The verb entender means "to understand". It is an e→ie stem-changing verb in the present and subjunctive. Since it is an -er verb, the preterite and gerund are completely regular.
Entender is often interchangeable with comprender, though entender is slightly more common in everyday speech for general understanding. Used with de, it means "to know about" a topic: entender de vinos = "to know about wine".
Present Indicative
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entiendo |
| tú | entiendes |
| él / ella / usted | entiende |
| nosotros / nosotras | entendemos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entienden |
Preterite
Completely regular.
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entendí |
| tú | entendiste |
| él / ella / usted | entendió |
| nosotros / nosotras | entendimos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entendieron |
Imperfect
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entendía |
| tú | entendías |
| él / ella / usted | entendía |
| nosotros / nosotras | entendíamos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entendían |
Future
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entenderé |
| tú | entenderás |
| él / ella / usted | entenderá |
| nosotros / nosotras | entenderemos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entenderán |
Conditional
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entendería |
| tú | entenderías |
| él / ella / usted | entendería |
| nosotros / nosotras | entenderíamos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entenderían |
Present Subjunctive
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entienda |
| tú | entiendas |
| él / ella / usted | entienda |
| nosotros / nosotras | entendamos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entiendan |
Quiero que entiendas mi punto de vista.
I want you to understand my point of view.
Imperfect Subjunctive
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entendiera |
| tú | entendieras |
| él / ella / usted | entendiera |
| nosotros / nosotras | entendiéramos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | entendieran |
Imperative
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| tú (affirmative) | entiende |
| tú (negative) | no entiendas |
| usted | entienda |
| nosotros | entendamos |
| ustedes | entiendan |
Non-Finite Forms
| Form | Spanish |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | entender |
| Gerund | entendiendo |
| Past Participle | entendido |
Common Uses and Expressions
- Entender de — to know about (a subject): Mi tío entiende mucho de música.
- Dar a entender — to imply: Me dio a entender que no vendría.
- Hacerse entender — to make oneself understood
- ¿Me entiendes? — Do you follow me? / Understand?
Ella entiende de computadoras mejor que yo.
She knows more about computers than I do.
No entendí ni una palabra del discurso.
I didn't understand a single word of the speech.
💡
Entender and comprender are near-synonyms. Entender tends to be used for immediate, surface-level understanding ("I catch what you're saying"), while comprender can imply deeper grasping ("I comprehend the situation"). In everyday speech, they are interchangeable.
Entender follows the same e→ie pattern as perder and pensar.
Related Topics
- Perder: Full ConjugationA2 — Complete conjugation of the verb perder with its e→ie stem change
- Pensar: Full ConjugationA2 — Complete conjugation of the verb pensar with its e→ie stem change
- Stem Change: E → IEA2 — Verbs where the stem vowel e changes to ie in stressed syllables.