mentir Imperfect Subjunctive Conjugation
mentir — to lie
The imperfect subjunctive of mentir uses the 'i' stem: mintiera, mintieras, mintiera...
mentir Imperfect Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Imperfect Subjunctive
Use this in 'if' clauses (e.g., 'If I lied...') or after past-tense expressions of doubt or emotion.
Notes on mentir in the Imperfect Subjunctive
This tense is based on the third-person plural of the preterite (mintieron), so the 'i' stem persists through all forms.
Example Sentences
Si yo mintiera, me sentiría mal.
If I lied, I would feel bad.
yo
No quería que tú mintieras.
I didn't want you to lie.
tú
Si ellos mintieran, lo sabríamos.
If they lied, we would know it.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Si yo mentiera...
Correct: Si yo mintiera...
Why: The imperfect subjunctive must follow the 'i' stem established in the preterite 'ellos' form.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: miento
Mentir is a stem-changing verb (e > ie) in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: mentí
Mentir changes its stem from 'e' to 'i' only in the third-person forms: mintió and mintieron.
Imperfect
yo: mentía
Mentir is regular in the imperfect: mentía, mentías, mentía, mentíamos, mentíais, mentían.
Future
yo: mentiré
Mentir is completely regular in the future tense; just add the endings to the infinitive.
Conditional
yo: mentiría
The conditional of mentir is regular: mentiría, mentirías, mentiría, mentiríamos, mentiríais, mentirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: mienta
Mentir changes to 'ie' in most forms, but importantly uses 'i' in the nosotros/vosotros forms.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: miente
Use 'miente' for informal commands and 'mienta' for formal ones.
Negative Imperative
yo: no mientas
All negative commands for mentir use the present subjunctive forms.