Present Tense Conjugation (Regular Verbs)
Introduction
In Spanish, the present tense is used to describe actions that are currently happening, habitual actions, or general truths. Regular verbs follow a consistent pattern based on their endings: -ar, -er, and -ir. By learning these patterns, you can easily conjugate many verbs in the present tense.
Conjugation Patterns
-AR Verbs
For -ar verbs, remove the "-ar" ending and add the following endings:
| Subject Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| yo | -o |
| tú | -as |
| él/ella/usted | -a |
| nosotros/nosotras | -amos |
| vosotros/vosotras | -áis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | -an |
Example: hablar (to speak)
- yo hablo
- tú hablas
- él/ella/usted habla
- nosotros/nosotras hablamos
- vosotros/vosotras habláis
- ellos/ellas/ustedes hablan
-ER Verbs
For -er verbs, remove the "-er" ending and add these endings:
| Subject Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| yo | -o |
| tú | -es |
| él/ella/usted | -e |
| nosotros/nosotras | -emos |
| vosotros/vosotras | -éis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | -en |
Example: comer (to eat)
- yo como
- tú comes
- él/ella/usted come
- nosotros/nosotras comemos
- vosotros/vosotras coméis
- ellos/ellas/ustedes comen
-IR Verbs
For -ir verbs, remove the "-ir" ending and apply these endings:
| Subject Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| yo | -o |
| tú | -es |
| él/ella/usted | -e |
| nosotros/nosotras | -imos |
| vosotros/vosotras | -ís |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | -en |
Example: vivir (to live)
- yo vivo
- tú vives
- él/ella/usted vive
- nosotros/nosotras vivimos
- vosotros/vosotras vivís
- ellos/ellas/ustedes viven
Summary
- -AR verbs: hablar → hablo, hablas, habla, hablamos, habláis, hablan
- -ER verbs: comer → como, comes, come, comemos, coméis, comen
- -IR verbs: vivir → vivo, vives, vive, vivimos, vivís, viven
By mastering these conjugation patterns, you can accurately conjugate a wide range of regular verbs in the present tense.