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How to conjugate Encontrar in Spanish

To find Irregular Verb Top 100

Introduction

Encontrar is the Spanish verb meaning "to find". It is used when finding, discovering or encountering something. Encontrar is irregular in the present tense Indicative and Subjunctive.

Similar verbs to encontrar include: descubrir (to discover), ubicar (to locate), acertar (to find the location).

ItemSpanishEnglish
Infinitiveencontrarto find
Past participleencontradofound
Gerundencontrandofinding
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Indicative Tenses of Encontrar

Encontrar in the Indicative Present

The Indicative Present of encontrar 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, "encuentro una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I find a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Present is known as "El Presente".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yoencuentro I find
encuentras you find
Ella / Él / Ustedencuentra s/he finds, you (formal) find
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontramoswe find
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontráisyou (plural) find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencuentran they find, you (plural formal) find

The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.

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Encontrar in the Indicative Preterite

The Indicative Preterite of encontrar is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, "encontré una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I found a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Preterite is known as "El Pretérito Indefinido".

PronounSpanishEnglish
YoencontréI found
encontrasteyou found
Ella / Él / Ustedencontrós/he found, you (formal) found
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontramoswe found
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontrasteisyou (plural) found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencontraronthey found, you (plural formal) found

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Encontrar in the Indicative Imperfect

The Indicative Imperfect of encontrar is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, "encontraba una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I used to find a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Imperfect is known as "El Pretérito Imperfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
YoencontrabaI used to find
encontrabasyou used to find
Ella / Él / Ustedencontrabas/he used to find, you (formal) used to find
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontrábamoswe used to find
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontrabaisyou (plural) used to find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencontrabanthey used to find, you (plural formal) used to find

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Encontrar in the Indicative Present Continuous

The Indicative Present Continuous of encontrar is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, "estoy encontrando una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I am finding a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Present Continuous is known as "El Presente Progresivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yoestoy encontrandoI am finding
estás encontrandoyou are finding
Ella / Él / Ustedestá encontrandos/he is finding, you (formal) are finding
Nosotras / Nosotrosestamos encontrandowe are finding
Vosotras / Vosotrosestáis encontrandoyou (plural) are finding
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesestán encontrandothey are finding, you (plural formal) are finding

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Encontrar in the Indicative Informal Future

The Indicative Informal Future of encontrar is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, "voy a encontrar una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I am going to find a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Informal Future is known as "El Futuro Próximo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yovoy a encontrarI am going to find
vas a encontraryou are going to find
Ella / Él / Ustedva a encontrars/he is going to find, you (formal) are going to find
Nosotras / Nosotrosvamos a encontrarwe are going to find
Vosotras / Vosotrosvais a encontraryou (plural) are going to find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesvan a encontrarthey are going to find, you (plural formal) are going to find

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Encontrar in the Indicative Future

The Indicative Future of encontrar is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, "encontraré una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I will find a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Future is known as "El Futuro Simple".

PronounSpanishEnglish
YoencontraréI will find
encontrarásyou will find
Ella / Él / Ustedencontrarás/he will find, you (formal) will find
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontraremoswe will find
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontraréisyou (plural) will find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencontraránthey will find, you (plural formal) will find

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Encontrar in the Indicative Conditional

The Indicative Conditional of encontrar is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, "encontraría una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I would find a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional is known as "El Condicional Simple".

PronounSpanishEnglish
YoencontraríaI would find
encontraríasyou would find
Ella / Él / Ustedencontrarías/he would find, you (formal) would find
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontraríamoswe would find
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontraríaisyou (plural) would find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencontraríanthey would find, you (plural formal) would find

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Encontrar in the Indicative Present Perfect

The Indicative Present Perfect of encontrar 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 encontrado una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I have found a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohe encontradoI have found
has encontradoyou have found
Ella / Él / Ustedha encontrados/he has found, you (formal) have found
Nosotras / Nosotroshemos encontradowe have found
Vosotras / Vosotroshabéis encontradoyou (plural) have found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshan encontradothey have found, you (plural formal) have found

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Encontrar in the Indicative Past Perfect

The Indicative Past Perfect of encontrar is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, "había encontrado una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I had found a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohabía encontradoI had found
habías encontradoyou had found
Ella / Él / Ustedhabía encontrados/he had found, you (formal) had found
Nosotras / Nosotroshabíamos encontradowe had found
Vosotras / Vosotroshabíais encontradoyou (plural) had found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshabían encontradothey had found, you (plural formal) had found

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Encontrar in the Indicative Future Perfect

The Indicative Future Perfect of encontrar is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, "habré encontrado una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I will have found a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohabré encontradoI will have found
habrás encontradoyou will have found
Ella / Él / Ustedhabrá encontrados/he will have found, you (formal) will have found
Nosotras / Nosotroshabremos encontradowe will have found
Vosotras / Vosotroshabréis encontradoyou (plural) will have found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshabrán encontradothey will have found, you (plural formal) will have found

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Encontrar in the Indicative Conditional Perfect

The Indicative Conditional Perfect of encontrar is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, "habría encontrado una chaqueta en el armario", meaning "I would have found a jacket in the wardrobe".

In Spanish, the Indicative Conditional Perfect is known as "El Condicional Perfecto".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohabría encontradoI would have found
habrías encontradoyou would have found
Ella / Él / Ustedhabría encontrados/he would have found, you (formal) would have found
Nosotras / Nosotroshabríamos encontradowe would have found
Vosotras / Vosotroshabríais encontradoyou (plural) would have found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshabrían encontradothey would have found, you (plural formal) would have found

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Subjunctive Tenses of Encontrar

Encontrar 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, "encuentre", meaning "I find".

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present is known as "El Presente de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yoencuentre I find
encuentres you find
Ella / Él / Ustedencuentre s/he finds, you (formal) find
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontremoswe find
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontréisyou (plural) find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencuentren they find, you (plural formal) find

The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.

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Encontrar 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, "encontrara", meaning "I found".

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Imperfect is known as "El Imperfecto Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
YoencontraraI found
encontrarasyou found
Ella / Él / Ustedencontraras/he found, you (formal) found
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontráramoswe found
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontraraisyou (plural) found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencontraranthey found, you (plural formal) found

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Encontrar 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, "encontrare", meaning "I will find".

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future is known as "El Futuro de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
YoencontrareI will find
encontraresyou will find
Ella / Él / Ustedencontrares/he will find, you (formal) will find
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontráremoswe will find
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontrareisyou (plural) will find
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencontrarenthey will find, you (plural formal) will find

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Encontrar 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 encontrado", meaning "I have found".

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Present Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohaya encontradoI have found
hayas encontradoyou have found
Ella / Él / Ustedhaya encontrados/he has found, you (formal) have found
Nosotras / Nosotroshayamos encontradowe have found
Vosotras / Vosotroshayáis encontradoyou (plural) have found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshayan encontradothey have found, you (plural formal) have found

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Encontrar 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 encontrado", meaning "I had found".

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Past Perfect is known as "El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohubiera encontradoI had found
hubieras encontradoyou had found
Ella / Él / Ustedhubiera encontrados/he had found, you (formal) had found
Nosotras / Nosotroshubiéramos encontradowe had found
Vosotras / Vosotroshubierais encontradoyou (plural) had found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshubieran encontradothey had found, you (plural formal) had found

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Encontrar 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 encontrado", meaning "I will have found".

In Spanish, the Subjunctive Future Perfect is known as "El Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yohubiere encontradoI will have found
hubieres encontradoyou will have found
Ella / Él / Ustedhubiere encontrados/he will have found, you (formal) will have found
Nosotras / Nosotroshubiéremos encontradowe will have found
Vosotras / Vosotroshubiereis encontradoyou (plural) will have found
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedeshubieren encontradothey will have found, you (plural formal) will have found

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Imperative Tenses of Encontrar

Encontrar in the Imperative Affirmative

The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, "encuentre", meaning "(to you formal) find!".

In Spanish, the Imperative Affirmative is known as "El Imperativo Afirmativo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yo--
encuentra (to you) find!
Ella / Él / Ustedencuentre (to you formal) find!
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontremoslet's find!
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontrad(to you plural) find!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencuentren (to you plural formal) find!

The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.

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Encontrar in the Imperative Negative

The Imperative Negative is used to give orders and commands, telling someone not to do something. For example, "no encuentre", meaning "(to you formal) don't find!".

In Spanish, the Imperative Negative is known as "El Imperativo Negativo".

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yo--
no encuentres (to you) don't find!
Ella / Él / Ustedno encuentre (to you formal) don't find!
Nosotras / Nosotrosno encontremoslet's not find!
Vosotras / Vosotrosno encontréis(to you plural) don't find!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesno encuentren (to you plural formal) don't find!

The red dot () above denotes an irregular conjugation.

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Example sentences and usage

  • Cada vez que encuentro algo que me gusta, es demasiado caro. Whenever I find something I like, it's too expensive.
  • A los pies de la colina se encuentra un lago muy bonito. At the foot of the hill is a beautiful lake.
  • Me encontraste donde nadie estaba buscando. You found me where no one else was looking.
  • Encuentro las lenguas extranjeras muy interesantes. I find foreign languages very interesting.
  • Si encuentro tu pasaporte te llamo inmediatamente. If I find your passport, I'll call you at once.
  • A menudo pienso en el lugar donde te encontré. I often think about the place where I met you.
  • Encontré el libro por casualidad. I found the book by accident.
  • Me encontré con mi ex-novia en Portugal por casualidad. By chance I met my ex-girlfriend in Portugal.

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Want to explore other verb conjugations?

Why not check out Encontrarse – to find (oneself) or see the complete list of verbs here.


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