llamar means: to call, to name
Click to see all conjugation charts of llamar in every tense

In this conjugation lesson we are going to learn how to conjugate the verb llamar in the Presente tense of the Indicativo mood. It means we will see step by step how to create and translate forms of each grammatical person.

This lesson is specifically about the llamar verb conjugation. For an overview of all the Simple Tenses conjugation see our Simple Tenses Conjugation Chart.

You may also see this Video Presentation on how to conjugate verbs in Presente. It’s embedded below, but using the above link you can get more detailed information on conjugation in this tense and explanation of exceptions and special cases.

How to translate Presente to English

Notice that the English phrases provided below next to each conjugation are not direct translations from Spanish to English. They are usually the closest general equivalents. The example differences are:

• In Spanish conjugation, there is the form usted in the third person singular. But this person does not translate to the English third person singular. It translates to the so called formal you and uses the inflected form which is most often represented as he/she/it in English conjugation charts.
• Similar situation happens in the third person plural, where ustedes translates to the English plural formal you but uses the form which corresponds to the they form in English.
• Tenses are used differently in Spanish and English, so the actual translation should always take into account the context and focus on translating the meaning, not just words.
• In both languages each verb may have multiple meanings and not every meaning translates directly to the other language. Here also, the context and focusing on the particular meaning helps to create the most accurate translation.

The Spanish Presente de Indicativo tense translates to one of the following:

• The English Present tense, for example:
  yo llamo

  I call
• The English Present Progressive (also called Present Continuous) tense, for instance:
  ahora mismo tú llamas

  you are calling right now
  
  Notice though, that the Spanish equivalent of the Present Progressive also exists and is in common use – that’s Presente Progresivo (or Presente Continuo).

Note the timeline

The ability to correctly locate the intended position on the timeline is an important skill for proper use of tenses. So pay attention to the timeline in our lessons and visualize it while speaking, listening, writing and reading. After a bit practice you’ll be capable of selecting the right tense to use much easier.

Step by step instructions

Presente belongs to the simple tenses group, which means that all of the conjugated forms are one word long. There are also compound (compuesto) tenses in Spanish language, where each conjugated verb form consists of two words.The verb llamar has regular conjugation in the Presente tense of the Indicativo mood. It means that this verb follows the general rules for its conjugation group (-ar) without any exceptions. The basis for this conjugation is the stem of the verb, so we have to begin by splitting the infinitive into a stem and an ending. It’s easy to do. Simply remove two letters from the end of the infinitive form and you have the ending — one of -ar, -er or -ir. What’s left is the stem. So for our verb:

• the stem is: llam-
• and the ending is: -ar

Use the stem llam- in each subject as the basis for conjugations, the common prefix that each of the forms begins with. Next, add to this regular stem the endings specific to each person. Analyze the image showing all six endings. Notice the shapes and colors of the letters. It should help you find patterns and make it easier to remember these endings.Each grammatical person has a specific ending in each of the three conjugation groups -ar, -er, -ir. Add the regular ending -o for the first person singular to create llamo:

• yo llamo – I call

Like in the previous case add the regular ending -as for the second person singular to create llamas:

• tú llamas – you call

And as before add the regular ending -a for the third person singular to create llama:

• él llama – he calls
• ella llama – she calls
• usted llama – (formal) you call

Like previously add the regular ending -amos for the first person plural to create llamamos:

• nosotros llamamos – we call
• nosotras llamamos – (feminine) we call

And again add the regular ending -áis for the second person plural to create llamáis:

• vosotros llamáis – (plural) you call
• vosotras llamáis – (feminine, plural) you call

Again add the regular ending -an for the third person plural to create llaman:

• ellos llaman – they call
• ellas llaman – (feminine) they call
• ustedes llaman – (formal, plural) you call

This is it! The conjugation is now complete. The final result looks as follows:

yo	llamo	I call
tú	llamas	you call
él/ella/usted	llama	he/she/it calls
nosotros/nosotras	llamamos	we call
vosotros/vosotras	llamáis	you call
ellos/ellas/ustedes	llaman	they call

Click to see all conjugation charts of llamar in every tense
But do not end your session yet – it is very important to repeat and practice the material in order to retain it. Check below for and some links.

Example sentences

Next Steps to Perfection To practice this conjugation and test yourself try this Conjugation Exercise or the Memory Game To see other conjugation lessons for this verb choose another tense: PretéritoImperfectoCondicionalFuturoPretérito Perfecto CompuestoPretérito PluscuamperfectoFuturo PerfectoCondicional PerfectoPretérito Perfecto Compuesto (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto A (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto B (subjuntivo)Futuro Perfecto (subjuntivo)  For exercises and examples related to llamar visit our Exercise section To see conjugation charts in all tenses for llamar visit the Conjugator To explore other learning materials visit the Study section

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