Three endings, thousands of verbs
Every Spanish infinitive ends in -ar, -er, or -ir: hablar (to speak), comer (to eat), vivir (to live). That final syllable is a label telling you which set of endings the verb takes.
The system is simple. Remove the infinitive ending to get the stem, then add the ending that matches the person doing the action. Habl- plus -o gives hablo, 'I speak'. Learn three small tables and you can conjugate the majority of Spanish verbs.
The subject pronouns, quickly
- yo (I), tú (you, informal), él / ella / usted (he / she / you formal)
- nosotros (we), vosotros (you all, used in Spain), ellos / ellas / ustedes (they / you all)
- usted and ustedes are polite 'you' forms; they take the same verb endings as él and ellos.
- In Latin America, ustedes covers both formal and informal 'you all'; vosotros is heard mainly in Spain.
The three ending sets
Here are hablar, comer, and vivir side by side. Notice that -er and -ir verbs differ only in the nosotros and vosotros forms.
| Person | hablar (speak) | comer (eat) | vivir (live) |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablo | como | vivo |
| tú | hablas | comes | vives |
| él / ella / usted | habla | come | vive |
| nosotros | hablamos | comemos | vivimos |
| vosotros | habláis | coméis | vivís |
| ellos / ustedes | hablan | comen | viven |
The yo form is -o across all three groups. If a present-tense verb ends in -o, the subject is almost always 'I'.
What the present tense covers
The Spanish present works harder than the English one. One form covers three English structures.
- An action happening now: Hablo con mi madre. (I am speaking with my mother.)
- A habit: Como fruta todos los días. (I eat fruit every day.)
- A near-future plan with a time word: Mañana trabajo. (Tomorrow I work / I am working tomorrow.)
| Vivimos en Madrid. | We live in Madrid. vivir, nosotros form |
| ¿Trabajas este fin de semana? | Are you working this weekend? present tense for a near-future plan |
| Ella escribe correos por la tarde. | She writes emails in the afternoon. escribir, regular -ir verb |
Drop the pronoun
Because each ending points to its subject, Spanish usually drops the pronoun. Hablo español already means 'I speak Spanish'; adding yo sounds emphatic, like 'I for one speak Spanish'.
Keep the pronoun when you contrast people (Yo cocino y tú limpias) or when él, ella, and usted would otherwise be ambiguous.
| Aprendemos gramática con este curso. | We learn grammar with this course. no pronoun needed; -emos marks 'we' |
| Yo cocino y tú limpias. | I cook and you clean. pronouns kept for contrast |
A starter set of regular verbs
- -ar: trabajar (to work), estudiar (to study), escuchar (to listen), comprar (to buy)
- -er: beber (to drink), leer (to read), aprender (to learn), vender (to sell)
- -ir: escribir (to write), abrir (to open), recibir (to receive), compartir (to share)
| Los estudiantes leen y escriben mucho. | The students read and write a lot. |
| Abro la ventana porque hace calor. | I open the window because it is hot. abrir is fully regular in the present |
| ¿Compartís el apartamento? | Do you all share the apartment? vosotros form, used in Spain |
Pronunciation corner
Regular verbs stress the second-to-last syllable in most forms. The vosotros accent mark signals stress on the ending.
| hablo | [ˈaβlo] | AH-blo; the h is always silent in Spanish |
| comemos | [koˈmemos] | ko-MEH-mos; stress the middle syllable |
| vivís | [biˈβis] | bee-BEES; Spanish v sounds like a soft b |
| habláis | [aˈβlajs] | ah-BLICE; the -áis ending rhymes with 'ice' |
Practice drill
Conjugate the verb in parentheses in the present tense for the subject shown.
(hablar, yo) ___ tres idiomas.Show answer
Hablo
(comer, nosotros) ___ a las dos.Show answer
Comemos
(vivir, ellos) ___ en Buenos Aires.Show answer
Viven
(trabajar, tú) ¿___ hoy?Show answer
Trabajas
(escribir, ella) ___ una carta.Show answer
Escribe
(aprender, vosotros) ___ muy rápido.Show answer
Aprendéis-er verbs take -éis in the vosotros form
(abrir, yo) ___ la tienda a las nueve.Show answer
Abro
(beber, usted) ___ mucha agua.Show answer
Bebeusted uses the él/ella form
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if a Spanish verb is regular?
You learn it from exposure and from verb lists; there is no marker on the infinitive. The practical route: master the regular patterns first, then learn the small set of high-frequency irregulars (ser, estar, ir, tener, hacer) as separate items. Most other verbs you meet at A1 follow the regular tables.
What is the difference between -er and -ir verbs?
In the present tense, only the nosotros and vosotros forms differ: comemos vs vivimos, coméis vs vivís. Every other form uses identical endings, so learning one group nearly gives you the other.
Does Spanish have a separate 'I am speaking' form?
Yes, estar plus the gerund (estoy hablando) exists and emphasizes an action in progress. At A1 you can rely on the simple present for almost everything; Hablo con mi madre covers both 'I speak' and 'I am speaking' in normal conversation.
When should I keep the subject pronoun?
Keep it for contrast (yo cocino, tú limpias), for emphasis, or when the verb form is shared by several subjects and context does not settle it: habla could be he, she, or you-formal. Otherwise drop it; overusing pronouns is a strong foreign accent in grammar form.
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