Let’s work on the “trabajar” conjugation in Spanish!
The verb “trabajar” in Spanish means “to work.” It is a regular -ar verb, which means it follows a common conjugation pattern for verbs ending in -ar
In today’s blog post, you’ll learn all about the verb conjugation for “trabajar” in the different modes of Indicative, Subjunctive, and Imperative!
Are you ready? Let’s start learning!
Read more: THE 150 MOST COMMON SPANISH VERBS (IRREGULAR + REGULAR)
“Trabajar” Conjugation in Spanish Indicative / Indicativo
The indicative tense (el modo indicativo) is one of the three grammatical moods used to express different attitudes or purposes in speech. The indicative mood is used to make factual statements, ask questions, and express opinions about actions or events that are considered real or certain.
Present Tense Trabajar Conjugation / Presente
The present tense is used to describe actions happening in the present or to express general truths or habitual actions.
Yo | Trabajo |
Tú | Trabajas |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabaja |
Nosotros | Trabajamos |
Vosotros | Trabajáis |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajan |
Examples:
- Yo trabajo en una oficina. (I work in an office.)
- Usted trabaja en el hospital. (You work at the hospital.)
- Vosotros trabajáis juntos en el proyecto. (You all work together on the project.)
Simple Past Trabajar Conjugation / Pasado
The simple past tense (preterite) is used to describe completed actions in the past, often with specific time frames or events.
Yo | Trabajé |
Tú | Trabajaste |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabajó |
Nosotros | Trabajamos |
Vosotros | Trabajasteis |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajaron |
Examples:
- ¿Dónde trabajaste el verano pasado? (Where did you work last summer?)
- Nosotros siempre trabajamos bien juntos. (We always work well together.)
- Ellos trabajaron en la construcción del nuevo edificio. (They worked on the construction of the new building.)
Imperfect Trabajar Conjugation / Imperfecto
Spanish imperfect tense is used to describe ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions in the past, as well as to set the stage or provide background information
Yo | Trabajaba |
Tú | Trabajabas |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabajaba |
Nosotros | Trabajábamos |
Vosotros | Trabajabais |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajaban |
Examples:
- Ella trabajaba en el hospital como enfermera. (She worked at the hospital as a nurse.)
- Tú trabajabas en el restaurante del centro. (You worked at the downtown restaurant.)
- ¿En qué industria trabajaban antes de jubilarse? (In which industry did they work before retiring?)
Present Continuous Trabajar Conjugation / Presente Continuo
The present continuous tense (also known as “estar + gerundio”) is used to describe actions that are currently happening in the present moment or to express temporary situations.
Yo | Estoy trabajando |
Tú | Estás trabajando |
Él/Ella/Usted | Está trabajando |
Nosotros | Estamos trabajando |
Vosotros | Estáis trabajando |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Están trabajando |
Examples:
- Estoy trabajando en mi informe para la escuela. (I am working on my school report.)
- Vosotros estáis trabajando en la nueva presentación. (You all are working on the new presentation.)
- Nosotros estamos trabajando en mejorar nuestros servicios. (We are working on improving our services.)
Future Tense / Futuro
The Spanish future tense is used to express actions or events that will happen in the future, indicating something that has not yet occurred.
Yo | Trabajaré |
Tú | Trabajarás |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabajará |
Nosotros | Trabajaremos |
Vosotros | Trabajaréis |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajarán |
Examples:
- Mañana trabajaré desde casa. (Tomorrow I will work from home.)
- El año que viene, él trabajará en el extranjero. (Next year, he will work abroad.)
- En el futuro, ellos trabajarán en proyectos sostenibles. (In the future, they will work on sustainable projects.)
Conditional Trabajar Conjugation / Condicional
The conditional tense is used to express hypothetical or speculative actions or events that would happen under certain conditions in the present or future.
Yo | Trabajaría |
Tú | Trabajarías |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabajaría |
Nosotros | Trabajaríamos |
Vosotros | Trabajaríais |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajarían |
Examples:
- Si tuvieras la oportunidad, ¿trabajarías en el extranjero? (If you had the opportunity, would you work abroad?)
- Si ganara la lotería, ella trabajaría solo por placer. (If she won the lottery, she would work only for pleasure.)
- ¿Trabajaríamos juntos en el nuevo proyecto? (Would we work together on the new project?)
Present Perfect / Pretérito Perfecto Compuesto
Spanish present perfect tense (also known as “pretérito perfecto compuesto”) is used to express actions that have occurred in the past but have a connection to the present, emphasizing the result or consequences of those actions.
Yo | He trabajado |
Tú | Has trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Ha trabajado |
Nosotros | Hemos trabajado |
Vosotros | Habéis trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Han trabajado |
Examples:
- He trabajado en la misma empresa durante cinco años. (I have worked at the same company for five years.)
- ¿Has trabajado alguna vez en el extranjero? (Have you ever worked abroad?)
- Ellos han trabajado juntos en varios proyectos. (They have worked together on several projects.)
Past Perfect Trabajar Conjugation / Pretérico Pluscuamperfecto
Spanish past perfect tense (also known as “pretérito pluscuamperfecto”) is used to describe actions that occurred before another past action or event, expressing a past-in-the-past relationship.
Yo | Había trabajado |
Tú | Has trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Ha trabajado |
Nosotros | Hemos trabajado |
Vosotros | Habéis trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Han trabajado |
Examples:
- Antes de mudarme, ya había trabajado en esa ciudad. (Before moving, I had already worked in that city.)
- ¿Cuántas horas habéis trabajado esta semana? (How many hours have you all worked this week?)
Future Perfect / Futuro Perfecto
The Spanish future perfect tense is used to express actions that will have been completed in the future, indicating an action that will be finished before another specified future time or event.
Yo | Habré trabajado |
Tú | Habrás trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Habrá trabajado |
Nosotros | Habremos trabajado |
Vosotros | Habréis trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Habrán trabajado |
Examples:
- ¿Habrás trabajado lo suficiente para el examen final? (Will you have worked enough for the final exam?)
- Después de la jubilación, ella habrá trabajado en la misma profesión durante 40 años. (After retirement, she will have worked in the same profession for 40 years.)
Conditional Perfect / Condicional Perfect
The conditional perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or speculative actions that would have been completed in the past, indicating an action that would have happened prior to another past event.
Yo | Habría trabajado |
Tú | Habrías trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Habría trabajado |
Nosotros | Habríamos trabajado |
Vosotros | Habríais trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Habrían trabajado |
Examples:
- Él habría trabajado más horas si le hubieran pedido. (He would have worked more hours if they had asked him.)
- Nosotros habríamos trabajado más rápido si no hubiera habido tantas interrupciones. (We would have worked faster if there hadn’t been so many interruptions.)
“Trabajar” Conjugation in Spanish Subjunctive / Subjuntivo
The subjunctive tense (el modo subjuntivo) is one of the three grammatical moods used to express different attitudes or purposes in speech. The subjunctive mood is used to express doubt, uncertainty, subjectivity, emotion, and hypothetical situations.
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Present Tense / Presente
The Spanish subjunctive present tense is used to express subjective actions, desires, doubts, recommendations, or possibilities, often introduced by certain triggers such as expressions of doubt, necessity, or influence.
Yo | Trabaje |
Tú | Trabajes |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabaje |
Nosotros | Trabajemos |
Vosotros | Trabajéis |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajen |
Examples:
- Ojalá que yo trabaje menos horas la próxima semana. (I hope that I work fewer hours next week.)
- Quizás sea mejor que tú trabajes desde casa hoy. (Perhaps it’s better that you work from home today.)
- Propongo que nosotros trabajemos juntos en la presentación. (I suggest that we work together on the presentation.)
Imperfect / Imperfecto
This tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the past, often introduced by certain triggers such as expressions of doubt, uncertainty, or unreal conditions.
Yo | Trabajara |
Tú | Trabajaras |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabajara |
Nosotros | Trabajaramos |
Vosotros | Trabajarais |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajaran |
Examples:
- Dudo que él trabajara tan tarde anoche. (I doubt that he worked so late last night.)
- Si no fuera por la lluvia, vosotros trabajaríais en el jardín ahora. (If it weren’t for the rain, you all would be working in the garden now.)
- Era posible que ellos trabajaran en diferentes turnos. (It was possible that they worked different shifts.)
Present Perfect / Pretérito Perfecto
Spanish subjunctive present perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the present with a connection to the past, indicating actions that would have been completed prior to the present moment.
Yo | Haya trabajado |
Tú | Hayas trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Haya trabajado |
Nosotros | Hayamos trabajado |
Vosotros | Hayáis trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Hayan trabajado |
Examples:
- Espero que usted haya trabajado en la preparación del informe. (I hope that you have worked on the preparation of the report.)
- Hemos trabajado mucho en este proyecto y estamos ansiosos por ver los resultados. (We have worked a lot on this project, and we are eager to see the results.)
Past Perfect / Pretérico Pluscuamperfecto
Spanish subjunctive past perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the past with a connection to a previous past event, indicating actions that would have been completed before that past event.
Yo | Hubiera trabajado |
Tú | Hubieras trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Hubiera trabajado |
Nosotros | Hubiéramos trabajado |
Vosotros | Hubierais trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Hubieran trabajado |
Examples:
- Si hubieras llegado a tiempo, hubieras trabajado en el primer turno. (If you had arrived on time, you would have worked the first shift.)
- Hubiéramos trabajado más horas si el proyecto lo hubiera requerido. (We would have worked more hours if the project had required it.)
- Hubierais trabajado mejor en equipo para completar la tarea. (You all would have worked better as a team to complete the task.)
Future Perfect / Futuro Perfecto
The future perfect tense is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions, desires, doubts, or recommendations in the future with a connection to a future event, indicating actions that would have been completed before that future event.
Yo | Hubiere trabajado |
Tú | Hubieres trabajado |
Él/Ella/Usted | Hubiere trabajado |
Nosotros | Hubiéremos trabajado |
Vosotros | Hubiereis trabajado |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Hubieren trabajado |
Examples:
- No hay garantía de que hubiere trabajado en la solución correcta. (There is no guarantee that he would have worked on the correct solution.)
- Hubiéremos trabajado en este proyecto juntos si no hubiera surgido ese problema. (We would have worked on this project together if that issue hadn’t arisen.)
“Trabajar” Conjugation in Spanish Imperative / Imperativo
The imperative tense (el modo imperativo) is one of the verb moods used to express commands, orders, or requests. It is used to tell someone what to do or what not to do.
Affirmative / Afirmativos
Spanish affirmative refers to the use of positive statements or expressions that indicate agreement, confirmation, or positive response to a question or statement.
Yo | – |
Tú | Trabaja |
Él/Ella/Usted | Trabaje |
Nosotros | Trabajemos |
Vosotros | Trabajad |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Trabajen |
Examples:
- ¡Trabaja más rápido para terminar a tiempo! (Work faster to finish on time!)
- Trabajad juntos para resolver el problema. (Work together to solve the problem.)
- Por favor, trabajen en silencio durante el examen. (Please work silently during the exam.)
Negative / Negativos
Spanish negative refers to the use of negative statements or expressions that indicate negation, denial, or disagreement with a question or statement.
Yo | – |
Tú | No trabajes |
Él/Ella/Usted | No trabaje |
Nosotros | No trabajemos |
Vosotros | No trabajléis |
Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | No trabajen |
Examples:
- No trabajes tan tarde, necesitas descansar. (Don’t work so late; you need to rest.)
- Por favor, no trabaje durante mi ausencia. (Please don’t work during my absence.)
- Hoy hace buen tiempo, no trabajemos, vayamos al parque. (The weather is nice today, let’s not work; let’s go to the park.)
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In conclusion, understanding the conjugation of the verb “Trabajar” in Spanish is a fundamental step in mastering the language.
Learning the conjugation of “Trabajar” not only improves our ability to communicate effectively, but also allows us to immerse ourselves more deeply in the rich and diverse Spanish-speaking cultures.
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