Verbs -AR, -ER and -IR (present tense)

Grammar, Verbs
  1. In Spain, the pronoun “Vosotros” (you all) is used, while in Latin America “Ustedes” is used. In this lesson, we’ll refer to Spain as SP and Latin America as LA.
  2. When showing respect, address someone formally with “Usted” and informally with “Tú.”

In Spanish, verbs of the first conjugation are those that end in “-ar.” Here are some common verbs of this type, conjugated in the present tense to give you a sense of how they work:

Hablar (to speak)

  • Yo hablo (I speak)
  • Tú hablas (You speak, informal)………Usted habla (You speak, formal)
  • Él/Ella (He/She speaks)
  • Nosotros/Nosotras hablamos (We speak – Latin America)
  • Vosotros/Vosotras habláis (SP)…Ustedes hablan (LA) – you all speak
  • Ellos/Ellas hablan (They speak)

These verbs follow a regular pattern in the present tense. For other tenses, like the preterite, imperfect, or future, the conjugation will change according to specific rules.

Ejemplos

Tú hablas varios idiomas

Ella habla muy rápido

Ellos hablan Alemán

Verbs of the second conjugation, those that end in “-ER”

Here are some common examples of these verbs, along with their present tense conjugation.

  1. Comer (to eat)
  2. Yo como (I eat)
  3. Tú comes (informal, You eat) …….Usted come (formal, You eat)
  4. Él/Ella/Usted come – He/She eats
  5. Nosotros/Nosotras comemos – We eat
  6. Vosotros/Vosotras coméis (Spain)…..Ustedes comen (Latin america) – You all eat
  7. Ellos/Ellas – They eat

Ejemplos:

Yo como pan en el desayuno (I eat bread for breakfast)

ella somo como verduras (she only eats vegetables)

ustedes siempre comen juntos (you always eat together)

Verbs ending in -IR

The verb vivir (to live) is a regular verb of the third conjugation in Spanish, ending in -ir. Here’s an example with the verb vivir (to live) in the present indicative:

  • Yo vivo (I live)
  • Tú vives (You live)
  • Él/Ella/Usted vive (He/She/You live(s))
  • Nosotros/Nosotras vivimos (We live)
  • Vosotros/Vosotras vivís (You all live)
  • Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes viven (They/You all live)

Ejemplos:

Yo vivo con mis padres

Ella vive cerca de aqui

Ellos viven juntos

Follow these links for more practice – AR verbs, -ER verbs and -IR verbs