Regular Verbs: Part III
Here's the complete list of Spanish subject pronouns.
Singular
- yo
tú
usted
él
ella
Plural
- nosotros/as
vosotros/as
ustedes
ellos
ellas
To conjugate -ar verbs, drop the ending and add:
- -o
-as
-a
-amos
-áis
-an
To conjugate -er verbs, drop the ending and add:
- -o
-es
-e
-emos
-éis
-en
To conjugate -ir verbs, drop the ending and add:
- -o
-es
-e
-imos
-ís
-en
You will benefit greatly by quickly memorizing the three model verbs.
- hablar
comer
vivir
yo hablo
tú hablas
él, ella, Ud. habla
nosotros/as hablamos
vosotros/as habláis
ellos, ellas, Uds. hablan
yo como
tú comes
él, ella, Ud. come
nosotros/as comemos
vosotros/as coméis
ellos, ellas, Uds. comen
yo vivo
tú vives
él, ella, Ud. vive
nosotros/as vivimos
vosotros/as vivís
ellos, ellas, Uds. viven
Note: The verb forms are the same for él, ella and Ud. as are the verb forms for ellos, ellas and Uds.
In Spanish the subject pronouns are not always required. This is because the verb endings can indicate who is performing the action.
- Hablo español. (Yo is not necessary.)
I speak Spanish.
- Comemos carne. (Nosotros is not necessary.)
We eat meat.
- Vives en México. (Tú is not necessary.)
You live in Mexico.
Subject pronouns are often used for clarification. For example, the verb form habla is ambiguous.
- Ud. habla
él habla
ella habla
Therefore, to distinguish between you speak, he speaks, and she speaks, it may be necessary to use the subject pronoun. Often, the conversation implies the subject of the verb. In such cases the subject pronoun may be omitted.
Subject pronouns are often used for emphasis.
- Ella habla español y yo hablo inglés.
Here there is no ambiguity with respect to hablo. The subject pronoun is merely adding emphasis:
- She speaks Spanish and I speak English.
Another example of using subject pronouns for emphasis.
- Yo como pan y tú comes arroz.
Once again there is no ambiguity. The pronouns emphasize the contrast.
- I eat bread and you eat rice.
It is possible to use two verbs in a row. Just like in English, the first verb is conjugated, while the second verb remains in the infinitive form.
- Necesito hablar con Alfredo.
I need to speak with Alfredo.
(necesitar, hablar)
Necesito + hablar + con Alfredo.
I need + to speak + with Alfredo.
Another example of two verbs used together:
- Deseas vivir en España.
You wish to live in Spain.
(desear, vivir)
Deseas + vivir + en España.
You wish + to live + in Spain.
Hopefully, you have taken our advice and have been creating a special collection of verb flashcards. If not, it's not too late to start. Here is the entire list of cards to this point:
Verb Flashcards
- hay
there is, there are
- Present Indicative
I speak
I do speak
I am speaking
- hablar (to speak)
hablo
hablas
habla
hablamos
habláis
hablan
- comer (to eat)
como
comes
come
comemos
coméis
comen
- vivir (to live)
vivo
vives
vive
vivimos
vivís
viven
Here's a list of some common regular -ar, -er, and -ir verbs:
-ar verbs
alquilar to rent | entrar (en) to enter (into) | necesitar to need |
amar to love | enviar to send | olvidar to forget |
andar to walk | escuchar to listen to | pagar to pay for |
ayudar to help | esperar to hope, to wait for | practicar to practice |
bailar to dance | estudiar to study | preguntar to ask |
buscar to look for | firmar to sign | preparar to prepare |
caminar to walk | ganar to win, earn | regresar to return |
cantar to sing | gastar to spend money | saludar to greet |
cocinar to cook | hablar to speak, to talk | tocar to touch, to play an instrument |
comprar to buy | lavar to wash | tomar to take, to drink |
contestar to answer | llegar to arrive | trabajar to work |
dejar to allow, to leave | llevar to wear, to carry | viajar to travel |
desear to desire | mandar to order | visitar to visit |
enseñar to teach | mirar to watch, to look at |
-er verbs
aprender to learn | creer to believe | poseer to possess, to own |
beber to drink | deber to have to, to owe | prometer to promise |
comer to eat | esconder to hide | romper to break |
comprender to understand | leer to read | temer to fear |
correr to run | meter en to put into | vender to sell |
-ir verbs
abrir to open | descubrir to discover | permitir to permit |
admitir to admit | discutir to discuss | recibir to receive |
asistir a to attend | escribir to write | subir to climb, to go up |
cubrir to cover | existir to exist | sufrir to suffer |
decidir to decide | omitir to omit | unir to unite |
describir to describe | partir to divide | vivir to live |
No comments:
Post a Comment