Conjugation of contar in Spanish
contarto count; to tell (a story)irregular
Presente
Actions happening now or habitually.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | cuento | |
| tú | cuentas | |
| él/ella/Ud. | cuenta | |
| nosotros | contamos | |
| vosotros | contáis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cuentan |
Common mistakes in the Presente
- yo
contocuentoLearners sometimes fail to apply the stem change o->ue; the correct form is 'cuento'. - tú
contascuentasIncorrectly formed (influence from Portuguese or regularization). The correct Spanish form is 'cuentas' (o->ue).
Pretérito Indefinidosimple past
Completed actions in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | conté | |
| tú | contaste | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contó | |
| nosotros | contamos | |
| vosotros | contasteis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contaron |
Pretérito Imperfecto
Ongoing or habitual actions in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | contaba | |
| tú | contabas | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contaba | |
| nosotros | contábamos | |
| vosotros | contabais | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contaban |
Futuro Simplefuture
Actions that will happen.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | contaré | |
| tú | contarás | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contará | |
| nosotros | contaremos | |
| vosotros | contaréis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contarán |
Condicional Simpleconditional
Actions that would happen under some condition.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | contaría | |
| tú | contarías | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contaría | |
| nosotros | contaríamos | |
| vosotros | contaríais | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contarían |
Subjuntivo Presentepresent subjunctive
Wishes, doubts and possibilities in the present.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | cuente | |
| tú | cuentes | |
| él/ella/Ud. | cuente | |
| nosotros | contemos | |
| vosotros | contéis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cuenten |
Common mistakes in the Subjuntivo Presente
- nosotros
cuentemoscontemosMany learners wrongly apply the stem change to nosotros. In the present subjunctive, the nosotros form remains 'contemos' (no stem change).
Subjuntivo Imperfectoimperfect subjunctive
Hypothetical or unreal situations in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | contara | |
| tú | contaras | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contara | |
| nosotros | contáramos | |
| vosotros | contarais | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contaran |
Common mistakes in the Subjuntivo Imperfecto
- nosotros
contaramoscontáramosMissing written accent. The correct form is 'contáramos' (accent on the á) to preserve the stressed syllable.
Imperativoimperative
Commands and requests.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| tú | cuenta | |
| él/ella/Ud. | cuente | |
| nosotros | contemos | |
| vosotros | contad | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | cuenten |
Gerundio
The -ing form used for ongoing action.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | contando | |
| tú | contando | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contando | |
| nosotros | contando | |
| vosotros | contando | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contando |
Participio Pasadopast participle
The form used in compound tenses and the passive.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | contado | |
| tú | contado | |
| él/ella/Ud. | contado | |
| nosotros | contado | |
| vosotros | contado | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | contado |
contar — frequently asked questions
Is contar a regular verb?
No — contar is an irregular Spanish verb, so some of its forms do not follow the standard endings.
What does contar mean?
contar is a Spanish verb meaning "to count; to tell (a story)".