How to conjugate "tener" in Spanish: every tense, with examples and idioms.

Tener (to have) is one of the most-used Spanish verbs and one of the trickiest because it's irregular almost everywhere. Here's every form you need, plus the dozens of idioms where tener means much more than "to have".

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Why tener matters so much

Tener literally means "to have", but in Spanish it's the verb you reach for far more often than English speakers expect. You're not "30 years old" in Spanish — you "have 30 years" (tengo 30 años). You're not "hungry" — you "have hunger" (tengo hambre). You don't "have to" go — you "have that go" (tengo que ir). Almost every basic conversation pulls tener in five or six times.

Master tener and its idioms early. It's a one-verb shortcut to sounding way more natural in Spanish.

Present tense (presente)

yo tengo

"Tengo dos hermanos." (I have two brothers.) Note the "g" — irregular.

tú tienes

"¿Tienes tiempo?" (Do you have time?)

él/ella/usted tiene

"Ella tiene un coche nuevo." (She has a new car.)

nosotros tenemos

"Tenemos una reunión." (We have a meeting.)

vosotros tenéis

"¿Tenéis hambre?" (Are you guys hungry? — Spain.)

ellos/ellas/ustedes tienen

"Tienen muchos amigos." (They have many friends.)

Pattern: stem changes from "ten-" to "tien-" in tú, él, ella, ellos forms. The yo form has an irregular "g". Get used to it — this pattern recurs in many Spanish verbs (poner, salir, venir).

Preterite (pretérito) — completed past actions

yo tuve

"Ayer tuve un día difícil." (Yesterday I had a tough day.)

tú tuviste

"¿Tuviste éxito?" (Did you have success?)

él/ella tuvo

"Tuvo una idea brillante." (He had a brilliant idea.)

nosotros tuvimos

"Tuvimos una buena conversación." (We had a good conversation.)

vosotros tuvisteis

"¿Tuvisteis problemas?" (Did you all have problems?)

ellos tuvieron

"Tuvieron que cancelar." (They had to cancel.)

Tener is irregular in preterite — completely different stem ("tuv-") and endings without accents. Memorize it. This is one of the highest-frequency verbs you'll need in past tense.

Imperfect (imperfecto) — habitual or ongoing past

yo tenía

"De niño tenía un perro." (As a kid I had a dog.)

tú tenías

"¿Tenías hambre?" (Were you hungry?)

él/ella tenía

"Tenía 25 años entonces." (She was 25 years old then.)

nosotros teníamos

"Teníamos mucho trabajo." (We had a lot of work.)

vosotros teníais

"Teníais razón." (You guys were right.)

ellos tenían

"Tenían tres hijos." (They had three kids.)

Imperfect is regular for tener: just use the standard -er endings (-ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían).

Future (futuro) and conditional (condicional)

Future: stem "tendr-"

tendré, tendrás, tendrá, tendremos, tendréis, tendrán. "Mañana tendré tiempo." (Tomorrow I'll have time.)

Conditional: stem "tendr-"

tendría, tendrías, tendría, tendríamos, tendríais, tendrían. "Tendría más éxito si estudiara." (I'd have more success if I studied.)

Both future and conditional use the irregular stem "tendr-" instead of the regular "tener-".

Subjunctive (subjuntivo)

Present subjunctive: "tenga"

tenga, tengas, tenga, tengamos, tengáis, tengan. "Espero que tengas un buen día." (I hope you have a good day.)

Imperfect subjunctive: "tuviera"

tuviera, tuvieras, tuviera, tuviéramos, tuvierais, tuvieran. "Si tuviera más tiempo…" (If I had more time…)

Idioms with tener (the real reason you need this verb)

Tener appears in dozens of idioms where it doesn't mean "to have" but something more specific. These are essential for sounding natural in Spanish:

Tener años — to be (X) years old. "Tengo treinta años."

Tener hambre / sed — to be hungry / thirsty.

Tener frío / calor — to be cold / hot. (For body sensation, not weather.)

Tener miedo — to be afraid. "Tengo miedo de los perros."

Tener sueño — to be sleepy.

Tener prisa — to be in a hurry.

Tener razón — to be right. "Tienes razón." (You're right.)

Tener suerte — to be lucky.

Tener cuidado — to be careful.

Tener ganas de + infinitivo — to feel like (doing). "Tengo ganas de salir." (I feel like going out.)

Tener que + infinitivo — to have to. "Tengo que estudiar." (I have to study.)

Tener lugar — to take place. "El evento tiene lugar mañana."

Notice the pattern: many states that English expresses with "to be" (hungry, cold, right, sleepy) use tener in Spanish. This is the difference that trips up English speakers most.

Tener in your active toolkit.

Practice all the forms and idioms in conversation with TucoLingo. Tener is one of those verbs that, once it's automatic, dramatically lifts your spoken Spanish.

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