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How to conjugate Encontrarse in Spanish

encontrarse to meet (up), to run into, to be located, to feel (a certain way) Irregular Verb Top 100

At a glance: Encontrarse (to meet (up), to run into, to be located, to feel (a certain way)) is one of the most common reflexive irregular verbs in Spanish. In the present tense: me encuentro, te encuentras, se encuentra, nos encontramos, os encontráis, se encuentran. Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change o to ue (encuentro, encuentras, encuentra, encuentran); nosotros and vosotros are regular. It is also irregular in the present subjunctive (me encuentre).

Past participle
encontrado met
Gerund
encontrando meeting
Similar
topar, localizarse, ubicarse, yacer, sentirse

Encontrarse conjugation tables as a PDF

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Indicative tenses of Encontrarse

Encontrarse in the Indicative Present

The Indicative Present of encontrarse 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, “me encuentro”, meaning “I meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encuentroI meet
Túte encuentrasyou meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse encuentras/he meets
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontramoswe meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontráisyou (plural) meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encuentranthey meet

How it’s built: Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change o to ue (encuentro, encuentras, encuentra, encuentran); nosotros and vosotros are regular. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Preterite

The Indicative Preterite of encontrarse is used to talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time. For example, “me encontré”, meaning “I met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encontréI met
Túte encontrasteyou met
Ella / Él / Ustedse encontrós/he met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontramoswe met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontrasteisyou (plural) met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encontraronthey met

How it’s built: Regular: stem encontr- plus the -ar endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Imperfect

The Indicative Imperfect of encontrarse is used to describe regular and repeated actions that happened in the past and descriptions of things you used to do. For example, “me encontraba”, meaning “I used to meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encontrabaI used to meet
Túte encontrabasyou used to meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse encontrabas/he used to meet
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontrábamoswe used to meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontrabaisyou (plural) used to meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encontrabanthey used to meet

How it’s built: Regular: stem encontr- plus the -ar endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Present Continuous

The Indicative Present Continuous of encontrarse is used to talk about something that is happening continuously or right now. For example, “me estoy encontrando”, meaning “I am meeting”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome estoy encontrandoI am meeting
Túte estás encontrandoyou are meeting
Ella / Él / Ustedse está encontrandos/he is meeting
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos estamos encontrandowe are meeting
Vosotras / Vosotrosos estáis encontrandoyou (plural) are meeting
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse están encontrandothey are meeting

How it’s built: Estar in the present (estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están) plus the gerund encontrando. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Informal Future

The Indicative Informal Future of encontrarse is used to talk about something that will happen in the future, especially in the near future. For example, “me voy a encontrar”, meaning “I am going to meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome voy a encontrarI am going to meet
Túte vas a encontraryou are going to meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse va a encontrars/he is going to meet
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos vamos a encontrarwe are going to meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos vais a encontraryou (plural) are going to meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse van a encontrarthey are going to meet

How it’s built: Ir in the present (voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van), then a, then the infinitive encontrar. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Future

The Indicative Future of encontrarse is used to talk about something that will happen in the future. For example, “me encontraré”, meaning “I will meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encontraréI will meet
Túte encontrarásyou will meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse encontrarás/he will meet
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontraremoswe will meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontraréisyou (plural) will meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encontraránthey will meet

How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive encontrar plus the future endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Conditional

The Indicative Conditional of encontrarse is used to talk about something that may happen in the future, hypothesis and probabilities. For example, “me encontraría”, meaning “I would meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encontraríaI would meet
Túte encontraríasyou would meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse encontrarías/he would meet
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontraríamoswe would meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontraríaisyou (plural) would meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encontraríanthey would meet

How it’s built: Regular: the infinitive encontrar plus the conditional endings. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Present Perfect

The Indicative Present Perfect of encontrarse 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, “me he encontrado”, meaning “I have met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome he encontradoI have met
Túte has encontradoyou have met
Ella / Él / Ustedse ha encontrados/he has met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hemos encontradowe have met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habéis encontradoyou (plural) have met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse han encontradothey have met

How it’s built: Haber in the present (he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Past Perfect

The Indicative Past Perfect of encontrarse is used to talk about actions that happened before another action in the past. For example, “me había encontrado”, meaning “I had met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome había encontradoI had met
Túte habías encontradoyou had met
Ella / Él / Ustedse había encontrados/he had met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos habíamos encontradowe had met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habíais encontradoyou (plural) had met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse habían encontradothey had met

How it’s built: Haber in the imperfect (había, habías, había, habíamos, habíais, habían) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Future Perfect

The Indicative Future Perfect of encontrarse is used to talk about something that will have happened in the future after something else has already happened. For example, “me habré encontrado”, meaning “I will have met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome habré encontradoI will have met
Túte habrás encontradoyou will have met
Ella / Él / Ustedse habrá encontrados/he will have met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos habremos encontradowe will have met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habréis encontradoyou (plural) will have met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse habrán encontradothey will have met

How it’s built: Haber in the future (habré, habrás, habrá, habremos, habréis, habrán) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse in the Indicative Conditional Perfect

The Indicative Conditional Perfect of encontrarse is used to talk about something that would have happened in the past but didn’t due to another action. For example, “me habría encontrado”, meaning “I would have met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome habría encontradoI would have met
Túte habrías encontradoyou would have met
Ella / Él / Ustedse habría encontrados/he would have met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos habríamos encontradowe would have met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos habríais encontradoyou (plural) would have met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse habrían encontradothey would have met

How it’s built: Haber in the conditional (habría, habrías, habría, habríamos, habríais, habrían) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Subjunctive tenses of Encontrarse

Encontrarse 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, “me encuentre”, meaning “I meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encuentreI meet
Túte encuentresyou meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse encuentres/he meets
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontremoswe meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontréisyou (plural) meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encuentrenthey meet

How it’s built: Yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos follow the yo present, encuentro (encuentre, encuentres, encuentre, encuentren); nosotros and vosotros are regular. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Encontrarse 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, “me encontrara”, meaning “I met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encontraraI met
Túte encontrarasyou met
Ella / Él / Ustedse encontraras/he met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontráramoswe met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontraraisyou (plural) met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encontraranthey met

How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, encontraron, without -ron, plus the -ra endings; nosotros adds an accent (encontráramos). The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse 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, “me encontrare”, meaning “I will meet”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome encontrareI will meet
Túte encontraresyou will meet
Ella / Él / Ustedse encontrares/he will meet
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos encontráremoswe will meet
Vosotras / Vosotrosos encontrareisyou (plural) will meet
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse encontrarenthey will meet

How it’s built: Regular: the ellas/ellos preterite, encontraron, without -ron, plus the -re endings; nosotros adds an accent (encontráremos). The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse 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, “me haya encontrado”, meaning “I have met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome haya encontradoI have met
Túte hayas encontradoyou have met
Ella / Él / Ustedse haya encontrados/he has met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hayamos encontradowe have met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos hayáis encontradoyou (plural) have met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse hayan encontradothey have met

How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive present (haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse 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, “me hubiera encontrado”, meaning “I had met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome hubiera encontradoI had met
Túte hubieras encontradoyou had met
Ella / Él / Ustedse hubiera encontrados/he had met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hubiéramos encontradowe had met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos hubierais encontradoyou (plural) had met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse hubieran encontradothey had met

How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive imperfect (hubiera, hubieras, hubiera, hubiéramos, hubierais, hubieran) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Encontrarse 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, “me hubiere encontrado”, meaning “I will have met”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yome hubiere encontradoI will have met
Túte hubieres encontradoyou will have met
Ella / Él / Ustedse hubiere encontrados/he will have met
Nosotras / Nosotrosnos hubiéremos encontradowe will have met
Vosotras / Vosotrosos hubiereis encontradoyou (plural) will have met
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesse hubieren encontradothey will have met

How it’s built: Haber in the subjunctive future (hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren) plus the past participle encontrado. The reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) goes in front.

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Imperative tenses of Encontrarse

Encontrarse in the Imperative Affirmative

The Imperative Affirmative is used to give orders and commands, to tell someone to do something. For example, “encuéntrese”, meaning “(to you formal) meet!”.

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yo--
Túencuéntrate(to you) meet!
Ella / Él / Ustedencuéntrese(to you formal) meet!
Nosotras / Nosotrosencontrémonoslet's meet!
Vosotras / Vosotrosencontraos(to you plural) meet!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesencuéntrense(to you plural formal) meet!

How it’s built: Tú takes the ella/él present and attaches te (encuéntrate); usted and ustedes take the subjunctive present and attach se (encuéntrese, encuéntrense); nosotros takes the subjunctive present, drops the s and attaches nos (encontrémonos); vosotros drops the final r of the infinitive and attaches os (encontraos).

Letters in red show where a form differs from the regular pattern.

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Encontrarse in the Imperative Negative

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

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

PronounSpanishEnglish
Yo--
Túno te encuentres(to you) don't meet!
Ella / Él / Ustedno se encuentre(to you formal) don't meet!
Nosotras / Nosotrosno nos encontremoslet's not meet!
Vosotras / Vosotrosno os encontréis(to you plural) don't meet!
Ellas / Ellos / Ustedesno se encuentren(to you plural formal) don't meet!

How it’s built: No plus the subjunctive present: no te encuentres, no se encuentre, no nos encontremos, no os encontréis, no se encuentren.

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Frequently asked questions about Encontrarse

Is encontrarse a regular or irregular verb?

Encontrarse is an irregular Spanish verb. In the present tense: yo, tú, ella/él and ellas/ellos change o to ue (encuentro, encuentras, encuentra, encuentran); nosotros and vosotros are regular. It is also irregular in the present subjunctive (me encuentre).

How do you conjugate encontrarse in the present tense (presente)?

In the present tense (presente), encontrarse is conjugated as: yo me encuentro, tú te encuentras, él/ella/usted se encuentra, nosotros nos encontramos, vosotros os encontráis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se encuentran. 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 encontrarse in the preterite (pretérito indefinido)?

In the preterite (pretérito indefinido), encontrarse is conjugated as: yo me encontré, tú te encontraste, él/ella/usted se encontró, nosotros nos encontramos, vosotros os encontrasteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se encontraron. The preterite is used To talk about actions completed in the past, at a specific point in time.

How do you conjugate encontrarse in the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto)?

In the imperfect (pretérito imperfecto), encontrarse is conjugated as: yo me encontraba, tú te encontrabas, él/ella/usted se encontraba, nosotros nos encontrábamos, vosotros os encontrabais, ellos/ellas/ustedes se encontraban. 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 encontrarse in the future tense (futuro simple)?

In the future tense (futuro simple), encontrarse is conjugated as: yo me encontraré, tú te encontrarás, él/ella/usted se encontrará, nosotros nos encontraremos, vosotros os encontraréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se encontrarán. The future tense is used To talk about something that will happen in the future.

How do you conjugate encontrarse in the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente)?

In the present subjunctive (subjuntivo presente), encontrarse is conjugated as: yo me encuentre, tú te encuentres, él/ella/usted se encuentre, nosotros nos encontremos, vosotros os encontréis, ellos/ellas/ustedes se encuentren. 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.

What’s the difference between encontrar and encontrarse?

Encontrar means ‘to find’ and encontrarse means ‘to meet (up), to run into, to be located, to feel (a certain way)’. Encontrarse is the reflexive form of encontrar, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun – me, te, se, nos, os or se – that matches the subject. The verb itself is conjugated the same way: in the present tense, yo encuentro becomes me encuentro. In the affirmative tú imperative the pronoun attaches to the end of the verb, so encuentra becomes encuéntrate.


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