperar present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current situations, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. The stable stem takes the regular -AR present endings.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	espero	I wait / hope / expect
Tú — you, singular informal	esperas	you wait / hope / expect
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	espera	he / she waits / hopes / expects; you wait / hope / expect (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperamos	we wait / hope / expect
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperáis	you wait / hope / expect (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperan	they wait / hope / expect; you wait / hope / expect (plural)

• Espero el autobús aquí. — I wait for the bus here.

Esperar preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events or states. The verb uses the regular -AR preterite family.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	esperé	I waited / hoped / expected
Tú — you, singular informal	esperaste	you waited / hoped / expected
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	esperó	he / she waited / hoped / expected; you waited / hoped / expected (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperamos	we waited / hoped / expected
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperasteis	you waited / hoped / expected (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperaron	they waited / hoped / expected; you waited / hoped / expected (plural)

• Ayer esperé una hora. — Yesterday I waited for an hour.

Esperar imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. The verb uses the regular imperfect pattern shown below.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	esperaba	I used to wait / hope / expect / was waiting / hoping / expecting
Tú — you, singular informal	esperabas	you used to wait / hope / expect / were waiting / hoping / expecting
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	esperaba	he / she used to wait / hope / expect / was waiting / hoping / expecting; you used to wait / hope / expect / were waiting / hoping / expecting (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperábamos	we used to wait / hope / expect / were waiting / hoping / expecting
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperabais	you used to wait / hope / expect / were waiting / hoping / expecting (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperaban	they used to wait / hope / expect / were waiting / hoping / expecting; you used to wait / hope / expect / were waiting / hoping / expecting (plural)

• Antes esperaba noticias cada semana. — I used to wait for news every week.

Esperar present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis normally uses present estar plus the target verb’s gerund. Form it with present estar — “to be” — plus esperando — “waiting / hoping / expecting.”

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

• Estamos esperando una respuesta. — We are waiting for a reply.

Esperar near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis uses present ir + a + infinitive. Form it with present ir — “to go” — plus a — “to” — and esperar.

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

• Voy a esperar hasta mañana. — I am going to wait until tomorrow.

Esperar future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The endings attach to the full infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	esperaré	I will wait / hope / expect
Tú — you, singular informal	esperarás	you will wait / hope / expect
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	esperará	he / she will wait / hope / expect; you will wait / hope / expect (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperaremos	we will wait / hope / expect
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperaréis	you will wait / hope / expect (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperarán	they will wait / hope / expect; you will wait / hope / expect (plural)

• Esperaré fuera del edificio. — I will wait outside the building.

Esperar conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical or softened meanings. The endings attach to the full infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	esperaría	I would wait / hope / expect
Tú — you, singular informal	esperarías	you would wait / hope / expect
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	esperaría	he / she would wait / hope / expect; you would wait / hope / expect (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperaríamos	we would wait / hope / expect
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperaríais	you would wait / hope / expect (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperarían	they would wait / hope / expect; you would wait / hope / expect (plural)

• Esperaría un poco más. — I would wait a little longer.

Esperar present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use it for completed situations connected to a present reference frame; distribution varies regionally. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• He esperado bastante. — I have waited long enough.

Esperar past perfect conjugation

Past perfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use it for something completed before another past reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• Ya habíamos esperado más de una hora. — We had already waited more than an hour.

Esperar future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro perfecto) — Use it for something expected to be completed before a future reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• Para entonces habrán esperado toda la mañana. — By then they will have waited all morning.

Esperar conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto) — Use it for a hypothetical completed outcome. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• Habría esperado si me lo hubieras pedido. — I would have waited if you had asked me.

Esperar subjunctive conjugations

Esperar 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. It uses the expected present-subjunctive family for this verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	espere	that I wait / hope / expect
Tú — you, singular informal	esperes	that you wait / hope / expect
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	espere	that he / she wait / hope / expect; that you wait / hope / expect (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperemos	that we wait / hope / expect
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperéis	that you wait / hope / expect (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperen	that they wait / hope / expect; that you wait / hope / expect (plural)

• Espero que llegues pronto. — I hope you arrive soon.

Esperar 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 shown after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	esperara	that I waited / hoped / expected
Tú — you, singular informal	esperaras	that you waited / hoped / expected
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	esperara	that he / she waited / hoped / expected; that you waited / hoped / expected (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperáramos	that we waited / hoped / expected
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperarais	that you waited / hoped / expected (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperaran	that they waited / hoped / expected; that you waited / hoped / expected (plural)

• Querían que esperáramos fuera. — They wanted us to wait outside.
• Preferían que esperases hasta el final. — They preferred that you wait until the end.

Esperar 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 forms share the same historical family as the imperfect subjunctive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	esperare	if / when I should wait / hope / expect
Tú — you, singular informal	esperares	if / when you should wait / hope / expect
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	esperare	if / when he / she should wait / hope / expect; if / when you should wait / hope / expect (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	esperáremos	if / when we should wait / hope / expect
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperareis	if / when you should wait / hope / expect (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	esperaren	if / when they should wait / hope / expect; if / when you should wait / hope / expect (plural)

• Quien esperare respuesta deberá indicar un medio de contacto. — Whoever should await a reply must provide a means of contact.

Esperar present perfect subjunctive conjugation

Present perfect subjunctive (el pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) — Use it when a completed situation appears inside a present- or future-oriented subjunctive environment. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• Me alegra que hayas esperado. — I am glad that you waited.

Esperar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• Si hubiéramos esperado un poco más, lo habríamos visto. — If we had waited a little longer, we would have seen it.
• Si hubieses esperado la confirmación, no habría problema. — If you had waited for confirmation, there would be no problem.

Esperar 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. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle esperado — “waited / hoped / expected.”

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

• Si hubieren esperado el plazo completo, podrán presentar la solicitud. — If they should have waited the full period, they may submit the application.

Esperar imperative and commands

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

Esperar affirmative commands

Use the verified affirmative command forms for direct instructions when the meaning supports an instruction naturally.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	espera	wait
Usted — you, singular formal	espere	wait (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	esperemos	let’s wait
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	esperad	wait (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	esperen	wait (plural)

• Espera aquí un momento. — Wait here for a moment.

Esperar negative commands

Negative commands use subjunctive-based forms, with no — “not / do not” — before the verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no esperes	do not wait
Usted — you, singular formal	no espere	do not wait (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no esperemos	let’s not wait
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no esperéis	do not wait (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no esperen	do not wait (plural)

• No esperes hasta el último minuto. — Do not wait until the last minute.

Common constructions with Esperar

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

• esperar algo o a alguien. — to wait for / expect something or someone.
• esperar que + clause. — to hope / expect that something happens.
• esperar a que + subjunctive. — to wait until something happens.

Example sentences with Esperar

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

• Espero una llamada importante. — I am waiting for an important call.
• Esperamos que todo salga bien. — We hope everything goes well.
• Estoy esperando a Marta. — I am waiting for Marta.
• Espera a que termine la reunión. — Wait until the meeting ends.
• No esperaba esa respuesta. — I did not expect that answer.
• Espero verte pronto. — I hope to see you soon.

Regional and usage notes for Esperar

The core tables retain tú, usted, vosotros/vosotras, and ustedes for project comparability. Voseo changes some common second-person singular forms in regions where vos — “you, singular informal” — is used.

• Vos esperás el autobús aquí. — You wait for the bus here. (voseo)
• Esperá un momento. — Wait a moment. (affirmative vos command)

Esperar is regular in form but broad in meaning. Let the complement tell you whether it means waiting, hoping, or expecting, and remember the frequent clause patterns esperar que and esperar a que.