Grammar: Spanish verbs
The Present Tense | Presente
In Spanish, the present tense is called “Presente”. Its forms might seem a bit complicated because we use a different ending for each pronoun. It’s important to remember that Spanish verbs have 3 types of conjugation: those that end in “-ar” (hablar), those that end in “-er” (beber) and those that end in “-ir” (escribir). Once you’ve memorized the endings for each type you can apply them to all Spanish verbs.
| Who? | -ar: hablar (to speak) | -er: beber (to drink) | -ir: escribir (to write) |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablo | bebo | escribo |
| tú | hablas | bebes | escribes |
| él, ella, usted | habla | bebe | escribe |
| nosotros | hablamos | bebemos | escribimos |
| vosotros | habláis | bebéis | escribís |
| ellos, ustedes | hablan | beben | escriben |
Most Spanish verbs are “regular”. It means that they follow the rules of the table given above. All you need to do is identify the type of conjugation (comer –> ending “-er”) and choose the proper ending (yo como, tú comes etc.). However, there are verbs with “irregular” endings and you’ll have to memorize them.
Let’s take a look at the most important changes:
| o ⇒ ue : poder (can) | e ⇒ ie : entender (to understand) | e ⇒ i : repetir (to repeat) |
|---|---|---|
| puedo | entiendo | repito |
| puedes | entiendes | repites |
| puede | entiende | repite |
| podemos | entendemos | repetimos |
| podéis | entendéis | repetís |
| pueden | entienden | repiten |
Besides, there are verbs that have only one irregular ending (1st person singular). Remember them:
- saber (to know) ⇒ sé
- caber (to fit) ⇒ quepo
- hacer (to do, to make) ⇒ hago
- salir (to leave, to go out) ⇒ salgo
- poner (to put) ⇒ pongo
- caer (to fall) ⇒ caigo
Some verbs have irregular forms that are difficult to classify. They should also be memorized:
| Who? | ser (to be) | ir (to go) | tener (to have) | venir (to come) | decir (to say) | oir (to hear) | seguir (to follow) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | soy | voy | tengo | vengo | digo | oigo | sigo |
| tú | eres | vas | tienes | vienes | dices | oyes | siges |
| él, ella, usted | es | va | tiene | viee | dice | oye | sige |
| nosotros | somos | vamos | tenemos | venimos | decimos | oímos | seguimos |
| vosotros | sois | vais | tenéis | venís | decís | oís | segís |
| ellos, ustedes | son | van | tienen | vienen | dicen | oyen | siguen |
