¿Qué me cuentas?
A super natural way to ask how someone is: ¿qué me cuentas? or ¿qué cuentas? (what's new?). Contar con = to count on (puedes contar conmigo). And a cuento is a story or fairy tale.
Indicative tenses of contar
Facts and things that happen: the tenses you'll use most.
Present indicative
| yo | cuentoI tell |
|---|---|
| tú | cuentasyou tell |
| él/ella/usted | cuentahe/she tells |
| nosotros/as | contamoswe tell |
| vosotros/as | contáisyou all tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | cuentanthey tell |
Stem change o → ue, except for nosotros and vosotros: contamos.
Preterite indicative
| yo | contéI told |
|---|---|
| tú | contasteyou told |
| él/ella/usted | contóhe/she told |
| nosotros/as | contamoswe told |
| vosotros/as | contasteisyou all told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | contaronthey told |
Imperfect indicative
| yo | contabaI used to tell |
|---|---|
| tú | contabasyou used to tell |
| él/ella/usted | contabahe/she used to tell |
| nosotros/as | contábamoswe used to tell |
| vosotros/as | contabaisyou all used to tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | contabanthey used to tell |
Present continuous indicative
| yo | estoy contandoI am telling |
|---|---|
| tú | estás contandoyou are telling |
| él/ella/usted | está contandohe/she is telling |
| nosotros/as | estamos contandowe are telling |
| vosotros/as | estáis contandoyou all are telling |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | están contandothey are telling |
estar + gerund
Informal future indicative
| yo | voy a contarI am going to tell |
|---|---|
| tú | vas a contaryou are going to tell |
| él/ella/usted | va a contarhe/she is going to tell |
| nosotros/as | vamos a contarwe are going to tell |
| vosotros/as | vais a contaryou all are going to tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | van a contarthey are going to tell |
ir a + infinitive
Future indicative
| yo | contaréI will tell |
|---|---|
| tú | contarásyou will tell |
| él/ella/usted | contaráhe/she will tell |
| nosotros/as | contaremoswe will tell |
| vosotros/as | contaréisyou all will tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | contaránthey will tell |
Conditional indicative
| yo | contaríaI would tell |
|---|---|
| tú | contaríasyou would tell |
| él/ella/usted | contaríahe/she would tell |
| nosotros/as | contaríamoswe would tell |
| vosotros/as | contaríaisyou all would tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | contaríanthey would tell |
Present perfect indicative
| yo | he contadoI have told |
|---|---|
| tú | has contadoyou have told |
| él/ella/usted | ha contadohe/she has told |
| nosotros/as | hemos contadowe have told |
| vosotros/as | habéis contadoyou all have told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han contadothey have told |
haber (present) + past participle
Past perfect indicative
| yo | había contadoI had told |
|---|---|
| tú | habías contadoyou had told |
| él/ella/usted | había contadohe/she had told |
| nosotros/as | habíamos contadowe had told |
| vosotros/as | habíais contadoyou all had told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habían contadothey had told |
haber (imperfect) + past participle
Future perfect indicative
| yo | habré contadoI will have told |
|---|---|
| tú | habrás contadoyou will have told |
| él/ella/usted | habrá contadohe/she will have told |
| nosotros/as | habremos contadowe will have told |
| vosotros/as | habréis contadoyou all will have told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrán contadothey will have told |
haber (future) + past participle
Conditional perfect indicative
| yo | habría contadoI would have told |
|---|---|
| tú | habrías contadoyou would have told |
| él/ella/usted | habría contadohe/she would have told |
| nosotros/as | habríamos contadowe would have told |
| vosotros/as | habríais contadoyou all would have told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrían contadothey would have told |
haber (conditional) + past participle
Subjunctive tenses of contar
Wishes, doubts, emotions and "if" sentences.
Present subjunctive
| yo | cuente(that) I tell |
|---|---|
| tú | cuentes(that) you tell |
| él/ella/usted | cuente(that) he/she tells |
| nosotros/as | contemos(that) we tell |
| vosotros/as | contéis(that) you all tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | cuenten(that) they tell |
Same stem change in the present subjunctive: cuente.
Imperfect subjunctive
| yo | contara(if) I told |
|---|---|
| tú | contaras(if) you told |
| él/ella/usted | contara(if) he/she told |
| nosotros/as | contáramos(if) we told |
| vosotros/as | contarais(if) you all told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | contaran(if) they told |
Future subjunctive
| yo | contare(if) I tell |
|---|---|
| tú | contares(if) you tell |
| él/ella/usted | contare(if) he/she tells |
| nosotros/as | contáremos(if) we tell |
| vosotros/as | contareis(if) you all tell |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | contaren(if) they tell |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Present perfect subjunctive
| yo | haya contado(that) I have told |
|---|---|
| tú | hayas contado(that) you have told |
| él/ella/usted | haya contado(that) he/she has told |
| nosotros/as | hayamos contado(that) we have told |
| vosotros/as | hayáis contado(that) you all have told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan contado(that) they have told |
haber (present subj.) + past participle
Past perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiera contado(if) I had told |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieras contado(if) you had told |
| él/ella/usted | hubiera contado(if) he/she had told |
| nosotros/as | hubiéramos contado(if) we had told |
| vosotros/as | hubierais contado(if) you all had told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieran contado(if) they had told |
haber (imperfect subj.) + past participle
Future perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiere contado(if) I will have told |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieres contado(if) you will have told |
| él/ella/usted | hubiere contado(if) he/she will have told |
| nosotros/as | hubiéremos contado(if) we will have told |
| vosotros/as | hubiereis contado(if) you all will have told |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieren contado(if) they will have told |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Imperative tenses of contar
Commands and instructions.
Affirmative imperative
| tú | cuentatell! |
|---|---|
| usted | cuentetell! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | contemoslet's tell! |
| vosotros/as | contadtell! (you all) |
| ustedes | cuententell! (you all, formal) |
Negative imperative
| tú | no cuentesdon't tell! |
|---|---|
| usted | no cuentedon't tell! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | no contemoslet's not tell! |
| vosotros/as | no contéisdon't tell! (you all) |
| ustedes | no cuentendon't tell! (you all, formal) |
Practice contar
Two quick exercises. No sign-up, no app: just you and contar.
How to use contar
Te cuento lo que pasó.
I'll tell you what happened.
Cuenta hasta diez.
Count to ten.
Cuenta conmigo.
Count on me.
¿Qué me cuentas?
What's new?
No se lo cuentes a nadie.
Don't tell anyone.
Example sentences with contar
- Cuéntame todo.Tell me everything.
- ¿Qué cuentas?What's new?
- Me contó un secreto.He told me a secret.
- Mi abuelo nos contaba historias.My grandpa used to tell us stories.
- Te lo contaré mañana.I'll tell you tomorrow.
- ¿Se lo contarías a tu madre?Would you tell your mom?
- No se lo cuentes a nadie.Don't tell anyone.
- ¿Has contado el dinero?Have you counted the money?
Verbs like contar
Like contar (cuento), these verbs change o → ue in the present. Costar (to cost) gives you ¿cuánto cuesta?
Frequently asked questions about contar
Is contar regular or irregular?
Contar is a stem-changing verb: o → ue in the present (cuento), present subjunctive (cuente) and commands (cuenta). All other tenses are regular.
How do you conjugate contar in the present tense?
cuento, cuentas, cuenta, contamos, contáis, cuentan.
How do you conjugate contar in the preterite?
conté, contaste, contó, contamos, contasteis, contaron. The preterite is fully regular.
What does "contar con" mean?
"To count on" someone or something: cuento contigo (I'm counting on you).
Contar or decir?
Contar = to tell a story or news (me contó lo que pasó). Decir = to say something (me dijo que sí).
What is the past participle of contar?
The past participle is contado and the gerund is contando.
Free cheat sheet
All 18 tenses of contar, on one page.
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