tener Present Conjugation
tener — to have
Tener is a 'yo-go' verb with an e-ie stem change: tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen.
tener Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present to talk about age, possession, physical sensations (like hunger), or obligations using 'tener que'.
Notes on tener in the Present
The 'yo' form ends in -go (tengo). For other forms (except nosotros/vosotros), the 'e' changes to 'ie'.
Example Sentences
Tengo veinticinco años.
I am twenty-five years old.
yo
¿Tienes hambre ahora?
Are you hungry now?
tú
Tenemos que estudiar para el examen.
We have to study for the exam.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Saying 'soy 20 años' for age.
Correct: Use 'tengo 20 años'.
Why: In Spanish, you 'have' years; you aren't 'be' years.
Mistake: Saying 'teno' for the yo form.
Correct: The correct form is 'tengo'.
Why: Tener is a 'yo-go' verb, requiring the 'g' in the first person.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: tuve
The preterite of tener is highly irregular with a 'uv' stem: tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos, tuvisteis, tuvieron.
Imperfect
yo: tenía
Tener is completely regular in the imperfect: tenía, tenías, tenía, teníamos, teníais, tenían.
Future
yo: tendré
Tener uses the irregular stem 'tendr-': tendré, tendrás, tendrá, tendremos, tendréis, tendrán.
Conditional
yo: tendría
The conditional uses the irregular stem 'tendr-': tendría, tendrías, tendría, tendríamos, tendríais, tendrían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: tenga
The present subjunctive is based on the 'tengo' stem: tenga, tengas, tenga, tengamos, tengáis, tengan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: tuviera
This tense uses the 'tuvier-' stem: tuviera, tuvieras, tuviera, tuviéramos, tuvierais, tuvieran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: ten
The command forms are irregular: ten (tú), tenga (usted), tened (vosotros), tengan (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no tengas
Negative commands use the present subjunctive: no tengas, no tenga, no tengamos, no tengáis, no tengan.