How to Say Now in Spanish: Ahora, Ahora Mismo, Ya and Ahorita
Now in Spanish is ahora, pronounced ah-OH-rah; the h is silent. For “right now”, say ahora mismo, and for an impatient “now!” or “I’m coming now”, Spanish uses ya: ¡Ven ya!, ¡Ya voy! In Mexico and much of Central America you will also hear ahorita, which can mean “right now” but often means “in a little while”.
Below: which word to use for each kind of “now”, the regional traps (ahorita, ya mismo, Spain’s ahora voy), the false friend actualmente, phrases such as “from now on”, “for now” and “three days from now”, a dialogue and a practice set with answers. Related time words: later in Spanish, today in Spanish and time in Spanish; more everyday words are in the Spanish vocabulary hub.
Quick picker
| English | Spanish | Example |
|---|---|---|
| now | ahora | Ahora vivo en Lima. I live in Lima now. |
| right now (this very moment) | ahora mismo | Lo hago ahora mismo. I’ll do it right now. |
| now! / right away! | ¡ya!, enseguida, de inmediato | Necesito el informe ya. I need the report now. |
| at the moment (busy, unavailable) | en este momento | En este momento no está. He’s not here at the moment. |
| currently, these days | actualmente, en la actualidad | Actualmente trabaja en un hospital. She currently works in a hospital. |
| nowadays | hoy en día, hoy día | Hoy en día casi todo se paga con el móvil. |
| for now | por ahora, de momento, por el momento | Por ahora, todo bien. So far so good, for now. |
| from now on | de ahora en adelante, a partir de ahora | A partir de ahora, llego a las ocho. |
| until now, so far | hasta ahora | Hasta ahora no ha llamado nadie. Nobody has called so far. |
| by now | ya | Ya deben de estar en casa. They must be home by now. |
| now that… | ahora que | Ahora que tengo tiempo, voy a leer más. |
| three days from now | dentro de tres días | El examen es dentro de tres días. |
| now and then | de vez en cuando | Nos vemos de vez en cuando. |
| Now what? | ¿Y ahora qué? | Se fue la luz. ¿Y ahora qué? |
| now or never | ahora o nunca | Es ahora o nunca. |
How to pronounce ahora
Three syllables: a-HO-ra, said “ah-OH-rah”. The h is never pronounced in Spanish, so the two vowels run together smoothly. The r between vowels is a single quick tap, like the tt in American “butter”, not a rolled rr. The stress is on the middle syllable. Ahorita is “ah-oh-REE-tah”, and ya is a short “yah” (in Argentina and Uruguay closer to “shah” or “zhah”).
Ahora: the everyday “now”
Ahora works wherever English “now” points to the present: ¿Qué haces ahora? (What are you doing now?), Ahora entiendo (Now I understand). It can go before or after the verb, and it also contrasts the present with the past: Antes fumaba, ahora no. (I used to smoke, now I don’t.)
Two uses surprise learners:
- “In a minute” in Spain. With a present-tense verb, ahora often means “very soon”: Ahora voy (I’m coming, give me a second), Ahora vuelvo (I’ll be right back), Ahora te llamo (I’ll call you in a minute). In Spain, ¡Hasta ahora! means “see you in a bit”, said when you will meet again within minutes.
- “However”, “that said”. Ahora bien starts a sentence that adds a condition or contrast: El piso es bonito. Ahora bien, es carísimo. (The flat is lovely. That said, it’s very expensive.) It does not mean “well, now”.
Ahora que means “now that” and takes the indicative because it states a fact: Ahora que lo pienso, tienes razón (Now that I think about it, you’re right).
Ahora mismo: right now
Mismo adds emphasis: ahora mismo is “right now, this very minute”. Estoy ocupado ahora mismo (I’m busy right now), ¡Ven aquí ahora mismo! (Come here right now!). It can also mean “a moment ago” with a past tense, mainly in Spain: Ahora mismo ha salido (She’s just gone out). Everywhere, acaba de salir or hace un momento says the same thing without doubt.
Ya: “now”, “already”, “by now”
Ya is short and does many jobs. Its meaning comes from the sentence around it.
| Spanish | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ¡Ya voy! | Coming! (I’m on my way now) |
| Lo quiero ya. | I want it now (impatient) |
| ¡Ya! | Now! / Go! or, depending on tone, Enough! / Done! |
| Ya lo sé. | I know (already). |
| ¿Ya terminaste? | Have you finished already? |
| Ya deben de haber llegado. | They must have arrived by now. |
| Ahora ya lo entiendo. | Now I get it. (ahora and ya together are normal) |
| Ya no vivo allí. | I don’t live there anymore. |
| Ya me cansé. | I’ve had enough / I’m fed up. |
| Ya me lo imaginaba. | I thought as much. |
Watch the negatives: ya no is “not anymore”, todavía no or aún no is “not yet”, and “not now” is ahora no.
Ahorita and ya mismo: the regional traps
Ahorita is everyday Spanish in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and is heard in Colombia, Venezuela and Peru too. It is much less common in most of Spain. Its meaning depends on the speaker and the tone:
- “right now”: Ahorita lo hago can mean “I’m doing it right now”;
- “in a little while”: Ahorita vengo often means “I’ll be back in a bit”;
- “a moment ago”: Ahorita me llamó (She called me just now);
- a soft “no”: Ahorita no, gracias to a street seller means “not today”.
If you need to know how soon, ask. In Mexico people say ahorita ahorita or ahoritita to mean “this very second”.
Ya mismo means “right away” in Spain and in many countries, but in some it means “soon, in a while” (Ecuador is the best-known case). Ya mismo voy may be a promise for later rather than now.
Recién, in much of South America, means “just now”: Recién llegué (I just got here). In Spain the usual form is Acabo de llegar.
En este momento, actualmente, hoy en día
- En este momento is “at the moment, at this moment” for a situation right now, often an apology or an update: En este momento no podemos atender su llamada (We can’t take your call at the moment). En estos momentos is the same, a little more formal.
- Actualmente means “currently, at present”, for a situation that lasts: Actualmente vivo en Sevilla. It is a false friend: it never means “actually”. For “actually”, say en realidad or la verdad es que.
- Hoy en día and hoy día mean “nowadays”, contrasting the present with the past: Hoy en día nadie usa cabinas telefónicas. En la actualidad is the formal written equivalent.
Right away: enseguida, de inmediato, inmediatamente
Enseguida (also written en seguida) is the friendly “right away”: a waiter says Enseguida se lo traigo (I’ll bring it right away). De inmediato and inmediatamente are firmer and suit instructions and reports: Llame a emergencias de inmediato (Call emergency services immediately). Inmediatamente often comes with después: Inmediatamente después del partido, se fue. (Right after the match, he left.)
“Just now”, “until now” and “by now” with past tenses
English uses “now” in a few past-time phrases that Spanish handles differently:
- “just now”, “a moment ago”: hace un momento or acabar de + infinitive. Te llamé hace un momento (I called you just now); Acabo de verlo (I’ve just seen him).
- “until now”, “so far”: hasta ahora, usually with the present perfect in Spain and the preterite in much of Latin America. Hasta ahora no ha habido problemas / Hasta ahora no hubo problemas. Both mean “There have been no problems so far.”
- “by now” as a guess: ya + deber de. Ya deben de estar aterrizando (They must be landing by now).
- “then” in a story, where English sometimes says “now”: entonces or ya. “Now it was dark” becomes Ya era de noche, not Ahora era de noche.
- “right then”, “at that moment”: en ese momento. In the past, este becomes ese: En ese momento sonó el teléfono.
A short dialogue
Ana (in Madrid, on the phone): ¿Dónde estás? La película empieza ahora mismo.
Diego: Ya voy, ya voy. Estoy aparcando.
Ana: Vale. Compro las palomitas ahora y te espero en la puerta.
Diego: Perfecto, hasta ahora.
Ana (a week later, in Mexico City): Disculpe, ¿nos trae la cuenta?
Mesero: Sí, ahorita se la traigo.
Ana (twenty minutes later): Ya entiendo lo de “ahorita”…
Ana: “Where are you? The film is starting right now.” Diego: “Coming, coming. I’m parking.” Ana: “OK. I’ll buy the popcorn now and wait for you at the door.” Diego: “Perfect, see you in a minute.” Then in Mexico City, Ana: “Excuse me, could you bring us the bill?” Waiter: “Yes, I’ll bring it right away.” Twenty minutes later, Ana: “Now I get the thing about ahorita…”
Mistakes learners really make
| Not this | But this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Actualmente, no me gusta el café (for “actually”) | En realidad, no me gusta el café. | Actualmente means “currently”. |
| Ya no he comido (for “I haven’t eaten yet”) | Todavía no he comido. | Ya no is “no longer”; “not yet” is todavía no or aún no. |
| Ya no, gracias (for “not now”) | Ahora no, gracias. | Ya no says you no longer want it at all. |
| tres días desde ahora | dentro de tres días | A word-for-word copy of the English. Spanish uses dentro de. |
| ahora y entonces (for “now and then”) | de vez en cuando | The English idiom does not translate literally. |
| Hearing ahorita as “immediately” | Ask: ¿Ahorita ahorita? | In Mexico it often means “in a while”. |
Practice
- “I’m busy right now.” Estoy ocupada ______.
- “I don’t live there anymore.” ______ vivo allí.
- “I haven’t finished yet.” ______ he terminado.
- “She currently works in a bank.” ______ trabaja en un banco.
- “From now on, no phones at dinner.” ______, nada de móviles en la cena.
- “Nowadays everyone works from home.” ______ todo el mundo trabaja desde casa.
- “See you in a minute!” (Spain) ¡Hasta ______!
- “The concert is a week from now.” El concierto es ______ una semana.
Answers: 1 ahora mismo (or en este momento); 2 Ya no; 3 Todavía no (or Aún no); 4 Actualmente; 5 De ahora en adelante (or A partir de ahora); 6 Hoy en día; 7 ahora; 8 dentro de.
Quick answers
What is the most common word for “now” in Spanish?
Ahora. It is understood and used in every Spanish-speaking country.
How do you say “right now” in Spanish?
Ahora mismo. Ya also works when you are impatient: ¡Ven ya! In Mexico, ahorita can mean it too, but not reliably.
What does “ahorita” mean?
Literally “little now”. It can mean right now, in a while, a moment ago, or a polite “not now”, depending on the country and the speaker.
Can you use “ahora” and “ya” in the same sentence?
Yes. Ahora ya lo entiendo (Now I get it) is natural Spanish.
Does “actualmente” mean “actually”?
No. It means “currently”. “Actually” is en realidad.
How do you say “now” at the start of a sentence, as in “Now, listen”?
Usually Bueno, or A ver,: A ver, escuchadme todos. Ahora bien is only for “that said, however”.
