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SPANISH VERB

comprar

to buy

  • #95 most used
  • Regular -ar verb
  • Gerund: comprando
  • Past participle: comprado

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I buy
  2. tú you buy
  3. usted, él, ella he/she buys
  4. nosotros we buy
  5. vosotros Spain you all buy
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they buy

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I bought
  2. tú you bought
  3. usted, él, ella he/she bought
  4. nosotros we bought
  5. vosotros Spain you all bought
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they bought

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I used to buy
  2. tú you used to buy
  3. usted, él, ella he/she used to buy
  4. nosotros we used to buy
  5. vosotros Spain you all used to buy
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to buy

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I will buy
  2. tú you will buy
  3. usted, él, ella he/she will buy
  4. nosotros we will buy
  5. vosotros Spain you all will buy
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they will buy

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I would buy
  2. tú you would buy
  3. usted, él, ella he/she would buy
  4. nosotros we would buy
  5. vosotros Spain you all would buy
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they would buy

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I buy
  2. tú (that) you buy
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she buy
  4. nosotros (that) we buy
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all buy
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they buy

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I bought
  2. tú (if) you bought
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she bought
  4. nosotros (if) we bought
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all bought
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they bought

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú buy!
  2. usted buy! (formal)
  3. nosotros buy! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain buy! (all of you)
  5. ustedes buy! (all of you)

How to use comprar

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Compro fruta en el mercado los martes.

    I buy fruit at the market on Tuesdays.

  2. Past

    Compré un celular nuevo, ¿quieres verlo?

    I bought a new phone, want to see it?

  3. Imperfect

    Mi abuela compraba el pan en esa panadería.

    My grandmother bought bread at that bakery.

  4. Future

    Compraremos los boletos en línea esta noche.

    We will buy the tickets online tonight.

  5. Conditional

    Con ese dinero, compraría una casa en el pueblo.

    With that money, I would buy a house in the village.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Necesito que compres leche de regreso.

    I need you to buy milk on the way back.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si comprara menos ropa, ahorraría más.

    If I bought less clothing, I would save more.

  8. Imperative

    Compren agua antes de subir al cerro.

    Buy water before climbing the hill.

Where you hear comprar

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Beginner Level 1

  • Compro fruta en el mercado. I buy fruit at the market.
  • Compré un sombrero en la playa. I bought a hat on the beach.
  • Voy a comprar un regalo para mi mamá. I'm going to buy a present for my mom.

Spanish · Beginner Level 2

  • Normalmente compro tacos. Usually I buy tacos.
  • Compré una chamarra. I bought a jacket.
  • Mañana te compramos un celular nuevo. Tomorrow we'll buy you a new phone.
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What Did You See?

Beginner Level 1 · comprar · compré · compraste

Needs a subscription 13
Sometimes, Almost Never

Beginner Level 2 · compro

Needs a subscription 14
When I Was a Child

Beginner Level 2 · compras

Needs a subscription 16
We Climbed the Mountain

Beginner Level 2 · compramos

Needs a subscription 18
They Stole My Phone

Beginner Level 2 · te compramos

Needs a subscription 21
What Is the Day of the Dead?

Beginner Level 2 · se compran

Needs a subscription 17
The Neighbours

Intermediate Level 1 · que hayas comprado

Needs a subscription 22
San Cristobal

Intermediate Level 1 · comprarla · comprarle

Needs a subscription 24
If I Were You

Intermediate Level 1 · me compraría un impermeable · lo compraría

Needs a subscription 24
If I'd Known

Intermediate Level 2 · habría comprado

Needs a subscription 21
If We Won

Advanced Level 1 · me compraría

Needs a subscription

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -ar verb.