Language/Spanish/Grammar/Tener

The use of the verb "Tener" (to have)

Conjugation

In Spanish, the verb "tener" means "to have." It is an irregular verb, which means its conjugation does not follow the standard patterns of regular verbs. Here is a breakdown of the conjugation of "tener" in the present, past (preterite and imperfect), and future tenses in the indicative mood.

Present Tense - Presente de Indicativo

yo tengo - I have

tú tienes - you have (informal)

él/ella/usted tiene - he/she/you (formal) have

nosotros/nosotras tenemos - we have

vosotros/vosotras tenéis - you all have (informal)

ellos/ellas/ustedes tienen - they/you all (formal) have

Past Tense

a) Preterite Tense - Pretérito Perfecto Simple

yo tuve - I had

tú tuviste - you had (informal)

él/ella/usted tuvo - he/she/you (formal) had

nosotros/nosotras tuvimos - we had

vosotros/vosotras tuvisteis - you all had (informal)

ellos/ellas/ustedes tuvieron - they/you all (formal) had

b) Imperfect Tense - Pretérito Imperfecto

yo tenía - I used to have, I had

tú tenías - you used to have, you had (informal)

él/ella/usted tenía - he/she/you (formal) used to have, had

nosotros/nosotras teníamos - we used to have, we had

vosotros/vosotras teníais - you all used to have, you all had (informal)

ellos/ellas/ustedes tenían - they/you all (formal) used to have, had

Future Tense - Futuro Simple

yo tendré - I will have

tú tendrás - you will have (informal)

él/ella/usted tendrá - he/she/you (formal) will have

nosotros/nosotras tendremos - we will have

vosotros/vosotras tendréis - you all will have (informal)

ellos/ellas/ustedes tendrán - they/you all (formal) will have

Remember that these conjugations are for the indicative mood. Spanish also has other moods, such as the subjunctive and imperative, which have their own conjugation patterns for "tener."

Use of the verb "Tener" in Spanish

Use of the verb "Tener" to express feelings or sensations

In English, we use TO BE + ADJECTIVE:

• Tengo hambre

I'm hungry

It's less common to say:

• Estoy hambriento (like in English).

In Spanish we use TENER + NAME:

• Tengo frío

I'm cold

• Tengo sueño

I'm sleepy

Use of the verb "Tener" to say your age

• In English, they use "to be": I'm 22 (years old).

• In Spanish, we say "Tengo 20 (años)".

Use of the verb "Tener" to express possession

• Tengo una casa

I have a house

Use of the verb tener"Tener" to manifest obligation

• Tengo que estudiar

I have to study

Other Lessons

• Sentense Structure
• Conditional Mood
• Por vs Para
• Negation
• Prepositions
• How to conjugate in spanish
• Future Tense
• Use of verb Haber
• Be Polite
• The word that cannot be written