Spanish Gerund: Rules & Exercises

12/01/2025 Learning & Grammar created by Sprachcaffe Team

Here's what the Gerund is and when to use it in Spanish. Among the simplest—but also most important—to learn is the Spanish Gerund. The Spanish Gerund is a commonly used indefinite form in the Spanish language, so it is a good idea to learn it as one of the first arguments, along with the Spanish verb "to be" and the verb "to have."

There's a lot to say, but don't worry: it's a simple concept that you'll learn in just one lesson here on Sprachcaffe. And to help you understand better, we'll accompany the explanation of the Spanish Gerund with exercises, and usage examples

Spanish Gerund (Gerundio)

The Spanish gerund, the gerundio, is the verb form ending in -ando or -iendo, the equivalent of the English "-ing" form. You use it above all with estar to build the progressive tenses, and in a handful of useful periphrases. This guide from SPRACHCAFFE shows how to form it (including the irregulars), when to use it, and gives you exercises with answers.

How to form the gerund

Drop the infinitive ending and add the gerund ending:

Verb type	Ending	Example
-ar verbs (cantar, amar)	-ando	amar → amando
-er verbs (comer, beber)	-iendo	comer → comiendo
-ir verbs (vivir, escribir)	-iendo	vivir → viviendo

The gerund never changes for gender or number.

When the gerund is used

The main job of the gerund is to form the present continuous (and the other progressive tenses) with estar, describing an action in progress:

Estamos mirando a alguien que toca el piano. → We are watching someone play the piano.
No, estoy estudiando, no podemos hablar. → No, I'm studying, we can't talk.
Estaba diciendo algo, pero no lo he oído. → He was saying something, but I didn't hear it.

The progressive is not limited to the present: estar can be in the past (estaba cantando) or future (estaré esperando).

Beyond estar + gerundio, the gerund also expresses:

Two simultaneous actions: Me encanta cocinar escuchando un podcast. → I love cooking while listening to a podcast.
How an action happens: ¡No te vayas corriendo! (Don't leave running!); Trabajando, puedes comprender muchas cosas. (By working, you can understand many things.)

How Gerund used in Spanish?

Gerund periphrases: seguir and llevar

Two very common structures use the gerund:

seguir + gerundio = to keep / still be doing something: Sigo buscando un buen restaurante de pescado. → I'm still looking for a good fish restaurant.
llevar + [time] + gerundio = to have been doing something for a length of time: Llevo tres horas esperándote. → I've been waiting for you for three hours. / Valeria lleva tres meses viviendo en Milán. → Valeria has been living in Milan for three months.

Irregular gerunds

A group of verbs change their stem in the gerund. There are three main patterns:

e → i (stem-changing -ir verbs): pedir → pidiendo, seguir → siguiendo, decir → diciendo, sentir → sintiendo, venir → viniendo.
o → u: poder → pudiendo, morir → muriendo, dormir → durmiendo.
-iendo → -yendo (when the stem ends in a vowel): creer → creyendo, leer → leyendo, oír → oyendo, ir → yendo.

Uses of the Gerund

Exercise 1: complete with estar + gerundio

El profesor ________ un libro muy interesante. (leer)
Mi madre quiere estas canciones, pero yo ________ con los videojuegos. (divertirse)
________ algo que no me gusta nada. (oír)
Los niños ________ en el jardín. (jugar)
¿Por qué ________? (vosotros, discutir)

Answer key: 1. está leyendo 2. estoy divirtiéndome / me estoy divirtiendo 3. Estoy oyendo 4. están jugando 5. estáis discutiendo

Exercise 2: translate with seguir + gerundio or llevar + gerundio

I have been living in Bolivia for ten years.
I keep wondering why you did it.
I've only been waiting for you for five minutes.
The doubt kept nagging at me.
I had been living in that house for five years.

Answer key: 1. Llevo diez años viviendo en Bolivia. 2. Sigo preguntándome por qué lo hiciste. 3. Solo llevo cinco minutos esperándote. 4. La duda seguía atormentándome. 5. Llevaba cinco años viviendo en esa casa.