Alcanzar Conjugation: All Spanish Tenses

Alcanzar (to reach, to catch up to, to be enough) is a very common Spanish verb and it is regular: it follows the -ar pattern. It only has a spelling change z→c before e (alcancé, alcance), which does not make it irregular.

Indicative Tenses of Alcanzar

Alcanzar in the Present (Presente)

Habits, current facts and general truths: Con esfuerzo alcanzo todas mis metas (With effort I reach all my goals).

Present tense rules →

Alcanzar in the Preterite (Pretérito indefinido)

Completed actions at a specific moment in the past: Por fin alcancé la cima de la montaña (I finally reached the top of the mountain).

Preterite rules →

Alcanzar in the Present Perfect (Pretérito perfecto)

Past connected to the present: Este año he alcanzado todos mis objetivos (This year I have reached all my goals).

Present perfect rules →

Alcanzar in the Imperfect (Pretérito imperfecto)

Habitual or ongoing actions in the past: De niño nunca alcanzaba el estante más alto (As a child I could never reach the highest shelf).

Imperfect rules →

Alcanzar in the Past Perfect (Pluscuamperfecto)

An action before another past action: Cuando llegué, ya habían alcanzado un acuerdo (When I arrived, they had already reached an agreement).

Past perfect rules →

Alcanzar in the Future (Futuro simple)

Plans and predictions: El año que viene alcanzaré mi objetivo (Next year I will reach my goal).

Future tense rules →

Alcanzar in the Future Perfect (Futuro perfecto)

An action that will be completed in the future: Para diciembre ya habremos alcanzado la meta (By December we will have reached the goal).

Future perfect rules →

Alcanzar in the Conditional (Condicional simple)

Advice and hypothetical situations: Con más tiempo alcanzaría mejores resultados (With more time I would achieve better results).

Conditional rules →

Alcanzar in the Conditional Perfect (Condicional compuesto)

Hypotheses about the past: Habría alcanzado el tren si hubiera salido antes (I would have caught the train if I had left earlier).

Conditional perfect rules →

Subjunctive Tenses of Alcanzar

Present Subjunctive of Alcanzar (Presente de subjuntivo)

Wishes, doubts and emotions (with the z→c change): Espero que alcances tus sueños (I hope you reach your dreams).

Present subjunctive rules →

Present Perfect Subjunctive of Alcanzar (Pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo)

Evaluating a recent past action: Me alegra que hayas alcanzado tu objetivo (I'm glad you have reached your goal).

Perfect subjunctive rules →

Imperfect Subjunctive of Alcanzar (Pretérito imperfecto de subjuntivo)

Hypothetical conditions: Si alcanzaras la nota, entrarías en la universidad (If you reached the grade, you would get into university).

Imperfect subjunctive rules →

Past Perfect Subjunctive of Alcanzar (Pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo)

Unreal hypotheses about the past: Si hubieras alcanzado el vuelo, ya estarías allí (If you had caught the flight, you would already be there).

Past perfect subjunctive rules →

Imperative of Alcanzar

Affirmative Commands of Alcanzar (Imperativo afirmativo)

Orders and requests: ¡Alcanza el libro de la estantería, por favor! (Reach the book from the shelf, please!)

Affirmative commands rules →

Negative Commands of Alcanzar (Imperativo negativo)

Prohibitions and negative advice (with the z→c change): No alcances ese objetivo a cualquier precio (Don't reach that goal at any cost).

Negative commands rules →

Expressions with Alcanzar

• Alcanzar un objetivo / una meta - to reach a goal, to achieve what you aimed for
• Alcanzar a alguien - to catch up to someone, to reach the same level
• No me alcanza el dinero - I don't have enough money
• Alcanzar a ver / oír - to manage to see / hear something (barely)
• Al alcance de la mano - within reach, easy to obtain