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SPANISH VERB

pretender

to intend, to try to

  • #169 most used
  • Regular -er verb
  • Gerund: pretendiendo
  • Past participle: pretendido

Conjugation

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

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

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

Imperfect

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

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Past subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

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

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

How to use pretender

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

  1. Present

    ¿Pretendes llegar al aeropuerto en veinte minutos?

    Do you expect to get to the airport in twenty minutes?

  2. Past

    Pretendí pagar con tarjeta, pero solo aceptaban efectivo.

    I meant to pay by card, but they only took cash.

  3. Imperfect

    Mi hermano pretendía arreglar la moto él solo.

    My brother intended to fix the motorcycle by himself.

  4. Future

    Supongo que pretenderán cobrarnos la habitación completa.

    I suppose they'll expect to charge us for the whole room.

  5. Conditional

    Nadie pretendería aprender un idioma en un mes.

    Nobody would expect to learn a language in a month.

  6. Present subjunctive

    No me gusta que pretendas decidir por mí.

    I don't like you trying to decide for me.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Era absurdo que pretendieran cobrar por el agua.

    It was absurd that they expected to charge for water.

  8. Imperative

    ¡No pretendas hacerlo todo en un solo día!

    Don't try to do everything in a single day!

Good to know

  • "Pretender" is a false friend: it is to intend or to expect, not to pretend; that is "fingir".

Verbs like this one

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