conté
“conté” means “I counted” in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:
I counted
Also: I tallied
📝 In Action
Conté veinte personas en la sala.
A1I counted twenty people in the room.
Conté el dinero antes de guardarlo.
A2I counted the money before putting it away.
I told
Also: I recounted, I narrated
📝 In Action
Le conté toda la historia anoche.
A2I told him/her the whole story last night.
Conté mi secreto solo a mi mejor amiga.
B1I told my secret only to my best friend.
🔄 Conjugations
indicative
present
imperfect
preterite
subjunctive
present
imperfect
Translate to Spanish
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: conté
Question 1 of 2
Which English sentence correctly uses the 'counting' meaning of 'conté'?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family▼
📚 Etymology▼
The verb 'contar' comes from the Latin word *computāre*, meaning 'to calculate' or 'to sum up.' This is why it has the two main meanings in Spanish: calculating (counting) and summing up events (telling a story).
First recorded: 10th century
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does 'contar' sometimes change to 'cuento' in the present tense?
'Contar' is a 'boot verb' or 'stem-changing verb.' This means that in the present tense, the 'o' in the middle changes to 'ue' when the stress falls on that part of the word (like in 'yo cuento'). However, in the past tense ('conté'), it goes back to 'o' and acts like a regular verb.
How do I say 'I was counting' instead of 'I counted'?
'Conté' means 'I counted' (a finished action). If you want to say 'I was counting' (an ongoing action in the past), you would use the imperfect tense: 'Yo contaba'.