Seguir Conjugation Chart & Full Tense Guide

Irregular verbs like “seguir” present unique challenges due to their deviation from regular verb conjugation rules and patterns. 

The Spanish verb “seguir” means “to follow” and, as an irregular verb, learners need to familiarize themselves with its unique conjugation across various tenses.

I’m James, from Learn Spanish With James and I put together this comprehensive guide to show you how to conjugate “seguir” in every tense, including simple, compound, and subjunctive tenses. 

In this guide, you’ll also learn how to use the auxilary verb “haber” with ‘seguido’ as a past participle.

Whether you’re dealing with regular or irregular verbs, the study guides and conjugation charts on this site will help you to communicate effectively in Spanish across a range of situations.

Present Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	sigo
you	tú	sigues
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	sigue
we	nosotros,nosotras	seguimos
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	seguís
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	siguen

When We Use the Present Tense

We use the present tense to describe actions that are currently happening or habitual repeated actions.

The Spanish verb “seguir” is an irregular verb. As such, there is a stem change that you will need to learn in several tenses. 

In the “seguir” conjugation chart above, you’ll see each pronoun and its corresponding ending. 

I have provided example sentences to show you how to use these conjugated forms in context. 

Examples of “Seguir” in the Present Tense

• Yo sigo estudiando español. (I continue studying Spanish.)
• Tú sigues el camino correcto. (You follow the right path.)
• Él/ella sigue las instrucciones cuidadosamente. (He/she follows the instructions carefully.)
• Nosotros seguimos adelante a pesar de las dificultades. (We keep going forward despite the difficulties.)
• Vosotros seguís vuestros propios instintos. (You [informal, plural] follow your own instincts.)
• Ellos/ellas siguen sus sueños. (They follow their dreams.)

Preterite Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	seguí
you	tú	seguiste
he, she. it, you (formal)	él, ella, usted	siguió
we	nosotros, nosotras	seguimos
you (plural)	vosotros, vosotras	seguisteis
they, you (pl. formal)	ellos, ellas, ustedes	siguieron

We use the preterite tense in Spanish to indicate actions that were completed in the past with a specific endpoint. 

It’s important to remember this point, as it differs from the other past tenses you will learn while studying Spanish. 

The preterite tense highlights a past event or action that happened once or for a specific duration. 

For instance, “yo seguí” (I followed) and “ellos/ellas siguieron” (they followed). 

This differs from the imperfect tense, for example, which is “was following” or “used to follow” – (more on this shortly).

Top Tip: Make a note that the stem change “e” to “i” only occurs in the third person conjugations for this irregular verb, in both singular and plural forms.

Examples of “Seguir” in the Preterite Tense

• Yo seguí las indicaciones y llegué a tiempo. (I followed the instructions and arrived on time.)
• Tú seguiste la ruta marcada en el mapa. (You followed the route marked on the map.)
• Él/ella siguió adelante a pesar de los obstáculos. (He/she kept going forward despite the obstacles.)
• Nosotros seguimos con el plan original. (We stuck to the original plan.)
• Vosotros seguisteis el procedimiento correctamente. (You all followed the procedure correctly.)
• Ellos/ellas siguieron mis consejos y tuvieron éxito. (They followed my advice and succeeded.)

Imperfect Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	seguía
you	tú	seguías
he, she, it, you (formal)	él, ella, usted	seguía
we	nosotros, nosotras	seguíamos
you (plural)	vosotros, vosotras	seguíais
they, you(pl. formal)	ellos, ellas, ustedes	seguían

When we use the imperfect tense with “seguir,” we describe ongoing or habitual following in the past without focusing on their completion.

The imperfect tense portrays past actions that were repeated, continuous, or ongoing. 

For example, “tú seguías” (you used to follow) and “nosotros seguíamos” (we used to follow).

It’s important to remember that the literal translations are both “was following” and “used to follow”, which is reflected in the example sentences below. 

Examples of “Seguir” in the Imperfect Tense

• Yo seguía una dieta estricta. (I used to follow a strict diet.)
• Tú seguías tus instintos. (You used to follow your instincts.)
• Él/ella seguía mis pasos. (He/she was following my steps.)
• Nosotros seguíamos las reglas del juego. (We used to follow the rules of the game.)
• Vosotros seguíais vuestras tradiciones familiares. (You [informal, plural] used to follow your family traditions.)
• Ellos/ellas seguían sus rutinas diarias. (They were following their daily routines.)

Future Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	seguiré
you	tú	seguirás
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	seguirá
we	nosotros,nosotras	seguiremos
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	seguiréis
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	seguirán

We use the future tense in Spanish to express actions that will happen in the future. This tense indicates plans, predictions, or intentions.

And I have some good news for you.

Yes, we know that “seguir” is an irregular verb, but no, you do not need to learn new conjugations. 

In fact, “seguir” in the future tense follows regular future tense patters. 

For instance, “yo seguiré” (I will follow) and “ellos/ellas seguirán” (they will follow) are the regular endings for this tense. 

Examples of “Seguir” in the Future Tense

• Yo seguiré adelante pase lo que pase. (I will keep going forward no matter what.)
• Tú seguirás tus sueños hasta alcanzarlos. (You will follow your dreams until you achieve them.)
• Él/ella seguirá tus instrucciones al pie de la letra. (He/she will follow your instructions to the letter.)
• Nosotros seguiremos trabajando duro para lograr nuestros objetivos. (We will keep working hard to achieve our goals.)
• Vosotros seguiréis vuestro propio camino. (You [informal, plural] will follow your own path.)
• Ellos/ellas seguirán el mismo camino que nosotros. (They will follow the same path as us.)

Conditional Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	seguiría
you	tú	seguirías
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	seguiría
we	nosotros,nosotras	seguiríamos
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	seguiríais
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	seguirían

When We Use The Conditional Tense

When we use the conditional tense with “seguir,” we express actions that would happen under certain conditions.

The translation is “would follow”, not to be confused with the future tense, which is “will follow”.

In Spanish, the conditional tense indicates hypothetical or unreal situations in the present or future. 

For example, “nosotros seguiríamos” (we would follow) and “vosotros seguiríais” (you all would follow).

Top Tip: If you are planning to speak Spanish in Spain, you should learn the vosotros form. The ustedes form is only used in formal situations in mainland Spain, and usted in the singular form is very formal.

Examples of “Seguir” in The Conditional Tense

• Yo seguiría tus consejos si me los dieras. (I would follow your advice if you gave it to me.)
• Tú seguirías esa ruta si no estuviera cerrada. (You would follow that route if it weren’t closed.)
• Él/ella seguiría adelante si no fuera por el miedo. (He/she would keep going forward if it weren’t for fear.)
• Nosotros seguiríamos tus indicaciones si fueran más claras. (We would follow your instructions if they were clearer.)
• Vosotros seguiríais vuestro propio camino aunque otros lo desaconsejaran. (You all would follow your own path even if others advised against it.)
• Ellos/ellas seguirían con el proyecto si hubiera más financiamiento. (They would continue with the project if there were more funding.)

Perfect Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres	Auxiliary verb ‘haber’
I	yo	he	seguido
you	tú	has	seguido
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	ha	seguido
we	nosotros,nosotras	hemos	seguido
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	habéis	seguido
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	han	seguido

When We Use The Pretérite Perfect

We use the perfect tense, also referred to in Spanish as the pretérito perfecto, to describe actions that occurred at a specific point in the past with relevance to the present. 

With “seguir” the translation is “have followed”. 

In order to form the perfect tense of “seguir”, you need to conjugate the auxilary verb “haber” (to have) and use the past participle of “seguir”, which is “seguido”.

For instance, “yo he seguido” (I have followed) and “ellas han seguido” (they have followed).

For the next past tenses we cover in this guide, you will need to learn the relevant “haber” form and adopt the past participle of the infintive “seguir”.

Examples of “Seguir” in the the Perfect Tense

• Yo he seguido tus consejos desde el principio. (I have followed your advice from the beginning.)
• Tú has seguido las reglas del juego. (You have followed the rules of the game.)
• Él/ella ha seguido mi ejemplo. (He/she has followed my example.)
• Nosotros hemos seguido con el plan original. (We have stuck to the original plan.)
• Vosotros habéis seguido vuestros propios intereses en lugar de los míos. (You [informal, plural] have followed your own interests instead of mine.)
• Ellos/ellas han seguido sus instintos y les ha ido bien. (They have followed their instincts and it has gone well for them.)

Pluperfect Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres	Auxiliary verb ‘haber’
I	yo	había	seguido
you	tú	habías	seguido
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	había	seguido
we	nosotros,nosotras	habíamos	seguido
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	habíais	seguido
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	habían	seguido

If we want to describe actions that had already occurred before another past action then we use the pluperfect tense. 

The pluperfect tense indicates past actions completed before a certain point in the past, often used in complex narratives or to express past conditions.

For example, “tú habías seguido” (you had followed) and “nosotros habíamos seguido” (we had followed).

You’ll notice from this example that I have conjugated “haber” and used “seguido” – followed. 

Be sure to check the other “haber” conjugations in the verb table above, as well as the example sentences below. 

Examples of “Seguir” in the Pluperfect Tense

• Yo había seguido ese camino muchas veces antes. (I had followed that path many times before.)
• Tú habías seguido mis instrucciones al pie de la letra. (You had followed my instructions to the letter.)
• Él/ella había seguido una dieta estricta durante meses. (He/she had followed a strict diet for months.)
• Nosotros habíamos seguido con el proyecto a pesar de las dificultades. (We had continued with the project despite the difficulties.)
• Vosotros habíais seguido las indicaciones del jefe antes de recibir nuevas órdenes. (You all had followed the boss’s instructions before receiving new orders.)
• Ellos/ellas habían seguido un camino diferente al nuestro. (They had followed a different path than ours.)

Future Perfect Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres	Auxiliary verb ‘haber’
I	yo	habré	seguido
you	tú	habrás	seguido
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	habrá	seguido
we	nosotros,nosotras	habremos	seguido
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	habréis	seguido
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	habrán	seguido

The future perfect tense describes actions that will have been completed by a certain point in the future.

This tense indicates actions that will be finished before a specific future time or event. 

For example, “yo habré seguido” (I will have followed) and “ellos habrán seguido” (they will have followed).

You should be getting the idea now and understanding that with these tenses, we need to conjugate “haber”. 

The other examples are below, but be sure to check out the conjugation chart above too in order to familiarize yourself with “seguir” in the future perfect tense.

Examples of “Seguir” in the Future Perfect Tense

• Yo habré seguido mi camino y alcanzado mis metas para entonces. (I will have followed my path and reached my goals by then.)
• Tú habrás seguido tus sueños y estarás viviendo la vida que deseas. (You will have followed your dreams and be living the life you desire.)
• Él/ella habrá seguido con sus estudios y obtendrá su título pronto. (He/she will have continued with his/her studies and will get his/her degree soon.)
• Nosotros habremos seguido el plan trazado y estaremos en camino al éxito. (We will have followed the plan outlined and be on the path to success.)
• Vosotros habréis seguido el proceso de cerca y estaréis listos para tomar decisiones. (You will have followed the process closely and will be ready to make decisions.)
• Ellos/ellas habrán seguido el mismo camino y llegarán al mismo destino. (They will have followed the same path and will reach the same destination.)

Conditional Perfect Tense

Pronouns	Pronombres	Auxiliary verb ‘haber’
I	yo	habría	seguido
you	tú	habrías	seguido
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	habría	seguido
we	nosotros,nosotras	habríamos	seguido
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	habríais	seguido
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	habrían	seguido

When we use the conditional perfect tense in Spanish, we describe actions that would have been completed under certain conditions in the past.

We use the conditional perfect tense in Spanish to indicates hypothetical actions that would have happened if certain conditions had been met in the past.

I have written examples below to show you the “seguir” conditional perfect tense conjugations in context.

Examples of the Spanish Verb “Seguir” in the Conditional Perfect

• Yo habría seguido tus consejos si los hubieras dado. (I would have followed your advice if you had given it.)
• Tú habrías seguido esa ruta si no hubiera estado cerrada. (You would have followed that route if it hadn’t been closed.)
• Él/ella habría seguido adelante si no hubiera tenido miedo. (He/she would have kept going forward if he/she hadn’t been afraid.)
• Nosotros habríamos seguido tus indicaciones si hubieran sido más claras. (We would have followed your instructions if they had been clearer.)
• Vosotros habríais seguido vuestro propio camino si hubierais tenido más confianza. (You would have followed your own path if you had had more confidence.)
• Ellos/ellas habrían seguido con el proyecto si hubiera habido más financiamiento. (They would have continued with the project if there had been more funding.)

Present Subjunctive

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	siga
you	tú	sigas
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	siga
we	nosotros,nosotras	sigamos
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	sigáis
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	sigan

When We Use the Present Subjunctive

If you have made it this far in the guide, you likely already know when to use the present subjunctive in Spanish. 

While the explanation is a little more complex, the general rule of thumb is to use it when expressing desires, doubts, or possibilities. 

Examples of “seguir” in the present subjunctive form are “yo quiero que sigas” (I want you to follow) and “ellos sugieren que yo siga” (they suggest I follow).

Examples of “Seguir” in the Present Subjunctive:

• Yo quiero que siga tus instrucciones. (I want him/her to follow your instructions.)
• Tú prefieres que sigas tus sueños. (You prefer that you follow your dreams.)
• Él/ella duda que siga el camino correcto. (He/she doubts that he/she follows the right path.)
• Nosotros sugerimos que sigamos adelante con el plan. (We suggest that we keep going forward with the plan.)
• Vosotros esperáis que sigáis las reglas del juego. (You [informal, plural] hope that you follow the rules of the game.)
• Ellos/ellas insisten en que sigan sus indicaciones. (They insist that they follow their instructions.)

Imperfect Subjunctive

Pronouns	Pronombres
I	yo	siguiera, siguiese
you	tú	siguieras, siguieses
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	siguiera, siguiese
we	nosotros,nosotras	siguiéramos, siguiésemos
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	siguierais, siguieseis
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	siguieran, siguiesen

When We Use the Imperfect Subjunctive

Spanish verb conjugation becomes a little complex when we want to use the imperfect subjunctive. 

It’s the tense that learners struggle with most. 

My advice would be to learn fixed phrases or sentences which combine both the imperfect subjunctive and the conditional tense (examples for which are below). 

Just like the present subjunctive, the imperfect subjunctive tense indicates desires, doubts, or possibilities, this time about past actions that didn’t happen or are unlikely to happen.

For instance, “yo deseaba que siguieras” (I wished you would follow) and “tú esperabas que él siguiera” (you hoped he would follow).

Do not be disheartened if you don’t understand this. Learning the imperfect subjunctive and when to use it takes time. 

For now, study the imperfect subjunctive form of “seguir” in the conjugation chart above, and study the sentences below.

Examples of “Seguir” in the Imperfect Subjunctive

• Yo deseaba que siguiera tus consejos. (I wished I had followed your advice.)
• Tú esperabas que siguieras adelante con tus proyectos. (You hoped you would keep going forward with your projects.)
• Él/ella prefería que siguiera el plan establecido. (He/she preferred that he/she followed the established plan.)
• Nosotros queríamos que siguierais vuestras metas. (We wanted you [informal, plural] to follow your goals.)
• Vosotros sugeríais que siguieran sus instintos. (You [informal, plural] suggested they followed their instincts.)
• Ellos/ellas insistían en que yo siguiera mi intuición. (They insisted that I followed my intuition.)

Affirmative Imperative 

Pronouns	Pronombres
you	tú	¡sigue!
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	¡siga!
we	nosotros,nosotras	¡sigamos!
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	¡seguid!
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	¡sigan!

When We Use The Affirmative Imperative

This section of the grammar guide is the easiest to write due to the simplicity of the affirmative imperative. 

We use the affirmative imperative to give commands or orders in a direct and assertive manner.

When using the affirmative imperative with the verb “seguir,” we are instructing someone to continue or follow a certain course of action.

In English, we often say “let’s” do something. The imperative in Spanish serves this purpose. 

Check out the examples of this in context below. 

Examples of the Verb “Seguir” in the Affirmative Imperative

• Sigue el camino marcado. (Follow the marked path.)
• Sigamos adelante sin mirar atrás. (Let’s keep moving forward without looking back.)
• Siga las instrucciones detenidamente. (Follow the instructions carefully.)
• Seguid el plan establecido. (Follow the established plan.)

Negative Imperative

Pronouns	Pronombres
you	tú	¡no sigas!
he,she,it, you(formal)	él,ella,usted	¡no siga!
we	nosotros,nosotras	¡no sigamos!
you pl.	vosotros, vosotras	¡no sigáis!
they, you pl. (formal)	ellos,ellas,ustedes	¡no sigan!

When We Use The Negative Imperative

The negative imperative is used to give commands or orders in a direct and assertive manner, but with a negative form, indicating what someone should not do.

When using the negative imperative with an irregular verb like “seguir,” we change the stem and we are instructing someone not to continue or follow a certain course of action.

Do these “seguir” conjugation forms look familiar to you? You will notice they are the same as the present subjunctive. 

This is the case for any verb you want to use in the negative imperative form. 

Examples of the Verb “Seguir” in the Negative Imperative

• No sigas por ese camino. (Don’t continue down that path.)
• No sigáis hablando durante la clase. (Don’t keep talking during the class.)
• No siga con esa actitud. (Don’t continue with that attitude.)
• No sigamos perdiendo tiempo. (Let’s not continue wasting time.)
• No sigan las indicaciones incorrectas. (Don’t follow the incorrect instructions.)

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