SciGo
Menu

SPANish > grammar > Verbs

In Spanish, verbs change their endings (conjugate) depending on their tense:
  • AR Verbs
  • ER Verbs
  • IR Verbs
  • Irregular Verb to go (Ir) ​(and immediate future tense)
  • Irregular Verb to be (Ser/Estar)
  • Irregular Verb to have (Tener)
  • Irregular Verb to do/make (Hacer)
  • Reflexive Verbs
  • Other Irregular Verbs and Stem-changing verbs (examples)
  • Haber and the perfect tense
<
>
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto (imperfect/past)
Futuro Perfecto (Future Perfect)
Condicional
(future)
yo (I)
o
é
aba
é
​ía
Tú (you)
as
aste
abas
ás
ías
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
a
ó
aba
á
ía
nosotros (we)
amos
amos
ábamos
emos
íamos
vosotros (you)
áis
asteis
abais
éis
​íais
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
an
aron
aban
án
ían
For the present and past tense, replace AR with the endings stated above.
For the future tense, add on to the ar that which is shown above.
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto (imperfect/past)
Futuro Perfecto (Future Perfect)
Condicional
(future)
yo (I)
o
í
ía
é
ía
Tú (you)
es
iste
ías
​ás
ías
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
e
ió
​ía
á
ía
nosotros (we)
emos
imos
íamos
emos
íamos
vosotros (you)
éis
isteis
​íais
​éis
íais
ellos/ellas/ustedes
en
ieron
ían
​án
ían
For the present and past tense, replace ER with the endings stated above.
For the future tense, add on to the er that which is shown above. There are some exceptions which change their stem, including:
Poner -> Pondr
Poder -> Podr
Querer -> Querr
Haber -> Habr
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
​Imperfecto (imperfect/past)
​Futuro Perfecto (Future Perfect)
Condicional
(future)
yo (I)
o
í
ía
​é
ía
Tú (you)
es
iste
ías
​​ás
ías
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
e
ió
ía
​á
ía
nosotros (we)
imos
imos
íamos
emos
​íamos
vosotros (you)
ís
isteis
íais
​éis
íais
ellos/ellas/ustedes
en
ieron
ían
​​án
ían
For the present and past tense, replace IR with the endings stated above.
For the future tense, add on to the ir that which is shown above. There are some exceptions which change their stem, including:
decir -> d​ir
Salir -> Sald
r
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto
(imperfect/past)
Futuro Perfecto (future perfect)
condicional (future)
yo (I)
voy
fui
iba
ir​​é
ir​ía
Tú (you)
vas
fuiste
ibas
ir​​​ás
ir​ías
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
va
fue
iba
ir​​á
ir​ía
nosotros (we)
vamos
fuimos
ibamos
iremos
iríamos
vosotros (you)
váis
fuisteis
ibáis
ir​éis
ir​íais
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
van
fueron
iban
irán
ir​ían
The gerrund form of ir (going) is ​yendo
I go to... = voy a...
​

Immediate Future:
I am going to ... = voy a (+ infinitive)
eg:
I am going to go to school = voy a ir al colegio
I am going to eat = voy a comer
SER vs ESTAR
In Spanish, there are 2 forms of the verb 'to be': ser and estar
Knowing which one to use when is complicated but it can be simplified to:
  • Use Estar for temporary things or for location
  • Use Ser for permanent things
Examples:
estoy cansado -> I am tired
estoy bien -> I am well
estoy en Londrés -> I am in London
soy de inglaterra -> I am from England
soy simpatico -> I am friendly
soy estricto ​-> I am strict
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto (imperfect/past)
yo (I)
soy
fui
era
Tú (you)
eres
fuiste
eras
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
es
fue
era
nosotros (we)
somos
fuimos
éramos
vosotros (you)
sois
fuisteis
erais
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
son
fueron
eran
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto (imperfect/past)
yo (I)
estoy
estuve
estaba
Tú (you)
estás
estuviste
estabas
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
está
estuvo
estaba
nosotros (we)
estamos
estuvimos
estabámos
vosotros (you)
estáis
estuvisteis
estabais
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
están
estuvieron
estaban
Both forms of the verb 'to be' conjugate regularly in the future tense
The gerrund of:
  • SER is siendo
  • ESTAR is ​estando
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto (imperfect/past)
Futuro Perfecto
(future perfect)
condicional (future)
yo (I)
tengo
tuve
tenía
tendré
tendría
Tú (you)
tienes
tuviste
tenías
tendrás
​tendrías
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
tiene
tuvo
tenía
tendrá
tendría
nosotros (we)
tenemos
tuvimos
​teníamos
tendremos
tendríamos
vosotros (you)
tenéis
tuvisteis
teníais
tendréis
tendríais
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
tienen
tuvieron
tenían
tendrán
tendrían
Person
Presente (present)
Préterito (preterite/past)
Imperfecto
(imperfect/past)
Futuro Perfecto (future perfect)
condicional (future)
yo (I)
hago
hice
hacía
haré
haría
Tú (you)
haces
hiciste
hacías
harás
harías
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
hace
hizo
hacía
hará
haría
nosotros (we)
hacemos
hicimos
hacíamos
harámos
haríamos
vosotros (you)
hacéis
hicisteis
hacíais
haráis
haríais
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
hacen
hicieron
hacían
harán
harían
The gerrund form of HACER is regular: haciendo
The participle (for the perfect past tense) is irregular: hecho
Reflexive verbs like llamarse (to be called) and Vestirse follow slightly different rules. When conjugated, the se  goes to the front of the word and becomes me/te/se/nos/os/se depending on the person (I, you, he/she/it, we, you, they respectively). Then the rest of the word is conjugated normally.
Eg:
me llamo
te llamas
se llama
Other important irregular verbs include the verb to like: Gustar and the verb to love Encantar. These verbs conjugate like reflexive verbs but don't change their ending in the same way:
Me Gusta
Te Gusta
Se Gusta

Me Encanta
Te Encanta
Se Encanta

Some Spanish words change their stem when conjugated:
Eg: Soler:
Person
Presente (present)
yo (I)
suelo
Tú (you)
sueles
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
suele
nosotros (we)
solemos
vosotros (you)
soléis
ellos/ellas/ustedes(they)
suelen
Note on Soler: When using the verb soler (to tend to) place an infinitive after it. Eg. I tend to play: suelo jugar.
Other stem-changing verbs change stem in the same conjugations:
Jugar -> Juego
Vestirse -> Me Visto
The verb haber is regularly used as hay which means there is/are
  • hay un dormitorio -> there is a bedroom
  • hay dos dormitorios -> there are two bedrooms
However, the present tense of the verb is also used to form the perfect (past) tense...
yo (I)
tú (you singular)
él/ella/usted (he/she/one)
nosotros (we)
vosotros (you pl)
ellos/ellas/(they)
he
has
​ha
hemos
habeis
han
To form the perfect tense, the present tense of HABER is followed by the past participle of the verb. To form the past participle, remove AR/ER/IR from the verb. AR verbs replace it with ado and ER/IR verbs replace it with ido
  • He comido -> I have eaten
  • Has hablado -> you have spoken
  • Ha vivido​ -> he/she/one has lived
Tense Translations
Present: I do
Preterite: I did
Imperfect: I used to do
Perfect (past): I have done
Immediate Future: I am going to do
Future Perfect: I will do
Conditional (future): I would do

Photo used under Creative Commons from goodrob13
  • Science
    • Biology >
      • Reproduction
      • Blood and Circulation
      • Enzymes
      • The Skeleton and Muscles
      • Cells
      • Food and Digestion
      • Genetics
      • Respiration and Gas Exchange
      • Plant Metabolism - Photosynthesis and Respiration
      • Kidneys and Urinary system
      • Evolution
    • Chemistry >
      • Particles
      • Rocks
      • Atomic Structure and the Periodic Table
      • Rates of Reaction
      • Crude oil
      • Metals
      • Analysis
    • Physics >
      • Forces and Motion
      • Light and Sound
      • Energy Resources
      • Waves
      • Magnetism
  • Add Maths
    • Polynomials
    • Binomials
    • Permutations and Combinations
    • Graphs
  • Latin
    • Grammar >
      • Verbs
      • Participles
      • Nouns
      • Adjectives
    • Vocabulary
  • History
    • Battle of Hastings
    • World War Two and International Relations
    • Key Words- Medieval Era
    • The Tudor Church
    • The Spanish Armada
    • World War I
    • World War Two and International Relations
    • Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?
    • Glossary
  • Geography
    • The UK and The Republic of Ireland
    • Geographical Skills >
      • Ordnance Survey
    • UK Economy
    • Development
    • Globalisation
    • National Parks
  • Religious Studies and Philosophy
    • Belief in God
    • Sikhism
    • Islam Key Words
    • The Life Of Jesus
  • FNU
    • Keeping Safe in the Kitchen
    • Energy
  • Music
    • Listening
  • Computer Science
  • MFL
    • Spanish >
      • Grammar >
        • Verbs
      • Vocabulary
    • French >
      • Vocabulary
      • Grammar >
        • Verbs
  • How 2 Revise
  • Feedback
    • Have your say
    • Report an error
  • General Knowledge
  • Online Resources
  • Privacy
  • Scigo Starters
    • sgS Bio
  • Nouns and Adjectives
  • SciGoAs
    • A Level Mathematics >
      • Exponentials and Logarithms
      • Vectors
  • Science
    • Biology >
      • Reproduction
      • Blood and Circulation
      • Enzymes
      • The Skeleton and Muscles
      • Cells
      • Food and Digestion
      • Genetics
      • Respiration and Gas Exchange
      • Plant Metabolism - Photosynthesis and Respiration
      • Kidneys and Urinary system
      • Evolution
    • Chemistry >
      • Particles
      • Rocks
      • Atomic Structure and the Periodic Table
      • Rates of Reaction
      • Crude oil
      • Metals
      • Analysis
    • Physics >
      • Forces and Motion
      • Light and Sound
      • Energy Resources
      • Waves
      • Magnetism
  • Add Maths
    • Polynomials
    • Binomials
    • Permutations and Combinations
    • Graphs
  • Latin
    • Grammar >
      • Verbs
      • Participles
      • Nouns
      • Adjectives
    • Vocabulary
  • History
    • Battle of Hastings
    • World War Two and International Relations
    • Key Words- Medieval Era
    • The Tudor Church
    • The Spanish Armada
    • World War I
    • World War Two and International Relations
    • Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?
    • Glossary
  • Geography
    • The UK and The Republic of Ireland
    • Geographical Skills >
      • Ordnance Survey
    • UK Economy
    • Development
    • Globalisation
    • National Parks
  • Religious Studies and Philosophy
    • Belief in God
    • Sikhism
    • Islam Key Words
    • The Life Of Jesus
  • FNU
    • Keeping Safe in the Kitchen
    • Energy
  • Music
    • Listening
  • Computer Science
  • MFL
    • Spanish >
      • Grammar >
        • Verbs
      • Vocabulary
    • French >
      • Vocabulary
      • Grammar >
        • Verbs
  • How 2 Revise
  • Feedback
    • Have your say
    • Report an error
  • General Knowledge
  • Online Resources
  • Privacy
  • Scigo Starters
    • sgS Bio
  • Nouns and Adjectives
  • SciGoAs
    • A Level Mathematics >
      • Exponentials and Logarithms
      • Vectors