This is the twenty-first lesson in our beginner level Spanish course and we will look at regular Spanish verbs in Present Tense.
This topic follows on from our previous lesson which introduced and explained the Spanish Present Tense. In that lesson we learned that in the Spanish language there are lots of different tenses (present, past, future, etc) and verbs are conjugated (endings changed) differently according to different tenses. Present tense is when we describe things that we usually/generally do. For example: Yo como pizza los martes (I eat pizza on Tuesdays) or Ella trabaja en una escuela (She works in a school). In our previous lesson we learned the patterns for regular Spanish verbs in Present Tense and in this lesson we will practice using them again with new verbs.
Regular and irregular verbs
A large part of learning Spanish is remembering how to conjugate the verb endings for the different tenses. Luckily there are patterns that can be applied to the majority of verbs and these verbs are called regular verbs. All regular verbs are conjugated in the same way. Verbs that do not follow the same rules are known as irregular verbs and we have to learn how to conjugate these verbs separately. Don’t worry, you will also find that you pick up how to use many irregular verbs when you hear or see them being used. We have already learned four irregular Spanish verbs: Ser and Estar (To Be) , Querer (To Want) and Tener (To Have)
In the previous lesson we learned the following regular Spanish verbs in Present Tense: Hablar: To speak, Trabajar: To work, Escuchar: To listen to, Comprar: To buy, Comer: To eat, Beber: To drink, Leer: To read, and Comprender: To understand. Now let’s see some new useful regular Spanish verbs:
Necesitar – To need
Usar – To use
Ayudar – To help
Buscar – To look for
Lavar – To wash
Cocinar – To cook
Limpiar – To clean
Tomar – To take
Andar – To walk
Correr – To run
Mirar – To look at
Esperar – To wait for
Entrar – To enter
Estudiar – To study
Contestar – To answer
Abrir – To open
Compartir – To share
Comprender – To understand
Vender – To sell
Remember all Spanish verbs finish in -AR, -ER or -IR. If you take a look at all the verbs we have seen so far you will see that they all finish in -AR, -ER or -IR.
The pattern to conjugate regular Spanish verbs in Present Tense:
| Yo Tú Él/Ella Nosotros/as Vosotros/as Ellos/Ellas |
-o -as/-es -a/-e -amos/-emos/-imos -áis/-éis/-ís -an/-en |
Remember, the Yo, Tú, Él, Ella, Nosotros/as, Vosotros/as, Ellos/Ellas part is optional. You can use them if you wish with the verb, but you can also omit them. It is up to you. When you conjugate a verb according to the person, you already know the person.
So, we’ve learned a decent number of regular Spanish verbs and we have the formula to create their endings for all the different people (Yo, Tú, Él, Ella, Nosotros/as, Vosotros/as, Ellos/as) in present tense. We might need a dictionary to look up some vocabulary, but we are now able to make lots of sentences in Spanish! Let’s practice…
Sentences using regular Spanish verbs in Present Tense:
We will start by making sentences using the first person (Yo) with some of our new verbs. Remember, present tense describes things we do usually/in general.
(Yo) Abro la botella – I open the bottle
(Yo) No uso mi teléfono móvil – I don’t use my mobile phone
(Yo) Limpio la casa – I clean the house
(Yo) No estudio portugués – I don’t study portuguese
(Yo) Comprendo francés pero no hablo francés muy bien – I understand French but I don’t speak French very well
(Yo) No necesito nada – I don’t need anything
Now, let’s move on and practice with more persons…
(Tú) Necesitas aprender inglés – You need to learn English
¿Por qué (tú) esperas? – Why do you wait?
¿Qué buscas? – What are you looking for?
(Ella) Lava la ropa los lunes – She washes the clothes on Mondays
(Él) Corre 30 km todos los sábados – He runs 30 km every Saturday
(Nosotros) Usamos leche de soja – We use soya milk
¿(Vosotros) Estudiáis alemán? – Do you study German?
(Ellos) Comparten su jardín – They share their garden
As always, negative sentences are easily constructed by simply adding ‘No’ and questions are exactly the same as positive sentences with the addition of a question mark or a question tone of voice.
We recommend that you practice making your own sentences using regular Spanish verbs in Present Tense. Use the verbs we have learned in this lesson and the previous lesson and use your dictionary to find any words that you require to complete your sentences. Enjoy your Spanish and see you next time!
