pensar
/penˈsaɾ/
To think in Spanish is to say pensar.
pensar is used to describe the cognitive process of communicating to oneself in one's mind. When you want to say you are thinking about a specific topic or a person, you should use the preposition en after the verb, such as pienso en ti (I think about you).
Meaning: communicate to oneself in one’s mind (verb)
Which one should you use?
While pensar refers to the cognitive process of thinking, the verb creer is used when you mean 'to think' in the sense of having an opinion or believing something, such as in the phrase Creo que sí (I think so).
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
pensar is an irregular stem-changing verb where the e changes to ie in many present tense forms, such as pienso (I think). In the preterite past tense, the form for 'I thought' is pensé.
How do you pronounce it?
/penˈsaɾ/
Did you know?
- The word pensar is a doublet of the word pesar, which means 'to weigh'. In Latin, the act of weighing an object was a metaphor for weighing an idea in one's mind.
- In Spanish, pensar can be used to mean 'to intend' or 'to plan'. For example, pienso viajar means 'I plan to travel' rather than just thinking about it.
- The phrase pensar mal does not mean to think incorrectly, but rather to think the worst of someone or to assume they have bad intentions.
Examples in context
- Lo volveré a pensar.I'll think about it again.This sentence shows how to use pensar when referring to thinking about something again.Tatoeba #1769266 by marcelostockle, translation #9387307 by DJ_Saidez
- No sabía qué pensar.I didn't know what to think.This sentence is useful for expressing uncertainty about what to think.Tatoeba #2314216 by marcelostockle, translation #2290374 by CK
- Dejame pensar un rato.Let me think for a while.This sentence demonstrates using pensar to ask for time to think.Tatoeba #1037563 by hayastan, translation #53401 by CK
- Pienso que es una buena idea.I think it's a good idea.
- Creo que piensas demasiado.I believe you think too much.
- Él piensa que va a ganar el partido.He thinks he's going to win the game.
- Creo que tienes razón.I think you're right.
- Opino que deberíamos ir al cine.I think we should go to the movies.
- 302 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Sofía are deciding what to eat for dinner.
- DanielTengo hambre, ¿qué quieres comer hoy?I'm hungry, what do you want to eat today?
- SofíaNo lo sé, déjame pensar.I don't know, let me think.
- Daniel¿Quieres ir a comer pizza?Do you want to go eat pizza?
- SofíaSí, pienso que eso es una buena idea.Yes, I think that is a good idea.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “think” translations and entries pensar, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
