Although the prefix con- generally conveys the idea of "with," that doesn't always make the meanings of verbs beginning with con- easy to guess, even if you know the meaning of the root verb. Fortunately, however, the con- verbs usually if not always come from Latin and thus often have English cognates. Although this list is far from complete, here are some of the most common con- verbs (note that the n of the prefix becomes an m before p as a result of its pronunciation).
All the con- verbs are conjugated in the same way as the root verb (if one exists as a stand-alone verb). For example, contener follows the conjugation pattern of tener.
componer — to consist of, to compose. El sol está compuesto principalmente de hidrógeno y de helio. The sun is made up mainly of hydrogen and helium.
comportarse — to behave. Discúlpame si a veces me comporto como un niño. Excuse me if I act like a child sometimes.
comprometerse — to promise. Me comprometí a respetar las reglas de juego. I promised to respect the rules of the game.
comprender — to include or surround; to understand. La vegetación que crece en el mar comprende más de 2.000 especies de algas. Vegetation growing in the sea includes more than 2,000 species of algae. No comprendo la gran pasión que tiene mi hija por la fotografía. I don't understand the intense passion my daughter has for photography.
concebir — to conceive, to have an idea or belief. No puedo concebir que tú seas tan idiota. I can't believe you're such an idiot.
concluir — to complete, to conclude. Hoy concluí la lectura de tu libro. I finished reading your book today.
confundir — to confuse. Mi novio me confundió con su ex. My boyfriend confused me with his ex.
conseguir — to get, to obtain, to achieve. Quisiera saber si voy a conseguir trabajo este año. I would like to know if I'm going to get a job this year.
consentir — to allow, to permit. No te voy a consentir que vengas a mi casa. I am not going to allow you to come to my house.
conservar — to preserve, to keep (a certain way). No debemos olvidar que hace no mucho tiempo el formato habitual en que conservábamos nuestras imágenes era el papel fotográfico. We shouldn't forget that not long ago photographic paper was the the usual format in which we preserved our images.
considerar — consider. Nos consideramos afortunados de vivir cerca de aquí. We consider ourselves fortunate to live near here.
consistir — to consist of, to involve. Hipérbole es un tropo que consiste en exagerar, aumentando o disminuyendo la verdad de lo hablado. Hyperbole is a figure of speech that involves exaggerating, thereby adding to or diminishing the truth of what is spoken.
constituir — to constitute, to represent, to fulfill the role of. ¿Qué pagos constituyen remuneración para la ley chilena? Which payments count as remuneration under Chilean law?
construir — to build, to construct. Juntos construimos tu futuro. Together we are building your future.
consumar — to carry out or commit (an act), to consummate. En pocos segundos los ladrones han consumado el robo. In a few seconds the thieves had carried out the robbery.
consumir — to consume, to use, to eat or drink. El país consume 1.2 millones barriles diarios de petroleo. The country consumes 1.2 million barrels of oil per day.
contener — to contain, to be made up of. El humo del cigarrillo contiene miles de sustancias químicas. Cigarette smoke is made up of thousands of chemical substances.
continuar — to continue. Centenares de sirios continuaron cruzando la frontera hacia campamentos de refugiados en Turquía. Hundreds of Syrians continued crossing the border toward refugee camps in Turkey.
convertir — to change, to convert, to transform. Para convertir el agua en hielo es necesario quitarle una cierta cantidad de calor. To turn water into ice it is necessary to remove a certain amount of heat.
convencer — to convince, to persuade. Lo llevamos a casa y convencimos a mi padre de darle una oportunidad. We took it home and convinced my father into giving it a chance.
convenir — to serve (someone) well; "convenir en" often means "to agree". No conviene creer en los consejos no solicitados procedentes de personas desconocidas. It's not a good idea to believe unsolicited advice from strangers. Convinimos en no hablarnos. We agreed not to speak to each other.
convivir — to coexist, to live together. Somos pareja, pero no convivimos. We're a couple, but we don't live together.
