Conjugation of Entender, Perder, and Similar Spanish Verbs

Entender, which usually means to understand, is a common stem-changing verb. The only change from the regular conjugation is that when the -e- of the stem is stressed it becomes -ie-. Other verbs (and common definitions) following this pattern include ascender (to climb), atender (to attend to), defender (to defend or protect), descender (to go down), and perder (to lose). Irregular forms are shown below in boldface. Translations are given as a guide and in real life may vary with context. Infinitive of Entender entender (to understand) Gerund of Entender entendiendo (understanding) Participle of Entender entendido (understood) Present Indicative of Entender yo entiendo, tà º entiendes, usted/à ©l/ella entiende, nosotros/as entendemos, vosotros/as entendà ©is, ustedes/ellos/ellas entienden (I understand, you understand, he understands, etc.) Preterite of Entender yo entendà ­, tà º entendiste, usted/à ©l/ella entendià ³, nosotros/as entendimos, vosotros/as entendisteis, ustedes/ellos/ellas entendieron (I understood, you understood, she understood, etc.) Imperfect Indicative of Entender yo entendà ­a, tà º entendà ­as, usted/à ©l/ella entendà ­a, nosotros/as entendà ­amos, vosotros/as entendà ­ais, ustedes/ellos/ellas entendà ­a (I used to understand, you used to understand, he used to understand, etc.) Future Indicative of Entender yo entenderà ©, tà º entenderà ¡s, usted/à ©l/ella entenderà ¡, nosotros/as entenderemos, vosotros/as entenderà ©is, ustedes/ellos/ellas entenderà ¡n (I will understand, you will understand, he will understand, etc.) Conditional of Entender yo entenderà ­a, tà º entenderà ­as, usted/à ©l/ella entenderà ­a, nosotros/as entenderà ­amos, vosotros/as entenderà ­ais, ustedes/ellos/ellas entenderà ­an (I would understand, you would understand, she would understand, etc.) Present Subjunctive of Entender que yo entienda, que tà º entiendas, que usted/à ©l/ella entienda, que nosotros/as entendamos, que vosotros/as entendà ¡is, que ustedes/ellos/ellas entiendan (that I understand, that you understand, that she understand, etc.) Imperfect Subjunctive of Entender que yo entendiera (entendiese), que tà º entendieras (entendieses), que usted/à ©l/ella entendiera (entendiese), que nosotros/as entendià ©ramos (entendià ©semos), que vosotros/as entendierais (entendieseis), que ustedes/ellos/ellas entendieran (entendiesen) (that I understood, that you understood, that he understood, etc.) Imperative of Entender entiende (tà º), no entiendas (tà º), entienda (usted), entendamos (nosotros/as), entended (vosotros/as), no entendà ¡is (vosotros/as), entiendan (ustedes) (understand, dont understand, understand, lets understand, etc.) Compound Tenses of Entender The perfect tenses are made by using the appropriate form of haber and the past participle, entendido. The progressive tenses use estar with the gerund, entendiendo. Sample Sentences Showing Conjugation of Entender and Similar Verbs Quiero entender lo que està ¡s diciendo porque sà © que es importante. (I want to know what youre saying because I know its important. Infinitive.) Un 19% del bosque nativo mà ¡s diverso del paà ­s se ha perdido en los à ºltimos 40 aà ±os. (Some 19 percent of the most diverse old-growth forest in the country has been lost in the past 40 years. Present perfect.) Defiendo los derechos de los animales. (I defend the rights of animals. Present indicative.) El terreno sobre el cual estaban desciendo era muy à ©rido. The terrain they were descending was very dry. Past progressive.) El venezolano ascendià ³ al puesto 48 de la lista de jonroneros. (The Venezuelan climbed to No. 48 on the list of home run hitters. Preterite.) La produccià ³n continuaba creciendo mientras que los precios descendà ­an rà ¡pidamente. (Production kept on rising while prices fell rapidly. Imperfect.) Atenderà © mi cuerpo y su salud fà ­sica. (I will take care of my body and its physical health. Future.) A lo mejor lo entenderà ­a si me lo explicaras. (Maybe Id understand it if you explained it to me. Conditional.) Espero que no pierdas las ganas de cambiar las cosas. (I hope you dont lose the passion for changing things. Present subjunctive.) El evento tambià ©n sirvià ³ para educar a los atletas para que entendieran la situacià ³n. (The event also served to educate the athletes so they would understand the situation. Imperfect subjunctive.)  ¡Te pierde! (Get lost! Imperative.)