Regular -ER verb

comprender
to understand

Comprender is a regular -er verb in Spanish.

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Comprender conjugation in Spanish

Comprender means 'to understand', and it is a regular -er verb that overlaps with entender — the two are largely interchangeable, though comprender can carry a slightly deeper sense of grasping or empathising. No comprendo (I don't understand), comprendo tu situación (I understand your situation). Because understanding is central to communication and exam instructions, it is a verb you will reach for often. As a regular -er verb the forms are predictable. Knowing both comprender and entender gives you useful variety when expressing comprehension in writing.

Quick facts

Meaningto understand
Verb type-er verb
Regular / IrregularRegular
CEFR levelA2

Comprender — conjugation tables

Comprender (to understand) is a regular -er verb.

Indicative
Presente guide →
yocomprendo
comprendes
élcomprende
noscomprendemos
voscomprendéis
elloscomprenden
Pretérito Indefinido guide →
yocomprendí
comprendiste
élcomprendió
noscomprendimos
voscomprendisteis
elloscomprendieron
Pretérito Imperfecto guide →
yocomprendía
comprendías
élcomprendía
noscomprendíamos
voscomprendíais
elloscomprendían
Futuro guide →
yocomprenderé
comprenderás
élcomprenderá
noscomprenderemos
voscomprenderéis
elloscomprenderán
Condicional guide →
yocomprendería
comprenderías
élcomprendería
noscomprenderíamos
voscomprenderíais
elloscomprenderían
Pretérito Perfecto guide →
yohe comprendido
has comprendido
élha comprendido
noshemos comprendido
voshabéis comprendido
elloshan comprendido
Pluscuamperfecto guide →
yohabía comprendido
habías comprendido
élhabía comprendido
noshabíamos comprendido
voshabíais comprendido
elloshabían comprendido
Futuro Compuesto guide →
yohabré comprendido
habrás comprendido
élhabrá comprendido
noshabremos comprendido
voshabréis comprendido
elloshabrán comprendido
Presente Progresivo guide →
yoestoy comprendiendo
estás comprendiendo
élestá comprendiendo
nosestamos comprendiendo
vosestáis comprendiendo
ellosestán comprendiendo
Subjunctive
Pres. Subjuntivo guide →
yocomprenda
comprendas
élcomprenda
noscomprendamos
voscomprendáis
elloscomprendan
Imperf. Subjuntivo guide →
yocomprendiera
comprendieras
élcomprendiera
noscomprendiéramos
voscomprendierais
elloscomprendieran
Imperative
Imperativo guide →
yo
comprende
élcomprenda
noscomprendamos
voscomprended
elloscomprendan

Example sentences with comprender

Real sentences across different tenses — the kind of thing you'd actually say or write.

1.
comprendo.
I understand.
2.
¿Comprendes?
Do you understand?
3.
Comprendió ayer.
He/she understanded yesterday.
4.
No comprendo mucho.
I don't understand much.
5.
Siempre comprenden juntos.
They always understand together.

How to use comprender

Understanding

No comprendo (I don't understand).

Empathy

Comprendo cómo te sientes (I understand how you feel).

Overlap

Largely interchangeable with entender.

Including / comprising

El precio comprende todo (the price includes everything).

Common phrases using comprender

Fixed expressions worth knowing — they come up in listening, reading and writing tasks.

comprender + infinitivoto to understand + another verb
no comprendoI don't to understand
¿Comprendes?question form

Idiomatic expressions

hacerse comprenderto make oneself understood
¿comprendes?do you understand?

Common mistakes with comprender

Comprender is a regular verb. Make sure you know the endings for each tense — especially the preterite and subjunctive, which is where marks are most often lost.

Grammar notes

comprender is a regular -er verb — it follows the standard -er pattern in every tense. That makes it a good one to drill: if you know comprender, you know the template for all regular -er verbs.

Practice comprender — free

Type conjugations from memory and get instant feedback. That's how you actually build the automatic recall the exam needs — not from reading tables.

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Quick quiz — comprender

Three questions. Press Enter to check each answer.

yo (Futuro)
tú (Presente)
ellos / ellas (Futuro)

Frequently asked questions

How do you conjugate comprender in the present tense?

yo: comprendo, tú: comprendes, él: comprende, nosotros: comprendemos, vosotros: comprendéis, ellos: comprenden

Is comprender a regular or irregular verb?

Comprender is a regular -er verb following the standard -er pattern.

How do you use comprender in a GCSE Spanish essay?

Use comprender in multiple tenses to show range — present, preterite and future at minimum. This is a key criterion for higher GCSE marks.

Similar verbs to comprender

Verbs that are easy to confuse with comprender or that behave like it.

entenderto understand — almost interchangeable with comprender.
saberto know — related but about facts, not grasping meaning.
aprenderto learn — understanding is part of learning.

Related verbs

hablar caminar trabajar escuchar

This reference is written for UK GCSE and A-Level Spanish learners and their teachers. It is designed for exam revision: every form is checked against standard conjugation rules, and the examples reflect the registers and topics that come up in the AQA, Edexcel and Eduqas specifications. Comprender is a high-frequency verb and appears often in exam papers. For active recall, use the free practice tool rather than only reading the tables.