Teñir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

teñir means "to dye" in English, and this page shows you how it actually sounds in everyday Spanish — not just the conjugation table, but the verb in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make with it. Teñir means to dye: teñir el pelo de rojo, teñir la tela de azul. The colour goes after de: teñir el pelo de rojo, not en rojo. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by use, two short dialogues, the most common mistakes with corrections, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. If you want the full tables first, start with the full conjugation of teñir; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the teñir present tense page.

teñir in everyday use: examples with translations

Everyday present uses

How the verb sounds in the present, the future and in hypotheticals — the forms you will use most often.

  1. Yo tiño el pelo de rojo — "I dye her hair red"
  2. Mi amigo tiñe la tela de azul — "My friend dyes the fabric blue"
  3. Mañana, tú teñirás una camiseta en casa — "Tomorrow, you will dye a T-shirt at home"
  4. Yo teñiría el cabello con henna si pudiera — "I would dye her hair with henna if I could"

Talking about the past

The same verb in the past: one finished action, a habit, something that has just happened, and something that had already happened.

  1. Ayer, yo teñí el pelo de rojo — "Yesterday, I dyed her hair red"
  2. Antes, nosotros teñíamos la tela de azul — "Before, we used to dye the fabric blue"
  3. Él ha teñido una camiseta en casa — "He has dyed a T-shirt at home"
  4. Yo ya había teñido el cabello con henna antes de salir — "I already had dyed her hair with henna before leaving"

Wishes, conditions and commands

The verb after espero que, in si clauses, as a command — and in the conditional perfect, for what would have happened.

  1. Espero que él tiña el pelo de rojo — "I hope he dyes her hair red"
  2. Si yo tiñiera la tela de azul, todo cambiaría — "If I dyed the fabric blue, everything would change"
  3. Tiñe una camiseta en casa. — "Dye a T-shirt at home."
  4. Yo habría teñido el cabello con henna con más tiempo — "I would have dyed her hair with henna with more time"

teñir in conversation

Two short dialogues that use teñir the way people really speak it. Notice how the verb changes with the person, and how the same verb fits different situations.

Two friends talk about it.

  • Lucía: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Lucía: Yo tiño el pelo de rojo — "I dye her hair red"
  • Marcos: Él tiñe la tela de azul — "He dyes the fabric blue"
  • Lucía: Ayer, yo teñí una camiseta en casa — "Yesterday, I dyed a T-shirt at home"
  • Marcos: Mañana, tú teñirás el cabello con henna — "Tomorrow, you will dye her hair with henna"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: Tiñe la lana para el jersey. — "Dye the wool for the jumper."
  • Lucía: Él ha teñido el pelo de rojo — "He has dyed her hair red"
  • Marcos: Espero que él tiña la tela de azul — "I hope he dyes the fabric blue"
  • Lucía: Antes, yo teñía una camiseta en casa — "Before, I used to dye a T-shirt at home"

Common mistakes with teñir

The errors learners actually make with teñir, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.

✗ *Yo teño el cabello con henna.

✓ Correct: Yo tiño el cabello con henna.

teñir is a stem-changing verb (e → i): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is tiño, not teño.

✗ *Espero que él tiñe el cabello con henna

✓ Correct: Espero que él tiña el cabello con henna

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él tiña el cabello con henna — not the indicative Espero que él tiñe el cabello con henna.

✗ *Ayer, yo tiño la lana para el jersey

✓ Correct: Ayer, yo teñí la lana para el jersey

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo teñí la lana para el jersey.

✗ *De niño, yo teñí el pelo de rojo todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, yo teñía el pelo de rojo todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo teñía el pelo de rojo todos los días.

✗ *Yo tiño en una camiseta en casa.

✓ Correct: Yo tiño una camiseta en casa.

teñir takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo tiño una camiseta en casa.

Quiz: teñir in use

Ten questions on teñir — its forms, its tenses and its everyday use. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below, where every answer is explained.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el pelo de rojo — "I dye her hair red" (present) A. tiñe B. teñimos C. tiño D. tiñes

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ la tela de azul — "Yesterday, I dyed the fabric blue" (preterite) A. tiñió B. teñimos C. teñí D. teñiste

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ______ una camiseta en casa — "Before, we used to dye a T-shirt at home" (imperfect) A. teñías B. teñíais C. teñíamos D. teñía

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ______ el cabello con henna — "Tomorrow, you will dye her hair with henna" (future) A. teñirá B. teñiremos C. teñirás D. teñiré

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la lana para el jersey — "I would dye the wool for the jumper" (conditional) A. teñiríais B. teñiría C. teñirías D. teñiríamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el pelo de rojo — "He has dyed her hair red" (present perfect) A. ha teñido B. he teñido C. has teñido D. hemos teñido

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ la tela de azul — "I hope he dyes the fabric blue" (present subjunctive) A. tiña B. tiñas C. tiñamos D. tiñáis

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ una camiseta en casa. — "Dye a T-shirt at home." (affirmative imperative) A. tiñamos B. teñid C. tiñe D. tiña

  9. Which is the gerund of teñir, used with estar for the progressive? A. teñí B. tiñiendo C. teñido D. tiño

  10. What does teñir mean in English? A. to paint B. to enjoy C. to cross D. to dye

Answer key

  1. tiño — The present form for yo is tiño.
  2. teñí — The preterite form for yo is teñí.
  3. teñíamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is teñíamos.
  4. teñirás — The future form for tú is teñirás.
  5. teñiría — The conditional form for yo is teñiría.
  6. ha teñido — The present perfect form for él/ella/Ud. is ha teñido.
  7. tiña — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is tiña.
  8. tiñe — The affirmative imperative form is tiñe.
  9. tiñiendo — The gerund of teñir is tiñiendo: estoy tiñiendo. The participle teñido is used with haber instead.
  10. to dye — teñir means to dye.

Frequently asked questions

What does teñir mean in English?

teñir means to dye. For example: Yo tiño el pelo de rojo — "I dye her hair red". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with teñir?

teñir takes its complement directly, with no preposition, as in the examples above. Adding an extra preposition is a common learner error.

Is teñir regular?

No. teñir is a stem-changing -ir verb (e → i). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: tiño, tiñes, tiñe and tiñen — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: teñimos, teñís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: tiñió, tiñieron, and the gerund is tiñiendo.

How do I practise teñir?

Start with the present tense table on the full conjugation page, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure, and come back to the sentences above until you can say them without looking.

Related links