How to Use Hacer in Spanish: Make, Do, and Everything Else It Means
Hacer is one of those Spanish verbs that every learner learns early and never fully masters. The basic translation is simple enough: hacer means "to make" or "to do." But that translation only covers a fraction of what hacer actually does in everyday Spanish. Hacer describes the weather. It measures time. It appears in causative constructions. It shows up in dozens of idiomatic expressions that have no direct English equivalent. And in workplace communication, it is one of the most frequently used verbs across every industry and every type of professional interaction.
This guide covers hacer completely: the full conjugation across every tense with English translations, every major meaning, all the idiomatic hacer expressions worth knowing, and real workplace examples throughout.
What Hacer Means and Why It Matters
The core meaning of hacer covers the same territory as "make" and "do" in English, but Spanish does not distinguish between those two meanings the way English does. In English, "make dinner" and "do homework" use different verbs. In Spanish, both use hacer: hacer la cena and hacer la tarea. That consolidation makes hacer more frequent in Spanish than either "make" or "do" alone is in English.
Beyond that core meaning, hacer extends into territory that English covers with completely different words. Weather. Duration of time. Causing someone to do something. And a collection of fixed expressions that are essential to natural Spanish conversation.
Complete Conjugation Reference for Hacer
Present Indicative
Yo → hago (I make / I do)
Tú → haces (you make / you do, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hace (he makes / she makes / you make, formal)
Nosotros → hacemos (we make / we do)
Vosotros → hacéis (you all make / you all do, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hacen (they make / you all make)
Preterite
Yo → hice (I made / I did)
Tú → hiciste (you made / you did, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hizo (he made / she made / you made, formal)
Nosotros → hicimos (we made / we did)
Vosotros → hicisteis (you all made / you all did, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hicieron (they made / you all made)
Imperfect
Yo → hacía (I made / I used to make / I was making)
Tú → hacías (you made / you used to make, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hacía (he made / she made / you made, formal)
Nosotros → hacíamos (we made / we used to make)
Vosotros → hacíais (you all made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hacían (they made / you all made)
Future
Yo → haré (I will make / I will do)
Tú → harás (you will make / you will do, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hará (he will make / she will make / you will make, formal)
Nosotros → haremos (we will make / we will do)
Vosotros → haréis (you all will make, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → harán (they will make / you all will make)
Conditional
Yo → haría (I would make / I would do)
Tú → harías (you would make / you would do, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → haría (he would make / she would make / you would make, formal)
Nosotros → haríamos (we would make / we would do)
Vosotros → haríais (you all would make, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → harían (they would make / you all would make)
Present Subjunctive
Yo → haga (that I make / that I do)
Tú → hagas (that you make / that you do, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → haga (that he / she / you make)
Nosotros → hagamos (that we make / that we do)
Vosotros → hagáis (that you all make, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hagan (that they / you all make)
Imperfect Subjunctive (most common form)
Yo → hiciera (that I made / if I made)
Tú → hicieras (that you made / if you made, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hiciera (that he / she / you made)
Nosotros → hiciéramos (that we made / if we made)
Vosotros → hicierais (that you all made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hicieran (that they / you all made)
Imperfect Subjunctive (alternative form)
Yo → hiciese (that I made / if I made)
Tú → hicieses (that you made / if you made, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hiciese (that he / she / you made)
Nosotros → hiciésemos (that we made / if we made)
Vosotros → hicieseis (that you all made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hiciesen (that they / you all made)
Future Subjunctive (rare, appears in legal and literary texts)
Yo → hiciere (should I make)
Tú → hicieres (should you make, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hiciere (should he / she / you make)
Nosotros → hiciéremos (should we make)
Vosotros → hiciereis (should you all make, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hicieren (should they / you all make)
Present Perfect
Yo → he hecho (I have made / I have done)
Tú → has hecho (you have made / you have done, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → ha hecho (he / she / you have made, formal)
Nosotros → hemos hecho (we have made / we have done)
Vosotros → habéis hecho (you all have made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → han hecho (they / you all have made)
Past Perfect (Pluperfect)
Yo → había hecho (I had made / I had done)
Tú → habías hecho (you had made / you had done, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → había hecho (he / she / you had made, formal)
Nosotros → habíamos hecho (we had made / we had done)
Vosotros → habíais hecho (you all had made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → habían hecho (they / you all had made)
Future Perfect
Yo → habré hecho (I will have made / I will have done)
Tú → habrás hecho (you will have made, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → habrá hecho (he / she / you will have made, formal)
Nosotros → habremos hecho (we will have made / we will have done)
Vosotros → habréis hecho (you all will have made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → habrán hecho (they / you all will have made)
Conditional Perfect
Yo → habría hecho (I would have made / I would have done)
Tú → habrías hecho (you would have made, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → habría hecho (he / she / you would have made, formal)
Nosotros → habríamos hecho (we would have made / we would have done)
Vosotros → habríais hecho (you all would have made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → habrían hecho (they / you all would have made)
Present Perfect Subjunctive
Yo → haya hecho (that I have made / that I have done)
Tú → hayas hecho (that you have made, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → haya hecho (that he / she / you have made)
Nosotros → hayamos hecho (that we have made / that we have done)
Vosotros → hayáis hecho (that you all have made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hayan hecho (that they / you all have made)
Past Perfect Subjunctive (most common form)
Yo → hubiera hecho (that I had made / if I had done)
Tú → hubieras hecho (that you had made / if you had done, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hubiera hecho (that he / she / you had made)
Nosotros → hubiéramos hecho (that we had made / if we had done)
Vosotros → hubierais hecho (that you all had made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hubieran hecho (that they / you all had made)
Past Perfect Subjunctive (alternative form)
Yo → hubiese hecho (that I had made / if I had done)
Tú → hubieses hecho (that you had made, informal)
Él / Ella / Usted → hubiese hecho (that he / she / you had made)
Nosotros → hubiésemos hecho (that we had made / if we had done)
Vosotros → hubieseis hecho (that you all had made, Spain)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes → hubiesen hecho (that they / you all had made)
Commands (Imperative)
Tú (affirmative) → haz (make / do, informal)
Tú (negative) → no hagas (do not make / do not do, informal)
Usted (affirmative) → haga (make / do, formal)
Usted (negative) → no haga (do not make / do not do, formal)
Nosotros (affirmative) → hagamos (let us make / let us do)
Nosotros (negative) → no hagamos (let us not make / let us not do)
Vosotros (affirmative) → haced (make / do, Spain)
Vosotros (negative) → no hagáis (do not make / do not do, Spain)
Ustedes (affirmative) → hagan (make / do, formal plural)
Ustedes (negative) → no hagan (do not make / do not do, formal plural)
Gerund: haciendo (making / doing) Past Participle: hecho (made / done)
Use 1: Make and Do
The core use of hacer covers both "make" and "do" in English. Spanish does not distinguish between these two meanings.
Make:
Make a decision. → Hacer una decisión.
Make a call. → Hacer una llamada.
Make a mistake. → Hacer un error.
Make progress. → Hacer progreso.
Make a reservation. → Hacer una reservación.
Make a list. → Hacer una lista.
Make a plan. → Hacer un plan.
Make a copy. → Hacer una copia.
Make an appointment. → Hacer una cita.
Make an effort. → Hacer un esfuerzo.
Do:
Do your homework. → Hacer la tarea.
Do the paperwork. → Hacer el papeleo.
Do your job. → Hacer tu trabajo.
Do an inspection. → Hacer una inspección.
Do an exercise. → Hacer un ejercicio.
Do research. → Hacer una investigación.
Do overtime. → Hacer horas extra.
What are you doing? → ¿Qué estás haciendo?
What do you do for work? → ¿Qué hace usted para trabajar?
I did everything I could. → Hice todo lo que pude.
In workplace contexts:
Healthcare:
The doctor is doing an examination. → El médico está haciendo un examen.
We need to make a referral. → Necesitamos hacer una referencia.
She is making her rounds. → Está haciendo sus rondas.
We have to do a blood draw. → Tenemos que hacer una extracción de sangre.
Did you do the documentation? → ¿Hizo la documentación?
Construction:
Do the measurements before you cut. → Haga las medidas antes de cortar.
We have to make the forms for the pour. → Tenemos que hacer los moldes para el vaciado.
He did a great job on the foundation. → Hizo un gran trabajo en la cimentación.
What are you doing over there? → ¿Qué está haciendo allá?
Make sure everything is level. → Asegúrese de que todo esté nivelado.
Education:
Do your homework before class. → Haz la tarea antes de clase.
The students are doing an activity. → Los estudiantes están haciendo una actividad.
Make a list of vocabulary words. → Haz una lista de palabras de vocabulario.
She did an excellent presentation. → Hizo una excelente presentación.
What are you doing right now? → ¿Qué estás haciendo ahora mismo?
Management:
Make a decision by Friday. → Tome una decisión para el viernes.
We need to do a performance review. → Necesitamos hacer una evaluación de desempeño.
He did everything correctly. → Hizo todo correctamente.
Make a note of this. → Haga una nota de esto.
What did you do about the complaint? → ¿Qué hizo con la queja?
Use 2: Weather Expressions
One of the most distinctive uses of hacer is for weather expressions. In Spanish, weather is described with hacer + a noun, not with "to be" + an adjective as in English.
The subject is always the impersonal it and the verb is always third person singular.
It is hot. → Hace calor.
It is cold. → Hace frío.
It is sunny. → Hace sol.
It is windy. → Hace viento.
It is nice weather. → Hace buen tiempo.
It is bad weather. → Hace mal tiempo.
How is the weather? → ¿Qué tiempo hace?
What is the weather like today? → ¿Cómo está el tiempo hoy?
It was very hot yesterday. → Ayer hizo mucho calor.
It is going to be cold tomorrow. → Mañana va a hacer frío.
It has been nice all week. → Ha hecho buen tiempo toda la semana.
Note: Not all weather expressions use hacer. Rain (llover), snow (nevar), and some others use their own verbs. Hacer covers heat, cold, sun, wind, and general weather quality.
In workplace contexts:
Construction:
It is too hot to work without water breaks. → Hace demasiado calor para trabajar sin descansos para tomar agua.
It is too windy to work at height today. → Hace demasiado viento para trabajar en altura hoy.
If it gets cold, let me know. → Si hace frío, avíseme.
The weather was bad all week so we fell behind. → Hizo mal tiempo toda la semana así que nos atrasamos.
Agriculture:
It has been very hot this season. → Ha hecho mucho calor esta temporada.
If it gets too hot, we stop at noon. → Si hace demasiado calor, paramos al mediodía.
The wind is too strong for spraying today. → Hace demasiado viento para asperjar hoy.
Use 3: Time Expressions With Hace
Hacer is used to express how long ago something happened or how long something has been going on. These constructions are among the most important in Spanish for expressing time and have no direct English structural equivalent.
How long ago something happened: hace + time period + que + preterite verb
He left two hours ago. → Hace dos horas que se fue.
She called twenty minutes ago. → Hace veinte minutos que llamó.
The accident happened three days ago. → Hace tres días que ocurrió el accidente.
He was hired six months ago. → Hace seis meses que lo contrataron.
Alternative structure: preterite verb + hace + time period
He left two hours ago. → Se fue hace dos horas.
She called twenty minutes ago. → Llamó hace veinte minutos.
How long something has been going on: hace + time period + que + present tense verb
I have been working here for five years. → Hace cinco años que trabajo aquí.
She has been a nurse for ten years. → Hace diez años que es enfermera.
We have been waiting for two hours. → Hace dos horas que esperamos.
He has had this pain for three days. → Hace tres días que tiene este dolor.
Alternative structure with llevar: llevo + time period + gerund (more common in everyday speech)
I have been working here for five years. → Llevo cinco años trabajando aquí.
She has been waiting for twenty minutes. → Lleva veinte minutos esperando.
Questions about duration:
How long ago did this happen? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo ocurrió esto?
How long have you had this pain? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo tiene este dolor?
How long have you worked here? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo trabaja aquí?
How long ago did he leave? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo se fue?
In workplace contexts:
Healthcare:
How long have you had this pain? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo tiene este dolor?
She has been a patient here for two years. → Hace dos años que es paciente aquí.
The medication was prescribed three days ago. → Hace tres días que le recetaron el medicamento.
How long ago did the symptoms start? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo empezaron los síntomas?
Construction:
We have been working on this project for six months. → Hace seis meses que trabajamos en este proyecto.
The accident happened twenty minutes ago. → El accidente ocurrió hace veinte minutos.
How long has this equipment been broken? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo que este equipo está descompuesto?
Management:
She has been with the company for three years. → Hace tres años que está en la empresa.
The policy changed two months ago. → Hace dos meses que cambió la política.
How long have you been in this role? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo está en este puesto?
Use 4: Causative Hacer — Making Someone Do Something
Hacer is used in causative constructions to express that someone causes or makes someone else do something. The structure is hacer + infinitive.
Structure: hacer + infinitive (+ the person being made to do it)
The supervisor made everyone stay late. → El supervisor hizo que todos se quedaran tarde.
The doctor made me rest for a week. → El médico me hizo descansar una semana.
She made him repeat the procedure. → Lo hizo repetir el procedimiento.
The noise made it impossible to work. → El ruido hizo imposible trabajar.
What made you change your mind? → ¿Qué te hizo cambiar de opinión?
The cold weather made us stop early. → El frío nos hizo parar temprano.
Hacer + infinitive for giving instructions:
In professional contexts, the causative hacer appears in instructions and directions.
Make them sign the form. → Hágalos firmar la forma.
Make sure they have their equipment. → Asegúrese de que tengan su equipo.
Make the crew start early tomorrow. → Haga que la cuadrilla empiece temprano mañana.
Use 5: Hacerse — To Become
The reflexive form hacerse expresses becoming something through a gradual process or as a result of effort. It is one of several Spanish verbs that express "to become," each with slightly different nuances.
She became a doctor. → Se hizo médica.
He became the supervisor. → Se hizo supervisor.
The company became very successful. → La empresa se hizo muy exitosa.
She is becoming an expert in this field. → Se está haciendo experta en este campo.
It is getting late. → Se está haciendo tarde.
The situation is becoming complicated. → La situación se está haciendo complicada.
Use 6: Fixed Expressions With Hacer
Hacer appears in a large number of fixed expressions and idiomatic phrases that are essential for natural Spanish communication.
Work and activity expressions:
To make a trip → hacer un viaje
To take a walk → hacer una caminata
To exercise → hacer ejercicio
To do a favor → hacer un favor
To ask a question → hacer una pregunta
To make a complaint → hacer una queja
To do damage → hacer daño
To make noise → hacer ruido
To pay attention → hacer caso
To take a role / to play → hacer el papel de
To pretend → hacerse el/la [adjective] (e.g., hacerse el tonto — to play dumb)
To do good → hacer el bien
To do harm → hacer el mal
Time and routine expressions:
To do the shopping → hacer las compras / hacer el mandado
To do the laundry → hacer la colada / lavar la ropa
To make the bed → hacer la cama
To make lunch / dinner → hacer el almuerzo / hacer la cena
To take a nap → hacer una siesta
To make an effort → hacer un esfuerzo
To take a course → hacer un curso
To complete training → hacer una capacitación
Professional expressions:
To make a report → hacer un informe
To make a call → hacer una llamada
To do an inspection → hacer una inspección
To ask a question → hacer una pregunta
To make a reservation → hacer una reservación
To place an order → hacer un pedido
To make a payment → hacer un pago
To file a complaint → hacer una queja
To conduct an interview → hacer una entrevista
To do an audit → hacer una auditoría
To make a budget → hacer un presupuesto
To give a presentation → hacer una presentación
In workplace sentences:
Healthcare:
Do me a favor and call the family. → Hágame el favor de llamar a la familia.
She is doing her rounds right now. → Está haciendo sus rondas ahora mismo.
We need to do an inspection of the equipment. → Necesitamos hacer una inspección del equipo.
He asked a lot of questions. → Hizo muchas preguntas.
Construction:
Make noise before you start the machine. → Haga ruido antes de arrancar la máquina.
We need to do an inspection before we proceed. → Necesitamos hacer una inspección antes de proceder.
Do me a favor and check the measurements. → Hágame el favor de revisar las medidas.
We made a lot of progress today. → Hicimos mucho progreso hoy.
Education:
Ask a question if you do not understand. → Haz una pregunta si no entiendes.
We are going to do an exercise now. → Vamos a hacer un ejercicio ahora.
She did a fantastic presentation. → Hizo una presentación fantástica.
Do me a favor and close the door. → Hazme el favor de cerrar la puerta.
Management:
We need to conduct interviews for the open position. → Necesitamos hacer entrevistas para el puesto vacante.
She made a complaint about the schedule. → Hizo una queja sobre el horario.
We have to do the annual audit next month. → Tenemos que hacer la auditoría anual el próximo mes.
Make a budget for the new project. → Haga un presupuesto para el nuevo proyecto.
Use 7: Hacer in the Preterite vs. the Imperfect
Like all Spanish verbs, hacer shifts meaning slightly depending on which past tense is used.
Preterite: expresses a specific completed action of making or doing.
She made an important decision yesterday. → Ayer tomó una decisión importante. / Ayer hizo una decisión importante.
He did everything correctly. → Hizo todo correctamente.
We did the inspection this morning. → Hicimos la inspección esta mañana.
What did you do about the problem? → ¿Qué hizo con el problema?
Imperfect: expresses habitual or ongoing making or doing in the past.
She always made the schedule on Mondays. → Siempre hacía el horario los lunes.
He used to do the inspections himself. → Él mismo hacía las inspecciones.
We were making progress when the machine broke. → Estábamos haciendo progreso cuando se descompuso la máquina.
What were you doing when I called? → ¿Qué hacías cuando llamé?
Hacer in Real Workplace Conversations
Healthcare:
The doctor is making his rounds. → El médico está haciendo sus rondas.
We need to do a blood draw. → Necesitamos hacer una extracción de sangre.
How long have you had this pain? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo tiene este dolor?
It is cold in the clinic today. → Hace frío en la clínica hoy.
She has been a nurse here for ten years. → Hace diez años que es enfermera aquí.
Do me a favor and call the patient's family. → Hágame el favor de llamar a la familia del paciente.
What did the doctor do about the diagnosis? → ¿Qué hizo el médico con el diagnóstico?
Construction:
Do the measurements before you cut. → Haga las medidas antes de cortar.
It is too hot to work without water breaks. → Hace demasiado calor para trabajar sin descansos para agua.
How long have you been working on this project? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo trabaja en este proyecto?
He did a great job on the framing. → Hizo un gran trabajo en el armazón.
We made a lot of progress today. → Hicimos mucho progreso hoy.
Do an inspection before we proceed. → Haga una inspección antes de proceder.
The wind is too strong for work at height. → Hace demasiado viento para trabajar en altura.
Education:
Do your homework before Friday. → Haz tu tarea antes del viernes.
The students are doing an activity. → Los estudiantes están haciendo una actividad.
How long has she been a student here? → ¿Hace cuánto tiempo es estudiante aquí?
She did an excellent presentation. → Hizo una excelente presentación.
Ask a question if you do not understand. → Haz una pregunta si no entiendes.
We need to do a parent conference this week. → Necesitamos hacer una conferencia de padres esta semana.
Management and HR:
We need to do a performance review. → Necesitamos hacer una evaluación de desempeño.
She has been with the company for three years. → Hace tres años que está en la empresa.
He did everything that was asked of him. → Hizo todo lo que se le pidió.
We need to conduct interviews for the position. → Necesitamos hacer entrevistas para el puesto.
Make a note of what was discussed. → Haga una nota de lo que se discutió.
What did you do about the complaint? → ¿Qué hizo con la queja?
The new policy was made effective last month. → La nueva política se hizo efectiva el mes pasado.
Common Mistakes With Hacer
Separating "make" and "do" into different verbs. English speakers sometimes try to find two different Spanish verbs for "make" and "do." There is only one: hacer. Both "make a decision" and "do an inspection" are hacer una decisión and hacer una inspección.
Using ser or estar for weather. Es calor and está calor are both incorrect. Hace calor is the correct form for weather expressions with heat, cold, sun, and wind.
Confusing the hace + time construction. The structure hace dos horas que trabajo aquí means "I have been working here for two hours" (present ongoing). The structure hice esto hace dos horas means "I did this two hours ago" (past completed). The tense of the verb in the clause changes the meaning entirely.
Using the wrong past tense. Hice la cena cada noche is incorrect for a habitual action. Hacía la cena cada noche (I used to make dinner every night) is correct. Hice la cena refers to a specific completed instance.
Forgetting the irregular yo form. The present tense yo form is hago, not haco. This irregularity carries into the present subjunctive (haga) and the formal commands (haga, hagan).
Forgetting the spelling change in the preterite third person singular. The preterite yo form is hice, but the third person singular is hizo (not hice). The spelling change from c to z before o is required to maintain the same sound.
A Quick Reference: Hacer Uses and Expressions
To make or do → hacer
Weather (heat, cold, sun, wind) → hace calor / frío / sol / viento
How long ago → hace + time + que + preterite
How long something has been going on → hace + time + que + present
To cause someone to do something → hacer + infinitive
To become (gradually) → hacerse
To do a favor → hacer un favor
To ask a question → hacer una pregunta
To make a call → hacer una llamada
To do an inspection → hacer una inspección
To do overtime → hacer horas extra
To give a presentation → hacer una presentación
To do shopping → hacer las compras
To make the bed → hacer la cama
To make noise → hacer ruido
To pay attention → hacer caso
Hacer Is the Verb of Action
Every time you describe something being made, something being done, the weather, how long something has been happening, or causing something to occur, you are reaching for hacer. It is one of the most productive verbs in the entire Spanish language, and mastering its full range of uses is one of the clearest markers of moving from basic to genuinely functional Spanish. The irregular forms are worth drilling specifically: hago, hice, hizo, haré, haría, haga, hecho. Get those automatic and the rest follows naturally.
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