Introduction
Continuar means «to continue». Continuar means to continue: studying, working, tomorrow, with the same plan. It is a regular -ar verb, followed by a gerund (continúo estudiando) or by con + a noun. It is the verb of carrying on. It is a regular -ar verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of continuar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example: «Yo continúo estudiando todos los días.» — I continue studying every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | continuar |
| English | to continue |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | continuando |
| Past participle | continuado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: continuando · Past participle: continuado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continúo |
| tú | continúas |
| él/ella/Ud. | continúa |
| nosotros/as | continuamos |
| vosotros/as | continuáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continúan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For continuar, the yo form is continúo, as in «Yo continúo» in the examples below. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continué |
| tú | continuaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | continuó |
| nosotros/as | continuamos |
| vosotros/as | continuasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continuaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo continué» is the classic use. Do not confuse it with the imperfect: the preterite moves the story forward, one finished event at a time.
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continuaba |
| tú | continuabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | continuaba |
| nosotros/as | continuábamos |
| vosotros/as | continuabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continuaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo continuaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continuaré |
| tú | continuarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | continuará |
| nosotros/as | continuaremos |
| vosotros/as | continuaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continuarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For continuar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo continuaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continuaría |
| tú | continuarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | continuaría |
| nosotros/as | continuaríamos |
| vosotros/as | continuaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continuarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo continuaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he continuado |
| tú | has continuado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha continuado |
| nosotros/as | hemos continuado |
| vosotros/as | habéis continuado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han continuado |
The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. It is haber in the present plus the past participle: «Hoy yo he continuado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había continuado |
| tú | habías continuado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había continuado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos continuado |
| vosotros/as | habíais continuado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían continuado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había continuado». It is haber in the imperfect plus the past participle, and it is the tense for explaining what had already happened when something else took place.
Future Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habré continuado |
| tú | habrás continuado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá continuado |
| nosotros/as | habremos continuado |
| vosotros/as | habréis continuado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán continuado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré continuado» is the pattern — haber in the future plus the past participle. It is less common in speech but regular in formal writing.
Conditional Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | habría continuado |
| tú | habrías continuado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría continuado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos continuado |
| vosotros/as | habríais continuado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían continuado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría continuado si hubiera podido». It is haber in the conditional plus the past participle, and it is the tense for regrets and missed chances.
Present Subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continúe |
| tú | continúes |
| él/ella/Ud. | continúe |
| nosotros/as | continuemos |
| vosotros/as | continuéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continúen |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él continúe». The trigger is in the main clause; the subjunctive is the mood of uncertainty, desire and influence. Learn the yo form first — most of the table follows from it.
Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | continuara |
| tú | continuaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | continuara |
| nosotros/as | continuáramos |
| vosotros/as | continuarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continuaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él continuara, todo sería distinto». The table above shows the -ra forms, the ones you will hear most often. There is also a less common -se set built on the same stem.
Imperative — Affirmative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | continúa |
| él/ella/Ud. | continúe |
| nosotros/as | continuemos |
| vosotros/as | continuad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continúen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Continúa!». There is no yo form — you cannot command yourself. The tú form is the one you will use with friends and family, and the usted form with people you address formally.
Imperative — Negative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tú | continúes |
| él/ella/Ud. | continúe |
| nosotros/as | continuemos |
| vosotros/as | continuéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | continúen |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No continúes!». Unlike the affirmative imperative, the negative forms come from the present subjunctive, which is why they look different. Never use the affirmative form after no.
Example sentences
- Yo continúo estudiando todos los días. — I continue studying every day.
- Mi hermana continúa estudiando mucho. — My sister continues studying a lot.
- Ayer yo continué estudiando por la tarde. — Yesterday I continued studying in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo continuaba estudiando muchas veces. — As a child, I used to continue studying often.
- Mañana yo continuaré estudiando sin falta. — Tomorrow I will continue studying without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo continuaría estudiando ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would continue studying right now.
- Hoy yo he continuado mañana dos veces. — Today I have continued tomorrow twice.
- Espero que él continúe estudiando pronto. — I hope he continues studying soon.
- ¡Continúa estudiando hasta terminar! — Continue studying until you finish!
- Ahora mismo estoy continuando estudiando. — Right now I am continuing studying.
Common mistakes
1. Forgetting the accent in the preterite
Wrong: continue
Right: continué
The yo preterite of continuar carries a written accent: continué. Without it, continue is the present subjunctive yo form, a completely different tense.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo continuaba estudiando.
Right: Ayer yo continué estudiando.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, continué. The imperfect continuaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Continúo estudiar.
Right: Continúo estudiando.
Continuar is followed by a gerund, not an infinitive: continúo estudiando, continúo trabajando.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú continúas estudiando.
Right: Espero que tú continúes estudiando.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: continúes, not the indicative continúas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No continúa estudiando.
Right: No continúes estudiando.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no continúes. The affirmative continúa can never follow no.
Quiz
Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.
1. What is the yo form of continuar in the present tense?
- (a) continuamos
- (b) continúa
- (c) continúas
- (d) continúo
2. What is the él/ella form of continuar in the preterite?
- (a) continuamos
- (b) continuaste
- (c) continué
- (d) continuó
3. What is the nosotros form of continuar in the imperfect?
- (a) continuaba
- (b) continuabas
- (c) continuábamos
4. What is the tú form of continuar in the future tense?
- (a) continuaremos
- (b) continuará
- (c) continuarás
- (d) continuaré
5. What is the ellos form of continuar in the conditional?
- (a) continuaría
- (b) continuarían
- (c) continuarías
6. What is the yo form of continuar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha continuado
- (b) has continuado
- (c) he continuado
- (d) hemos continuado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of continuar?
- (a) continuemos
- (b) continúe
- (c) continúes
8. What is the nosotros form of continuar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) continuara
- (b) continuáramos
- (c) continuaras
9. What is the gerund of continuar?
- (a) continuado
- (b) continuando
- (c) continuar
- (d) continúo
10. What is the past participle of continuar?
- (a) continuado
- (b) continuando
- (c) continuar
- (d) continué
Answer key
1. (d) continúo — In the present, the yo form of continuar is continúo. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) continuó — In the preterite, the el form of continuar is continuó. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) continuábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of continuar is continuábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) continuarás — In the future, the tu form of continuar is continuarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) continuarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of continuar is continuarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he continuado — In the present perfect, the yo form of continuar is he continuado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (c) continúes — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of continuar is continúes. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) continuáramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of continuar is continuáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (b) continuando — The gerund of continuar is continuando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy continuando».
10. (a) continuado — The past participle of continuar is continuado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he continuado».
Frequently asked questions
Is continuar regular or irregular?
Yes, continuar is a regular -ar verb. Every tense follows the standard -ar endings, so once you know the pattern you can generate the whole table. The only thing to watch is choosing the right tense, not the forms themselves.
What are the gerund and past participle of continuar?
The gerund is continuando and the past participle is continuado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy continuando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he continuado»).
What is the difference between continuar and seguir?
Continuar and seguir are often confused. Seguir is a near-synonym, often with a gerund too; continuar is the plain verb for carrying on.
How do I say «I continue» in Spanish?
Say «Yo continúo». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.
Which tense do learners find hardest with continuar?
Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (continué) for a single finished event and the imperfect (continuaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: continuar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: continuar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: comenzar
- Related verb: terminar
- Related verb: acabar
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz