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SPANISH VERB

cortar

to cut

  • #172 most used
  • Regular -ar verb
  • Gerund: cortando
  • Past participle: cortado

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

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

Imperfect

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

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Past subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use cortar

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

  1. Present

    Mi mamá corta el pastel en ocho pedazos.

    My mom cuts the cake into eight pieces.

  2. Past

    Corté las verduras para la sopa.

    I cut the vegetables for the soup.

  3. Imperfect

    Mi papá cortaba el pasto cada quince días.

    My dad mowed the lawn every two weeks.

  4. Future

    ¿Cortarás el pan o lo corto yo?

    Will you cut the bread or shall I?

  5. Conditional

    Yo cortaría las ramas antes de la lluvia.

    I'd cut the branches before the rain.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Pídele que corte la carne en trozos pequeños.

    Ask him to cut the meat into small pieces.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si cortaras la cebolla bajo el agua, no llorarías.

    If you cut the onion under water, you wouldn't cry.

  8. Imperative

    ¡Corte aquí, por favor, hasta la línea roja!

    Cut here, please, up to the red line!

Where you hear cortar

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

Spanish · Beginner Level 2

  • Corta la cebolla, por favor. Cut the onion, please.
  • Corté el tomate. I cut the tomato.
  • Voy a cortar el ajo. I'm going to cut the garlic.

Spanish · Advanced Level 3

  • Yo corto el encaje a mano. I cut the lace by hand.
  • Me corté el pelo en Triana. I had my hair cut in Triana.
  • Me voy a cortar el pelo antes de la boda. I'm having my hair cut before the wedding.
9
First, Cut the Onion

Beginner Level 2 · ¡Corta!

Needs a subscription 6
Something Borrowed

Advanced Level 3 · cortar

Needs a subscription 12
Get to the Point

Fluency Level 1 · córtalo

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Verbs like this one

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