Conjugation of mantener in Spanish
mantenerto maintain; to keepirregular
Presente
Actions happening now or habitually.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantengo | |
| tú | mantienes | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantiene | |
| nosotros | mantenemos | |
| vosotros | mantenéis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantienen |
Common mistakes in the Presente
- yo
mantienomantengoThe stem changes to manteng- in the first person singular: mantengo.
Pretérito Indefinidosimple past
Completed actions in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantuve | |
| tú | mantuviste | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantuvo | |
| nosotros | mantuvimos | |
| vosotros | mantuvisteis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantuvieron |
Common mistakes in the Pretérito Indefinido
- yo
mantenímantuveThis verb uses the irregular stem mantuv- in the preterite: mantuve.
Pretérito Imperfecto
Ongoing or habitual actions in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantenía | |
| tú | mantenías | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantenía | |
| nosotros | manteníamos | |
| vosotros | manteníais | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantenían |
Futuro Simplefuture
Actions that will happen.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantendré | |
| tú | mantendrás | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantendrá | |
| nosotros | mantendremos | |
| vosotros | mantendréis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantendrán |
Condicional Simpleconditional
Actions that would happen under some condition.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantendría | |
| tú | mantendrías | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantendría | |
| nosotros | mantendríamos | |
| vosotros | mantendríais | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantendrían |
Subjuntivo Presentepresent subjunctive
Wishes, doubts and possibilities in the present.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantenga | |
| tú | mantengas | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantenga | |
| nosotros | mantengamos | |
| vosotros | mantengáis | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantengan |
Common mistakes in the Subjuntivo Presente
- yo
mantienomantengaUse mantenga, not a present-tense-looking form.
Subjuntivo Imperfectoimperfect subjunctive
Hypothetical or unreal situations in the past.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantuviera | |
| tú | mantuvieras | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantuviera | |
| nosotros | mantuviéramos | |
| vosotros | mantuvierais | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantuvieran |
Imperativoimperative
Commands and requests.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| tú | mantén | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantenga | |
| nosotros | mantengamos | |
| vosotros | mantened | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantengan |
Common mistakes in the Imperativo
- tú
mantenemanténThe affirmative tú command is irregular: mantén.
Gerundio
The -ing form used for ongoing action.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | manteniendo | |
| tú | manteniendo | |
| él/ella/Ud. | manteniendo | |
| nosotros | manteniendo | |
| vosotros | manteniendo | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | manteniendo |
Participio Pasadopast participle
The form used in compound tenses and the passive.
| Person | Conjugation | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | mantenido | |
| tú | mantenido | |
| él/ella/Ud. | mantenido | |
| nosotros | mantenido | |
| vosotros | mantenido | |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | mantenido |
mantener — frequently asked questions
Is mantener a regular verb?
No — mantener is an irregular Spanish verb, so some of its forms do not follow the standard endings.
What does mantener mean?
mantener is a Spanish verb meaning "to maintain; to keep".