mantenerse Imperfect Conjugation
mantenerse — to remain
The imperfect of mantenerse is regular: me mantenía, te mantenías, se mantenía.
mantenerse Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe an ongoing state in the past or how things 'used to' be without a specific end point.
Notes on mantenerse in the Imperfect
This tense is completely regular for -er verbs. Just add -ía to the stem 'manten-'.
Example Sentences
De niño, me mantenía lejos de los problemas.
As a child, I used to stay out of trouble.
yo
Se mantenían ocupados durante todo el día.
They used to keep themselves busy all day long.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Nos manteníamos en silencio mientras ella hablaba.
We were staying silent while she was speaking.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: me mantenaba
Correct: me mantenía
Why: -er verbs use -ía endings in the imperfect, not -aba (which is for -ar verbs).
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: me mantengo
The present tense of mantenerse is irregular, featuring a 'g' in the yo form and 'ie' stem changes elsewhere.
Preterite
yo: me mantuve
The preterite of mantenerse is highly irregular, using the 'uv' stem: me mantuve, te mantuviste, se mantuvo.
Future
yo: me mantendré
The future of mantenerse uses the irregular stem 'mantendr-': me mantendré, te mantendrás.
Conditional
yo: me mantendría
The conditional uses the irregular stem 'mantendr-': me mantendría, te mantendrías.
Present Subjunctive
yo: me mantenga
The present subjunctive uses the 'manteng-' stem: me mantenga, te mantengas.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: me mantuviera
The imperfect subjunctive uses the irregular 'mantuv-' stem: me mantuviera, te mantuvieras.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: mantente
The imperative uses 'mantente' for tú and 'manténgase' for formal requests.
Negative Imperative
yo: no te mantengas
The negative imperative always uses the present subjunctive: no te mantengas, no se mantenga.