Ella VerbsHow to conjugate Contratar in Spanish
contratar to hire (staff), to take on (staff), to contract (services) Regular AR Verb
At a glance: Contratar (to hire (staff), to take on (staff), to contract (services)) is a regular -AR verb in Spanish. In the present tense: contrato, contratas, contrata, contratamos, contratáis, contratan. Because it is fully regular, its endings apply directly to hundreds of other -AR verbs.
- Past participle
- contratado hired
- Gerund
- contratando hiring
Table of contents
- Indicative tenses of Contratar
- Contratar in the Indicative Present
- Contratar in the Indicative Preterite
- Contratar in the Indicative Imperfect
- Contratar in the Indicative Present Continuous
- Contratar in the Indicative Informal Future
- Contratar in the Indicative Future
- Contratar in the Indicative Conditional
- Contratar in the Indicative Present Perfect
- Contratar in the Indicative Past Perfect
- Contratar in the Indicative Future Perfect
- Contratar in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
- Subjunctive tenses of Contratar
- Imperative tenses of Contratar
- Verbs that follow the same patterns
- Frequently asked questions
- Downloadable cheat sheet (PDF)
- Practise Contratar conjugations (free mobile app)
Contratar conjugation tables as a PDF
A printable two-page cheat sheet, sent to your inbox.
Indicative tenses of Contratar
Contratar in the Indicative Present
The Indicative Present of contratar is used to talk about situations, events or thoughts that are happening now or in the near future. It is also used to talk about facts and truths. For example, “contrato”, meaning “I hire”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contrato | I hire |
| Tú | contratas | you hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contrata | s/he hires |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratamos | we hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratáis | you (plural) hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contratan | they hire |
How it’s built: Regular: stem contrat- plus the -ar endings.
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Contratar in the Indicative Preterite
The Indicative Preterite of contratar is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, “contraté”, meaning “I hired”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contraté | I hired |
| Tú | contrataste | you hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contrató | s/he hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratamos | we hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratasteis | you (plural) hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contrataron | they hired |
How it’s built: Regular: stem contrat- plus the -ar endings.
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Contratar in the Indicative Imperfect
The Indicative Imperfect of contratar is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, “contrataba”, meaning “I used to hire”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contrataba | I used to hire |
| Tú | contratabas | you used to hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contrataba | s/he used to hire |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratábamos | we used to hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratabais | you (plural) used to hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contrataban | they used to hire |
How it’s built: Regular: stem contrat- plus the -ar endings.
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Contratar in the Indicative Present Continuous
The Indicative Present Continuous of contratar is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, “estoy contratando”, meaning “I am hiring”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | estoy contratando | I am hiring |
| Tú | estás contratando | you are hiring |
| Ella / Él / Usted | está contratando | s/he is hiring |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | estamos contratando | we are hiring |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | estáis contratando | you (plural) are hiring |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | están contratando | they are hiring |
How it’s built: Estar in the present (estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están) plus the gerund contratando.
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Contratar in the Indicative Informal Future
The Indicative Informal Future of contratar is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, “voy a contratar”, meaning “I am going to hire”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | voy a contratar | I am going to hire |
| Tú | vas a contratar | you are going to hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | va a contratar | s/he is going to hire |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | vamos a contratar | we are going to hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | vais a contratar | you (plural) are going to hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | van a contratar | they are going to hire |
How it’s built: Ir in the present (voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van), then a, then the infinitive contratar.
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Contratar in the Indicative Future
The Indicative Future of contratar is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, “contrataré”, meaning “I will hire”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contrataré | I will hire |
| Tú | contratarás | you will hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contratará | s/he will hire |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contrataremos | we will hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contrataréis | you (plural) will hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contratarán | they will hire |
How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive contratar plus the future endings.
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Contratar in the Indicative Conditional
The Indicative Conditional of contratar is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, “contrataría”, meaning “I would hire”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contrataría | I would hire |
| Tú | contratarías | you would hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contrataría | s/he would hire |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contrataríamos | we would hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contrataríais | you (plural) would hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contratarían | they would hire |
How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive contratar plus the conditional endings.
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Contratar in the Indicative Present Perfect
The Indicative Present Perfect of contratar is used to describe actions that started recently (in the past) and are still happening now or things that have been done recently. For example, “he contratado”, meaning “I have hired”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | he contratado | I have hired |
| Tú | has contratado | you have hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | ha contratado | s/he has hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hemos contratado | we have hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habéis contratado | you (plural) have hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | han contratado | they have hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the present (he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han) plus the past participle contratado.
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Contratar in the Indicative Past Perfect
The Indicative Past Perfect of contratar is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, “había contratado”, meaning “I had hired”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | había contratado | I had hired |
| Tú | habías contratado | you had hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | había contratado | s/he had hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habíamos contratado | we had hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habíais contratado | you (plural) had hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habían contratado | they had hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the imperfect (había, habías, había, habíamos, habíais, habían) plus the past participle contratado.
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Contratar in the Indicative Future Perfect
The Indicative Future Perfect of contratar is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, “habré contratado”, meaning “I will have hired”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habré contratado | I will have hired |
| Tú | habrás contratado | you will have hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habrá contratado | s/he will have hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habremos contratado | we will have hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habréis contratado | you (plural) will have hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrán contratado | they will have hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the future (habré, habrás, habrá, habremos, habréis, habrán) plus the past participle contratado.
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Contratar in the Indicative Conditional Perfect
The Indicative Conditional Perfect of contratar is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, “habría contratado”, meaning “I would have hired”.
In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | habría contratado | I would have hired |
| Tú | habrías contratado | you would have hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | habría contratado | s/he would have hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | habríamos contratado | we would have hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | habríais contratado | you (plural) would have hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | habrían contratado | they would have hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the conditional (habría, habrías, habría, habríamos, habríais, habrían) plus the past participle contratado.
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Subjunctive tenses of Contratar
Contratar in the Subjunctive Present
The Subjunctive Present is used to talk about situations of uncertainty, or emotions such as wishes, desires and hopes. It differs from the indicative mood due to the uncertainty of the events which are being spoken about. For example, “contrate”, meaning “I hire”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contrate | I hire |
| Tú | contrates | you hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contrate | s/he hires |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratemos | we hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratéis | you (plural) hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contraten | they hire |
How it’s built: Regular: stem contrat- plus the -ar subjunctive endings.
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Contratar in the Subjunctive Imperfect
The Subjunctive Imperfect is used to speak about unlikely or uncertain events in the past or to cast an opinion (emotional) about something that happened in the past. For example, “contratara”, meaning “I hired”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contratara | I hired |
| Tú | contrataras | you hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contratara | s/he hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratáramos | we hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratarais | you (plural) hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contrataran | they hired |
How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, contrataron, without -ron, plus the -ra endings; nosotros adds an accent (contratáramos).
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Contratar in the Subjunctive Future
The Subjunctive Future is used to speak about hypothetical situations, and actions/events that may happen in the future. For example, “contratare”, meaning “I will hire”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | contratare | I will hire |
| Tú | contratares | you will hire |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contratare | s/he will hire |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratáremos | we will hire |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratareis | you (plural) will hire |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contrataren | they will hire |
How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, contrataron, without -ron, plus the -re endings; nosotros adds an accent (contratáremos).
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Contratar in the Subjunctive Present Perfect
The Subjunctive Present Perfect is used to describe past actions or events that are still connected to the present day and to speak about an action that will have happened by a certain time in the future. For example, “haya contratado”, meaning “I have hired”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | haya contratado | I have hired |
| Tú | hayas contratado | you have hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | haya contratado | s/he has hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hayamos contratado | we have hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hayáis contratado | you (plural) have hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hayan contratado | they have hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive present (haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan) plus the past participle contratado.
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Contratar in the Subjunctive Past Perfect
The Subjunctive Past Perfect is used to speak about hypothetical situations, and actions/events that occurred before other actions/events in the past. For example, “hubiera contratado”, meaning “I had hired”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiera contratado | I had hired |
| Tú | hubieras contratado | you had hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiera contratado | s/he had hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéramos contratado | we had hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubierais contratado | you (plural) had hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieran contratado | they had hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive imperfect (hubiera, hubieras, hubiera, hubiéramos, hubierais, hubieran) plus the past participle contratado.
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Contratar in the Subjunctive Future Perfect
The Subjunctive Future Perfect is used to speak about something that will have happened if a hypothetical situations occurs in the future. For example, “hubiere contratado”, meaning “I will have hired”.
In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hubiere contratado | I will have hired |
| Tú | hubieres contratado | you will have hired |
| Ella / Él / Usted | hubiere contratado | s/he will have hired |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | hubiéremos contratado | we will have hired |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | hubiereis contratado | you (plural) will have hired |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | hubieren contratado | they will have hired |
How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive future (hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren) plus the past participle contratado.
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Imperative tenses of Contratar
Contratar in the Imperative Affirmative
The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, “contrate”, meaning “(to you formal) hire!”.
In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | contrata | (to you) hire! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | contrate | (to you formal) hire! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | contratemos | let's hire! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | contratad | (to you plural) hire! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | contraten | (to you plural formal) hire! |
How it’s built: Tú takes the ella/él present (contrata); usted, nosotros and ustedes take the subjunctive present (contrate, contratemos, contraten); vosotros swaps the final r of the infinitive for a d (contratad).
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Contratar in the Imperative Negative
The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, “no contrate”, meaning “(to you formal) don't hire!”.
In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".
| Pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | - | - |
| Tú | no contrates | (to you) don't hire! |
| Ella / Él / Usted | no contrate | (to you formal) don't hire! |
| Nosotras / Nosotros | no contratemos | let's not hire! |
| Vosotras / Vosotros | no contratéis | (to you plural) don't hire! |
| Ellas / Ellos / Ustedes | no contraten | (to you plural formal) don't hire! |
How it’s built: No plus the subjunctive present: no contrates, no contrate, no contratemos, no contratéis, no contraten.
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Frequently asked questions about Contratar
Is contratar a regular or irregular verb?
Contratar is a fully regular -AR verb. It follows the standard -AR conjugation pattern in every tense and mood without any stem changes, spelling changes, or irregular forms. This makes it a model verb for learning the -AR conjugation system.
How do you conjugate contratar in the present tense (presente)?
In the present tense (presente), contratar is conjugated as: yo contrato, tú contratas, él/ella/usted contrata, nosotros contratamos, vosotros contratáis, ellos/ellas/ustedes contratan. The present tense is used To talk about situations, events or thoughts that are happening now or in the near future. It is also used to talk about facts and truths.
How do you conjugate contratar in the preterite (pretérito indefinido)?
In the preterite (pretérito indefinido), contratar is conjugated as: yo contraté, tú contrataste, él/ella/usted contrató, nosotros contratamos, vosotros contratasteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes contrataron. The preterite is used To talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time.
How do you conjugate contratar in the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto)?
In the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto), contratar is conjugated as: yo contrataba, tú contratabas, él/ella/usted contrataba, nosotros contratábamos, vosotros contratabais, ellos/ellas/ustedes contrataban. The imperfect is used To describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do.
How do you conjugate contratar in the future tense (futuro simple)?
In the future tense (futuro simple), contratar is conjugated as: yo contrataré, tú contratarás, él/ella/usted contratará, nosotros contrataremos, vosotros contrataréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes contratarán. The future tense is used To talk about something that will happen in the future.
How do you conjugate contratar in the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente)?
In the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente), contratar is conjugated as: yo contrate, tú contrates, él/ella/usted contrate, nosotros contratemos, vosotros contratéis, ellos/ellas/ustedes contraten. The present subjunctive is used To talk about situations of uncertainty, or emotions such as wishes, desires and hopes. It differs from the indicative mood due to the uncertainty of the events which are being spoken about.
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Downloadable cheat sheets
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Want to explore other verb conjugations?
Why not check out Contribuir – to contribute or see the complete list of verbs here.
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