Tirar means 'to throw', 'to pull' and 'to throw away', and it is a versatile regular -ar verb. Tira la pelota (throw the ball), no tires basura (don't throw rubbish), and on a door, tirar means 'pull' (opposite of empujar, 'push'). The reflexive tirarse can mean to dive or throw oneself. Because throwing and disposing come up in sport, the environment and everyday situations, tirar earns frequent use. As a regular -ar verb the conjugation is predictable, and the idiom ir tirando ('to get by / manage') is a useful colloquial extra.
Quick facts
Tirar (to throw / pull) is a regular -ar verb.
Real sentences across different tenses — the kind of thing you'd actually say or write.
Tira la pelota (throw the ball).
No tires basura (don't throw rubbish).
On a door, tirar = pull (vs empujar, push).
Ir tirando (to get by / manage).
Fixed expressions worth knowing — they come up in listening, reading and writing tasks.
Idiomatic expressions
Tirar is a regular verb. Make sure you know the endings for each tense — especially the preterite and subjunctive, which is where marks are most often lost.
tirar is a regular -ar verb — it follows the standard -ar pattern in every tense. That makes it a good one to drill: if you know tirar, you know the template for all regular -ar verbs.
Type conjugations from memory and get instant feedback. That's how you actually build the automatic recall the exam needs — not from reading tables.
Practice tirar now →Three questions. Press Enter to check each answer.
yo: tiro, tú: tiras, él: tira, nosotros: tiramos, vosotros: tiráis, ellos: tiran
Tirar is a regular -ar verb following the standard -ar pattern.
Use tirar in multiple tenses to show range — present, preterite and future at minimum. This is a key criterion for higher GCSE marks.
Verbs that are easy to confuse with tirar or that behave like it.
This reference is written for UK GCSE and A-Level Spanish learners and their teachers. It is designed for exam revision: every form is checked against standard conjugation rules, and the examples reflect the registers and topics that come up in the AQA, Edexcel and Eduqas specifications. Tirar is a high-frequency verb and appears often in exam papers. For active recall, use the free practice tool rather than only reading the tables.