Introduction

conversar means “to converse, to chat” in English, and it is a verb you will meet again and again once you start reading and speaking Spanish. It is used whenever you need to talk about with my friend — at home, at work, and in everyday conversation — which makes it a practical verb to learn early and to use confidently. This page gives you the complete conjugation of conversar in every tense and mood, with all six persons, plus the gerund and the past participle, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. Every form below comes from VerbFlow's verified conjugation tables, so you can trust the accents and the irregular forms. conversar is a regular -ar verb, and the notes under each tense explain exactly where it follows the rules and where it breaks them. To hear it in a real sentence: “Yo converso con mi amigo todos los días.” — “I converse with my friend.” Work through the tables, read the notes, then test yourself with the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts
Infinitive conversar
English to converse, to chat
Verb type Regular -ar verb
Gerund conversando
Past participle conversado
Auxiliary verb haber

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: conversando · Past participle: conversado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo converso
tú conversas
él/ella/Ud. conversa
nosotros/as conversamos
vosotros/as conversáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversan

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For conversar, the yo form is converso, as in “Yo converso con mi amigo.” — “I converse with my friend.”

Preterite

Person Form
yo conversé
tú conversaste
él/ella/Ud. conversó
nosotros/as conversamos
vosotros/as conversasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversaron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For conversar, the yo form is conversé, as in “Yo conversé con mi amigo.” — “I conversed with my friend.”

Imperfect

Person Form
yo conversaba
tú conversabas
él/ella/Ud. conversaba
nosotros/as conversábamos
vosotros/as conversabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversaban

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For conversar, the yo form is conversaba, as in “Yo conversaba con mi amigo.” — “I used to converse with my friend.”

Future

Person Form
yo conversaré
tú conversarás
él/ella/Ud. conversará
nosotros/as conversaremos
vosotros/as conversaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversarán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For conversar, the yo form is conversaré, as in “Yo conversaré con mi amigo.” — “I will converse with my friend.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo conversaría
tú conversarías
él/ella/Ud. conversaría
nosotros/as conversaríamos
vosotros/as conversaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversarían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For conversar, the yo form is conversaría, as in “Yo conversaría con mi amigo.” — “I would converse with my friend.”

Present Perfect

Person Form
yo he conversado
tú has conversado
él/ella/Ud. ha conversado
nosotros/as hemos conversado
vosotros/as habéis conversado
ellos/ellas/Uds. han conversado

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For conversar, the yo form is he conversado, as in “Yo he conversado con mi amigo.” — “I have conversed with my friend.”

Pluperfect

Person Form
yo había conversado
tú habías conversado
él/ella/Ud. había conversado
nosotros/as habíamos conversado
vosotros/as habíais conversado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habían conversado

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For conversar, the yo form is había conversado, as in “Yo había conversado con mi amigo.” — “I had conversed with my friend.”

Future Perfect

Person Form
yo habré conversado
tú habrás conversado
él/ella/Ud. habrá conversado
nosotros/as habremos conversado
vosotros/as habréis conversado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrán conversado

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For conversar, the yo form is habré conversado, as in “Yo habré conversado con mi amigo.” — “I will have conversed with my friend.”

Conditional Perfect

Person Form
yo habría conversado
tú habrías conversado
él/ella/Ud. habría conversado
nosotros/as habríamos conversado
vosotros/as habríais conversado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrían conversado

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For conversar, the yo form is habría conversado, as in “Yo habría conversado con mi amigo.” — “I would have conversed with my friend.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo converse
tú converses
él/ella/Ud. converse
nosotros/as conversemos
vosotros/as converséis
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversen

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For conversar, the yo form is converse, as in “Espero que yo converse con mi amigo.” — “I hope that I converse with my friend.”

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo conversara
tú conversaras
él/ella/Ud. conversara
nosotros/as conversáramos
vosotros/as conversarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. conversaran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For conversar, the yo form is conversara, as in “Si yo conversara con mi amigo, ...” — “If I conversed with my friend, ...”

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: conversara becomes conversase, and the same change applies to every person. Both variants mean the same thing; -ra is more common in everyday speech.

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tú conversa
Ud. converse
nosotros/as conversemos
vosotros/as conversad
Uds. conversen

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú converses
Ud. converse
nosotros/as conversemos
vosotros/as converséis
Uds. conversen

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is conversa, as in “¡Conversa con mi amigo” — “Converse with my friend” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no converses. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with conversar.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with conversar, covering different tenses and persons. Read each one out loud, then read the translation, and notice how the verb form changes while the meaning stays the same.

  1. “Yo converso con mi amigo cada día.” — “I converse with my friend.”
  2. “Él conversa con mi amigo todos los días.” — “He converses with my friend.”
  3. “Yo conversé con mi amigo ayer.” — “I conversed with my friend.”
  4. “Él conversó con mi amigo ayer.” — “He conversed with my friend.”
  5. “Yo conversaba con mi amigo cuando era joven.” — “I used to converse with my friend.”
  6. “Nosotros conversaremos con mi amigo mañana.” — “We will converse with my friend.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo conversaría con mi amigo.” — “If I could, i would converse with my friend.”
  8. “Yo he conversado con mi amigo hoy.” — “I have conversed with my friend.”
  9. “Espero que yo converse con mi amigo.” — “I hope that I converse with my friend.”
  10. “estoy conversando con mi amigo ahora mismo.” — “I am conversing with my friend.”

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is conversé, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — converse — 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 conversar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For conversar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: conversamos. 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 conversado con mi amigo. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy conversado is not the present perfect of conversar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing conversar with conservar

conversar 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 conversar — converse — the sentence needs conversar; 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 converse con mi amigo. Using the indicative — Espero que yo converso — is one of the most frequent learner errors with conversar. 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 conversar in the present?

  • A. conversas
  • B. conversa
  • C. conversamos
  • D. converso

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

  • A. conversamos
  • B. conversaste
  • C. conversé
  • D. conversó

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

  • A. conversabas
  • B. conversábamos
  • C. conversabais
  • D. conversaba

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

  • A. conversará
  • B. conversaremos
  • C. conversaré
  • D. conversarás

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

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

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

  • A. converse
  • B. conversen
  • C. converse
  • D. converses

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

  • A. conversaste
  • B. conversó
  • C. conversamos
  • D. conversé

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

  • A. conversábamos
  • B. conversabas
  • C. conversaba
  • D. conversaba

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

  • A. conversaré
  • B. conversarás
  • C. conversaremos
  • D. conversará

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

  • A. conversaría
  • B. conversaríamos
  • C. conversaría
  • D. conversarías

Answer key

  1. converso — The present table gives yo = converso.
  2. conversaste — The preterite table gives tu = conversaste.
  3. conversaba — The imperfect table gives el = conversaba.
  4. conversaremos — The future table gives nosotros = conversaremos.
  5. habéis conversado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis conversado.
  6. conversen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = conversen.
  7. conversé — The preterite table gives yo = conversé.
  8. conversabas — The imperfect table gives tu = conversabas.
  9. conversará — The future table gives el = conversará.
  10. conversaríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = conversaríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is conversar regular or irregular?

conversar is a regular -ar verb. It follows the regular patterns for its ending in every tense. The tables on this page show the correct form for every person, so use them rather than guessing.

What is the past participle of conversar?

The past participle of conversar is conversado. You use it with haber in the perfect tenses — he conversado, había conversado, habré conversado — and after estar in passive-style descriptions. It is the regular participle for its verb class. Learn it together with the gerund conversando and you have the two non-finite forms covered.

What is the gerund of conversar?

The gerund of conversar is conversando. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy conversando, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. Keep it distinct from the past participle conversado, which belongs with haber, not with estar.

What is the yo form of conversar in the present?

The yo form is converso — “Yo converso con mi amigo.” means “I converse with my friend.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú conversas, él conversa, nosotros conversamos, ellos conversan.

What is the difference between conversar and conservar?

conversar means “to converse, to chat”, while conservar means “to preserve, to keep”. They share letters and sometimes a root, but they are different verbs. If your sentence means “to converse, to chat”, use conversar; if it is about the meaning of conservar, use conservar instead. Checking the English meaning first prevents most mix-ups.

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