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.
Tener also gives your age: tengo 30 años, I am 30. Tener que plus a verb is to have to: tengo que trabajar.
tengoI have (present)
tienesyou have (present)
tienehe/she has (present)
tenemoswe have (present)
tenéisyou all (vosotros) have (present)
tienenthey have (present)
Tener in the preterite tense
Use the preterite for a completed event in the past, viewed as a whole.
tuveI had (preterite)
tuvisteyou had (preterite)
tuvohe/she had (preterite)
tuvimoswe had (preterite)
tuvisteisyou all (vosotros) had (preterite)
tuvieronthey had (preterite)
Tener in the imperfect tense
Use the imperfect for past habits, ongoing situations and background descriptions, without marking their endpoint.
teníaI used to have (imperfect)
teníasyou used to have (imperfect)
teníahe/she used to have (imperfect)
teníamoswe used to have (imperfect)
teníaisyou all (vosotros) used to have (imperfect)
teníanthey used to have (imperfect)
Tener in the future tense
Use the simple future for what will happen. Spanish also uses this tense for a guess about the present.
tendréI will have (future)
tendrásyou will have (future)
tendráhe/she will have (future)
tendremoswe will have (future)
tendréisyou all (vosotros) will have (future)
tendránthey will have (future)
Tener in the conditional tense
Use the conditional for what would happen, a polite request or a hypothetical situation.
tendríaI would have (conditional)
tendríasyou would have (conditional)
tendríahe/she would have (conditional)
tendríamoswe would have (conditional)
tendríaisyou all (vosotros) would have (conditional)
tendríanthey would have (conditional)
learnt
0
mastered
0
learning
0
struggling
0
due for review
0
Learning Learnt Mastered Struggling
Pick a word to hear it and see when it's due next.
0 / 30 learnt
Tener conjugation chart
All six persons. Blue, bold forms differ from regular endings, including spelling changes that preserve pronunciation.
Person
Present
Preterite
Imperfect
Future
Conditional
yo
tengo
tuve
tenía
tendré
tendría
tú
tienes
tuviste
tenías
tendrás
tendrías
él / ella / usted
tiene
tuvo
tenía
tendrá
tendría
nosotros / nosotras
tenemos
tuvimos
teníamos
tendremos
tendríamos
vosotros / vosotras
tenéis
tuvisteis
teníais
tendréis
tendríais
ellos / ellas / ustedes
tienen
tuvieron
tenían
tendrán
tendrían
Tener in the present tense
Person
Spanish
English
yo
tengo
I have
tú
tienes
you have
él / ella / usted
tiene
he/she has
nosotros / nosotras
tenemos
we have
vosotros / vosotras
tenéis
you all (vosotros) have
ellos / ellas / ustedes
tienen
they have
Tener in the preterite tense
Person
Spanish
English
yo
tuve
I had
tú
tuviste
you had
él / ella / usted
tuvo
he/she had
nosotros / nosotras
tuvimos
we had
vosotros / vosotras
tuvisteis
you all (vosotros) had
ellos / ellas / ustedes
tuvieron
they had
Tener in the imperfect tense
Person
Spanish
English
yo
tenía
I used to have
tú
tenías
you used to have
él / ella / usted
tenía
he/she used to have
nosotros / nosotras
teníamos
we used to have
vosotros / vosotras
teníais
you all (vosotros) used to have
ellos / ellas / ustedes
tenían
they used to have
Tener in the future tense
Person
Spanish
English
yo
tendré
I will have
tú
tendrás
you will have
él / ella / usted
tendrá
he/she will have
nosotros / nosotras
tendremos
we will have
vosotros / vosotras
tendréis
you all (vosotros) will have
ellos / ellas / ustedes
tendrán
they will have
Tener in the conditional tense
Person
Spanish
English
yo
tendría
I would have
tú
tendrías
you would have
él / ella / usted
tendría
he/she would have
nosotros / nosotras
tendríamos
we would have
vosotros / vosotras
tendríais
you all (vosotros) would have
ellos / ellas / ustedes
tendrían
they would have
Is tener irregular?
Tener differs from the regular endings in the present, preterite, future, conditional. Changed forms include present: tengo, tienes, tiene; preterite: tuve, tuviste, tuvo; future: tendré, tendrás, tendrá; conditional: tendría, tendrías, tendría. Highlighted forms include spelling changes that preserve pronunciation as well as irregular stems and endings.
Questions about tener
How do you conjugate tener in the present?
The present forms are tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen, in the order yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros and ellos/ellas/ustedes.
What is the preterite of tener?
tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos, tuvisteis, tuvieron. For example, tuve means “I had”.
Is tener irregular?
Tener differs from the regular endings in the present, preterite, future, conditional. Changed forms include present: tengo, tienes, tiene; preterite: tuve, tuviste, tuvo; future: tendré, tendrás, tendrá; conditional: tendría, tendrías, tendría. Highlighted forms include spelling changes that preserve pronunciation as well as irregular stems and endings.
What is the difference between the preterite and imperfect of tener?
The preterite (tuve) presents a completed event; the imperfect (tenía) gives a past habit or background situation. The English glosses are “I had” and “I used to have”, but context determines the best translation.
What are the future and conditional of tener?
The yo forms are tendré (“I will have”) and tendría (“I would have”). The full charts above include every person.
What does tener mean?
Tener means to have. Tener also gives your age: tengo 30 años, I am 30. Tener que plus a verb is to have to: tengo que trabajar.