The Present Tense of cenar is used to describe actions happening right now or habitual actions. For example, Ceno a las 8 p.m. todas las noches. (I have dinner at 8 p.m. every night.)

Cenar is a regular -ar verb, which means its conjugations follow the typical pattern for this verb type in the present tense.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cenar (to have dinner) in the Present Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

Cenar generally means to have dinner or the evening meal, but has several different meanings in the Present Tense, some of which might surprise you.

To have dinner: This is the most common meaning, for example, Yo ceno a las 8 de la noche. (I have dinner at 8 pm.)

To eat a lot (colloquial): Used informally to refer to eating a large amount, for example, ¡Ceno como un animal cuando tengo mucha hambre! (I eat like an animal when I’m really hungry!)

To skip dinner (colloquial): Paradoxically, it can also mean not eating dinner, for example, Hoy ceno porque no tengo hambre. (I’m skipping dinner today because I’m not hungry.)

To go out for dinner: It can refer to going to a restaurant for the evening meal, for example, Vosotros cenáis en ese restaurante caro todos los viernes. (You guys go out to that expensive restaurant every Friday.)

To have a late meal: It can mean having a meal later than usual dinner time, for example, Cenamos a las 11 pm después del cine. (We had dinner at 11 pm after the movies.)

Examples

Examples of Cenar in the Present Tense

Yo ceno a las 8 de la noche. (I have dinner at 8 pm.)

¿A qué hora cenas normalmente? (What time do you usually have dinner?)

Mi mamá cena temprano porque tiene que levantarse muy temprano. (My mom has dinner early because she has to get up very early.)

Nosotros cenamos juntos en familia todos los domingos. (We have dinner together as a family every Sunday.)

¿Ustedes cenan afuera o prefieren cocinar en casa? (Do you have dinner out or do you prefer to cook at home?)

Ellos cenan a las 7 pm porque tienen niños pequeños. (They have dinner at 7 pm because they have young children.)

Después del trabajo, ceno algo rápido y ligero. (After work, I have a quick, light dinner.)

Los viernes por la noche, mis amigos y yo cenamos en un restaurante nuevo. (On Friday nights, my friends and I have dinner at a new restaurant.)

¿Qué cenan ustedes cuando no tienen mucho tiempo? (What do you have for dinner when you don’t have much time?)

En las vacaciones, cenamos más tarde porque no hay que madrugar. (On vacation, we have dinner later because we don’t have to get up early.)

Mis abuelos cenan temprano, como a las 5 de la tarde. (My grandparents have an early dinner, around 5 pm.)

Cuando cenamos afuera, pedimos una mesa para 4 personas. (When we have dinner out, we ask for a table for 4 people.)

Mis vecinos cenan muy tarde, como a las 10 de la noche. (My neighbors have dinner very late, around 10 pm.)

Los domingos, cenamos con la familia extendida. (On Sundays, we have dinner with the extended family.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cenar (to have dinner) in the Present Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Present tense is also known as the Simple Present, Present Simple, Present Tense, or Present Indicative in English, and as Presente de Indicativo, Presente Simple, Tiempo Presente, or Indicativo Presente in Spanish.