Usar Conjugation | How to Conjugate Usar in Spanish

Usar means “to use,” “to employ,” or in some contexts “to wear.” You will learn its fully regular -AR conjugation and the main patterns for tools, methods, clothing, and customary use.

Usar conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Regular AR. Usar keeps the stable stem us- and takes ordinary -AR endings. Its gerund usando — “using / wearing” — and participle usado — “used / worn” — are regular.

Usar 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 usado remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	usar	to use / wear
Gerund	usando	using / wearing
Past participle	usado	used / worn

Usar meaning and essential uses

Usar is transitive and primarily means making something serve a purpose: Uso esta herramienta para abrir la caja. — “I use this tool to open the box.”

RAE also records using or practicing something habitually and wearing clothing or personal adornments: Usa gafas. — “He / she wears glasses.” The pronominal usarse can mean “to be in fashion / be customary.”

Usar regular conjugation pattern

The stem us- remains unchanged throughout the core paradigm. Forms such as uso — “I use,” usé — “I used,” and use — “that I use” — follow normal -AR morphology.

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

Usar indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Usar 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	uso	I use / wear
Tú — you, singular informal	usas	you use / wear
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usa	he / she uses / wears; you use / wear (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usamos	we use / wear
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usáis	you use / wear (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usan	they use / wear; you use / wear (plural)

• Uso esta aplicación todos los días. — I use this app every day.

Usar 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	usé	I used / wore
Tú — you, singular informal	usaste	you used / wore
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usó	he / she used / wore; you used / wore (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usamos	we used / wore
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usasteis	you used / wore (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usaron	they used / wore; you used / wore (plural)

• Ayer usé una herramienta diferente. — Yesterday I used a different tool.

Usar imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus invariant usado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	usaba	I used to use / wear / was using / wearing
Tú — you, singular informal	usabas	you used to use / wear / were using / wearing
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usaba	he / she used to use / wear / was using / wearing; you used to use / wear / were using / wearing (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usábamos	we used to use / wear / were using / wearing
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usabais	you used to use / wear / were using / wearing (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usaban	they used to use / wear / were using / wearing; you used to use / wear / were using / wearing (plural)

• Antes usaba gafas. — I used to wear glasses.

Usar present progressive

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

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

• Estoy usando el ordenador de Marta. — I am using Marta’s computer.

Usar 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 usar.

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

• Voy a usar otro método. — I am going to use another method.

Usar 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	usaré	I will use / wear
Tú — you, singular informal	usarás	you will use / wear
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usará	he / she will use / wear; you will use / wear (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usaremos	we will use / wear
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usaréis	you will use / wear (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usarán	they will use / wear; you will use / wear (plural)

• Usaremos esta sala mañana. — We will use this room tomorrow.

Usar 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	usaría	I would use / wear
Tú — you, singular informal	usarías	you would use / wear
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usaría	he / she would use / wear; you would use / wear (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usaríamos	we would use / wear
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usaríais	you would use / wear (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usarían	they would use / wear; you would use / wear (plural)

• Usaría una contraseña más larga. — I would use a longer password.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• He usado este sistema antes. — I have used this system before.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• Ya habíamos usado esa herramienta. — We had already used that tool.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• Para entonces habrán usado todos los materiales. — By then they will have used all the materials.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• Habría usado otro método. — I would have used another method.

Usar subjunctive conjugations

Usar 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	use	that I use / wear
Tú — you, singular informal	uses	that you use / wear
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	use	that he / she use / wear; that you use / wear (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usemos	that we use / wear
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	uséis	that you use / wear (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usen	that they use / wear; that you use / wear (plural)

• Quiero que uses esta plantilla. — I want you to use this template.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	usara	that I used / wore
Tú — you, singular informal	usaras	that you used / wore
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usara	that he / she used / wore; that you used / wore (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usáramos	that we used / wore
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usarais	that you used / wore (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usaran	that they used / wore; that you used / wore (plural)

• Preferían que usáramos menos papel. — They preferred that we use less paper.
• Era mejor que usases una herramienta adecuada. — It was better for you to use a suitable tool.

Usar 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	usare	if / when I should use / wear
Tú — you, singular informal	usares	if / when you should use / wear
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	usare	if / when he / she should use / wear; if / when you should use / wear (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	usáremos	if / when we should use / wear
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usareis	if / when you should use / wear (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	usaren	if / when they should use / wear; if / when you should use / wear (plural)

• Quien usare este equipo deberá seguir las instrucciones. — Whoever should use this equipment must follow the instructions.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• Me alegra que hayas usado una copia de seguridad. — I am glad that you used a backup.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• Si hubiera usado esa herramienta, habría terminado antes. — If I had used that tool, I would have finished earlier.
• Si hubieses usado una contraseña segura, habría menos riesgo. — If you had used a secure password, there would be less risk.

Usar 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 invariant usado.

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

• Si hubieren usado datos externos, deberán citar la fuente. — If they should have used external data, they must cite the source.

Usar imperative and commands

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

Usar 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	usa	use
Usted — you, singular formal	use	use (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	usemos	let’s use
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	usad	use (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	usen	use (plural)

• Usa esta herramienta con cuidado. — Use this tool carefully.

Usar 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 uses	do not use
Usted — you, singular formal	no use	do not use (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no usemos	let’s not use
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no uséis	do not use (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no usen	do not use (plural)

• No uses una contraseña fácil. — Do not use an easy password.

Common constructions with Usar

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

• usar algo. — to use something.
• usar algo para + infinitive. — to use something in order to do something.
• usar ropa / gafas / un adorno. — to wear clothing / glasses / an accessory.
• usarse. — to be customary / in fashion.

Example sentences with Usar

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

• ¿Cómo se usa esta máquina? — How is this machine used?
• Uso el teléfono para trabajar. — I use the phone for work.
• Ella usa gafas. — She wears glasses.
• Espero que uses una contraseña segura. — I hope you use a secure password.
• Este término ya no se usa mucho. — This term is not used much anymore.
• Usa solo la cantidad necesaria. — Use only the necessary amount.

Regional and usage notes for Usar

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 usás esta aplicación todos los días. — You use this app every day. (voseo)
• Usá una contraseña segura. — Use a secure password. (affirmative vos command)

Usar is fully regular. Its main learner challenge is semantic range: it can mean ordinary “use,” habitual practice, wearing certain items, or—with the pronominal form—something being customary or fashionable.