querer conjugation
Querer means "to want", and with a person, "to love". The present changes its stem (quiero, quieres, quiere, queremos, queréis, quieren), the preterite has its own (quise, quisiste, quiso), and the future and conditional get a double r (querré, querría). Quisiera is the polite "I'd like".
- Red pencil is what breaks the pattern. The outline is the boot. Textbooks call these boot verbs because the forms that change make that shape.
- Same boot as tienes, tiene, tienen, and as pienso (pensar) and entiendo (entender).
querer — to want, to love. Quiero.
Present indicative
The everyday present: what you do, what's true, what's going on.
| Pronoun | querer | Say |
|---|---|---|
| yo | quiero | KYEH-roh |
| tú | quieres | KYEH-rehs |
| él / ella / usted | quiere | KYEH-reh |
| nosotros | queremos | keh-REH-mohs |
| vosotros | queréis | keh-REH-ees |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | quieren | KYEH-rehn |
When the stress lands on the stem, the e turns into ie: quiero, quieres, quiere, quieren. Nosotros and vosotros keep quer-. Same change as tener (tienes) and pensar (pienso). With vos it's vos querés.
Preterite
The past for things that happened and finished: "I went", "she said".
| Pronoun | querer | Say |
|---|---|---|
| yo | quise | KEE-seh |
| tú | quisiste | kee-SEES-teh |
| él / ella / usted | quiso | KEE-soh |
| nosotros | quisimos | kee-SEE-mohs |
| vosotros | quisisteis | kee-sees-TAY-ees |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | quisieron | kee-SYEH-rohn |
New stem, quis-, with an s, and no accents. In the preterite it often means "tried to": quise llamarte (I tried to call you). And no quise is "I refused": no quiso venir (he wouldn't come).
Imperfect
The past for how things were or used to be: "I was going", "we used to live".
| Pronoun | querer | Say |
|---|---|---|
| yo | quería | keh-REE-ah |
| tú | querías | keh-REE-ahs |
| él / ella / usted | quería | keh-REE-ah |
| nosotros | queríamos | keh-REE-ah-mohs |
| vosotros | queríais | keh-REE-ah-ees |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | querían | keh-REE-ahn |
Totally regular, and it's the everyday "wanted": quería ir (I wanted to go). You'll also hear it in shops as a polite ask: quería un café (I'd like a coffee).
Future, conditional and subjunctive
"Will" and "would", plus the subjunctive: the form Spanish uses after wishes, doubts and "if" (espero que…, si fuera…).
| Pronoun | Future | Conditional | Pres. subj. | Imp. subj. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | querré | querría | quiera | quisiera |
| tú | querrás | querrías | quieras | quisieras |
| él / ella / usted | querrá | querría | quiera | quisiera |
| nosotros | querremos | querríamos | queramos | quisiéramos |
| vosotros | querréis | querríais | queráis | quisierais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | querrán | querrían | quieran | quisieran |
The future and conditional drop the e, which leaves two rs in a row: querré, with a rolled rr. And quisiera is the most polite way to say "I'd like": quisiera una mesa para dos (I'd like a table for two).
Gerund and past participle
The "-ing" form (estoy hablando, I'm talking) and the one that goes with haber (he hablado, I've talked).
| Form | querer | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| gerund (-ing) | queriendo | Lo dijo queriendo ayudar (he said it wanting to help) |
| past participle | querido | Siempre he querido ir (I've always wanted to go) |
Querido also means "dear": querida Ana at the top of a letter, or mi querido to someone you love.
Imperative
Commands: telling someone to do something, or not to.
| Pronoun | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| tú | quiere | no quieras |
| usted | quiera | no quiera |
| nosotros | queramos | no queramos |
| vosotros | quered | no queráis |
| ustedes | quieran | no quieran |
These exist but they're rare. You don't usually tell someone to want something.
What querer does
| Spanish | Means |
|---|---|
| quiero un café | I want a coffee: querer + a thing |
| quiero ir | I want to go: querer + infinitive, when it's you who'll do it |
| quiero que vengas | I want you to come: querer que + subjunctive, when it's someone else |
| te quiero | I love you: querer + a person |
Querer decir means "to mean": ¿qué quiere decir esto? (what does this mean?).
- Looking a word up once doesn't mean you'll remember it. The verb you look up today is gone by tomorrow. The one that keeps showing up in stuff you'd read anyway, right when you're about to forget it, is the one that sticks.
- No streaks, no guilt. Kin tracks one number: how many words you've got in reach today. It drops when you take a break and comes back when you do.
Questions
What is the difference between te quiero and te amo?
Both mean "I love you". Te quiero is the everyday one, for a partner, family or close friends. Te amo is stronger and mostly for a partner, and you'll hear it more in Latin America than in Spain.
What is the preterite of querer?
Quise, quisiste, quiso, quisimos, quisisteis, quisieron, on the stem quis-, no accents. It often means "tried to" (quise ayudar, I tried to help), and with no, "refused" (no quiso comer, she wouldn't eat).
What does quisiera mean?
"I'd like". It's the imperfect subjunctive of querer, and it's the most polite way to ask for something: quisiera reservar una habitación (I'd like to book a room). Quería and querría do the same job, just a bit more casually.
Why does querré have two r's?
The future and conditional drop the e, so querer becomes querr- before the endings: querré, querría. You roll the double r, and that's how you tell querría (I'd want) from quería (I wanted).
What is the subjunctive of querer?
Present: quiera, quieras, quiera, queramos, queráis, quieran. Imperfect: quisiera, quisieras, quisiera, quisiéramos, quisierais, quisieran. The one you'll hear most is como quieras (whatever you like).
Keep going
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