Regular -IR verb

consistir
to consist

Consistir is a regular -ir verb in Spanish.

Practice consistir free →

Consistir conjugation in Spanish

Consistir means 'to consist (of)', and it is a regular -ir verb that is genuinely useful for explaining and defining — exactly the kind of language that lifts an essay. It almost always appears as consistir en: el trabajo consiste en ayudar a los clientes (the job consists of helping customers). Note the preposition is en, not 'of'. Because explaining what something involves is a common task in higher-level writing, consistir en is a valuable structure to have ready. As a regular -ir verb the conjugation is predictable, and it is most often used in the third person.

Quick facts

Meaningto consist
Verb type-ir verb
Regular / IrregularRegular
CEFR levelB1

Consistir — conjugation tables

Consistir (to consist) is a regular -ir verb.

Indicative
Presente guide →
yoconsisto
túconsistes
él/ellaconsiste
nosotrosconsistimos
vosotrosconsistís
ellos/ellasconsisten
Pretérito Indefinido guide →
yoconsistí
túconsististe
él/ellaconsistió
nosotrosconsistimos
vosotrosconsististeis
ellos/ellasconsistieron
Pretérito Imperfecto guide →
yoconsistía
túconsistías
él/ellaconsistía
nosotrosconsistíamos
vosotrosconsistíais
ellos/ellasconsistían
Futuro guide →
yoconsistiré
túconsistirás
él/ellaconsistirá
nosotrosconsistiremos
vosotrosconsistiréis
ellos/ellasconsistirán
Condicional guide →
yoconsistiría
túconsistirías
él/ellaconsistiría
nosotrosconsistiríamos
vosotrosconsistiríais
ellos/ellasconsistirían
Pretérito Perfecto guide →
yohe consistido
túhas consistido
él/ellaha consistido
nosotroshemos consistido
vosotroshabéis consistido
ellos/ellashan consistido
Pluscuamperfecto guide →
yohabía consistido
túhabías consistido
él/ellahabía consistido
nosotroshabíamos consistido
vosotroshabíais consistido
ellos/ellashabían consistido
Futuro Compuesto guide →
yohabré consistido
túhabrás consistido
él/ellahabrá consistido
nosotroshabremos consistido
vosotroshabréis consistido
ellos/ellashabrán consistido
Presente Progresivo guide →
yoestoy consistiendo
túestás consistiendo
él/ellaestá consistiendo
nosotrosestamos consistiendo
vosotrosestáis consistiendo
ellos/ellasestán consistiendo
Subjunctive
Pres. Subjuntivo guide →
yoconsista
túconsistas
él/ellaconsista
nosotrosconsistamos
vosotrosconsistáis
ellos/ellasconsistan
Imperf. Subjuntivo guide →
yoconsistiera
túconsistieras
él/ellaconsistiera
nosotrosconsistiéramos
vosotrosconsistierais
ellos/ellasconsistieran
Pluscuamp. Subjuntivo guide →
yohubiera consistido
túhubieras consistido
él/ellahubiera consistido
nosotroshubiéramos consistido
vosotroshubierais consistido
ellos/ellashubieran consistido
Imperative
Imperativo guide →
túconsiste
ustedconsista
nosotrosconsistamos
vosotrosconsistid
ustedesconsistan

Example sentences with consistir

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

1.
El examen consiste en tres partes.
The exam consists of three parts.
2.
Su dieta consiste en fruta y verdura.
His diet consists of fruit and vegetables.
3.
¿En qué consiste el proyecto?
What does the project involve?
4.
La receta consiste en mezclar todo.
The recipe consists of mixing everything together.
5.
El trabajo consiste en contestar llamadas.
The job involves answering calls.
6.
Consistía en repetir las palabras.
It consisted of repeating the words.
7.
El juego consiste en encontrar el tesoro.
The game consists of finding the treasure.
8.
Mi trabajo de verano consistió en cuidar niños.
My summer job consisted of looking after children.
9.
La asignatura consiste en gramática y vocabulario.
The subject covers grammar and vocabulary.
10.
El plan consiste en viajar en tren.
The plan is to travel by train.

How to use consistir

Consisting of

El trabajo consiste en… (the job consists of…).

Preposition

Always consistir en, not 'of'.

Explaining

Useful for defining what something involves.

Third person

Most often used impersonally in the 3rd person.

Common phrases using consistir

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

consistir ento consist of
¿en qué consiste?what does it involve?
consistir en + infinitivoto consist in doing something
el plan consiste enthe plan is to
consistir principalmente ento consist mainly of

Idiomatic expressions

consistir ento consist of
¿en qué consiste?what does it involve?

Grammar notes

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

Practice consistir — 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.

Practice consistir now →

Quick quiz — consistir

Three questions, no account needed. Type the form, then press Enter or tap Check.

yo (Pretérito Indefinido)
tú (Futuro)
él / ella (Futuro)

Frequently asked questions

How do you conjugate consistir in the present tense?

yo: consisto, tú: consistes, él: consiste, nosotros: consistimos, vosotros: consistís, ellos: consisten

What are the past participle and gerund of consistir?

The past participle is consistido (he consistido) and the gerund is consistiendo (estoy consistiendo).

Similar verbs to consistir

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

componerseto be made up of — a close synonym.
incluirto include — what something consists of.
tratarseto be about — se trata de.

Related verbs

hablar caminar trabajar escuchar

Consistir is on the AQA, Edexcel and Eduqas GCSE Spanish vocabulary lists. Compare the exam boards.

Written by Daniel Holmes for GCSE & A-Level Spanish students.