Nadar Conjugation | How to Conjugate Nadar in Spanish

Nadar means “to swim,” “to move through water,” or figuratively “to abound in something.” You will learn its fully regular -AR conjugation and its main aquatic and figurative patterns.

Nadar conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Regular AR. RAE gives nado, nadas / nadás, nada, nadamos, nadáis, nadan, with regular gerund nadando and participle nadado.

Nadar 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 nadado remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	nadar	to swim
Gerund	nadando	swimming
Past participle	nadado	swum

Nadar meaning and essential uses

RAE’s primary intransitive sense is moving through water by bodily movements without touching the bottom: Nado cada mañana. — “I swim every morning.”

RAE also records floating and figurative abundance meanings. The everyday learner target is the intransitive activity “to swim,” often with location, distance, or style complements.

Nadar regular conjugation pattern

The stem nad- remains unchanged throughout the core paradigm: nado, nadé, nadaba, nadaré, nade.

There are no stem changes, spelling alternations, irregular tense stems, irregular gerunds, or irregular participles.

Nadar indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Nadar 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	nado	I swim
Tú — you, singular informal	nadas	you swim
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nada	he / she swims; you swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadamos	we swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadáis	you swim (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadan	they swim; you swim (plural)

• Nado cada mañana. — I swim every morning.

Nadar 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	nadé	I swam
Tú — you, singular informal	nadaste	you swam
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nadó	he / she swam; you swam (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadamos	we swam
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadasteis	you swam (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadaron	they swam; you swam (plural)

• Ayer nadé un kilómetro. — Yesterday I swam one kilometer.

Nadar 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 nadado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	nadaba	I used to swim / was swimming
Tú — you, singular informal	nadabas	you used to swim / were swimming
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nadaba	he / she used to swim / was swimming; you used to swim / were swimming (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadábamos	we used to swim / were swimming
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadabais	you used to swim / were swimming (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadaban	they used to swim / were swimming; you used to swim / were swimming (plural)

• De niño nadaba en ese río. — As a child, I used to swim in that river.

Nadar present progressive

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

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

• Estoy nadando en la piscina. — I am swimming in the pool.

Nadar near future conjugation

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

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

• Voy a nadar después del trabajo. — I am going to swim after work.

Nadar 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	nadaré	I will swim
Tú — you, singular informal	nadarás	you will swim
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nadará	he / she will swim; you will swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadaremos	we will swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadaréis	you will swim (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadarán	they will swim; you will swim (plural)

• Nadaremos hasta la otra orilla. — We will swim to the other shore.

Nadar 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	nadaría	I would swim
Tú — you, singular informal	nadarías	you would swim
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nadaría	he / she would swim; you would swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadaríamos	we would swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadaríais	you would swim (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadarían	they would swim; you would swim (plural)

• Nadaría más si tuviera tiempo. — I would swim more if I had time.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• He nadado tres veces esta semana. — I have swum three times this week.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• Ya habíamos nadado allí antes. — We had already swum there before.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• Para entonces habrán nadado varios kilómetros. — By then they will have swum several kilometers.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• Habría nadado más lejos con mejor tiempo. — I would have swum farther with better weather.

Nadar subjunctive conjugations

Nadar 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	nade	that I swim
Tú — you, singular informal	nades	that you swim
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nade	that he / she swim; that you swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nademos	that we swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadéis	that you swim (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	naden	that they swim; that you swim (plural)

• Quiero que nades conmigo. — I want you to swim with me.

Nadar 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 nadado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	nadara	that I swam
Tú — you, singular informal	nadaras	that you swam
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nadara	that he / she swam; that you swam (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadáramos	that we swam
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadarais	that you swam (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadaran	that they swam; that you swam (plural)

• Preferían que nadáramos cerca de la orilla. — They preferred that we swim near the shore.
• Era mejor que nadases en la zona vigilada. — It was better for you to swim in the supervised area.

Nadar 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	nadare	if / when I should swim
Tú — you, singular informal	nadares	if / when you should swim
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	nadare	if / when he / she should swim; if / when you should swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nadáremos	if / when we should swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadareis	if / when you should swim (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	nadaren	if / when they should swim; if / when you should swim (plural)

• Quien nadare fuera de la zona autorizada asumirá el riesgo correspondiente. — Whoever should swim outside the authorized area assumes the corresponding risk.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• Me alegra que hayas nadado hoy. — I am glad that you swam today.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• Si hubiera nadado más despacio, habría llegado menos cansado. — If I had swum more slowly, I would have arrived less tired.
• Si hubieses nadado cerca de la orilla, habría sido más seguro. — If you had swum near the shore, it would have been safer.

Nadar 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 nadado.

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

• Si hubieren nadado participantes adicionales, deberán registrarlos. — If additional participants should have swum, they must register them.

Nadar imperative and commands

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

Nadar 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	nada	swim
Usted — you, singular formal	nade	swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	nademos	let’s swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	nadad	swim (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	naden	swim (plural)

• Nada hacia la orilla. — Swim toward the shore.

Nadar 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 nades	do not swim
Usted — you, singular formal	no nade	do not swim (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no nademos	let’s not swim
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no nadéis	do not swim (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no naden	do not swim (plural)

• No nades solo de noche. — Do not swim alone at night.

Common constructions with Nadar

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

• nadar en + body of water / pool. — to swim in a body of water or pool.
• nadar hasta / hacia + destination. — to swim to / toward a destination.
• nadar + distance. — to swim a distance.
• nadar en + abundance, figurative. — to be swimming in / abound in something.

Example sentences with Nadar

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

• Me gusta nadar en el mar. — I like swimming in the sea.
• Nada muy bien. — He / she swims very well.
• Estamos nadando cerca de la costa. — We are swimming near the coast.
• Espero que nades en una zona segura. — I hope you swim in a safe area.
• Han nadado durante una hora. — They have swum for an hour.
• Nada siempre donde haya vigilancia. — Always swim where there is supervision.

Regional and usage notes for Nadar

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

• Vos nadás muy bien. — You swim very well. (voseo)
• Nadá hasta la boya y volvé. — Swim to the buoy and come back. (affirmative vos command)

Nadar is fully regular and primarily intransitive. Once the -AR endings are secure, focus on useful complements for place, direction, distance, duration, and swimming conditions.