25 Spanish Expressions with “Tener” [With Quiz]

You probably know the word tener means “to have.” It’s a common Spanish word that’s also used in a wide variety of phrases and expressions.

Let’s dig into some of the most frequently used expressions with tener to help you express yourself better and understand native speakers.  

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1. Tener que  — To have to

Tengo que comprar unas manzanas.
I have to buy a few apples.

Here’s another example from a clip on the FluentU platform:

2. Tener (número) años  — To be (number) years old

No puedes beber cerveza hasta que tengas 21 años.
You can’t drink beer until you’re 21 years old.

Después de mi cumpleaños, tendré 25 años.
After my birthday, I’ll be 25 years old.

3. Tener un buen día  — To have a good day

Of course, it’s impossible to know whether the person in question will then have a good day or not, so you’ll need to use the subjunctive mood for this one.

This expression generally carries que (that) at the front, with the implication being “(I hope) that you have a nice day.”

Tengo que irme. Que tengas un buen día.
I have to go. Have a good day.

Adiós, María; adiós, Carlos, que tengan un buen día.
Goodbye, Maria; goodbye, Carlos, (both) have a good day.

4. Tener hambre / sed — To be hungry/thirsty

Después de la clase, siempre tengo mucha hambre.
After class, I’m always very hungry.

¿Tienes sed? Tenemos agua y jugo de naranja.
Are you thirsty? We have water and orange juice.

5. Tener calor / frío  — To be hot/cold

¿Tienes calor? Has trabajado todo el día bajo el sol.
Are you hot? You’ve worked in the sun all day.

Ella lleva una chaqueta porque tiene frío.
She’s wearing a jacket because she’s cold.

6. Tener miedo  — To be afraid

Los niños tienen miedo de la oscuridad.
The children are afraid of the dark.

Here’s another example from a clip from “Up”:

7. Tener sueño  — To be sleepy 

No puedo pensar bien porque tengo mucho sueño.
I can’t think well because I’m really sleepy. 

Tenemos un nuevo bebé así que siempre tenemos sueño.
We have a new baby, so we’re always sleepy. 

8. Tener suerte  — To be lucky 

Mi hermano tiene mucha suerte. Siempre gana los concursos.
My brother is really lucky. He always wins contests. 

¡Vaya, tienes tanta suerte de poder viajar por el mundo!
Wow, you’re so lucky that you get to travel the world!

9. Tener prisa  — To be in a hurry 

No puedo hablar ahora. Tengo prisa.
I can’t talk now. I’m in a hurry.

Here’s another example from a clip from “Zootopia”:

10. Tener éxito  — To be successful

Ha tenido éxito en todo lo que hace.
He’s been successful at everything he does.

Es importante estudiar mucho para tener éxito en tus exámenes.
It’s important to study a lot to succeed on your exams.

11. Tener cuidado  — To be careful 

Tengan cuidado: El suelo está resbaladizo.
Be careful, the floor is slippery.

Here’s another example from a clip from “Madagascar”:

12. Tener sentido  — To make sense

13. Tener la culpa  — To be at fault/to blame/one’s fault

No tiene la culpa de lo que sucedió.
What happened isn’t his fault.

Les voy a convencer de que tienes la culpa.
I’m going to convince them that you’re to blame.

14. Tener celos  — To be right

Mi novia tiene celos de mis amigas.
My girlfriend is jealous about my friends.

Tener celos es una emoción muy común.
Being jealous is a very common emotion.

15. Tener vergüenza  — To be embarrassed/have shame

Ese hombre no tiene vergüenza.
That man has no shame.

No tengas vergüenza, todos cometemos errores.
Don’t be embarrassed, we all make mistakes. 

16. Tener paciencia  – To be patient

Para ser maestro, debes tener mucha paciencia.
To be a teacher, you must be really patient.

17. Tener claro  — To be sure/clear

Tienen claro que el proyecto es necesario.
They’re sure that the project is necessary.

Tengo claro que tengo que seguir aprendiendo español.
It’s clear to me that I have to keep learning Spanish.

18. Tener razón  — To be right

Tienes toda la razón, Francisco.
You’re totally right, Francisco.

Here’s an example from a clip on FluentU: 

19. Tener lugar  — To take place

Esta escena tiene lugar en un bosque cerca de Atenas.
This scene takes place in a forest near Athens.

La conferencia tendrá lugar en Nueva York.
The conference will take place in New York.

20. Tener confianza en  — To have confidence in/trust

Tengo confianza en mis habilidades.
I trust my abilities.

Tienes que tener confianza en ti mismo para lograr tus objetivos.
You have to have confidence in yourself to achieve your goals.

21. Tenerlo fácil  — To have it easy

Juan tiene un trabajo que paga bien. Lo tiene muy fácil.
Juan has a job that pays well. He has it so easy.

Si quieres tenerlo fácil, debes trabajar duro al principio.
If you want to have it easy, you must work hard in the beginning.

22. Tener ganas de (hacer algo)  — To feel like (doing something)

Después de esa comida, tengo ganas de dar una vuelta.
After that meal, I feel like taking a walk.

Here’s an example from a FluentU Spanish video: 

23. Tener en cuenta  — To take into account/bear in mind

Ten en cuenta que aún tengo que devolver la chaqueta.
Bear in mind that I still have to return the jacket.

Tuve en cuenta la edad del carro cuando lo compré.
I took the age of the car into account when I bought it.

24. Tener que ver (con)  — To have to do (with)

Mi queja tiene que ver con el servicio a la habitación.
My complaint has to do with the room service.

Eso no tiene nada que ver.
That has nothing to do with it.

25. Tener a (alguien/algo) por  — To take (someone/something) for

Me tuvieron por un plomero o milusos o algo.
They took me for a plumber or a handyman or something.

Tengo a Carlos por un amigo leal.
I consider Carlos to be a loyal friend.

How to Conjugate Tener 

Between its irregular yo form and an affinity for stem-changing, tener can be tricky to conjugate and only gets easier with practice. Here’s how to conjugate tener in the indicative tenses:

You can find all of the conjugations of tener with one of these conjugation apps. 

Quiz on Expressions with Tener

Now that you’ve learned some common expressions with tener, it’s time to test your knowledge. Take the short quiz below and just refresh the page if you want to start over or retake it. 

To continue practicing these expressions and see how they’re used in context, try immersing yourself in Spanish media. For extra learner support, you can use a program like FluentU.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

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You can also look for Spanish shows and movies on services like Netflix or Hulu. 

Mastering the many ways to use tener will come in handy in your Spanish conversations. 

Keep practicing the expressions in this post and tendrás mucho éxito  (you’ll be very successful)!

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

And One More Thing…

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