Seguir Conjugation: Free Spanish Lesson and PDF

Ready to explore the realm of seguir conjugation? 

Seguir is an irregular Spanish verb that usually means “to follow,” or “to continue.” It has numerous related translations in English:

• To remain
• To pursue
• To proceed
• To understand (as in, “do you follow?”)
• To keep on, to carry on
• To keep up
• To ensue

The only other verbs that follow the seguir conjugation pattern are those based on seguir, such as conseguir (“to attain,” “to achieve”) and perseguir (“to pursue,” “to persecute”). Verbs that have similar conjugations as seguir, include decir, vestir, and pedir—other stem changing verbs where the e changes to i in some forms.

Today, we’ll take a close look at seguir conjugation and learn multiple forms, encompassing three moods: 

• Indicative (present, past, conditional, and future)
• Subjunctive (present and past)
• Imperative 

The Ultimate Guide to Seguir Conjugation

Since this is a complete guide to seguir conjugation, you may not be familiar with all the tenses and forms shown. It’s okay! Practice makes perfect, so keep at it and soon you’ll be an expert at using Spanish verbs.

Test out your fresh seguir conjugation skills with the practice exercises later in this article!

Seguir Conjugation: Verbals

For these seguir conjugations, there are two forms of seguir that you need to learn.

1. Conjugation of haber + past participle of seguir
2. Conjugation of estar + gerund form of seguir

The infinitive form of the verb is seguir.
The past participle of seguir is seguido.
The gerund form of seguir is siguiendo.

These compound tenses involve using the helping verbs haber and estar. The conjugation changes in these tenses happen within the helping verbs, while the form of seguir stays the same. 

Let’s see them in action:

Marta decidió seguir otra pista. 
Marta decided to pursue another lead.

Hemos seguido bailando. 
We have continued dancing.

El gato está siguiendo al ratoncito. 
The cat is chasing the mouse. 

Seguir Conjugation: Indicative Mood

Present simple

Los patitos recién nacidos siguen a sus madres. 
Newborn ducks follow their mothers.

Sigo al líder.
I follow the leader.

Esta planta sigue creciendo durante el invierno. 
This plant keeps growing during winter.

Past Simple

A pesar de su éxito, las autoras siguieron siendo personas humildes. 
Despite their success, the authors remained humble people.

Seguí intentándo a pesar de los desafíos. 
I carried on trying despite the challenges.

La corredora siguió el ritmo de los demás. 
The runner kept up with the pace of the others.

Past Imperfect

Se nos seguía echando a perder la lechuga porque no teníamos refrigerador.
Our lettuce was still spoiling because we didn’t have a refrigerator.

¿Seguían llegando tarde a la clase?
Did they continue arriving late to class?

Conditional

El abogado no seguiría con el caso si no hubieran pruebas.
The lawyer would not proceed with the case if there was no evidence.

Yo aún seguiría hablando de la reunión del lunes.
I would like to continue with the subject of Monday’s meeting.

Future Simple

El desfile seguirá un recorrido muy largo alrededor del pueblo. 
The parade will follow a long route around town.

A pesar de las dificultades, seguiré esforzándome en mi carrera. 
Despite the challenges, I will keep on doing my best in my career.

Seguir Conjugation: Subjunctive Mood

We use the subjunctive mood to talk about hypotheses, hopes, wishes, or uncertainty.

Present Subjunctive

Mientras siga entrenando a diario, estaré preparado para el maratón.
As long as I keep training daily, I will be ready for the marathon.

Mientras siga intentando, todo irá bien. 
As long as you keep trying, everything will go well.

Me opongo a que sigas adelante con esto.
I am opposed to you going forward with this.

Past Subjunctive

Esperaba que siguiera bien. 
I hoped everything would continue well.

¿Qué sucedería si no se siguiese su recomendación?
What would happen if its recommendation were not followed?

Seguir conjugation in the past subjunctive mood can either end in -era or –ese. Both ways are accepted, although -era is more common and informal. When writing a formal letter, I suggest you use the verb ending -ese. This also applies to the next tense.

Past Perfect Subjunctive

For the past perfect subjunctive tense, we use the auxiliary verb haber and the past participle of seguir.

Si Maria hubiera seguido el consejo de su amigo, no lo hubiera logrado.
If Maria had followed her friend’s advice, she would not have achieved what she has.

Si se hubiese seguido el plan, el proyecto ya estaría terminado.
If the plan had been followed, the project would already be finished.

Present Perfect Subjunctive

For the perfect subjunctive tense we use the auxiliary verb haber and the past participle of seguir.

La maestra lamenta que la situación haya seguido deteriorándose.
The teacher regrets that the situation has continued to deteriorate.

Esta cuestión es importante para todos quienes hayan seguido este debate.
This issue is important for everyone who has followed this debate.

The future subjunctive tense exists is rarely used, so I’m not including it in this lesson. 

Seguir Conjugation: Imperative Mood

The imperative mood is used to give commands. These tenses don’t include most of the subject pronouns since you can’t give commands in the first person singular (yo) or plural (nosotros) or the third person (él, ella, ellos, ellas). 

Siga adelante. 
Go (straight) ahead.

Sigue las instrucciones exactamente. 
Follow the directions exactly.

No sigas haciendo tanto ruido en la biblioteca.
Don’t keep making so much noise in the library.

Seguir Conjugation Exercises

Continue to deepen your newfound seguir conjugation knowledge with practice! Check your understanding by completing the following exercises. The answer key is at the end of this post. 

Exercise 1

Identify the tense and pronoun of each seguir conjugation.

1. seguiría

2. siga

3. sigo

4. no sigues

5. seguiste

Exercise 2

Conjugate seguir in the tense given.

1. yo – past simple indicative

2. usted – imperative, negative

3. tú – present simple indicative

4. ellos – conditional indicative

5. nosotros – future simple

Exercise 3

Fill in the blank with the correct form of seguir.

1. Yo _____________ Shakira en Instagram. (present simple)

2. Cuando eras niño, tú _____________ a tu hermano mayor por todos lados. (past imperfect)

3. ¿Ud. no _____________ en la misma compañía? (future simple)

4. Ojala que ella _____________ estudiando en la universidad. (present subjunctive)

5. ¡___________ adelante! (affirmative imperative)

Exercise 4

Translate the following sentences to English.

1. Esteban está siguiendo los desarrollos de la organización. 

2. Si Elena hubiera seguido con sus estudios de español, ya estaría hablando.

3. Hay que seguir adelante siempre.

4. Sigue a la próxima ventanilla, por favor.

5. Sigo a mis actores favoritos en Facebook.

Click here to see the answer key!

Follow Up on What You’re Learning

Congratulations! You’ve learned about seguir conjugation in Spanish and uses of the verb seguir. The next step is to develop a speaking practice to solidify your new knowledge. An amazing way to make it happen is with one of our native Spanish-speaking teachers from Guatemala. Ask them for tips to help you memorize all of the uses and tenses of Spanish verb conjugation. Engage in real-life conversations today by signing up for a free class!

Ready to learn more Spanish grammar? Check these out!

• All About Adverbial Clauses in Spanish
• The Ultimate Guide to the Differences Between ‘Pero’ and ‘Sino’ in Spanish
• A Guide to Double Negatives in Spanish
• Ver Conjugation: Free Spanish Lesson, Exercises, and PDF
• Common Irregular Informal Commands in Spanish
• Dialect vs Accent: Is It a Language, Dialect, or Accent?
• How to Use the Past Participle as an Adjective in Spanish
• Punctuation Marks, Special Characters, and Other Symbols in Spanish

Answer Key

Exercise 1

1. yo/él, ella, usted – conditional

2. yo/él, ella, usted – present subjunctive

3. yo – simple present indicative 

4. tú – negative imperative

5. tú – simple past indicative

Exercise 2

1. seguí 

2. no siga

3. sigues

4. seguirían

5. seguirémos

Exercise 3

1. sigo

2. seguías

3. seguirá

4. siga

5. siga/sigue

Exercise 4 

1. Esteban is following the organization’s developments. 

2. If Elena had continued with her Spanish studies, she would already be speaking it.

3. One must always keep moving forward.

4. Continue to the next window, please.

5. I follow my favorite actors on Facebook.

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Michelle Margaret Fajkus

Editor & Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

Michelle Margaret Fajkus is a bilingual writer and longtime yoga teacher. A former advertising copywriter turned bilingual elementary school teacher, she is now a freelance writer, editor and translator. A native Texan, Michelle has Mexican roots and learned Spanish in middle and high school. She has become more fluent thanks to living as an expat in Guatemala. She lives with her family on beautiful Lake Atitlan.

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