entretener Affirmative Imperative Conjugation
entretener — to entertain
The imperative uses 'entretén' for tú and 'entretengan' for formal commands.
entretener Affirmative Imperative Forms
When to Use the Affirmative Imperative
Use the imperative to tell someone to entertain others or to tell someone not to get distracted (usually with 'no').
Notes on entretener in the Affirmative Imperative
The informal 'tú' command is 'entretén' (shortened like 'ten'). Formal commands use the 'g' stem from the subjunctive.
Example Sentences
Entretén a los invitados mientras preparo la cena.
Entertain the guests while I prepare dinner.
tú
Entretengan a los niños un momento, por favor.
Entertain the children for a moment, please.
ustedes
Entretengamos al público con un chiste.
Let's entertain the audience with a joke.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Saying 'entretiene' as a command.
Correct: entretén
Why: For verbs based on 'tener', the informal command is shortened to -tén.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: entretengo
Entretener follows the 'tener' pattern in the present: it has a 'go' in the yo form and an e-to-ie stem change.
Preterite
yo: entretuve
The preterite of entretener uses the irregular 'tuv' stem: entretuve, entretuviste, entretuvo.
Imperfect
yo: entretenía
Entretener is regular in the imperfect: entretenía, entretenías, entretenía.
Future
yo: entretendré
The future tense uses the irregular stem 'entretendr-': entretendré, entretendrás.
Conditional
yo: entretendría
The conditional uses the irregular stem 'entretendr-': entretendría, entretendrías.
Present Subjunctive
yo: entretenga
The present subjunctive uses the 'entreteng-' stem: entretenga, entretengas.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: entretuviera
The imperfect subjunctive uses the 'entretuvier-' stem: entretuviera, entretuvieras.
Negative Imperative
yo: no entretengas
The negative imperative uses the present subjunctive: no entretengas, no entretenga.