Ella Verbsdistinguir to distinguish, to make out Irregular Verb
At a glance: Distinguir (to distinguish, to make out) is a irregular verb in Spanish. In the present tense: distingo, distingues, distingue, distinguimos, distinguís, distinguen. Yo drops the u (distingo); the other forms are regular. It is also irregular in the present subjunctive (distinga).

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The Indicative Present of distinguir is used to talk about situations, events or thoughts that are happening now or in the near future. It is also used to talk about facts and truths. For example, “distingo”, meaning “I distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distingo | I distinguish |
| Tú | distingues | you distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distingue | s/he distinguishes |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguimos | we distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguís | you (plural) distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguen | they distinguish |
How it’s built: Yo drops the u (distingo); the other forms are regular.
Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.
The Indicative Preterite of distinguir is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, “distinguí”, meaning “I distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinguí | I distinguished |
| Tú | distinguiste | you distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinguió | s/he distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguimos | we distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguisteis | you (plural) distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguieron | they distinguished |
How it’s built: Regular: stem distingu- plus the -ir endings.
The Indicative Imperfect of distinguir is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, “distinguía”, meaning “I used to distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinguía | I used to distinguish |
| Tú | distinguías | you used to distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinguía | s/he used to distinguish |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguíamos | we used to distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguíais | you (plural) used to distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguían | they used to distinguish |
How it’s built: Regular: stem distingu- plus the -ir endings.
The Indicative Present Continuous of distinguir is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, “estoy distinguiendo”, meaning “I am distinguishing”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | estoy distinguiendo | I am distinguishing |
| Tú | estás distinguiendo | you are distinguishing |
| Ella / Él / Usted | está distinguiendo | s/he is distinguishing |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | estamos distinguiendo | we are distinguishing |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | estáis distinguiendo | you (plural) are distinguishing |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | están distinguiendo | they are distinguishing |
How it’s built: Estar in the present (estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están) plus the gerund distinguiendo.
The Indicative Informal Future of distinguir is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, “voy a distinguir”, meaning “I am going to distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | voy a distinguir | I am going to distinguish |
| Tú | vas a distinguir | you are going to distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | va a distinguir | s/he is going to distinguish |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | vamos a distinguir | we are going to distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | vais a distinguir | you (plural) are going to distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | van a distinguir | they are going to distinguish |
How it’s built: Ir in the present (voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van), then a, then the infinitive distinguir.
The Indicative Future of distinguir is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, “distinguiré”, meaning “I will distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinguiré | I will distinguish |
| Tú | distinguirás | you will distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinguirá | s/he will distinguish |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguiremos | we will distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguiréis | you (plural) will distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguirán | they will distinguish |
How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive distinguir plus the future endings.
The Indicative Conditional of distinguir is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, “distinguiría”, meaning “I would distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinguiría | I would distinguish |
| Tú | distinguirías | you would distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinguiría | s/he would distinguish |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguiríamos | we would distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguiríais | you (plural) would distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguirían | they would distinguish |
How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive distinguir plus the conditional endings.
The Indicative Present Perfect of distinguir is used to describe actions that started recently (in the past) and are still happening now or things that have been done recently. For example, “he distinguido”, meaning “I have distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | he distinguido | I have distinguished |
| Tú | has distinguido | you have distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | ha distinguido | s/he has distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hemos distinguido | we have distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habéis distinguido | you (plural) have distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | han distinguido | they have distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the present (he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han) plus the past participle distinguido.
The Indicative Past Perfect of distinguir is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, “había distinguido”, meaning “I had distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | había distinguido | I had distinguished |
| Tú | habías distinguido | you had distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | había distinguido | s/he had distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habíamos distinguido | we had distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habíais distinguido | you (plural) had distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habían distinguido | they had distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the imperfect (había, habías, había, habíamos, habíais, habían) plus the past participle distinguido.
The Indicative Future Perfect of distinguir is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, “habré distinguido”, meaning “I will have distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habré distinguido | I will have distinguished |
| Tú | habrás distinguido | you will have distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habrá distinguido | s/he will have distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habremos distinguido | we will have distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habréis distinguido | you (plural) will have distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrán distinguido | they will have distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the future (habré, habrás, habrá, habremos, habréis, habrán) plus the past participle distinguido.
The Indicative Conditional Perfect of distinguir is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, “habría distinguido”, meaning “I would have distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habría distinguido | I would have distinguished |
| Tú | habrías distinguido | you would have distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habría distinguido | s/he would have distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habríamos distinguido | we would have distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habríais distinguido | you (plural) would have distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrían distinguido | they would have distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the conditional (habría, habrías, habría, habríamos, habríais, habrían) plus the past participle distinguido.
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The Subjunctive Present is used to talk about situations of uncertainty, or emotions such as wishes, desires and hopes. It differs from the indicative mood due to the uncertainty of the events which are being spoken about. For example, “distinga”, meaning “I distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinga | I distinguish |
| Tú | distingas | you distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinga | s/he distinguishes |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distingamos | we distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distingáis | you (plural) distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distingan | they distinguish |
How it’s built: Every form follows the yo present, distingo (distinga, distingas, distinga, distingamos, distingáis, distingan).
Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.
The Subjunctive Imperfect is used to speak about unlikely or uncertain events in the past or to cast an opinion (emotional) about something that happened in the past. For example, “distinguiera”, meaning “I distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinguiera | I distinguished |
| Tú | distinguieras | you distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinguiera | s/he distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguiéramos | we distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguierais | you (plural) distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguieran | they distinguished |
How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, distinguieron, without -ron, plus the -ra endings; nosotros adds an accent (distinguiéramos).
The Subjunctive Future is used to speak about hypothetical situations, and actions/events that may happen in the future. For example, “distinguiere”, meaning “I will distinguish”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | distinguiere | I will distinguish |
| Tú | distinguieres | you will distinguish |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinguiere | s/he will distinguish |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distinguiéremos | we will distinguish |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguiereis | you (plural) will distinguish |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distinguieren | they will distinguish |
How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, distinguieron, without -ron, plus the -re endings; nosotros adds an accent (distinguiéremos).
The Subjunctive Present Perfect is used to describe past actions or events that are still connected to the present day and to speak about an action that will have happened by a certain time in the future. For example, “haya distinguido”, meaning “I have distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | haya distinguido | I have distinguished |
| Tú | hayas distinguido | you have distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | haya distinguido | s/he has distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hayamos distinguido | we have distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hayáis distinguido | you (plural) have distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hayan distinguido | they have distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive present (haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan) plus the past participle distinguido.
The Subjunctive Past Perfect is used to speak about hypothetical situations, and actions/events that occurred before other actions/events in the past. For example, “hubiera distinguido”, meaning “I had distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiera distinguido | I had distinguished |
| Tú | hubieras distinguido | you had distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiera distinguido | s/he had distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéramos distinguido | we had distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubierais distinguido | you (plural) had distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieran distinguido | they had distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive imperfect (hubiera, hubieras, hubiera, hubiéramos, hubierais, hubieran) plus the past participle distinguido.
The Subjunctive Future Perfect is used to speak about something that will have happened if a hypothetical situations occurs in the future. For example, “hubiere distinguido”, meaning “I will have distinguished”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiere distinguido | I will have distinguished |
| Tú | hubieres distinguido | you will have distinguished |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiere distinguido | s/he will have distinguished |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéremos distinguido | we will have distinguished |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubiereis distinguido | you (plural) will have distinguished |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieren distinguido | they will have distinguished |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive future (hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren) plus the past participle distinguido.
The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, “distinga”, meaning “(to you formal) distinguish!”.
In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | distingue | (to you) distinguish! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | distinga | (to you formal) distinguish! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | distingamos | let's distinguish! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | distinguid | (to you plural) distinguish! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | distingan | (to you plural formal) distinguish! |
How it’s built: Tú takes the ella/él present (distingue); usted, nosotros and ustedes take the subjunctive present (distinga, distingamos, distingan); vosotros swaps the final r of the infinitive for a d (distinguid).
Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.
The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, “no distinga”, meaning “(to you formal) don't distinguish!”.
In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | no distingas | (to you) don't distinguish! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | no distinga | (to you formal) don't distinguish! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | no distingamos | let's not distinguish! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | no distingáis | (to you plural) don't distinguish! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | no distingan | (to you plural formal) don't distinguish! |
How it’s built: No plus the subjunctive present: no distingas, no distinga, no distingamos, no distingáis, no distingan.
Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.
Distinguir is an irregular Spanish verb. In the present tense: yo drops the u (distingo); the other forms are regular. It is also irregular in the present subjunctive (distinga).
In the present tense (presente), distinguir is conjugated as: yo distingo, tú distingues, él/ella/usted distingue, nosotros distinguimos, vosotros distinguís, ellos/ellas/ustedes distinguen. The present tense is used To talk about situations, events or thoughts that are happening now or in the near future. It is also used to talk about facts and truths.
In the preterite (pretérito indefinido), distinguir is conjugated as: yo distinguí, tú distinguiste, él/ella/usted distinguió, nosotros distinguimos, vosotros distinguisteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes distinguieron. The preterite is used To talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time.
In the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto), distinguir is conjugated as: yo distinguía, tú distinguías, él/ella/usted distinguía, nosotros distinguíamos, vosotros distinguíais, ellos/ellas/ustedes distinguían. The imperfect is used To describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do.
In the future tense (futuro simple), distinguir is conjugated as: yo distinguiré, tú distinguirás, él/ella/usted distinguirá, nosotros distinguiremos, vosotros distinguiréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes distinguirán. The future tense is used To talk about something that will happen in the future.
In the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente), distinguir is conjugated as: yo distinga, tú distingas, él/ella/usted distinga, nosotros distingamos, vosotros distingáis, ellos/ellas/ustedes distingan. The present subjunctive is used To talk about situations of uncertainty, or emotions such as wishes, desires and hopes. It differs from the indicative mood due to the uncertainty of the events which are being spoken about.
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