cenar Present Conjugation
cenar — to have dinner
The present tense of cenar is regular: ceno, cenas, cena, cenamos, cenáis, cenan.
cenar Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense to talk about your daily dinner habits or what you are eating for dinner right now. It is the go-to tense for describing your typical evening routine.
Notes on cenar in the Present
Cenar is a completely regular -ar verb in the present tense. It follows the standard pattern without any stem changes.
Example Sentences
Normalmente ceno a las ocho de la noche.
I usually have dinner at eight in the evening.
yo
¿Qué cenas hoy?
What are you having for dinner today?
tú
Ellos cenan en el jardín porque hace buen tiempo.
They are having dinner in the garden because the weather is nice.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'tener cena' instead of 'cenar'.
Correct: ceno
Why: In Spanish, 'cenar' is a verb on its own; you don't need to say 'have' (tener) dinner.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: cené
The preterite of cenar is regular: cené, cenaste, cenó, cenamos, cenasteis, cenaron.
Imperfect
yo: cenaba
The imperfect of cenar follows the standard -aba pattern: cenaba, cenabas, cenaba, cenábamos, cenabais, cenaban.
Future
yo: cenaré
The future of cenar uses the infinitive as the stem: cenaré, cenarás, cenará, cenaremos, cenaréis, cenarán.
Conditional
yo: cenaría
The conditional of cenar is regular: cenaría, cenarías, cenaría, cenaríamos, cenaríais, cenarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: cene
The present subjunctive of cenar uses the -e endings: cene, cenes, cene, cenemos, cenéis, cenen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cenara
The imperfect subjunctive of cenar uses the -ara endings: cenara, cenaras, cenara, cenáramos, cenarais, cenaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: cena
The imperative of cenar gives commands: cena (tú), cenad (vosotros), cene (usted), cenen (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no cenes
The negative imperative of cenar uses the present subjunctive: no cenes, no cene, no cenemos, no cenéis, no cenen.