cumplir Present Conjugation
cumplir — fulfill
Cumplir is regular in the present tense: cumplo, cumples, cumple, cumplimos, cumplís, cumplen.
cumplir Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense to talk about current habits, like meeting deadlines or fulfilling duties. It is also the standard way to say someone is having a birthday (cumplir años).
Notes on cumplir in the Present
Cumplir is a completely regular -ir verb in the present tense. There are no stem changes or spelling shifts to worry about.
Example Sentences
Yo siempre cumplo con mi palabra.
I always keep my word.
yo
Hoy mi hermano cumple veinte años.
Today my brother turns twenty years old.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros cumplimos las normas de la escuela.
We follow the school rules.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'tengo' for birthdays instead of cumplir.
Correct: Hoy cumplo 20 años.
Why: While you use 'tener' to state your age, you use 'cumplir' to describe the act of reaching a new age on your birthday.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: cumplí
The preterite of cumplir is regular: cumplí, cumpliste, cumplió, cumplimos, cumplisteis, cumplieron.
Imperfect
yo: cumplía
Cumplir in the imperfect uses standard -ía endings: cumplía, cumplías, cumplía, cumplíamos, cumplíais, cumplían.
Future
yo: cumpliré
The future of cumplir is formed by adding endings to the infinitive: cumpliré, cumplirás, cumplirá, cumpliremos, cumpliréis, cumplirán.
Conditional
yo: cumpliría
The conditional of cumplir is regular: cumpliría, cumplirías, cumpliría, cumpliríamos, cumpliríais, cumplirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: cumpla
The present subjunctive of cumplir uses -a endings: cumpla, cumplas, cumpla, cumplamos, cumpláis, cumplan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cumpliera
The imperfect subjunctive of cumplir is based on the preterite stem: cumpliera, cumplieras, cumpliera, cumpliéramos, cumplierais, cumplieran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: cumple
The imperative of cumplir gives direct orders: cumple, cumpla, cumplamos, cumplid, cumplan.
Negative Imperative
yo: no cumplas
The negative imperative of cumplir uses present subjunctive forms: no cumplas, no cumpla, no cumplamos, no cumpláis, no cumplan.