Getting started with Spanish verbs

Do you want to start learning and practising Spanish verbs and don't know where to start? Here you'll read suggestions how to get started using regular verbs and some frequently used irregular verbs.

Personal pronouns

In Spanish personal pronouns are used in almost the same way as in English. However in Spanish it is not necessary to use the subjective pronoun since the verbal form or the context identifies the subject anyway. In Spanish the pronoun is used to express emphasis. In the table below you can see the subjective pronouns:

Conjugation of regular verbs

There are three types of Spanish verbs. The are distinguished by their endings: -ar, -er and -ir. Below some examples of regular verbs.

The verb hablar (to speak) is a model for all regular verbs ending with -ar:

The verb comer (to eat) is a model for all regular verbs ending with -er:

The verb vivir (to live) is a model for all regular verbs ending with -ir:

In the beginning it is good to just concentrate on the present indicative tense (indicativo presente) which is used for expressing things that take actually place in the present.

Below some sentences with regular verb forms in it. Note that the pronoun is not necessarily used with the form, since the subject is mostly derived from the verbal form and/or the context:

Vivo en España.
I live in Spain.

Señor, ¿Habla inglés?
Sir, do you speak English?

Conjugation of frequently used irregular verbs

Many frequently used verbs are irregular. Since they are used frequently, it is very useful to learn the conjugations of these verbs. Examples of frequently used irregular verbs are:

• ser (to be, to exist): yo soy, tú eres, él es...
• hacer (to do, to make): yo hago...
• haber (to have): yo he, tú has...
• tener (to have, to own): yo tengo, tú tienes...
• estar (to be, to be situated): yo estoy...
• ir (to go): yo voy, tú vas...
• querer (to want): yo quiero, tú quieres

You might have noted that there are two variants of to be: ser and estar. In short ser means to be, to exist and is used for facts that wont change. For example:

Ana es Española.
Ana is Spanish.

estar means to be situated and is used to express a state or temporary situation. For example:

Ana está en España.
Ana is in Spain. (Ana is situated in Spain.)

It is a bit more complicated, but out of the scope of this article to dig into this.

You also might have noticed to verbs for to have: haber and tener. In short haber is used for compound tenses and for some standard expressions. For example:

Anoche hemos visto una pelicula.
Last night we have seen a movie.

tener means to own, to have got. For example:

Mi gato tiene ojos azules.
My cat has blue eyes.

Read more example sentences provided with the conjugations of the particular verbs.