Verbo Tener in Spanish Conjugation | Forms You’ll Say

Tener means “to have,” and its forms shift by tense and person, with a few stem changes that become easy once you group them.

Tener shows up everywhere in Spanish: possession, age, and lots of fixed phrases. The catch is that it’s irregular in a few high-traffic tenses, so a single “one-size” pattern won’t carry you far.

Here’s a clean way to learn it: group the stems, keep the endings steady, and practice with short sentences you’ll actually say.

Why Tener Shows Up So Often

Tener is a main verb that means “to have,” yet it also powers common phrases where English uses “to be”: tener hambre (to be hungry), tener razón (to be right), tener miedo (to be afraid). Once you’re comfortable with its conjugation, these phrases stop feeling like exceptions and start feeling normal.

For official definitions and usage notes, the RAE dictionary entry for “tener” lists meanings and points to its conjugation model. The RAE “Diccionario panhispánico de dudas” note on tener adds detail on certain constructions with a past participle.

Verbo Tener in Spanish Conjugation With Clear Tables

Start by learning the stem families. Tener doesn’t change at random; it changes by tense:

• Ten- in many regular-looking forms.
• Tien- in present indicative for most persons (e → ie).
• Teng- in present subjunctive and formal commands.
• Tuv- in the preterite and forms built from that past stem.
• Tendr- in the simple later-time tense and the conditional.

If you’re studying by level, the Instituto Cervantes grammar inventory (A1–A2) lists tener among verbs with root irregularity, which lines up with what you’ll hear day to day.

Present Indicative: Tengo, Tienes, Tiene

Present indicative mixes two changes: yo adds a g, and most other persons use a stem change. The full set is:

• yo tengo
• tú tienes
• él/ella/usted tiene
• nosotros/nosotras tenemos
• vosotros/vosotras tenéis
• ellos/ellas/ustedes tienen

Two quick checks: only yo gets tengo, and nosotros/vosotros stay on ten-, not tien-.

Imperfect Indicative: Tenía, Tenías

Imperfect stays on ten- and uses -ía endings: tenía, tenías, tenía, teníamos, teníais, tenían. If you know comía, you already know the shape.

Preterite Indicative: Tuve, Tuviste

Preterite flips to tuv- and takes the common irregular preterite endings: tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos, tuvisteis, tuvieron. Your anchor is tuve; everything else follows.

Simple Later-Time Tense And Conditional: Tendré, Tendría

These two tenses keep the same endings most verbs attach to the infinitive, yet tener switches in tendr- first. That gives tendré, tendrás, tendrá, tendremos, tendréis, tendrán; and tendría, tendrías, tendría, tendríamos, tendríais, tendrían.

Present Subjunctive: Tenga, Tengas

Present subjunctive uses teng- plus -a endings: tenga, tengas, tenga, tengamos, tengáis, tengan. A handy rule: the g line matches the present yo form (tengo → tenga).

Imperfect Subjunctive: Tuviera Or Tuviese

Build this from the third-person plural preterite: tuvieron → tuvier- or tuvies-. Both sets are accepted: tuviera/tuviese, tuvieras/tuvieses, tuviera/tuviese, tuviéramos/tuviésemos, tuvierais/tuvieseis, tuvieran/tuviesen.

Commands: Ten, Tenga, Tengan

Informal affirmative tú is ten. Formal commands use the subjunctive set: tenga (usted) and tengan (ustedes). Negative commands also use subjunctive: no tengas, no tenga, no tengamos.

Non-Finite Forms: Tener, Teniendo, Tenido

Tener keeps regular non-finite forms: tener, teniendo, tenido. You’ll see tenido in perfect tenses with haber: he tenido, había tenido, habré tenido.

Table 1 (placed after ~40% of the article)

Stem Map For Tener Across Tenses

Use this table as a fast “stem picker.” Start with the tense you need, grab the stem, then add the right ending.

Tense Or Mood	Stem	One Anchor Form
Present indicative (yo)	teng-	tengo
Present indicative (most persons)	tien-	tienes / tiene / tienen
Present indicative (nosotros, vosotros)	ten-	tenemos / tenéis
Imperfect indicative	ten-	tenía
Preterite indicative	tuv-	tuve
Simple later-time tense	tendr-	tendré
Conditional	tendr-	tendría
Present subjunctive	teng-	tenga
Imperfect subjunctive	tuvier- / tuvies-	tuviera / tuviese
Imperative (tú affirmative)	ten	ten

If you want to see how official model charts are laid out, RAE’s modelos de conjugación verbal page shows the template used for many verbs.

How To Choose The Right Form In A Sentence

When you’re speaking, don’t hunt through the whole chart. Ask one question: what time frame are you in? Then pick the stem that matches.

Time Frame Cheats

• Now or general truth: present (tengo, tienes).
• Past event with a clear finish: preterite (tuve, tuvieron).
• Past background or repeated past habit: imperfect (tenía, teníamos).
• Later time: simple later-time tense (tendré, tendrán).
• Wish, doubt, or request after que: subjunctive (tenga, tengan).

Person First, Form Second

Pick the subject early. If you start with “we,” your brain should jump to tenemos, tuvimos, tendremos, tengamos. That single habit cuts a lot of mistakes.

Accent Marks Worth Learning

Accents show up in vosotros forms like tenéis and tendréis, and in some subjunctive and conditional forms like tengáis, tendríamos, tendríais. Write them a few times so your hands learn the rhythm.

Common Tener Patterns That Feel Odd In English

English-to-Spanish errors with tener usually come from direct translation. Fix the patterns below and you’ll sound smoother fast.

Age With Tener

Spanish uses tener for age: tengo 20 años. If you catch yourself reaching for ser, pause and swap in tener.

States With Tener + Noun

These phrases work like normal sentences: change only the verb form, keep the noun steady.

• tengo hambre
• tienes sed
• tiene sueño
• tenemos prisa

Obligation With Tener Que

Tener que + infinitive means “to have to.” The tense sets the timeline: tuve que salir, tengo que estudiar, tendré que llamar.

Table 2 (placed after ~60% of the article)

High-Frequency Tener Phrases

Memorize a short set of phrases and swap the subject. That’s one of the fastest ways to make tener feel automatic.

Phrase	Meaning	Sample Sentence
tener hambre	to be hungry	Tengo hambre, vamos a comer.
tener sed	to be thirsty	¿Tienes sed?
tener sueño	to be sleepy	Ella tiene sueño temprano.
tener prisa	to be in a hurry	Tenemos prisa; salimos ya.
tener razón	to be right	Usted tiene razón.
tener miedo	to be afraid	No tengo miedo.
tener suerte	to be lucky	Hoy tengo suerte.
tener que + infinitive	to have to	Mañana tendré que trabajar.

Mini Drill For Daily Practice

Say one sentence six ways. Keep the rest of the sentence identical so your brain can lock onto the verb change.

• Yo tengo una idea.
• Tú tienes una idea.
• Él tiene una idea.
• Nosotros tenemos una idea.
• Vosotros tenéis una idea.
• Ellos tienen una idea.

Fast Self-Check Before You Speak

• If it’s present and the subject is not “we” or “you all,” check for tien-.
• If it’s preterite, jump to tuv-.
• If it’s simple later-time tense or conditional, jump to tendr-.
• If it’s subjunctive or a formal command, jump to teng-.
• If you’re giving an informal affirmative command to one person, use ten.

Keep those lines in your notes and reuse the two tables when you write or speak. After steady repetition, tener starts to feel predictable.