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SPANISH VERB

insistir

to insist, to repeat a request or offer

  • #194 most used
  • Regular -ir verb
  • Gerund: insistiendo
  • Past participle: insistido

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

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

Imperfect

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

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Past subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use insistir

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

  1. Present

    Mi madre insiste en que coma más verdura.

    My mother insists that I eat more vegetables.

  2. Past

    Insistí tanto que al final me dieron el descuento.

    I insisted so much that in the end they gave me the discount.

  3. Imperfect

    El camarero insistía en que probáramos el postre de la casa.

    The waiter kept insisting we try the house dessert.

  4. Future

    Si no contesta, insistiré mañana por la mañana.

    If he doesn't answer, I'll try again tomorrow morning.

  5. Conditional

    Yo no insistiría más, ya ha dicho que no.

    I wouldn't push any further, she's already said no.

  6. Present subjunctive

    No hace falta que insistas, iré a la cena.

    There's no need to insist, I'll come to the dinner.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Si insistiera un poco más, quizá aceptaría.

    If I insisted a little more, maybe he'd accept.

  8. Imperative

    Insiste con la farmacia, a veces no oyen el teléfono.

    Keep trying the pharmacy, sometimes they don't hear the phone.

Good to know

  • "Insistir en que" takes the subjunctive when it is a request: insistió en que me quedara.

Where you hear insistir

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

Spanish · Advanced Level 1

  • Encarna insiste, pero nosotros podemos elegir. Encarna insists, but we can choose.
  • Encarna insistió en preparar el cuarto. Encarna insisted on preparing the room.
  • No voy a insistir si estáis cansados. I'm not going to insist if you're tired.

Spanish · Advanced Level 2

  • Invita la casa. Insisto. It's on the house. I insist.
  • Insistí, y se quedaron en mi casa. I insisted, and they stayed at my house.
  • Si no quiere ir al médico, voy a insistir. If she doesn't want to go to the doctor, I'm going to insist.
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Since When Do You Talk Like That?

Advanced Level 1 · Insistió. · insiste

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I Mean, Like

Advanced Level 2 · insistes

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Verbs like this one

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