Using the Spanish Verb Seguir

The verb seguir carries with it the idea of to continue or to follow, but it can be used in a variety of ways that have other translations to English. Using Seguir by Itself Standing alone, seguir typically means to go on or to continue: A 20 bajo cero la vida sigue. (At 20 below life goes on.) ¡Sigue!  ¡Puedes hacerlo! (Keep it up! You can do it!)Estaba sana fisicamente, pero la depresià ³n seguà ­ y seguà ­a. (She was physically healthy, but the depression dragged on and on.) Using Seguir With Gerunds Seguir is most commonly used to precede the gerund, where it functions as a type of auxiliary verb meaning to continue or to keep on. In this way it is forms a type of progressive tense: Tengo un crà ©dito por minivan usada y no la puedo seguir pagando. (I have a loan for a used minivan and I cant continue paying for it.)Siguià ³ corriendo a pesar del dolor. (He kept on running despite the pain.)Cuando tenga la oportunidad, seguirà © estudiando inglà ©s. (When I have the opportunity, I will continue studying English.)Siga aprendiendo. (Keep on learning.)La cantante chilena sigue rompiendo sus propios rà ©cords. (The Chilean singer keeps on breaking her own records.)Seguà ­a pensando en el tiempo perdido en pensar en el tiempo que pierdo. (She kept on thinking about the time lost thinking about the time lost.) Such sentences frequently carry the connotation of to still be (verb ing): El actor sigue buscando la felicidad. (The actor is still looking for happiness.)Sà ­, sigue nevando afuera. (Yes, its still snowing outside.)Sigo tratando de fotografiar a mi gato, pero no me deja. (Im still trying to take a picture of my cat, but hes not letting me.) Following Seguir With an Adjective When seguir is followed by an adjective, the meaning of to still be (adjective) also is common: Cynthia sigue feliz con su esposo. (Cynthia is still happy with her husband.(Si la situacià ³n sigue difà ­cil durante tres o cuatro meses, algunas operaciones se cancelarà ¡n. (If the situation is still difficult for three or four months, some operations will be canceled.)Ella se siente feliz, pero sigue asustada. (She feels happy, but shes still afraid.)Hoy amanecà ­ un poco mejor, pero de todas maneras sigo triste. (Today I got up a little bit better, but in any case Im still sad.) Prepositional Phrases Using Seguir Similarly, seguir en commonly means to still be in: El piloto espaà ±ol sigue en coma. (The Spanish pilot is still in a coma.)Mucha gente sigue en vacaciones y llegan hasta las clases de maà ±ana. (Many people are still on vacation and will arrive in classes tomorrow.)Seguirà © en contacto contigo, te lo prometo. (I promise you, Ill still be in touch with you.) Seguir sin often means to still be without. An infinitive often follows, making a sentence construction quite unlike what is used to say the same thing in English: Un tercio de la capital sigue sin electricidad. (A third of the capital is still without electricity.)Seguimos sin reconocer los culpables de la crisis. (We still dont recognize who is responsible for the crisis.)Siguen sin pagarme. (They still arent paying me.)Siguieron sin hacer nada productivo. (They still hadnt done anything productive).Hay algunas cosas de mi madre que sigo sin entender. (There are some things about my mother that I still dont understand.) Using Seguir With a Direct Object One common meaning of seguir is to follow, either literally or figuratively, especially when seguir is used with a direct object: A mi casa me siguià ³ un perrito. (A puppy followed me home.)No me sigas, no tengo la menor idea de lo que hago. (Dont follow me, I dont have the least idea what Im doing.)Sigue las instrucciones que te vamos a dar. (Follow the instructions that we are going to give you.)Hay nivel para principiantes de Guitar Hero donde sà ³lo se necesita seguir el ritmo. (There is a level for Guitar Hero beginners where all you have to do is follow the rhythm.) Conjugating Seguir Note that seguir is conjugated irregularly. Unlike many irregular verbs, which change in their endings, seguir usually changes in the stem when it breaks the pattern. For example, its gerund is siguiendo, not the seguiendo you might expect. Seguir is irregular in all of its subjunctive form as well as present and preterite indicative. The forms for the present indicative are: sigo, sigues, sigue, seguimos, seguis, siguen. Irregular forms are in boldface. Key Takeaways In many situations, seguir can be translated as to continue or informally as to keep on.Seguir often carries the connotation that something has been happening for longer than might be expected or desired.Seguir is an irregularly conjugated verb.