Survival Spanish for
travelers
Lesson 4: Verbs, verbs everywhere!
Part 1
Welcom back travelers!
This lesson is divided into 2 parts. In the first part we are going
to learn how to conjugate the Spanish regular and irregular
verbs. In the second part we are going to study how to
conjugate
the past and the future.
Let’s start taking a general look at the regular and
irregular verbs in some steps:
1) Understand subjects. The subject is the noun that the verb is referring to.
To conjugate a verb in Spanish, you’ll first need to be familiar with the several
different personal subject pronouns in the language. Here they are:
Yo
I
Formal
Tú
You
Singular familiar
Usted
You
Singular formal
Él / ella
He / she
Nosotros / as
We
Vosotros / as
You
Plural familiar
Ustedes
You
Plural formal
Ellos / ellas
They
2) Remove the ending. All Spanish verbs have the endings
of either “-ar”, “-er” or “-ir”.
Once you remove the current ending, you can add on the
new corresponding ending.
Unless the verb is reflexive; then it will have “se” tacked on
past the end of the verb.
He are the rules for conjugating them in
present tense, using the verb “hablar”
(To talk)
Once you learn the form of
conjugation for “-ar” verbs in the
present tense, you can just add
the form to the end of any
regular “-ar” verbs.
Yo hablo
Tú hablas
Él/ella habla
Nosotros/as hablamos
Vosotros/as habláis
Ellos/ellas hablan
Here are the endings for the verb “-er” in
the present tense, using the verb
“beber” (To drink)
Learn the form for conjugating “er” verbs in the present tense
and just add it to the end of
each verb.
Yo bebo
Tú bebes
Él/ella bebe
Nosotros/as bebemos
Vosotros/as bebéis
Ellos/ellas beben
Here are the endings for the verb “-ir” in
the present tense, using the verb “vivir”
(To live)
Learn the form for conjugating “ir” verbs in the present tense
and just add it to the end of
each verb.
Yo vivo
Tú vives
Él/ella vive
Nosotros/as vivimos
Vosotros/as vivís
Ellos/ellas viven
Now let’s see a little bit how to conjugate the stem-changing verbs.

Conjugate verbs with a stem change
from “o” to “ue” using “dormir” (To
sleep) as an example:

Conjugate verbs with a stem change
from “e” to “ie” using “querer” (To
want) as an example
Yo duermo
Yo quiero
Tú duermes
Tú quieres
El/ella/usted duerme
Él/ella/usted quiere
Nosotros/as dormimos
Nosotros/as queremos
Vosotros/as dormís
Vosotras/as queréis
Ellos/ellas/ustedes duermen
Ellos/ellas/ustedes quieren
 Conjugate verbs with a stem change from “e” to “i”
using “seguir” (To follow or continue) as an example:
Yo sigo
Tú sigues
Él/ella/usted sigue
Nosotros/as seguimos
Vosotros/as seguís
Ellos/ellas/ustedes siguen
You have to pay attention! Because some verbs are irregular
just in the first person. For example
Conjugate verbs that
change from “c” to “zc” in
the first person:
Conocer (To be acquainted
with):
Yo conozco
Agradecer (To thank)
Yo agradezco
Ofrecer (To be acquainted
with)
Yo ofrezco
Conjugate verbs that have a “g”
in the first person:
Caer (To fall)
Yo caigo
Salir (To go out)
Yo salgo
Tener (To have)
Yo tengo
Conjugate verbs
with others changes
in the “yo” form:
Dar (To give)
Yo doy
Saber (To know)
Yo tengo
Ver (To see)
Yo veo