Spanish verb guide

Sostener Conjugation in Spanish

Learn sostener, meaning to hold, to hold up, to prop up, to sustain, to underpin (physically), through verified forms and contextual examples.

irregular-ergerund: sosteniendoparticiple: sostenido

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What does sostener mean?

sostener means to hold, to hold up, to prop up, to sustain, to underpin (physically) in English. It is a irregular -er verb.

It can also be used with these related meanings: to sustain, to support, to keep (i.e. to give continuity to); to support, to uphold, to hold, to sustain, to contend, to maintain, to argue, to claim, to underpin, to defend.

Principal forms of sostener

Infinitive: sostener
Gerund: sosteniendo
Past participle: sostenido

Sostener conjugation table

Compare the present, preterite, imperfect, and future forms. Reflexive pronouns are included where the verb requires them.

Pronoun	Present	Preterite	Imperfect	Future
yo	sostengo	sostuve	sostenía	sostendré
tú	sostienes	sostuviste	sostenías	sostendrás
él / ella / usted	sostiene	sostuvo	sostenía	sostendrá
nosotros/as	sostenemos	sostuvimos	sosteníamos	sostendremos
ellos/as / ustedes	sostienen	sostuvieron	sostenían	sostendrán

Pattern notes

Its forms differ from a fully regular -er pattern in the present, preterite, future.

Examples with sostener

Él sostenía una caja grande en los brazos.He was holding a large box in his arms.Tatoeba example · CC BY 2.0 FR

Tom sostuvo una pistola en la cabeza de Mary.Tom held a gun to Mary's head.Tatoeba example · CC BY 2.0 FR

No sostendré eso en tu contra.I won't hold that against you.Tatoeba example · CC BY 2.0 FR

Practice prompts

Conjugate sostener for yo in the present.
Use the preterite form for ella.
Say the nosotros/as imperfect form.
Write a short sentence in the future.

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