Lingvero

Spanish Present Progressive Practice

Say what's happening right now with estar plus the gerund. Drill regular -ando and -iendo endings, the tricky irregular gerunds, and pronoun placement across 30 sentences with instant explanations.

30 exercises~10 min to completeA1 – A2 level
IRead first

The rule, in plain English.

The Spanish present progressive describes an action in progress at this very moment. It is built from the verb estar in the present tense plus a gerund (the -ing form, called the gerundio). For regular verbs the gerund adds -ando to -ar stems and -iendo to -er and -ir stems: hablando, comiendo, viviendo.

A handful of verbs form the gerund irregularly, either with a spelling change (leyendo, oyendo) or a stem change in -ir verbs (durmiendo, pidiendo). Unlike English, Spanish does not use this tense for future plans, so "I'm going tomorrow" is voy mañana, not estoy yendo mañana. Object and reflexive pronouns can either come before estar or attach to the end of the gerund.

30 exercises below. Read the explanation after each answer — that's where the rule sinks in.

IIQuick reference
Estar + regular gerundestar (now) + -ando / -iendo
01
Estar in the present
estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están
02
-ar verbs → -ando
hablar → hablando; trabajar → trabajando
03
-er and -ir verbs → -iendo
comer → comiendo; vivir → viviendo
04
Full form
Estoy comiendo. Estamos hablando.
05
Only for right now
¿Qué estás haciendo? — Estoy estudiando.
Irregular & stem-changing gerundsvowel clash → y; -ir stems change
01
-er/-ir with vowel stem → -yendo
leer → leyendo; oír → oyendo; construir → construyendo; traer → trayendo; ir → yendo
02
-ir stem e → i
pedir → pidiendo; servir → sirviendo; decir → diciendo; venir → viniendo
03
-ir stem o → u
dormir → durmiendo; morir → muriendo
04
Not for the future
"I'm going tomorrow" = Voy mañana (not estoy yendo).
05
Pronoun placement
Se está lavando = Está lavándose (add an accent when attaching).
IIIPractice exercises

Practice.

Answer first, then read the explanation. Don't skip it — that's the whole point.

Exercise 01 of 30Tag: Regular -ar gerund
Fill in the blank

Ahora mismo yo estoy _____ por teléfono. (hablar)

Right now I am talking on the phone.

Exercise 02 of 30Tag: Regular -er gerund
Fill in the blank

Los niños están _____ en la cocina. (comer)

The children are eating in the kitchen.

Exercise 03 of 30Tag: Regular -ir gerund
Fill in the blank

Nosotros estamos _____ una carta importante. (escribir)

We are writing an important letter.

Exercise 04 of 30Tag: Estar: estoy
Fill in the blank

En este momento yo _____ estudiando español. (estar)

At this moment I am studying Spanish.

Exercise 05 of 30Tag: Estar: estás
Fill in the blank

¿Qué _____ haciendo tú ahora? (estar)

What are you doing now?

Exercise 06 of 30Tag: Estar: está
Fill in the blank

Mi hermana _____ leyendo un libro en su cuarto. (estar)

My sister is reading a book in her room.

Exercise 07 of 30Tag: Estar: estamos
Fill in the blank

Nosotros _____ esperando el autobús. (estar)

We are waiting for the bus.

Exercise 08 of 30Tag: Estar: están
Fill in the blank

Mis padres _____ trabajando en el jardín. (estar)

My parents are working in the garden.

Exercise 09 of 30Tag: Spelling change: leer
Fill in the blank

Ella está _____ el periódico en la cafetería. (leer)

She is reading the newspaper at the café.

Exercise 10 of 30Tag: Spelling change: oír
Fill in the blank

¿Estás _____ ese ruido tan extraño? (oír)

Are you hearing that strange noise?

Exercise 11 of 30Tag: Spelling change: construir
Fill in the blank

La empresa está _____ un puente nuevo. (construir)

The company is building a new bridge.

Exercise 12 of 30Tag: Spelling change: traer
Fill in the blank

El camarero está _____ la comida a la mesa. (traer)

The waiter is bringing the food to the table.

Exercise 13 of 30Tag: Stem change: dormir
Fill in the blank

El bebé está _____ en su cuna. (dormir)

The baby is sleeping in his crib.

Exercise 14 of 30Tag: Stem change: pedir
Fill in the blank

El cliente está _____ la cuenta. (pedir)

The customer is asking for the bill.

Exercise 15 of 30Tag: Stem change: servir
Fill in the blank

Ellos están _____ la cena ahora mismo. (servir)

They are serving dinner right now.

Exercise 16 of 30Tag: Stem change: decir
Fill in the blank

¿Qué está _____ el profesor? No lo oigo bien. (decir)

What is the teacher saying? I can't hear well.

Exercise 17 of 30Tag: Stem change: venir
Fill in the blank

Mira, el tren ya _____ viniendo por allí. (estar)

Look, the train is already coming over there.

Exercise 18 of 30Tag: Not for the future
Fill in the blank

No es futuro: mañana yo _____ a la playa con mis amigos. (ir)

Tomorrow I am going to the beach with my friends.

Exercise 19 of 30Tag: Pronoun placement
Fill in the blank

El niño está _____ las manos antes de comer. (lavarse)

The boy is washing his hands before eating.

Exercise 20 of 30Tag: Choose the form
Choose the correct sentence

Which is the correct gerund of dormir (sleeping)?

Pick the 'sleeping' form.

Exercise 21 of 30Tag: Spotting errors
Choose the correct sentence

Which progressive form is wrong?

Spot the wrong gerund.

Exercise 22 of 30Tag: Spotting errors
Choose the correct sentence

Which sentence uses the present progressive incorrectly?

Find the sentence that misuses the progressive.

Exercise 23 of 30Tag: Spelling change: creer
Fill in the blank

Mi abuela está _____ que va a llover esta tarde. (creer)

My grandmother is thinking that it's going to rain this afternoon.

Exercise 24 of 30Tag: Spelling change: caer
Fill in the blank

¡Cuidado! Las hojas están _____ de los árboles. (caer)

Careful! The leaves are falling from the trees.

Exercise 25 of 30Tag: Spelling change: huir
Fill in the blank

El ladrón está _____ de la policía. (huir)

The thief is fleeing from the police.

Exercise 26 of 30Tag: Stem change: repetir
Fill in the blank

La profesora está _____ la pregunta otra vez. (repetir)

The teacher is repeating the question again.

Exercise 27 of 30Tag: Stem change: preferir
Fill in the blank

Veo que ellos están _____ quedarse en casa hoy. (preferir)

I see that they are preferring to stay home today.

Exercise 28 of 30Tag: Seguir + gerund
Fill in the blank

Aunque es tarde, yo _____ estudiando para el examen. (seguir)

Even though it's late, I keep studying for the exam.

Exercise 29 of 30Tag: Llevar + gerund
Fill in the blank

Yo _____ dos horas esperando el tren. (llevar)

I've been waiting two hours for the train.

Exercise 30 of 30Tag: Spotting errors
Choose the correct sentence

Which progressive form is wrong?

Spot the wrong gerund.

Every answer is explained

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Questions answered

Common questions.

How do you form the present progressive in Spanish?+

Use estar in the present tense plus a gerund (the -ing form): estoy hablando, está comiendo, estamos viviendo. It describes an action in progress right now.

What are the regular gerund endings?+

Add -ando to the stem of -ar verbs (hablar → hablando) and -iendo to the stem of -er and -ir verbs (comer → comiendo, vivir → viviendo).

Which gerunds are irregular or stem-changing?+

Verbs with a vowel-ending stem take -yendo (leer → leyendo, oír → oyendo, traer → trayendo, construir → construyendo, ir → yendo). Stem-changing -ir verbs shift e to i (pedir → pidiendo, servir → sirviendo, decir → diciendo, venir → viniendo) or o to u (dormir → durmiendo, morir → muriendo).

When should you use the present progressive, and when not?+

Use it only for something happening at this very moment (Está lloviendo). Unlike English, Spanish does not use it for future plans, so "I'm going tomorrow" is Voy mañana, not estoy yendo mañana.

Where do object and reflexive pronouns go?+

You have two options: place the pronoun before estar (se está lavando) or attach it to the end of the gerund with an added accent (está lavándose). Both are correct and mean the same thing.

Are these exercises free?+

Yes. All 30 exercises run in your browser, need no signup, and explain every answer.