Introduction

contribuir means “to contribute”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. It is the verb for expressing “to contribute” in everyday Spanish — in conversation, at work, and at home. This page shows contribuir in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make most often, and it finishes with a ten-question quiz so you can test yourself. Every sentence below comes with its English translation, and every form is the correct form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo contribuyo con dinero por la mañana.” — “I contribute money.”

contribuir in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how contribuir is used. Read each one out loud, then read the translation. If a sentence feels useful, copy it into your own notebook with one small change — a different time, a different person, a different place — and you have a new sentence of your own.

In the present: everyday use

These sentences use {verb} in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Yo contribuyo con dinero cada día.” — “I contribute money.”
  2. “Tú contribuyes con dinero cada día.” — “you contribute money.”
  3. “Él contribuye con dinero siempre.” — “He contributes money.”
  4. “Nosotros contribuimos con dinero todos los días.” — “We contribute money.”

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show {verb} in the past, so you can talk about what already happened. 5. “Yo contribuí con dinero ayer.” — “I contributed money.” (preterite) 6. “Él contribuyó con dinero ayer.” — “He contributed money.” (preterite) 7. “Yo contribuía con dinero cuando era joven.” — “I used to contribute money.” (imperfect)

Plans and things already done

These sentences look forward, or look back at something already finished. Notice how the verb form changes while the meaning of {verb} stays the same. 8. “Nosotros contribuiremos con dinero mañana.” — “We will contribute money.” (future) 9. “Tú has contribuido con dinero hoy.” — “you have contributed money.” (present-perfect) 10. “Espero que yo contribuya con dinero.” — “I hope that I contribute money.” (present-subjunctive)

More everyday uses

Two more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action. 11. “Vosotros contribuís con dinero cada semana.” — “You contribute money.” 12. “Ellos contribuyen con dinero normalmente.” — “They contribute money.”

contribuir in context

Single sentences teach you the forms. Dialogues teach you when to use them. Read the short conversation below, then the paragraph that follows, and notice how contribuir appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

Dialogue in a café

Sofía: “¿Tú contribuyes con dinero?” — Do you contribute money?

Diego: “Sí, yo contribuyo con dinero cada día. Es parte de mi rutina.” — Yes, I contribute money every day. It is part of my routine.

Sofía: “¿Y ayer? ¿También contribuyes con dinero?” — And yesterday? Did you contribute money too?

Diego: “Sí, ayer yo contribuí con dinero. Mañana nosotros contribuiremos con dinero otra vez.” — Yes, yesterday I contributed money. Tomorrow we will contribute money again.

A short paragraph

Él contribuye con dinero cada día — that one sentence already tells you a lot about how contribuir works in real Spanish: who does it, when, and with what. Around it you can build a whole paragraph: what happened yesterday, what is happening now, and what will happen tomorrow, all with the same verb. When you write your own paragraph, start with the present — yo contribuyo con dinero — then add one past sentence and one future sentence, and you have practised three tenses with one verb. That is the fastest way to make contribuir yours: use it in a story, not only in a table.

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is contribuí, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — contribui — is a spelling error, and in speech the stress lands in the wrong place. Preterite yo forms that end in a vowel carry that accent, so check it every time you write the preterite of contribuir.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For contribuir, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: contribuimos. Only the context tells you which tense is meant, so pay attention to the time words around it — cada día points to the present, ayer points to the preterite. Do not invent a different form for one of the tenses.

Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses

Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he contribuido con dinero. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy contribuido is not the present perfect of contribuir — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing contribuir with conservar

contribuir and conservar look similar, and learners mix them up. They are different verbs with different meanings, so check which one the sentence needs before you conjugate. If you can substitute the English meaning of contribuir — contribute — the sentence needs contribuir; if it needs the meaning of conservar, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo contribuya con dinero. Using the indicative — Espero que yo contribuyo — is one of the most frequent learner errors with contribuir. Whenever the main clause expresses a wish, doubt or emotion, switch to the subjunctive.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the best answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the yo form of contribuir in the present?

  • A. contribuyes
  • B. contribuye
  • C. contribuimos
  • D. contribuyo

2. What is the tu form of contribuir in the preterite?

  • A. contribuimos
  • B. contribuiste
  • C. contribuí
  • D. contribuyó

3. What is the el form of contribuir in the imperfect?

  • A. contribuías
  • B. contribuíamos
  • C. contribuíais
  • D. contribuía

4. What is the nosotros form of contribuir in the future?

  • A. contribuirá
  • B. contribuiremos
  • C. contribuiré
  • D. contribuirás

5. What is the vosotros form of contribuir in the present perfect?

  • A. he contribuido
  • B. has contribuido
  • C. ha contribuido
  • D. habéis contribuido

6. What is the ellos form of contribuir in the present subjunctive?

  • A. contribuya
  • B. contribuyan
  • C. contribuya
  • D. contribuyas

7. What is the yo form of contribuir in the preterite?

  • A. contribuiste
  • B. contribuyó
  • C. contribuimos
  • D. contribuí

8. What is the tu form of contribuir in the imperfect?

  • A. contribuíamos
  • B. contribuías
  • C. contribuía
  • D. contribuía

9. What is the el form of contribuir in the future?

  • A. contribuiré
  • B. contribuirás
  • C. contribuiremos
  • D. contribuirá

10. What is the nosotros form of contribuir in the conditional?

  • A. contribuiría
  • B. contribuiríamos
  • C. contribuiría
  • D. contribuirías

Answer key

  1. contribuyo — The present table gives yo = contribuyo.
  2. contribuiste — The preterite table gives tu = contribuiste.
  3. contribuía — The imperfect table gives el = contribuía.
  4. contribuiremos — The future table gives nosotros = contribuiremos.
  5. habéis contribuido — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis contribuido.
  6. contribuyan — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = contribuyan.
  7. contribuí — The preterite table gives yo = contribuí.
  8. contribuías — The imperfect table gives tu = contribuías.
  9. contribuirá — The future table gives el = contribuirá.
  10. contribuiríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = contribuiríamos.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use contribuir in a sentence?

Put the subject first, then the conjugated form, then the rest: “Yo contribuyo con dinero.” — “I contribute money.” Change the form for the person and the tense, but keep the sentence pattern the same.

What is the most useful form of contribuir to learn first?

Learn the present yo form contribuyo first, then the preterite yo form contribuí and the participle contribuido. With those three you can talk about the present, the past and the perfect tenses. Add the gerund contribuyendo next, and you can describe actions in progress too.

Is contribuir reflexive?

No — contribuir is not reflexive. It takes a direct object, not a reflexive pronoun: yo contribuyo con dinero. Do not add me or se to it unless the sentence genuinely needs a pronoun for another reason.

Where can I see the full conjugation of contribuir?

On the main conjugation page for contribuir, which has every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, plus notes, examples and a quiz. The present-tense page covers one tense in depth if that is what you need right now.

Related links