Pertenecer Conjugation | How to Conjugate Pertenecer in Spanish

Pertenecer means “to belong,” “to pertain,” or “to be part of.” You will learn its pertenezco / pertenezca family, otherwise regular -ER forms, and the essential pertenecer a construction.

Pertenecer conjugation at a glance

Verb type: Irregular. Pertenecer uses pertenezc- in the first-person singular present and throughout the present subjunctive: pertenezco — “I belong” — and pertenezca... in the present subjunctive.

Pertenecer gerund, past participle, and infinitive

The infinitive names the verb, the gerund supports progressive constructions, and the past participle combines with haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — in compound forms. The participle pertenecido remains invariant in those compounds.

Form	Spanish	Natural English guide
Infinitive	pertenecer	to belong
Gerund	perteneciendo	belonging
Past participle	pertenecido	belonged

Pertenecer meaning and essential uses

Pertenecer is intransitive and normally takes a: Pertenezco a este equipo. — “I belong to this team.” The complement identifies the owner, group, category, institution, or whole to which something belongs.

RAE also records meanings such as being someone’s responsibility or forming an integral part of something. The same pertenecer a frame remains central across these senses.

Pertenecer irregular conjugation patterns

The first-person present is pertenezco — “I belong,” while the remaining present indicative forms use pertenec-: perteneces, pertenece, pertenecemos, pertenecéis, pertenecen.

The entire present subjunctive uses pertenezc-: pertenezca, pertenezcas, pertenezcamos, pertenezcáis, pertenezcan. The preterite, imperfect, future, conditional, gerund perteneciendo, and participle pertenecido follow the expected -ER pattern.

Pertenecer indicative and periphrastic conjugations

Pertenecer present tense conjugation

Present indicative (el presente de indicativo) — Use it for current situations, habits, facts, and contextually near-future reference. The first-person singular is pertenezco; the remaining present forms keep pertenec-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pertenezco	I belong
Tú — you, singular informal	perteneces	you belong
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pertenece	he / she belongs; you belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pertenecemos	we belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pertenecéis	you belong (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecen	they belong; you belong (plural)

• Pertenezco a una asociación profesional. — I belong to a professional association.

Pertenecer preterite conjugation

Preterite (el pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito indefinido) — Use it for completed or bounded past events. The table uses the verified paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pertenecí	I belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	perteneciste	you belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	perteneció	he / she belonged; you belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pertenecimos	we belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pertenecisteis	you belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecieron	they belonged; you belonged (plural)

• Durante años pertenecí al mismo club. — For years I belonged to the same club.

Pertenecer imperfect conjugation

Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto) — Use it for habitual, descriptive, background, or ongoing past situations. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pertenecía	I used to belong / was belonging
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenecías	you used to belong / were belonging
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pertenecía	he / she used to belong / was belonging; you used to belong / were belonging (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pertenecíamos	we used to belong / were belonging
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pertenecíais	you used to belong / were belonging (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecían	they used to belong / were belonging; you used to belong / were belonging (plural)

• Antes pertenecía a otro departamento. — I used to belong to another department.

Pertenecer present progressive

Present progressive — This verbal periphrasis focuses on an action or process in progress. Form it with present estar — “to be” — plus perteneciendo — “belonging.”

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	estoy perteneciendo	I am belonging
Tú — you, singular informal	estás perteneciendo	you are belonging
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	está perteneciendo	he / she is belonging; you are belonging (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	estamos perteneciendo	we are belonging
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	estáis perteneciendo	you are belonging (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	están perteneciendo	they are belonging; you are belonging (plural)

• Estoy perteneciendo a varios grupos a la vez. — I am belonging to several groups at the same time.

Pertenecer near future conjugation

Near future — This verbal periphrasis expresses an intention, plan, or expected event. Form it with present ir — “to go” — plus a — “to” — and pertenecer.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	voy a pertenecer	I am going to belong
Tú — you, singular informal	vas a pertenecer	you are going to belong
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	va a pertenecer	he / she is going to belong; you are going to belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	vamos a pertenecer	we are going to belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	vais a pertenecer	you are going to belong (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	van a pertenecer	they are going to belong; you are going to belong (plural)

• Voy a pertenecer al nuevo equipo. — I am going to belong to the new team.

Pertenecer future tense conjugation

Simple future (el futuro simple) — Use it for future reference and, where useful, probability. The endings attach to the full infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	perteneceré	I will belong
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenecerás	you will belong
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pertenecerá	he / she will belong; you will belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	perteneceremos	we will belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	perteneceréis	you will belong (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecerán	they will belong; you will belong (plural)

• Pertenecerá a esta categoría desde mañana. — It will belong to this category starting tomorrow.

Pertenecer conditional conjugation

Conditional (el condicional simple) — Use it for hypothetical outcomes, softened statements, or related conditional meanings. The endings attach to the full infinitive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pertenecería	I would belong
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenecerías	you would belong
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pertenecería	he / she would belong; you would belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	perteneceríamos	we would belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	perteneceríais	you would belong (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecerían	they would belong; you would belong (plural)

• Pertenecería al grupo principal con ese criterio. — It would belong to the main group under that criterion.

Pertenecer present perfect conjugation

Present perfect (el pretérito perfecto compuesto) — Use it for completed events connected to a present reference frame; regional distribution varies. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	he pertenecido	I have belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	has pertenecido	you have belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	ha pertenecido	he / she has belonged; you have belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hemos pertenecido	we have belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habéis pertenecido	you have belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	han pertenecido	they have belonged; you have belonged (plural)

• He pertenecido a esta organización desde 2020. — I have belonged to this organization since 2020.

Pertenecer past perfect conjugation

Past perfect (el pretérito pluscuamperfecto) — Use it for an event completed before another past reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	había pertenecido	I had belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	habías pertenecido	you had belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	había pertenecido	he / she had belonged; you had belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habíamos pertenecido	we had belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habíais pertenecido	you had belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habían pertenecido	they had belonged; you had belonged (plural)

• Ya había pertenecido a una asociación similar. — I had already belonged to a similar association.

Pertenecer future perfect conjugation

Future perfect (el futuro perfecto) — Use it for an event expected to be completed before a future reference point. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habré pertenecido	I will have belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	habrás pertenecido	you will have belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habrá pertenecido	he / she will have belonged; you will have belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habremos pertenecido	we will have belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habréis pertenecido	you will have belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrán pertenecido	they will have belonged; you will have belonged (plural)

• Para entonces habrán pertenecido al programa durante cinco años. — By then they will have belonged to the program for five years.

Pertenecer conditional perfect conjugation

Conditional perfect (el condicional compuesto) — Use it for a hypothetical completed outcome. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	habría pertenecido	I would have belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	habrías pertenecido	you would have belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	habría pertenecido	he / she would have belonged; you would have belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	habríamos pertenecido	we would have belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	habríais pertenecido	you would have belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	habrían pertenecido	they would have belonged; you would have belonged (plural)

• Habría pertenecido al equipo si hubiera cumplido los requisitos. — I would have belonged to the team if I had met the requirements.

Pertenecer subjunctive conjugations

Pertenecer present subjunctive conjugation

Present subjunctive (el presente de subjuntivo) — Use it in subordinate environments involving wishes, influence, emotion, doubt or denial, evaluation, necessity, possibility, or non-specific reference. The entire present-subjunctive family uses pertenezc-.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	pertenezca	that I belong
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenezcas	that you belong
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	pertenezca	that he / she belong; that you belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	pertenezcamos	that we belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pertenezcáis	that you belong (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenezcan	that they belong; that you belong (plural)

• Espero que pertenezcas a un grupo que te apoye. — I hope you belong to a group that supports you.

Pertenecer imperfect subjunctive conjugation

Imperfect subjunctive (el imperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses the -ra series. The accepted -se series is also valid in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	perteneciera	that I belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenecieras	that you belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	perteneciera	that he / she belonged; that you belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	perteneciéramos	that we belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	pertenecierais	that you belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecieran	that they belonged; that you belonged (plural)

• Querían que perteneciéramos al mismo departamento. — They wanted us to belong to the same department.
• Era importante que pertenecieses a una entidad reconocida. — It was important that you belong to a recognized organization.

Pertenecer future subjunctive conjugation

Future subjunctive (el futuro de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. It survives mainly in formal, legal, proverbial, literary, or historical contexts. These rare reference forms share the same historical family as the imperfect subjunctive.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	perteneciere	if / when I should belong
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenecieres	if / when you should belong
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	perteneciere	if / when he / she should belong; if / when you should belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	perteneciéremos	if / when we should belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	perteneciereis	if / when you should belong (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	pertenecieren	if / when they should belong; if / when you should belong (plural)

• Quien perteneciere a la organización deberá respetar sus normas. — Whoever should belong to the organization must follow its rules.

Pertenecer present perfect subjunctive conjugation

Present perfect subjunctive (el pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo) — Use it when a completed event appears inside a present- or future-oriented subjunctive environment. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	haya pertenecido	that I have belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	hayas pertenecido	that you have belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	haya pertenecido	that he / she has belonged; that you have belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hayamos pertenecido	that we have belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hayáis pertenecido	that you have belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hayan pertenecido	that they have belonged; that you have belonged (plural)

• Me alegra que hayas pertenecido a ese equipo. — I am glad that you belonged to that team.

Pertenecer past perfect subjunctive conjugation

Past perfect subjunctive (el pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo) — The main table uses hubiera; hubiese is an accepted auxiliary alternative in many contexts and is demonstrated after the table. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiera pertenecido	that I had belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieras pertenecido	that you had belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiera pertenecido	that he / she had belonged; that you had belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéramos pertenecido	that we had belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubierais pertenecido	that you had belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieran pertenecido	that they had belonged; that you had belonged (plural)

• Si hubiera pertenecido al grupo, habría recibido el aviso. — If I had belonged to the group, I would have received the notice.
• Si hubieses pertenecido al programa, tendrías acceso. — If you had belonged to the program, you would have access.

Pertenecer future perfect subjunctive conjugation

Future perfect subjunctive (el futuro perfecto de subjuntivo) — Rare in modern everyday Spanish. Treat it as a formal or historical reference form, not an everyday conversational target. Form it with the appropriate form of haber — “to have” as an auxiliary — plus the invariant participle pertenecido.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Yo — I	hubiere pertenecido	if / when I should have belonged
Tú — you, singular informal	hubieres pertenecido	if / when you should have belonged
Él / Ella / Usted — he / she / you, singular formal	hubiere pertenecido	if / when he / she should have belonged; if / when you should have belonged (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we	hubiéremos pertenecido	if / when we should have belonged
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	hubiereis pertenecido	if / when you should have belonged (plural)
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes — they / you, plural	hubieren pertenecido	if / when they should have belonged; if / when you should have belonged (plural)

• Si hubieren pertenecido a la entidad, deberán indicarlo. — If they should have belonged to the organization, they must state it.

Pertenecer imperative and commands

Commands address another person directly. The nosotros/nosotras row is a present-subjunctive form used with exhortative “let’s…” value.

Pertenecer affirmative commands

Pragmatically limited. The affirmative imperative is morphologically valid and documented, but directly commanding someone to “belong” is less common than using statements, invitations, or exhortative contexts. Treat the table as a complete reference paradigm.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	pertenece	belong
Usted — you, singular formal	pertenezca	belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	pertenezcamos	let’s belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	perteneced	belong (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	pertenezcan	belong (plural)

• Pertenece a una comunidad que comparta tus valores. — Belong to a community that shares your values.

Pertenecer negative commands

Negative commands use subjunctive-based forms, with no — “not / do not” — before the verb.

Pronoun and English meaning	Spanish	Natural English guide
Tú — you, singular informal	no pertenezcas	do not belong
Usted — you, singular formal	no pertenezca	do not belong (formal)
Nosotros / Nosotras — we; let’s…	no pertenezcamos	let’s not belong
Vosotros / Vosotras — you, plural informal, mainly Spain	no pertenezcáis	do not belong (plural, mainly Spain)
Ustedes — you, plural	no pertenezcan	do not belong (plural)

• No pertenezcas a un grupo que te haga daño. — Do not belong to a group that harms you.

Common constructions with Pertenecer

These patterns show sentence frames that materially affect how the target verb is used.

• pertenecer a alguien. — to belong to someone.
• pertenecer a un grupo, categoría, or institución. — to belong to a group, category, or institution.
• pertenecer a una parte de una clasificación. — to fall within / belong to part of a classification.

Example sentences with Pertenecer

These examples reinforce the target verb across useful forms and contexts already taught in the lesson.

• Este libro pertenece a Marta. — This book belongs to Marta.
• Esos datos pertenecen a otra categoría. — Those data belong to another category.
• ¿A qué departamento perteneces? — Which department do you belong to?
• Espero que pertenezcas al grupo correcto. — I hope you belong to the correct group.
• Ha pertenecido a la organización durante años. — He / she has belonged to the organization for years.
• No pertenezcas a una organización sin conocer sus normas. — Do not join / belong to an organization without knowing its rules.

Regional and usage notes for Pertenecer

The core tables retain tú, usted, vosotros/vosotras, and ustedes for project comparability. Voseo changes some second-person singular forms in regions where vos — “you, singular informal” — is used.

• Vos pertenecés a este equipo. — You belong to this team. (voseo)
• Pertenecé a una comunidad que te respete. — Belong to a community that respects you. (affirmative vos command; exhortative use)

For pertenecer, isolate the pertenezc- family: pertenezco and the present subjunctive. In usage, remember that the verb is intransitive and normally requires a before the person, group, category, or whole.