Introduction

convertirse means “to become, to turn into”. It belongs to the group of Spanish verbs that express “to become, to turn into”, and once you can conjugate it you can say a surprising amount with a single verb. This page is the complete reference for convertirse: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, with notes on usage, real example sentences, common mistakes, a quiz and frequently asked questions. convertirse is a reflexive -ir verb. If it is irregular in a tense, the note under that table says so plainly, and the forms in the table are the correct ones — copy them, do not guess them from the infinitive. A first example to fix the verb in your mind: “Yo me convierto en médico todos los días.” — “I become a doctor.”

Quick facts
Infinitive convertirse
English to become, to turn into
Verb type Reflexive -ir verb
Gerund convirtiendo
Past participle convertido
Auxiliary verb haber
  • Reflexive: yes — always use it with the reflexive pronouns me, te, se, nos, os, se.

Full conjugation tables

Gerund: convirtiendo · Past participle: convertido

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo convierto
tú conviertes
él/ella/Ud. convierte
nosotros/as convertimos
vosotros/as convertís
ellos/ellas/Uds. convierten

The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For convertirse, the yo form is convierto, as in “Yo me convierto en médico.” — “I become a doctor.” This is one of the tenses where convertirse does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Preterite

Person Form
yo convertí
tú convertiste
él/ella/Ud. convirtió
nosotros/as convertimos
vosotros/as convertisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. convirtieron

The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. For convertirse, the yo form is convertí, as in “Yo me convertí en médico.” — “I becomed a doctor.” This is one of the tenses where convertirse does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Imperfect

Person Form
yo convertía
tú convertías
él/ella/Ud. convertía
nosotros/as convertíamos
vosotros/as convertíais
ellos/ellas/Uds. convertían

The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. For convertirse, the yo form is convertía, as in “Yo me convertía en médico.” — “I used to become a doctor.”

Future

Person Form
yo convertiré
tú convertirás
él/ella/Ud. convertirá
nosotros/as convertiremos
vosotros/as convertiréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. convertirán

The future tense states what will happen. It is also used for predictions and promises. For convertirse, the yo form is convertiré, as in “Yo me convertiré en médico.” — “I will become a doctor.”

Conditional

Person Form
yo convertiría
tú convertirías
él/ella/Ud. convertiría
nosotros/as convertiríamos
vosotros/as convertiríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. convertirían

The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. For convertirse, the yo form is convertiría, as in “Yo me convertiría en médico.” — “I would become a doctor.”

Present Perfect

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

The present perfect connects the past with the present: something that has happened, often today or recently. For convertirse, the yo form is he convertido, as in “Yo me he convertido en médico.” — “I have becomed a doctor.”

Pluperfect

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

The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event. For convertirse, the yo form is había convertido, as in “Yo me había convertido en médico.” — “I had becomed a doctor.”

Future Perfect

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

The future perfect describes something that will already be finished by a future moment. For convertirse, the yo form is habré convertido, as in “Yo me habré convertido en médico.” — “I will have becomed a doctor.”

Conditional Perfect

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

The conditional perfect describes what would have happened under different conditions. For convertirse, the yo form is habría convertido, as in “Yo me habría convertido en médico.” — “I would have becomed a doctor.”

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo convierta
tú conviertas
él/ella/Ud. convierta
nosotros/as convirtamos
vosotros/as convirtáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. conviertan

The present subjunctive is used after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and influence. For convertirse, the yo form is convierta, as in “Espero que yo me convierta en médico.” — “I hope that I become a doctor.” This is one of the tenses where convertirse does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra)

Person Form
yo convirtiera
tú convirtieras
él/ella/Ud. convirtiera
nosotros/as convirtiéramos
vosotros/as convirtierais
ellos/ellas/Uds. convirtieran

The imperfect subjunctive is used in the past versions of subjunctive clauses, and after "si" in hypothetical sentences. For convertirse, the yo form is convirtiera, as in “Si yo me convirtiera en médico, ...” — “If I becomed a doctor, ...” Watch out: the past participle of convertirse is irregular — convertido, not the regular form — and that irregular participle appears in every perfect tense.

The -se variant of this tense follows the same pattern with -se instead of -ra: convirtiera becomes convirtiese, 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 convierte
Ud. convierta
nosotros/as convirtamos
vosotros/as convertid
Uds. conviertan

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tú conviertas
Ud. convierta
nosotros/as convirtamos
vosotros/as convirtáis
Uds. conviertan

The imperative is for orders, requests and advice. The affirmative tú form is convierte, as in “No te conviertas en médico” — “Do not become a doctor” For the negative imperative, Spanish uses the subjunctive forms: no conviertas. Note that the affirmative and negative forms differ, so check the table above before you give an order with convertirse. This is one of the tenses where convertirse does not follow the regular -ir pattern, so learn the forms in the table above rather than guessing them from the infinitive.

Example sentences

Here are ten sentences with convertirse, 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 me convierto en médico cada día.” — “I become a doctor.”
  2. “Él se convierte en médico todos los días.” — “He becomes a doctor.”
  3. “Yo me convertí en médico ayer.” — “I becomed a doctor.”
  4. “Él se convirtió en médico ayer.” — “He becomed a doctor.”
  5. “Yo me convertía en médico cuando era joven.” — “I used to become a doctor.”
  6. “Nosotros nos convertiremos en médico mañana.” — “We will become a doctor.”
  7. “Si pudiera, yo me convertiría en médico.” — “If I could, i would become a doctor.”
  8. “Yo me he convertido en médico hoy.” — “I have becomed a doctor.”
  9. “Espero que yo me convierta en médico.” — “I hope that I become a doctor.”
  10. “Me estoy convirtiendo en médico ahora mismo.” — “I am becoming a doctor.”

Common mistakes

Using the unchanged stem

Learners often write converto for the yo form, keeping the infinitive stem unchanged. The correct form is convierto. Because convertirse changes its stem vowel, the change appears in the stressed syllables of the present: say the correct form out loud a few times — yo convierto en médico — until the changed stem feels natural.

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is convertí, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — converti — 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 convertirse.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For convertirse, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: convertimos. 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.

Dropping the reflexive pronoun

Because convertirse is reflexive, it always needs its pronoun: yo me convierto en médico, not yo convierto en médico. Without me, the sentence either means something else or means nothing at all. The pronouns are me, te, se, nos, os, se — learn them with the verb, not as an afterthought.

Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses

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

Confusing convertirse with conservar

convertirse 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 convertirse — become — the sentence needs convertirse; if it needs the meaning of conservar, use that verb instead.

Quiz

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

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

  • A. conviertes
  • B. convierte
  • C. convertimos
  • D. convierto

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

  • A. convertimos
  • B. convertiste
  • C. convertí
  • D. convirtió

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

  • A. convertías
  • B. convertíamos
  • C. convertíais
  • D. convertía

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

  • A. convertirá
  • B. convertiremos
  • C. convertiré
  • D. convertirás

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

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

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

  • A. convierta
  • B. conviertan
  • C. convierta
  • D. conviertas

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

  • A. convertiste
  • B. convirtió
  • C. convertimos
  • D. convertí

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

  • A. convertíamos
  • B. convertías
  • C. convertía
  • D. convertía

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

  • A. convertiré
  • B. convertirás
  • C. convertiremos
  • D. convertirá

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

  • A. convertiría
  • B. convertiríamos
  • C. convertiría
  • D. convertirías

Answer key

  1. convierto — The present table gives yo = convierto.
  2. convertiste — The preterite table gives tu = convertiste.
  3. convertía — The imperfect table gives el = convertía.
  4. convertiremos — The future table gives nosotros = convertiremos.
  5. habéis convertido — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis convertido.
  6. conviertan — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = conviertan.
  7. convertí — The preterite table gives yo = convertí.
  8. convertías — The imperfect table gives tu = convertías.
  9. convertirá — The future table gives el = convertirá.
  10. convertiríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = convertiríamos.

Frequently asked questions

Is convertirse regular or irregular?

convertirse is a reflexive -ir verb. It changes its stem (e → ie) in several tenses, so the stem in the table is not always the infinitive stem. It is irregular in these tenses: present, present-subjunctive, preterite, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The tables on this page show the correct form for every person, so use them rather than guessing.

What is the past participle of convertirse?

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

What is the gerund of convertirse?

The gerund of convertirse is convirtiendo. You use it with estar to describe an action in progress, as in estoy convirtiendo, and after verbs such as seguir and ir. For this verb the gerund shows the stem change, so do not build it from the infinitive by habit. Keep it distinct from the past participle convertido, which belongs with haber, not with estar.

What is the yo form of convertirse in the present?

The yo form is convierto — “Yo me convierto en médico.” means “I become a doctor.” That is the form you will use most often when you talk about yourself. For other persons, use the present table above: tú conviertes, él convierte, nosotros convertimos, ellos convierten.

What is the difference between convertirse and conservar?

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

Do I always need the pronoun with convertirse?

Yes. convertirse is reflexive, so the pronoun is part of the verb: me, te, se, nos, os, se. You say yo me convierto, tú te conviertes, él se convierte. Leaving the pronoun out changes the meaning or makes the sentence wrong, so learn the pronoun together with each form.

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