Introduction
Intentar means «to try, to attempt». Intentar means to try or to attempt: again, to speak Spanish, a new recipe. It is a regular -ar verb, followed directly by an infinitive, and it is the verb of effort and second chances. 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 intentar 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 intento otra vez todos los días.» — I try again every day.
Quick facts
| Infinitive | intentar |
| English | to try, to attempt |
| Verb type | Regular -ar verb |
| Gerund | intentando |
| Past participle | intentado |
| Auxiliary verb | haber |
Full conjugation tables
Gerund: intentando · Past participle: intentado
Present Indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | intento |
| tú | intentas |
| él/ella/Ud. | intenta |
| nosotros/as | intentamos |
| vosotros/as | intentáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intentan |
The present tense describes habits, facts and what is happening now. For intentar, the yo form is intento, as in «Yo intento» in the examples below. Use the present for routines («todos los días») and for general truths.
Preterite
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | intenté |
| tú | intentaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | intentó |
| nosotros/as | intentamos |
| vosotros/as | intentasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intentaron |
The preterite describes completed actions in the past — things that started and finished. «Ayer yo intenté» 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 | intentaba |
| tú | intentabas |
| él/ella/Ud. | intentaba |
| nosotros/as | intentábamos |
| vosotros/as | intentabais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intentaban |
The imperfect describes the past as background: habits, descriptions and actions in progress. «De pequeño, yo intentaba» shows the habitual use. It sets the scene while the preterite reports what happened inside it.
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | intentaré |
| tú | intentarás |
| él/ella/Ud. | intentará |
| nosotros/as | intentaremos |
| vosotros/as | intentaréis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intentarán |
The future tense states what will happen. For intentar the future is built on the infinitive: «Mañana yo intentaré». It is also used for predictions and promises, and in spoken Spanish it often alternates with ir a + infinitive.
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | intentaría |
| tú | intentarías |
| él/ella/Ud. | intentaría |
| nosotros/as | intentaríamos |
| vosotros/as | intentaríais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intentarían |
The conditional expresses what would happen: wishes, polite requests and hypothetical results. «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo intentaría» is the typical pattern. It shares its stem with the future and changes only the endings.
Present Perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | he intentado |
| tú | has intentado |
| él/ella/Ud. | ha intentado |
| nosotros/as | hemos intentado |
| vosotros/as | habéis intentado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han intentado |
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 intentado». In Spain it is used for anything that happened today; in Latin America the preterite is often preferred.
Pluperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | había intentado |
| tú | habías intentado |
| él/ella/Ud. | había intentado |
| nosotros/as | habíamos intentado |
| vosotros/as | habíais intentado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habían intentado |
The pluperfect describes an event that happened before another past event: «Cuando llegué, ya había intentado». 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 intentado |
| tú | habrás intentado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habrá intentado |
| nosotros/as | habremos intentado |
| vosotros/as | habréis intentado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrán intentado |
The future perfect looks back from a future point: by then, something will already have happened. «Para mañana, yo habré intentado» 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 intentado |
| tú | habrías intentado |
| él/ella/Ud. | habría intentado |
| nosotros/as | habríamos intentado |
| vosotros/as | habríais intentado |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | habrían intentado |
The conditional perfect expresses what would have happened: «Yo habría intentado 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 | intente |
| tú | intentes |
| él/ella/Ud. | intente |
| nosotros/as | intentemos |
| vosotros/as | intentéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intenten |
The present subjunctive appears after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions: «Espero que él intente». 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 | intentara |
| tú | intentaras |
| él/ella/Ud. | intentara |
| nosotros/as | intentáramos |
| vosotros/as | intentarais |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intentaran |
The imperfect subjunctive is the past partner of the present subjunctive, used after past-tense triggers and in si-clauses: «Si él intentara, 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 | intenta |
| él/ella/Ud. | intente |
| nosotros/as | intentemos |
| vosotros/as | intentad |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intenten |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The affirmative imperative gives direct commands and instructions: «¡Intenta!». 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 | intentes |
| él/ella/Ud. | intente |
| nosotros/as | intentemos |
| vosotros/as | intentéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | intenten |
There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.
The negative imperative tells someone not to do something: «¡No intentes!». 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 intento otra vez todos los días. — I try again every day.
- Mi hermana intenta otra vez mucho. — My sister tries again a lot.
- Ayer yo intenté otra vez por la tarde. — Yesterday I tried again in the afternoon.
- De pequeño, yo intentaba otra vez muchas veces. — As a child, I used to try again often.
- Mañana yo intentaré otra vez sin falta. — Tomorrow I will try again without fail.
- Si tuviera más tiempo, yo intentaría otra vez ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would try again right now.
- Hoy yo he intentado hablar español dos veces. — Today I have tried to speak Spanish twice.
- Espero que él intente otra vez pronto. — I hope he tries again soon.
- ¡Intenta otra vez, tú puedes! — Try again, you can do it!
- Ahora mismo estoy intentando otra vez. — Right now I am trying again.
Common mistakes
1. Forgetting the accent in the preterite
Wrong: intente
Right: intenté
The yo preterite of intentar carries a written accent: intenté. Without it, intente is the present subjunctive yo form, a completely different tense.
2. Using the imperfect for a finished event
Wrong: Ayer yo intentaba otra vez.
Right: Ayer yo intenté otra vez.
Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, intenté. The imperfect intentaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.
3. Confusing it with a similar verb
Wrong: *Intento a hablar español.
Right: Intento hablar español.
Intentar is followed directly by the infinitive, with no preposition: intento hablar español.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
Wrong: Espero que tú intentas otra vez.
Right: Espero que tú intentes otra vez.
After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: intentes, not the indicative intentas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.
5. Using the affirmative imperative after no
Wrong: No intenta otra vez.
Right: No intentes otra vez.
Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no intentes. The affirmative intenta 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 intentar in the present tense?
- (a) intenta
- (b) intentamos
- (c) intentas
- (d) intento
2. What is the él/ella form of intentar in the preterite?
- (a) intentamos
- (b) intentaste
- (c) intenté
- (d) intentó
3. What is the nosotros form of intentar in the imperfect?
- (a) intentaba
- (b) intentabas
- (c) intentábamos
4. What is the tú form of intentar in the future tense?
- (a) intentaremos
- (b) intentará
- (c) intentarás
- (d) intentaré
5. What is the ellos form of intentar in the conditional?
- (a) intentaría
- (b) intentarían
- (c) intentarías
6. What is the yo form of intentar in the present perfect?
- (a) ha intentado
- (b) has intentado
- (c) he intentado
- (d) hemos intentado
7. After «Espero que…», what is the tú form of intentar?
- (a) intente
- (b) intentemos
- (c) intentes
8. What is the nosotros form of intentar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra)?
- (a) intentara
- (b) intentáramos
- (c) intentaras
9. What is the gerund of intentar?
- (a) intentado
- (b) intentando
- (c) intentar
- (d) intento
10. What is the past participle of intentar?
- (a) intentado
- (b) intentando
- (c) intentar
- (d) intenté
Answer key
1. (d) intento — In the present, the yo form of intentar is intento. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
2. (d) intentó — In the preterite, the el form of intentar is intentó. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
3. (c) intentábamos — In the imperfect, the nosotros form of intentar is intentábamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
4. (c) intentarás — In the future, the tu form of intentar is intentarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
5. (b) intentarían — In the conditional, the ellos form of intentar is intentarían. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
6. (c) he intentado — In the present perfect, the yo form of intentar is he intentado. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
7. (c) intentes — In the present subjunctive, the tu form of intentar is intentes. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
8. (b) intentáramos — In the imperfect subjunctive, the nosotros form of intentar is intentáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons.
9. (b) intentando — The gerund of intentar is intentando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy intentando».
10. (a) intentado — The past participle of intentar is intentado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he intentado».
Frequently asked questions
Is intentar regular or irregular?
Yes, intentar 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 intentar?
The gerund is intentando and the past participle is intentado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy intentando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he intentado»).
What is the difference between intentar and tratar de?
Intentar and tratar de are often confused. Tratar de + infinitive is a near-synonym; intentar is the plain verb for trying.
How do I say «I try» in Spanish?
Say «Yo intento». 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 intentar?
Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (intenté) for a single finished event and the imperfect (intentaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.
Related links
- Practise this verb in one tense: intentar-present-tense
- More examples and a quiz: intentar-examples-and-quiz
- Browse all Spanish verbs: /spanish/
- Related verb: lograr
- Related verb: conseguir
- Related verb: comenzar
- Conjugate any verb: verb-conjugator
- Test yourself: verb-quiz