Uses of 'Tener'
Spanish: Cambridge International GCSE, topic 9.3.2
Uses of 'Tener'
As well as being the verb 'to have', 'tener' has a lot of other uses in Spanish.
Age
- In Spanish, rather than say 'I am 15 years old', you say 'I have 15 years'.
- ¿Cuántos años tienes? (How old are you?).
- Tengo quince años. (I am 15).
Hungry or thirsty
- Similarly to age, in Spanish instead of saying 'I am hungry' you would say 'I have hunger'.
- Flora tiene hambre. (Flora is hungry).
- Tengo sed. (I am thirsty).
To have to
- In Spanish you use 'tener' + 'que' as a way to say 'something is necessary'.
- Tengo que cerrar la ventana (I have to close the window).
- 'Tener que' is always followed by an infinitive.
Test yourself on Uses of 'Tener'
How do you say 'she has to leave early' in Spanish?