Terminar, acabar and terminar con
Terminar and acabar both mean "to finish": termino a las cinco = acabo a las cinco. Terminar de + infinitive = to finish doing. Terminar con alguien = to break up with someone. And no termina de convencerme = it doesn't quite convince me.
Indicative tenses of terminar
Facts and things that happen: the tenses you'll use most.
Present indicative
| yo | terminoI finish |
|---|---|
| tú | terminasyou finish |
| él/ella/usted | terminahe/she finishes |
| nosotros/as | terminamoswe finish |
| vosotros/as | termináisyou all finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminanthey finish |
Terminar de + infinitive = to finish doing: termino de comer.
Preterite indicative
| yo | terminéI finished |
|---|---|
| tú | terminasteyou finished |
| él/ella/usted | terminóhe/she finished |
| nosotros/as | terminamoswe finished |
| vosotros/as | terminasteisyou all finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminaronthey finished |
Imperfect indicative
| yo | terminabaI used to finish |
|---|---|
| tú | terminabasyou used to finish |
| él/ella/usted | terminabahe/she used to finish |
| nosotros/as | terminábamoswe used to finish |
| vosotros/as | terminabaisyou all used to finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminabanthey used to finish |
Present continuous indicative
| yo | estoy terminandoI am finishing |
|---|---|
| tú | estás terminandoyou are finishing |
| él/ella/usted | está terminandohe/she is finishing |
| nosotros/as | estamos terminandowe are finishing |
| vosotros/as | estáis terminandoyou all are finishing |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | están terminandothey are finishing |
estar + gerund
Informal future indicative
| yo | voy a terminarI am going to finish |
|---|---|
| tú | vas a terminaryou are going to finish |
| él/ella/usted | va a terminarhe/she is going to finish |
| nosotros/as | vamos a terminarwe are going to finish |
| vosotros/as | vais a terminaryou all are going to finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | van a terminarthey are going to finish |
ir a + infinitive
Future indicative
| yo | terminaréI will finish |
|---|---|
| tú | terminarásyou will finish |
| él/ella/usted | terminaráhe/she will finish |
| nosotros/as | terminaremoswe will finish |
| vosotros/as | terminaréisyou all will finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminaránthey will finish |
Conditional indicative
| yo | terminaríaI would finish |
|---|---|
| tú | terminaríasyou would finish |
| él/ella/usted | terminaríahe/she would finish |
| nosotros/as | terminaríamoswe would finish |
| vosotros/as | terminaríaisyou all would finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminaríanthey would finish |
Present perfect indicative
| yo | he terminadoI have finished |
|---|---|
| tú | has terminadoyou have finished |
| él/ella/usted | ha terminadohe/she has finished |
| nosotros/as | hemos terminadowe have finished |
| vosotros/as | habéis terminadoyou all have finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han terminadothey have finished |
haber (present) + past participle
Past perfect indicative
| yo | había terminadoI had finished |
|---|---|
| tú | habías terminadoyou had finished |
| él/ella/usted | había terminadohe/she had finished |
| nosotros/as | habíamos terminadowe had finished |
| vosotros/as | habíais terminadoyou all had finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habían terminadothey had finished |
haber (imperfect) + past participle
Future perfect indicative
| yo | habré terminadoI will have finished |
|---|---|
| tú | habrás terminadoyou will have finished |
| él/ella/usted | habrá terminadohe/she will have finished |
| nosotros/as | habremos terminadowe will have finished |
| vosotros/as | habréis terminadoyou all will have finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrán terminadothey will have finished |
haber (future) + past participle
Conditional perfect indicative
| yo | habría terminadoI would have finished |
|---|---|
| tú | habrías terminadoyou would have finished |
| él/ella/usted | habría terminadohe/she would have finished |
| nosotros/as | habríamos terminadowe would have finished |
| vosotros/as | habríais terminadoyou all would have finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrían terminadothey would have finished |
haber (conditional) + past participle
Subjunctive tenses of terminar
Wishes, doubts, emotions and "if" sentences.
Present subjunctive
| yo | termine(that) I finish |
|---|---|
| tú | termines(that) you finish |
| él/ella/usted | termine(that) he/she finishes |
| nosotros/as | terminemos(that) we finish |
| vosotros/as | terminéis(that) you all finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminen(that) they finish |
Imperfect subjunctive
| yo | terminara(if) I finished |
|---|---|
| tú | terminaras(if) you finished |
| él/ella/usted | terminara(if) he/she finished |
| nosotros/as | termináramos(if) we finished |
| vosotros/as | terminarais(if) you all finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminaran(if) they finished |
Future subjunctive
| yo | terminare(if) I finish |
|---|---|
| tú | terminares(if) you finish |
| él/ella/usted | terminare(if) he/she finishes |
| nosotros/as | termináremos(if) we finish |
| vosotros/as | terminareis(if) you all finish |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | terminaren(if) they finish |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Present perfect subjunctive
| yo | haya terminado(that) I have finished |
|---|---|
| tú | hayas terminado(that) you have finished |
| él/ella/usted | haya terminado(that) he/she has finished |
| nosotros/as | hayamos terminado(that) we have finished |
| vosotros/as | hayáis terminado(that) you all have finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan terminado(that) they have finished |
haber (present subj.) + past participle
Past perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiera terminado(if) I had finished |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieras terminado(if) you had finished |
| él/ella/usted | hubiera terminado(if) he/she had finished |
| nosotros/as | hubiéramos terminado(if) we had finished |
| vosotros/as | hubierais terminado(if) you all had finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieran terminado(if) they had finished |
haber (imperfect subj.) + past participle
Future perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiere terminado(if) I will have finished |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieres terminado(if) you will have finished |
| él/ella/usted | hubiere terminado(if) he/she will have finished |
| nosotros/as | hubiéremos terminado(if) we will have finished |
| vosotros/as | hubiereis terminado(if) you all will have finished |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieren terminado(if) they will have finished |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Imperative tenses of terminar
Commands and instructions.
Affirmative imperative
| tú | terminafinish! |
|---|---|
| usted | terminefinish! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | terminemoslet's finish! |
| vosotros/as | terminadfinish! (you all) |
| ustedes | terminenfinish! (you all, formal) |
Negative imperative
| tú | no terminesdon't finish! |
|---|---|
| usted | no terminedon't finish! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | no terminemoslet's not finish! |
| vosotros/as | no terminéisdon't finish! (you all) |
| ustedes | no terminendon't finish! (you all, formal) |
Practice terminar
Two quick exercises. No sign-up, no app: just you and terminar.
How to use terminar
Terminé el libro ayer.
I finished the book yesterday.
¿Has terminado de comer?
Have you finished eating?
La película termina a las diez.
The movie ends at ten.
Terminó con su novio.
She broke up with her boyfriend.
Terminamos en un bar.
We ended up in a bar.
Example sentences with terminar
- ¿A qué hora terminas?What time do you finish?
- Ya he terminado.I'm done.
- Terminamos el proyecto a tiempo.We finished the project on time.
- Siempre terminaba tarde.I always used to finish late.
- Terminaré mañana.I'll finish tomorrow.
- ¿Cuándo terminarías?When would you finish?
- Termina tus deberes.Finish your homework.
- Espero que termine pronto.I hope it ends soon.
Verbs like terminar
Terminar and its synonym acabar follow the regular -ar pattern. Its opposite, empezar, has a stem change: empiezo.
Frequently asked questions about terminar
Is terminar regular or irregular?
Terminar is completely regular. It follows the normal -ar pattern in every tense.
How do you conjugate terminar in the present tense?
termino, terminas, termina, terminamos, termináis, terminan.
Terminar or acabar?
Both mean "to finish". Acabar is a bit more common in Spain. Careful: in some Latin American countries acabar can have a vulgar meaning, so terminar is safer there.
What does "terminar de" mean?
"To finish doing": terminé de leer el libro (I finished reading the book).
How do you say "I'm done" in Spanish?
Ya he terminado, ya terminé (Latin America) or ya está.
What is the past participle of terminar?
The past participle is terminado and the gerund is terminando.
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