Comenzar means to begin, to start. Learn five tenses, then practise each person.
Present: comienzo, comienzas, comienza, comenzamos, comenzáis, comienzan.
Comenzar in the present tense
Use the present for current states, habits and actions. The subject can be omitted when the verb makes it clear.
Vosotros is informal plural you in Spain. Ustedes uses the ellos/ellas form and is the usual plural you in Latin America.
Comenzar in the preterite tense
Use the preterite for a completed event in the past, viewed as a whole.
Comenzar in the imperfect tense
Use the imperfect for past habits, ongoing situations and background descriptions, without marking their endpoint.
Comenzar in the future tense
Use the simple future for what will happen. Spanish also uses this tense for a guess about the present.
Comenzar in the conditional tense
Use the conditional for what would happen, a polite request or a hypothetical situation.
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All six persons. Blue, bold forms differ from regular endings, including spelling changes that preserve pronunciation.
| Person | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Future | Conditional |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | comienzo | comencé | comenzaba | comenzaré | comenzaría |
| tú | comienzas | comenzaste | comenzabas | comenzarás | comenzarías |
| él / ella / usted | comienza | comenzó | comenzaba | comenzará | comenzaría |
| nosotros / nosotras | comenzamos | comenzamos | comenzábamos | comenzaremos | comenzaríamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | comenzáis | comenzasteis | comenzabais | comenzaréis | comenzaríais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comienzan | comenzaron | comenzaban | comenzarán | comenzarían |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | comienzo | I begin |
| tú | comienzas | you begin |
| él / ella / usted | comienza | he/she begins |
| nosotros / nosotras | comenzamos | we begin |
| vosotros / vosotras | comenzáis | you all (vosotros) begin |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comienzan | they begin |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | comencé | I began |
| tú | comenzaste | you began |
| él / ella / usted | comenzó | he/she began |
| nosotros / nosotras | comenzamos | we began |
| vosotros / vosotras | comenzasteis | you all (vosotros) began |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comenzaron | they began |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | comenzaba | I used to begin |
| tú | comenzabas | you used to begin |
| él / ella / usted | comenzaba | he/she used to begin |
| nosotros / nosotras | comenzábamos | we used to begin |
| vosotros / vosotras | comenzabais | you all (vosotros) used to begin |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comenzaban | they used to begin |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | comenzaré | I will begin |
| tú | comenzarás | you will begin |
| él / ella / usted | comenzará | he/she will begin |
| nosotros / nosotras | comenzaremos | we will begin |
| vosotros / vosotras | comenzaréis | you all (vosotros) will begin |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comenzarán | they will begin |
| Person | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | comenzaría | I would begin |
| tú | comenzarías | you would begin |
| él / ella / usted | comenzaría | he/she would begin |
| nosotros / nosotras | comenzaríamos | we would begin |
| vosotros / vosotras | comenzaríais | you all (vosotros) would begin |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comenzarían | they would begin |
Comenzar differs from the regular endings in the present, preterite. Changed forms include present: comienzo, comienzas, comienza; preterite: comencé. Highlighted forms include spelling changes that preserve pronunciation as well as irregular stems and endings.
The present forms are comienzo, comienzas, comienza, comenzamos, comenzáis, comienzan, in the order yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros and ellos/ellas/ustedes.
comencé, comenzaste, comenzó, comenzamos, comenzasteis, comenzaron. For example, comencé means “I began”.
Comenzar differs from the regular endings in the present, preterite. Changed forms include present: comienzo, comienzas, comienza; preterite: comencé. Highlighted forms include spelling changes that preserve pronunciation as well as irregular stems and endings.
The preterite (comencé) presents a completed event; the imperfect (comenzaba) gives a past habit or background situation. The English glosses are “I began” and “I used to begin”, but context determines the best translation.
The yo forms are comenzaré (“I will begin”) and comenzaría (“I would begin”). The full charts above include every person.
Comenzar means to begin, to start.
Updated · English prompts, Spanish answers.