Spanish Verb Bailar Conjugation

Bailar Conjugation, Usage, and Examples

Dancing the tango / bailando tango
Ellos bailan tango en Buenos Aires (They dance the tango in Buenos Aires).

David Sanger / Getty Images 
By
Gerald Erichsen
Gerald Erichsen
Spanish Language Expert
  • B.A., Seattle Pacific University
Gerald Erichsen is a Spanish language expert who has created Spanish lessons for ThoughtCo since 1998.
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Updated on February 26, 2020

Bailar is the Spanish verb for "to dance" and nearly always has the same meaning as the English verb. Occasionally, it also refers to an object that is moving, or seems to be moving, unsteadily. In this page you'll find the conjugation for bailar in the simple indicative tenses (present, imperfect, preterite, future, and conditional), the simple subjunctive tenses (present, preterite, and imperfect), the periphrastic future, and the direct commands (also known as the imperative mood). Also listed are the past participle and gerund, which are used for the compound tenses.

Bailar is regularly conjugated in the same way as other -ar verbs, so it can be used as a model for dozens of other such verbs.

Present Indicative Tense of Bailar

The present indicative tense is the most common tense and the one that is most often taught first to Spanish students. It is used for actions that are occurring presently.

Yo bailo I dance Yo bailo como un pato.
Tú bailas You dance Tú bailas conmigo.
Usted/él/ella baila You/he/she dances Él baila solo.
Nosotros bailamos We dance Nosotros bailamos tango en Buenos Aires.
Vosotros bailáis You dance Vosotros bailáis con gracia.
Ustedes/ellos/ellas bailan You/they dance Ellas bailan en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Bailar Preterite

The preterite tense of Spanish is very similar to the simple past tense of regular verbs in English (the form that ends in "-ed"). It is used for actions that were completed at a specific time.

Yo bailé I danced Yo bailé como un pato.
Tú bailaste You danced Tú bailaste conmigo.
Usted/él/ella bailó You/he/she danced Él bailó solo.
Nosotros bailamos We danced Nosotros bailamos tango en Buenos Aires.
Vosotros bailasteis You danced Vosotros bailasteis con gracia.
Ustedes/ellos/ellas bailaron You/they danced Ellas bailaron en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Imperfect Indicative Form of Bailar

Yo bailaba I was dancing. Yo bailaba como un pato.
Tú bailabas You were dancing Tú bailabas conmigo.
Usted/él/ella bailaba You/he/she was dancing Él bailaba solo.
Nosotros bailábamos We were dancing Nosotros bailábamos tango en Buenos Aires.
Vosotros bailabais You were dancing Vosotros bailabais con gracia.
Ustedes/ellos/ellas bailaban You/they were Ellas bailaban en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Bailar Future Tense

The future tense is the equivalent of "will + verb" forms in English. In casual speech, it is often replaced by the periphrastic future.

Yo bailaré I will dance Yo bailaré como un pato.
Tú bailarás You will dance Tú bailarás conmigo.
Usted/él/ella bailará You/he/she will dance Él bailará solo.
Nosotros bailaremos We will dance Nosotros bailaremos tango en Buenos Aires.
Vosotros bailaréis You will dance Vosotros bailaréis con gracia.
Ustedes/ellos/ellas bailarán You/they will dance Ellas bailarán en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Periphrastic Future of Bailar

Yo voy a bailar I am going to dance Yo voy a bailar como un pato.
Tú vas a bailar You are going to dance Tú vas a bailar conmigo.
Usted/él/ella va a bailar You/he/she is going to dance Él va a bailar solo.
Nosotros vamos a bailar We are going to dance Nosotros vamos a bailar tango en Buenos Aires.
Vosotros vais a bailar You are going to dance Vosotros vais a bailar con gracia.
Ustedes/ellos/ellas van a bailar You/they are going to dance Ellas van a bailar en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Present Progressive/Gerund Form of Bailar

The gerund is often equivalent to the "-ing" verb forms of English. Unlike the English gerund, however, in Spanish it does not function as a noun or adjective.

Gerund of Bailar: bailando

Is dancing -> Él está bailando solo

Past Participle of Bailar

The past participle is used with the verb haber to form the perfect tenses.

Participle of Bailar: bailado

has danced -> Él ha bailado solo.

Conditional Form of Bailar

The conditional tense is sometimes known as hypothetical future. It is used for events that could occur if a condition is met.

Yo bailaría I would dance Yo bailaría como un pato si llevara zapatos viejos.
Tú bailarías You would dance Tú bailarías conmigo si hubiera música.
Usted/él/ella bailaría You/he/she would dance Él bailaría solo si no tuviera amigas.
Nosotros bailaríamos We would dance Nosotros bailaríamos en Buenos Aires si tuviéramos dinero.
Vosotros bailaríais You would dance Vosotros bailarías con gracia si no estuvierais enfermos.
Ustedes/ellos/ellas bailarían You/they would dance Ellas bailarían en un espectáculo de Broadway si vivieran en Nueva York.

Present Subjunctive of Bailar

Que yo baile That I dance Antonio prefiere que yo baile como un pato.
Que tú bailes That you dance Katrina quiere que tú bailes conmigo.
Que usted/él/ella baile That you/he/she dance Victoria quiere que él baile solo.
Que nosotros bailemos That we dance Es importante que nosotros bailemos en Buenos Aires.
Que vosotros bailéis That you dance Es inspirador que vosotros bailéis con gracia.
Que ustedes/ellos/ellas bailen That you/they dance Juan espera que ellas bailen en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Imperfect Subjunctive Forms of Bailar

There is little difference in usage between the two forms of the imperfect subjuntive. The first option is more common in most areas.

Option 1

Que yo bailara That I danced Antonio prefería que yo bailara como un pato.
Que tú bailaras That you danced Katrina quería que tú bailaras conmigo.
Que usted/él/ella bailara That you/he/she danced Victoria quería que él bailara solo.
Que nosotros bailáramos That we danced Era importante que bailáramos en Buenos Aires.
Que vosotros bailarais That you danced Era inspirador que vosotros bailarais con gracia.
Que ustedes/ellos/ellas bailaran That you/they danced Juan esperaba que ellas bailaran en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Option 2

Que yo bailase That I danced Antonio prefería que yo bailase como un pato.
Que tú bailases That you danced Katrina quería que tú bailases conmigo.
Que usted/él/ella bailase That you/he/she danced Victoria quería que él bailase solo.
Que nosotros bailásemos That we danced Era importante que nosotros bailásemos en Buenos Aires.
Que vosotros bailaseis That you danced Era inspirador que vosotros bailaseis con gracia.
Que ustedes/ellos/ellas bailasen That you/they danced Juan esperaba que ellas bailasen en un espectáculo de Broadway.

Imperative Forms of Bailar

The imperative mood is used for direct commands. Conjugation varies slightly for positive and negative statements.

Imperative (Positive Command)

Tú baila Dance! ¡Baila conmigo!
Usted baile Dance! ¡Baile solo!
Nosotros bailemos Let's dance! ¡Bailemos en Buenos Aires!
Vosotros bailad Dance! ¡Bailad con gracia!
Ustedes bailen Dance! ¡Bailen en un espectáculo de Broadway!

Imperative (Negative Command)

Tú no bailes Don't dance! ¡No bailes conmigo!
Usted no baile Don't dance! ¡No bailes solo!
Nosotros no bailemos Let's not dance! ¡No bailemos en Buenos Aires!
Vosotros no bailéis Don't dance! ¡No bailéis con gracia!
Ustedes no bailen

Don't dance!

 ¡No bailen en un espectáculo de Broadway!
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Erichsen, Gerald. "Spanish Verb Bailar Conjugation." ThoughtCo, Aug. 27, 2020, thoughtco.com/bailar-conjugation-in-spanish-4174308. Erichsen, Gerald. (2020, August 27). Spanish Verb Bailar Conjugation. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/bailar-conjugation-in-spanish-4174308 Erichsen, Gerald. "Spanish Verb Bailar Conjugation." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/bailar-conjugation-in-spanish-4174308 (accessed June 2, 2023).