encontré
“encontré” means “I found” in Spanish. It has 3 different meanings depending on context:
I foundAlso: I located
📝 In Action
¡Por fin encontré las llaves del coche!
A1I finally found the car keys!
Después de mucho buscar, encontré un buen restaurante.
A2After searching a lot, I found a good restaurant.
Word Connections
I metAlso: I ran into, I came across
📝 In Action
Ayer encontré a tu hermana en la biblioteca.
A2Yesterday I met your sister at the library.
Qué sorpresa, ¡encontré a mi antiguo jefe en el avión!
B1What a surprise, I ran into my old boss on the plane!
Word Connections
I foundAlso: I thought
📝 In Action
Encontré la película muy interesante.
B1I found the movie very interesting.
¿Te gustó el libro? Yo lo encontré un poco aburrido.
B1Did you like the book? I found it a little boring.
Word Connections
Indicative
Present
Imperfect
Preterite
Subjunctive
Present Subjunctive
Imperfect Subjunctive
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: encontré
Question 1 of 1
Which sentence uses 'encontré' to mean 'I met' or 'I ran into'?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family
📚 Etymology
Comes from the old Latin words 'in-' (meaning 'in' or 'on') and 'contra' (meaning 'against'). The original idea was about 'coming up against' something or someone, which evolved into our modern meaning of finding or meeting.
First recorded: Around the 12th century
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between 'encontré' and 'busqué'?
Great question! 'Busqué' means 'I looked for' or 'I searched for'—it's the action of searching. 'Encontré' is the result of that search: 'I found'. So, you might say: 'Busqué mis llaves por una hora y finalmente las encontré' (I looked for my keys for an hour and finally I found them).
Is 'encontré' always about the past?
Yes, 'encontré' specifically refers to a single, completed event in the past. It answers the question 'What happened?'. For ongoing or repeated actions in the past, you would use a different form, 'encontraba'.