Prepararse Conjugation | How to Conjugate Prepararse in Spanish

Prepararse means “to prepare oneself,” “to get ready,” or “to study/train for something.” You will learn its fully regular pronominal -AR conjugation and core para patterns.

Prepararse conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Regular AR. Prepararse is pronominal and uses regular -AR verbal morphology. RAE explicitly defines prepararse as getting ready or making oneself ready for an action or purpose; Ella Verbs confirms the regular pronominal paradigm.

Prepararse gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The pronominal infinitive keeps se. The gerund can carry an attached clitic, and compound non-finite forms combine the clitic with haber. The participle preparado remains invariant in compound forms.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	prepararse	to prepare oneself / get ready
Gerund	preparándose	preparing oneself / getting ready
Past participle	preparado	prepared / gotten ready
Compound infinitive	haberse preparado	to have prepared / gotten ready
Compound gerund	habiéndose preparado	having prepared / gotten ready

Prepararse meaning and essential uses

RAE explicitly records prepararse as disposing or readying oneself to carry something out or for a particular purpose.

It is common with para + noun / infinitive: Me preparo para el examen, Nos preparamos para salir. It also covers studying or training oneself.

Prepararse regular conjugation and pronoun placement

The base preparar is fully regular -AR. Add the matching clitic before finite forms: me preparo, te preparaste, se preparará, nos preparemos.

Affirmative commands attach the clitic: prepárate, prepárese, preparémonos, preparaos, prepárense. Negative commands keep the clitic before the subjunctive.

Prepararse indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Prepararse 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	me preparo	I prepare myself / get ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te preparas	you prepare yourself / get ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se prepara	he / she prepares himself or herself / gets ready; you prepare yourself / get ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos preparamos	we prepare ourselves / get ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os preparáis	you prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se preparan	they prepare themselves / get ready; you prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)

• Me preparo para el examen cada tarde. — I prepare for the exam every afternoon.

Prepararse 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	me preparé	I prepared myself / got ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te preparaste	you prepared yourself / got ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se preparó	he / she prepared himself / herself / got ready; you prepared yourself / got ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos preparamos	we prepared ourselves / got ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os preparasteis	you prepared yourselves / got ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se prepararon	they prepared themselves / got ready; you prepared yourselves / got ready (plural)

• Ayer me preparé para la entrevista. — Yesterday I prepared for the interview.

Prepararse imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	me preparaba	I used to prepare myself / get ready / was preparing myself / getting ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te preparabas	you used to prepare yourself / get ready / were preparing yourself / getting ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se preparaba	he / she used to prepare himself / herself / get ready / was preparing himself / herself / getting ready; you used to prepare yourself / get ready / were preparing yourself / getting ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos preparábamos	we used to prepare ourselves / get ready / were preparing ourselves / getting ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os preparabais	you used to prepare yourselves / get ready / were preparing yourselves / getting ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se preparaban	they used to prepare themselves / get ready / were preparing themselves / getting ready; you used to prepare yourselves / get ready / were preparing yourselves / getting ready (plural)

• Antes nos preparábamos juntos para los exámenes. — We used to prepare together for exams.

Prepararse present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. The main table places the clitic before estar. Enclisis is also standard: estoy preparándome.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	me estoy preparando	I am preparing myself / getting ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te estás preparando	you are preparing yourself / getting ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se está preparando	he / she is preparing himself / herself / getting ready; you are preparing yourself / getting ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos estamos preparando	we are preparing ourselves / getting ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os estáis preparando	you are preparing yourselves / getting ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se están preparando	they are preparing themselves / getting ready; you are preparing yourselves / getting ready (plural)

• Me estoy preparando para salir. — I am getting ready to leave.

Prepararse near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis expresses an intention, plan, or expected event. The main table places the clitic before ir. Attaching it to the infinitive is also standard: voy a prepararme.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	me voy a preparar	I am going to prepare myself / get ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te vas a preparar	you are going to prepare yourself / get ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se va a preparar	he / she is going to prepare himself / herself / get ready; you are going to prepare yourself / get ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos vamos a preparar	we are going to prepare ourselves / get ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os vais a preparar	you are going to prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se van a preparar	they are going to prepare themselves / get ready; you are going to prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)

• Me voy a preparar para la reunión. — I am going to prepare for the meeting.

Prepararse 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	me prepararé	I will prepare myself / get ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te prepararás	you will prepare yourself / get ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se preparará	he / she will prepare himself / herself / get ready; you will prepare yourself / get ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos prepararemos	we will prepare ourselves / get ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os prepararéis	you will prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se prepararán	they will prepare themselves / get ready; you will prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)

• Nos prepararemos para el viaje mañana. — We will prepare for the trip tomorrow.

Prepararse 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	me prepararía	I would prepare myself / get ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te prepararías	you would prepare yourself / get ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se prepararía	he / she would prepare himself / herself / get ready; you would prepare yourself / get ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos prepararíamos	we would prepare ourselves / get ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os prepararíais	you would prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se prepararían	they would prepare themselves / get ready; you would prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)

• Me prepararía mejor con más tiempo. — I would prepare better with more time.

Prepararse present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use it for completed events connected to a present reference frame; regional distribution varies. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	me he preparado	I have prepared / gotten ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te has preparado	you have prepared / gotten ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se ha preparado	he / she has prepared / gotten ready; you have prepared / gotten ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos hemos preparado	we have prepared / gotten ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os habéis preparado	you have prepared / gotten ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se han preparado	they have prepared / gotten ready; you have prepared / gotten ready (plural)

• Me he preparado bien para el examen. — I have prepared well for the exam.

Prepararse past perfect conjugation

Past perfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use it for an event completed before another past reference point. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	me había preparado	I had prepared / gotten ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te habías preparado	you had prepared / gotten ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se había preparado	he / she had prepared / gotten ready; you had prepared / gotten ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos habíamos preparado	we had prepared / gotten ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os habíais preparado	you had prepared / gotten ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se habían preparado	they had prepared / gotten ready; you had prepared / gotten ready (plural)

• Ya nos habíamos preparado para salir. — We had already gotten ready to leave.

Prepararse future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro perfecto) — Use it for an event expected to be completed before a future reference point. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

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

• Para entonces se habrán preparado todos para la prueba. — By then everyone will have prepared for the test.

Prepararse conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto) — Use it for a hypothetical completed outcome. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

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

• Me habría preparado antes si hubiera sabido la fecha. — I would have prepared earlier if I had known the date.

Prepararse subjunctive conjugations

Prepararse 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	me prepare	that I prepare myself / get ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te prepares	that you prepare yourself / get ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se prepare	that he / she prepare himself / herself / get ready; that you prepare yourself / get ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos preparemos	that we prepare ourselves / get ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os preparéis	that you prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se preparen	that they prepare themselves / get ready; that you prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)

• Quiero que te prepares para la entrevista. — I want you to prepare for the interview.

Prepararse 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. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	me preparara	that I prepared myself / got ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te prepararas	that you prepared yourself / got ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se preparara	that he / she prepared himself / herself / got ready; that you prepared yourself / got ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos preparáramos	that we prepared ourselves / got ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os prepararais	that you prepared yourselves / got ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se prepararan	that they prepared themselves / got ready; that you prepared yourselves / got ready (plural)

• Preferían que nos preparáramos juntos. — They preferred that we prepare together.
• Era mejor que te preparases con más tiempo. — It was better for you to prepare with more time.

Prepararse 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	me preparare	if / when I should prepare myself / get ready
Tú — you, singular informal	te preparares	if / when you should prepare yourself / get ready
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	se preparare	if / when he / she should prepare himself / herself / get ready; if / when you should prepare yourself / get ready (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	nos preparáremos	if / when we should prepare ourselves / get ready
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	os preparareis	if / when you should prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	se prepararen	if / when they should prepare themselves / get ready; if / when you should prepare yourselves / get ready (plural)

• Quien se preparare para la prueba deberá revisar las instrucciones. — Whoever should prepare for the test must review the instructions.

Prepararse 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. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

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

• Me alegra que te hayas preparado bien. — I am glad that you prepared well.

Prepararse 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. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

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

• Si me hubiera preparado antes, habría estado más tranquilo. — If I had prepared earlier, I would have been calmer.
• Si te hubieses preparado para la entrevista, habrías respondido mejor. — If you had prepared for the interview, you would have answered better.

Prepararse 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. The clitic precedes the finite form of haber, followed by invariant preparado.

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

• Si se hubieren preparado participantes adicionales, podrán realizar la prueba. — If additional participants should have prepared, they may take the test.

Prepararse imperative and commands

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

Prepararse affirmative commands

Affirmative commands attach the clitic and recompute stress: prepárate, prepárese, preparémonos, preparaos, prepárense.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	prepárate	prepare yourself
Usted — you, singular formal	prepárese	prepare yourself (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	preparémonos	let’s prepare ourselves
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	preparaos	prepare yourselves (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	prepárense	prepare yourselves (plural)

• Prepárate para salir. — Get ready to leave.

Prepararse negative commands

Negative commands use subjunctive-based forms, with no before the person-matched clitic and the verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no te prepares	do not prepare yourself
Usted — you, singular formal	no se prepare	do not prepare yourself (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no nos preparemos	let’s not prepare ourselves
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no os preparéis	do not prepare yourselves (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no se preparen	do not prepare yourselves (plural)

• No te prepares con prisa. — Do not get ready in a rush.

Common constructions with Prepararse

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

• prepararse para + noun. — to prepare oneself for something.
• prepararse para + infinitive. — to get ready to do something.
• prepararse bien / mal. — to prepare well / poorly.
• prepararse un examen. — in some varieties, to study/prepare an exam; usage varies.

Example sentences with Prepararse

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

• Me preparo para una entrevista. — I am preparing for an interview.
• Nos estamos preparando para salir. — We are getting ready to leave.
• ¿Ya te has preparado? — Have you gotten ready yet?
• Espero que te prepares con tiempo. — I hope you prepare in advance.
• Se han preparado muy bien. — They have prepared very well.
• Prepárense para empezar. — Get ready to begin.

Regional and usage notes for Prepararse

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

• Vos te preparás para el examen. — You prepare for the exam. (voseo)
• Preparate para salir. — Get ready to leave. (affirmative vos command)

Prepararse is fully regular morphologically. Keep the pronominal clitic and master the highly productive structure prepararse para + noun / infinitive.