What does llamar mean in English?

Llamar means "to call" in English.

How do you conjugate llamar in Spanish?

Llamar is conjugated across all Spanish tenses including present, preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, subjunctive, and more. Each tense has specific conjugations for yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, and ellos/ustedes. You can see complete conjugation tables with audio pronunciations on this page.

What are common idiomatic expressions with llamar?

Common idiomatic expressions using llamar include: "llamar la atención" (to attract attention / to tell off), "llamar al pan, pan y al vino, vino" (to call a spade a spade), "llamar a las cosas por su nombre" (to call things by their name). These expressions are frequently used in everyday Spanish conversation.

What should I know about using llamar?

Llamar is a regular -ar verb with multiple related meanings

What verbs are related to llamar?

Verbs related to llamar include: llamarse, telefonear. These verbs share similar meanings, stems, or conjugation patterns.

How do you use llamar in a sentence?

Example: "Te llamé ayer pero no contestaste." which means "I called you yesterday but you didn't answer." in English.

What are synonyms for llamar?

Spanish synonyms for llamar include: telefonear, nombrar, convocar. The exact synonym to use depends on the context and specific meaning intended.

Llamar

to call

🎯

Infinitive (infinitivo)

Base form of the verb

llamar

🏃

Gerund (gerundio)

Present participle (-ing form)

llamando

📋

Past Participle

Used in compound tenses

llamado

Simple Tenses

⚡

Present Indicative (presente de indicativo)

Present actions and habitual activities

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llamo I call	I call
tú	llamas you call	you call
él/ella/usted	llama he/she/you calls	he/she/you calls
nosotros	llamamos we call	we call
vosotros	llamáis you all call	you all call
ellos/ustedes	llaman they/you all call	they/you all call

🕰️

Imperfect Indicative (imperfecto de indicativo)

Ongoing past actions and descriptions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llamaba I used to call	I used to call
tú	llamabas you used to call	you used to call
él/ella/usted	llamaba he/she/you used to call	he/she/you used to call
nosotros	llamábamos we used to call	we used to call
vosotros	llamabais you all used to call	you all used to call
ellos/ustedes	llamaban they/you all used to call	they/you all used to call

📅

Preterit (pretérito)

Completed past actions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llamé I called	I called
tú	llamaste you called	you called
él/ella/usted	llamó he/she/you called	he/she/you called
nosotros	llamamos we called	we called
vosotros	llamasteis you all called	you all called
ellos/ustedes	llamaron they/you all called	they/you all called

🔮

Future (futuro)

Future actions and intentions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llamaré I will call	I will call
tú	llamarás you will call	you will call
él/ella/usted	llamará he/she/you will call	he/she/you will call
nosotros	llamaremos we will call	we will call
vosotros	llamaréis you all will call	you all will call
ellos/ustedes	llamarán they/you all will call	they/you all will call

🎯

Conditional (potencial simple)

Hypothetical and conditional actions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llamaría I would call	I would call
tú	llamarías you would call	you would call
él/ella/usted	llamaría he/she/you would call	he/she/you would call
nosotros	llamaríamos we would call	we would call
vosotros	llamaríais you all would call	you all would call
ellos/ustedes	llamarían they/you all would call	they/you all would call

💭

Present Subjunctive (presente de subjuntivo)

Subjective present actions and desires

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llame that I call	that I call
tú	llames that you call	that you call
él/ella/usted	llame that he/she/you call	that he/she/you call
nosotros	llamemos that we call	that we call
vosotros	llaméis that you all call	that you all call
ellos/ustedes	llamen that they/you all call	that they/you all call

🌙

Imperfect Subjunctive (imperfecto de subjuntivo)

Subjective past actions and hypothetical situations

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	llamara or llamase that I called	that I called
tú	llamaras or llamases that you called	that you called
él/ella/usted	llamara or llamase that he/she/you called	that he/she/you called
nosotros	llamáramos or llamásemos that we called	that we called
vosotros	llamarais or llamaseis that you all called	that you all called
ellos/ustedes	llamaran or llamasen that they/you all called	that they/you all called

Compound Tenses

✅

Present Perfect (perfecto de indicativo)

Actions completed recently or with present relevance

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	he llamado I have called	I have called
tú	has llamado you have called	you have called
él/ella/usted	ha llamado he/she/you have called	he/she/you have called
nosotros	hemos llamado we have called	we have called
vosotros	habéis llamado you all have called	you all have called
ellos/ustedes	han llamado they/you all have called	they/you all have called

⏪

Pluperfect Indicative (pluscuamperfecto de indicativo)

Actions completed before another past action

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	había llamado I had called	I had called
tú	habías llamado you had called	you had called
él/ella/usted	había llamado he/she/you had called	he/she/you had called
nosotros	habíamos llamado we had called	we had called
vosotros	habíais llamado you all had called	you all had called
ellos/ustedes	habían llamado they/you all had called	they/you all had called

📍

Preterit Perfect (pretérito anterior)

Actions completed immediately before another past action

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	hube llamado I had called	I had called
tú	hubiste llamado you had called	you had called
él/ella/usted	hubo llamado he/she/you had called	he/she/you had called
nosotros	hubimos llamado we had called	we had called
vosotros	hubisteis llamado you all had called	you all had called
ellos/ustedes	hubieron llamado they/you all had called	they/you all had called

🎊

Future Perfect (futuro perfecto)

Actions that will be completed by a future time

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	habré llamado I will have called	I will have called
tú	habrás llamado you will have called	you will have called
él/ella/usted	habrá llamado he/she/you will have called	he/she/you will have called
nosotros	habremos llamado we will have called	we will have called
vosotros	habréis llamado you all will have called	you all will have called
ellos/ustedes	habrán llamado they/you all will have called	they/you all will have called

🔄

Conditional Perfect (potencial compuesto)

Actions that would have been completed under certain conditions

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	habría llamado I would have called	I would have called
tú	habrías llamado you would have called	you would have called
él/ella/usted	habría llamado he/she/you would have called	he/she/you would have called
nosotros	habríamos llamado we would have called	we would have called
vosotros	habríais llamado you all would have called	you all would have called
ellos/ustedes	habrían llamado they/you all would have called	they/you all would have called

💫

Subjunctive Present Perfect (perfecto de subjuntivo)

Subjective actions completed in relation to the present

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	haya llamado that I have called	that I have called
tú	hayas llamado that you have called	that you have called
él/ella/usted	haya llamado that he/she/you have called	that he/she/you have called
nosotros	hayamos llamado that we have called	that we have called
vosotros	hayáis llamado that you all have called	that you all have called
ellos/ustedes	hayan llamado that they/you all have called	that they/you all have called

🌌

Subjunctive Past Perfect (pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo)

Subjective actions completed before another past action

Person	Conjugation	English
yo	hubiera llamado that I had called	that I had called
tú	hubieras llamado that you had called	that you had called
él/ella/usted	hubiera llamado that he/she/you had called	that he/she/you had called
nosotros	hubiéramos llamado that we had called	that we had called
vosotros	hubierais llamado that you all had called	that you all had called
ellos/ustedes	hubieran llamado that they/you all had called	that they/you all had called

❗

Commands (imperativo)

Commands and direct orders

Person	Command	English
tú	llama	call! (you)
usted	llame	call! (you formal)
nosotros	llamemos	let's call!
vosotros	llamad	call! (you all)
ustedes	llamen	call! (you all)

🚫

Negative Commands (imperativo negativo)

Negative commands and prohibitions

Person	Command	English
tú	no llames	don't call! (you)
usted	no llame	don't call! (you formal)
nosotros	no llamemos	let's not call!
vosotros	no llaméis	don't call! (you all)
ustedes	no llamen	don't call! (you all)

More About "llamar"

Idiomatic Expressions

llamar la atención

to attract attention / to tell off

💡 Drawing attention (positive) or reprimanding someone (negative)

llamar al pan, pan y al vino, vino

to call a spade a spade

💡 Speaking plainly and directly without euphemisms

llamar a las cosas por su nombre

to call things by their name

💡 Being direct and honest about things

llamar a la puerta

to knock on the door

💡 Both literal knocking and figurative opportunity

no llamar ni por asomo

to not call at all / to not show any interest

💡 Complete lack of communication or interest

Examples in Context

Te llamé ayer pero no contestaste.

I called you yesterday but you didn't answer.

Preterite

Me llamo Ana y soy de México.

My name is Ana and I'm from Mexico.

Present

Voy a llamar a mi madre esta noche.

I'm going to call my mother tonight.

Future Periphrastic

¿Cómo se llama tu hermano?

What is your brother's name?

Present

Llámame cuando llegues a casa.

Call me when you get home.

Imperative

Related Verbs

llamarse(to be named, be called)

reflexive form - to be named/called

telefonear(to telephone)

similar meaning - to telephone

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms:

telefonear(to telephone, call)

Specifically for phone calls, more formal

nombrar(to name, appoint)

More formal, often for official naming or appointments

convocar(to summon, convene)

Formal calling of meetings or gatherings

Usage Notes

•Llamar is a regular -ar verb with multiple related meanings
•Main meanings: to call (phone/summon), to name, to knock
•Reflexive form "llamarse" is used for names: "Me llamo..." (My name is...)
•Very common question: "¿Cómo te llamas?" (What's your name?)
•Often followed by "por teléfono" to clarify telephone calling
•Can mean to knock: "Alguien llama a la puerta" (Someone is knocking at the door)
•"Llamar la atención" has dual meaning: to stand out (positive) or to scold (negative)
•In imperative, common forms: Llama (call), Llámame (call me)

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Llamar

Simple Tenses

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