Like tener
If you know tener, you know mantener: tengo → mantengo, tuve → mantuve, tendré → mantendré. Useful phrases: mantener la calma (to keep calm), mantenerse en contacto (to keep in touch), mantenerse en forma (to stay fit).
Indicative tenses of mantener
Facts and things that happen: the tenses you'll use most.
Present indicative
| yo | mantengoI keep |
|---|---|
| tú | mantienesyou keep |
| él/ella/usted | mantienehe/she keeps |
| nosotros/as | mantenemoswe keep |
| vosotros/as | mantenéisyou all keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantienenthey keep |
Conjugated exactly like tener: mantengo, mantienes.
Preterite indicative
| yo | mantuveI kept |
|---|---|
| tú | mantuvisteyou kept |
| él/ella/usted | mantuvohe/she kept |
| nosotros/as | mantuvimoswe kept |
| vosotros/as | mantuvisteisyou all kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantuvieronthey kept |
Imperfect indicative
| yo | manteníaI used to keep |
|---|---|
| tú | manteníasyou used to keep |
| él/ella/usted | manteníahe/she used to keep |
| nosotros/as | manteníamoswe used to keep |
| vosotros/as | manteníaisyou all used to keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | manteníanthey used to keep |
Present continuous indicative
| yo | estoy manteniendoI am keeping |
|---|---|
| tú | estás manteniendoyou are keeping |
| él/ella/usted | está manteniendohe/she is keeping |
| nosotros/as | estamos manteniendowe are keeping |
| vosotros/as | estáis manteniendoyou all are keeping |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | están manteniendothey are keeping |
estar + gerund
Informal future indicative
| yo | voy a mantenerI am going to keep |
|---|---|
| tú | vas a manteneryou are going to keep |
| él/ella/usted | va a mantenerhe/she is going to keep |
| nosotros/as | vamos a mantenerwe are going to keep |
| vosotros/as | vais a manteneryou all are going to keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | van a mantenerthey are going to keep |
ir a + infinitive
Future indicative
| yo | mantendréI will keep |
|---|---|
| tú | mantendrásyou will keep |
| él/ella/usted | mantendráhe/she will keep |
| nosotros/as | mantendremoswe will keep |
| vosotros/as | mantendréisyou all will keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantendránthey will keep |
Conditional indicative
| yo | mantendríaI would keep |
|---|---|
| tú | mantendríasyou would keep |
| él/ella/usted | mantendríahe/she would keep |
| nosotros/as | mantendríamoswe would keep |
| vosotros/as | mantendríaisyou all would keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantendríanthey would keep |
Present perfect indicative
| yo | he mantenidoI have kept |
|---|---|
| tú | has mantenidoyou have kept |
| él/ella/usted | ha mantenidohe/she has kept |
| nosotros/as | hemos mantenidowe have kept |
| vosotros/as | habéis mantenidoyou all have kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han mantenidothey have kept |
haber (present) + past participle
Past perfect indicative
| yo | había mantenidoI had kept |
|---|---|
| tú | habías mantenidoyou had kept |
| él/ella/usted | había mantenidohe/she had kept |
| nosotros/as | habíamos mantenidowe had kept |
| vosotros/as | habíais mantenidoyou all had kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habían mantenidothey had kept |
haber (imperfect) + past participle
Future perfect indicative
| yo | habré mantenidoI will have kept |
|---|---|
| tú | habrás mantenidoyou will have kept |
| él/ella/usted | habrá mantenidohe/she will have kept |
| nosotros/as | habremos mantenidowe will have kept |
| vosotros/as | habréis mantenidoyou all will have kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrán mantenidothey will have kept |
haber (future) + past participle
Conditional perfect indicative
| yo | habría mantenidoI would have kept |
|---|---|
| tú | habrías mantenidoyou would have kept |
| él/ella/usted | habría mantenidohe/she would have kept |
| nosotros/as | habríamos mantenidowe would have kept |
| vosotros/as | habríais mantenidoyou all would have kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrían mantenidothey would have kept |
haber (conditional) + past participle
Subjunctive tenses of mantener
Wishes, doubts, emotions and "if" sentences.
Present subjunctive
| yo | mantenga(that) I keep |
|---|---|
| tú | mantengas(that) you keep |
| él/ella/usted | mantenga(that) he/she keeps |
| nosotros/as | mantengamos(that) we keep |
| vosotros/as | mantengáis(that) you all keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantengan(that) they keep |
Imperfect subjunctive
| yo | mantuviera / mantuviese(if) I kept |
|---|---|
| tú | mantuvieras / mantuvieses(if) you kept |
| él/ella/usted | mantuviera / mantuviese(if) he/she kept |
| nosotros/as | mantuviéramos / mantuviésemos(if) we kept |
| vosotros/as | mantuvierais / mantuvieseis(if) you all kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantuvieran / mantuviesen(if) they kept |
Future subjunctive
| yo | mantuviere(if) I keep |
|---|---|
| tú | mantuvieres(if) you keep |
| él/ella/usted | mantuviere(if) he/she keeps |
| nosotros/as | mantuviéremos(if) we keep |
| vosotros/as | mantuviereis(if) you all keep |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | mantuvieren(if) they keep |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Present perfect subjunctive
| yo | haya mantenido(that) I have kept |
|---|---|
| tú | hayas mantenido(that) you have kept |
| él/ella/usted | haya mantenido(that) he/she has kept |
| nosotros/as | hayamos mantenido(that) we have kept |
| vosotros/as | hayáis mantenido(that) you all have kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan mantenido(that) they have kept |
haber (present subj.) + past participle
Past perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiera mantenido(if) I had kept |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieras mantenido(if) you had kept |
| él/ella/usted | hubiera mantenido(if) he/she had kept |
| nosotros/as | hubiéramos mantenido(if) we had kept |
| vosotros/as | hubierais mantenido(if) you all had kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieran mantenido(if) they had kept |
haber (imperfect subj.) + past participle
Future perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiere mantenido(if) I will have kept |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieres mantenido(if) you will have kept |
| él/ella/usted | hubiere mantenido(if) he/she will have kept |
| nosotros/as | hubiéremos mantenido(if) we will have kept |
| vosotros/as | hubiereis mantenido(if) you all will have kept |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieren mantenido(if) they will have kept |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Imperative tenses of mantener
Commands and instructions.
Affirmative imperative
| tú | manténkeep! |
|---|---|
| usted | mantengakeep! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | mantengamoslet's keep! |
| vosotros/as | mantenedkeep! (you all) |
| ustedes | mantengankeep! (you all, formal) |
Note the accent on the tú command: mantén.
Negative imperative
| tú | no mantengasdon't keep! |
|---|---|
| usted | no mantengadon't keep! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | no mantengamoslet's not keep! |
| vosotros/as | no mantengáisdon't keep! (you all) |
| ustedes | no mantengandon't keep! (you all, formal) |
Practice mantener
Two quick exercises. No sign-up, no app: just you and mantener.
How to use mantener
Mantén la calma.
Keep calm.
Nos mantenemos en contacto.
We keep in touch.
Corro para mantenerme en forma.
I run to stay fit.
Mantiene a toda su familia.
He supports his whole family.
Hay que mantener la casa limpia.
You have to keep the house clean.
Example sentences with mantener
- ¿Mantienes el contacto con ella?Do you keep in touch with her?
- Mantengo mi opinión.I stand by my opinion.
- Mantuvimos la calma.We kept calm.
- Antes mantenía la casa yo solo.I used to keep up the house on my own.
- Te mantendré informado.I'll keep you posted.
- ¿Mantendrías el secreto?Would you keep the secret?
- Mantén la distancia.Keep your distance.
- Ha mantenido su promesa.He has kept his promise.
Verbs like mantener
All verbs ending in -tener are conjugated exactly like tener.
Frequently asked questions about mantener
Is mantener regular or irregular?
Mantener is irregular, just like tener: mantengo, mantienes (present), mantuve (preterite), mantendré (future), mantenga (subjunctive), mantén (command).
How do you conjugate mantener in the present tense?
mantengo, mantienes, mantiene, mantenemos, mantenéis, mantienen.
How do you conjugate mantener in the preterite?
mantuve, mantuviste, mantuvo, mantuvimos, mantuvisteis, mantuvieron.
Why does "mantén" have an accent?
Because it ends in -n and the stress is on the last syllable. Ten (from tener) is only one syllable, so it doesn't need one.
How do you say "keep in touch" in Spanish?
Mantenerse en contacto: ¡mantengámonos en contacto! Or simply ¡seguimos en contacto!
What is the past participle of mantener?
The past participle is mantenido and the gerund is manteniendo.
Free cheat sheet
All 18 tenses of mantener, on one page.
Print it, stick it on your fridge, or keep it on your phone. Fill in your name and email and I'll send it straight to your inbox.
📩 Check your inbox! The mantener cheat sheet is on its way.
Paid courses
Ready to actually speak?
Knowing the conjugations is step one. My paid courses take you from tables to real conversations: structured, step by step, with practice built in.
- Conversational courseStop freezing in real conversations
- Verb tenses courseEvery tense, finally clear
Hola, soy Wes!
Your Spanish teacher
A Dutchie who learned Spanish from scratch. I make the lessons I wish I'd had: clear, practical and free.
My story →Support Spanish with Wes!
Did this page help you?
All my lessons, verb charts and cheat sheets are free, and I want to keep it that way. If you'd like to help me make more, you can support me here. Think of it as buying me a café con leche ☕
More Spanish verbs
Verb search
Find any Spanish verb.
Type a verb, an English word or a conjugated form like fui or hubo.