Jugar Conjugation | How to Conjugate Jugar in Spanish

Jugar means “to play.” You will learn its u → ue present change, the spelling change g → gu before e, regular past and future families, gerund jugando, and commands.

Jugar conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Irregular. Jugar uses u → ue in stressed present forms such as juego — “I play.” Before an ending beginning with e, spelling uses gu to preserve the hard consonant sound, as in jugué — “I played” — and juegue — “that I play.”

Jugar gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund supports progressive constructions, and the past participle combines with haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — in compound forms. The participle jugado remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	jugar	to play
Gerund	jugando	playing
Past participle	jugado	played

Jugar meaning and essential uses

Jugar — “to play” — is commonly intransitive with games and sports, often using a — “at / to”: Jugamos al fútbol. — “We play soccer.”

It can also be transitive with a game, match, card, piece, or stake in specific senses: Juegan una partida. — “They play a game.” RAE also records pronominal jugarse in risk-related meanings.

Jugar conjugation pattern

The stressed present forms use jueg-: juego, juegas, juega, juegan — “I play, you play, he/she plays, they play.” Nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras keep jug-.

The first-person preterite is jugué — “I played.” The present subjunctive combines the stem change with the spelling rule: juegue — “that I play” — but juguemos — “that we play.”

Jugar indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Jugar present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current actions, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. Stressed forms use jueg-, while nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras use jug-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	juego	I play
Tú — you, singular informal	juegas	you play
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	juega	he / she plays; you play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugamos	we play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugáis	you play (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	juegan	they play; you play (plural)

• Juego al tenis los sábados. — I play tennis on Saturdays.

Jugar preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events. The first-person singular is jugué — “I played,” with g → gu before e.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	jugué	I played
Tú — you, singular informal	jugaste	you played
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	jugó	he / she played; you played (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugamos	we played
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugasteis	you played (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jugaron	they played; you played (plural)

• Ayer jugué al fútbol con mis amigos. — Yesterday I played soccer with my friends.

Jugar imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. The table uses the regular -AR imperfect family.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	jugaba	I used to play / was playing
Tú — you, singular informal	jugabas	you used to play / were playing
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	jugaba	he / she used to play / was playing; you used to play / were playing (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugábamos	we used to play / were playing
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugabais	you used to play / were playing (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jugaban	they used to play / were playing; you used to play / were playing (plural)

• De niño jugaba en el parque. — As a child, I used to play in the park.

Jugar present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. Form it with present estar — “to be” — plus jugando — “playing.”

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

• Estamos jugando una partida. — We are playing a game.

Jugar near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis expresses an intention, plan, or expected event. Form it with present ir — “to go” — plus a — “to” — and jugar.

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

• Voy a jugar al ajedrez esta noche. — I am going to play chess tonight.

Jugar future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The endings attach to the full infinitive; there is no separate irregular future or conditional stem.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	jugaré	I will play
Tú — you, singular informal	jugarás	you will play
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	jugará	he / she will play; you will play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugaremos	we will play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugaréis	you will play (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jugarán	they will play; you will play (plural)

• Jugaremos el partido mañana. — We will play the match tomorrow.

Jugar conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical outcomes, softened statements, or related conditional meanings. The endings attach to the full infinitive; there is no separate irregular future or conditional stem.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	jugaría	I would play
Tú — you, singular informal	jugarías	you would play
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	jugaría	he / she would play; you would play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugaríamos	we would play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugaríais	you would play (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jugarían	they would play; you would play (plural)

• Jugaría contigo si tuviera tiempo. — I would play with you if I had time.

Jugar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle jugado — “played.”

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

• He jugado aquí muchas veces. — I have played here many times.

Jugar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle jugado — “played.”

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

• Ya habíamos jugado contra ese equipo. — We had already played against that team.

Jugar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle jugado — “played.”

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

• Para entonces habrán jugado tres partidos. — By then they will have played three matches.

Jugar 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 jugado — “played.”

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

• Habría jugado mejor con más práctica. — I would have played better with more practice.

Jugar subjunctive conjugations

Jugar 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. Stressed forms use juegu-, while nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras use jugu-; both preserve the consonant spelling before e.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	juegue	that I play
Tú — you, singular informal	juegues	that you play
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	juegue	that he / she play; that you play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	juguemos	that we play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	juguéis	that you play (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jueguen	that they play; that you play (plural)

• Quiero que juegues con nosotros. — I want you to play with us.

Jugar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle jugado — “played.”

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	jugara	that I played
Tú — you, singular informal	jugaras	that you played
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	jugara	that he / she played; that you played (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugáramos	that we played
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugarais	that you played (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jugaran	that they played; that you played (plural)

• Preferían que jugáramos afuera. — They preferred that we play outside.
• Era mejor que jugases una partida corta. — It was better for you to play a short game.

Jugar 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 share the same historical family as the imperfect subjunctive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	jugare	if / when I should play
Tú — you, singular informal	jugares	if / when you should play
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	jugare	if / when he / she should play; if / when you should play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	jugáremos	if / when we should play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugareis	if / when you should play (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	jugaren	if / when they should play; if / when you should play (plural)

• Quien jugare el partido deberá estar inscrito. — Whoever should play the match must be registered.

Jugar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle jugado — “played.”

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

• Me alegra que hayas jugado bien. — I am glad that you played well.

Jugar 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 jugado — “played.”

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

• Si hubiéramos jugado antes, habríamos terminado a tiempo. — If we had played earlier, we would have finished on time.
• Si hubieses jugado esa carta, habrías ganado. — If you had played that card, you would have won.

Jugar 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 — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle jugado — “played.”

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

• Si hubieren jugado el partido, deberán registrar el resultado. — If they should have played the match, they must record the result.

Jugar imperative and commands

Commands address another person directly. Spanish uses different morphological sources by person and polarity; the nosotros/nosotras row is a present-subjunctive form used with exhortative “let’s…” value.

Jugar affirmative commands

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

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	juega	play
Usted — you, singular formal	juegue	play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	juguemos	let’s play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	jugad	play (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	jueguen	play (plural)

• Juega con cuidado. — Play carefully.

Jugar negative commands

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

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no juegues	do not play
Usted — you, singular formal	no juegue	do not play (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no juguemos	let’s not play
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no juguéis	do not play (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no jueguen	do not play (plural)

• No juegues con fuego. — Do not play with fire.

Common constructions with Jugar

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

• jugar a + game or sport. — to play a game or sport.
• jugar con alguien. — to play with someone.
• jugar una partida / un partido. — to play a game / match.

Example sentences with Jugar

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

• Jugamos al baloncesto después de clase. — We play basketball after class.
• ¿Quieres jugar conmigo? — Do you want to play with me?
• Los niños están jugando afuera. — The children are playing outside.
• Espero que juegues mañana. — I hope you play tomorrow.
• Ya hemos jugado dos partidos. — We have already played two matches.
• Juega limpio. — Play fair.

Regional and usage notes for Jugar

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

• Vos jugás al fútbol los domingos. — You play soccer on Sundays. (voseo)
• Jugá con cuidado. — Play carefully. (affirmative vos command)

For jugar, track two related mechanisms: u → ue when the stem is stressed and g → gu before e. The other major tense families remain regular.