The verb jugar means "to play" in Spanish and is used when talking about playing games or sports. It is an irregular verb because it changes its stem from u to ue in most forms, except for nosotros and vosotros. Additionally, jugar is always followed by the preposition a when specifying the game or sport being played.
Conjugation Patterns
Jugar follows a stem-changing pattern where u changes to ue in all present tense forms except nosotros and vosotros. The past participle is jugado, and the gerund is jugando. Note that in the preterite tense, only the third person singular and plural forms change stem from u to ue.
Here are the complete conjugations showing these patterns:
Simple Tenses
Present Indicative
- Stem changes u → ue in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
- Example: yo juego, tú juegas, él juega, *nosotros jugamos
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | juego | I play | Yo juego al fútbol. | I play soccer. |
| tú | juegas | you play | Tú juegas al tenis. | You play tennis. |
| él/ella | juega | he/she plays | Ella juega en el parque. | She plays in the park. |
| nosotros | jugamos | we play | Nosotros jugamos juntos. | We play together. |
| vosotros | jugáis | you all play | Vosotros jugáis cartas. | You all play cards. |
| ellos/ellas | juegan | they play | Ellos juegan videojuegos. | They play video games. |
Preterite
- Only third person singular and plural change stem: u → ue.
- Other forms use regular -ar endings.
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | jugué | I played | Yo jugué al baloncesto. | I played basketball. |
| tú | jugaste | you played | Tú jugaste ayer. | You played yesterday. |
| él/ella | jugó | he/she played | Ella jugó mucho. | She played a lot. |
| nosotros | jugamos | we played | Nosotros jugamos juntos. | We played together. |
| vosotros | jugasteis | you all played | Vosotros jugasteis tarde. | You all played late. |
| ellos/ellas | jugaron | they played | Ellos jugaron fútbol. | They played soccer. |
Imperfect
- Regular conjugation with -aba endings; no stem change.
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | jugaba | I used to play | Yo jugaba todos los días. | I used to play every day. |
| tú | jugabas | you used to play | Tú jugabas en el parque. | You used to play in the park. |
| él/ella | jugaba | he/she used to play | Él jugaba con amigos. | He used to play with friends. |
Future
- Add future endings to infinitive; no stem change in jugar itself, but note that some other verbs do.
- For jugar, the stem remains jugar-; no vowel change occurs in future tense.
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | jugaré | I will play | Yo jugaré al tenis mañana. | I will play tennis tomorrow. |
| tú | jugarás | you will play | Tú jugarás conmigo. | You will play with me. |
| él/ella | jugará | he/she will play | Ella jugará más tarde. | She will play later. |
| nosotros | jugaremos | we will play | Nosotros jugaremos juntos. | We will play together. |
| ellos/ellas | jugarán | they will play | Ellos jugarán en equipo. | They will play on a team. |
Compound Tenses
Present Perfect
- Uses haber + jugado (past participle).
- Past participle jugado is regular.
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | he jugado | I have played | Yo he jugado al ajedrez. | I have played chess. |
| tú | has jugado | you have played | Tú has jugado mucho. | You have played a lot. |
| ella | ha jugado | she has played | Ella ha jugado hoy. | She has played today. |
Subjunctive Mood
Present Subjunctive
- Stem change u → ue in all forms.
- Formed by starting from yo form in present indicative, changing -o to -e (for -ar verbs).
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | juegue | I play | Es posible que yo juegue. | It's possible that I play. |
| tú | juegues | you play | Ojalá tú juegues bien. | Hopefully you play well. |
| él/ella | juegue | he/she plays | Que ella juegue con nosotros. | May she play with us. |
Imperfect Subjunctive
- Take third person plural preterite (jugaron), remove -ron, add endings -ra / -se.
- Contains original infinitive stem jug-.
| Person | Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| yo | jugara or jugase | I played | Si yo jugara más, ganaría. | If I played more, I would win. |
| tú | jugaras or jugases | you played | Si tú jugaras mejor... | If you played better... |
| ella | jugara or jugase | she played | Ojalá ella jugara hoy. | I wish she played today. |
Gerund and Past Participle
- Gerund (present participle): jugando (playing)
- Past participle: jugado (played) — always ends in -ado for regular -ar verbs.
Usage and Grammar Rules
- Jugar always takes the preposition a when specifying the game or sport.
- Examples:
- Jugar a la pelota (to play ball)
- Jugar al ajedrez (to play chess)
- Jugar a las cartas (to play cards)
- When jugar appears without a direct object, the preposition a is omitted.
- Example: ¿Quieres jugar? (Do you want to play?)
Common Examples
| Spanish Verb | English Verb | Spanish Example | English Example |
|---|
| juego | I play | Yo juego al fútbol todos los días. | I play soccer every day. |
| jugó | he/she played | Ella jugó tenis ayer. | She played tennis yesterday. |
| jugábamos | we used to play | Nosotros jugábamos en el parque. | We used to play in the park. |
| jugaré | I will play | Yo jugaré esta noche. | I will play tonight. |
| ha jugado | he/she has played | Él ha jugado mucho tiempo. | He has played for a long time. |
Summary
- Jugar = "to play" (games/sports in Spanish)
- Stem change u → ue in present, present subjunctive, and some past forms
- Past participle = jugado (regular)
- Preposition a required when naming the game/sport (jugar a …)
- Examples: juego al tenis, jugué ayer, *ellos juegan a las cartas
