A1 · Verbs
El presente regular
Almost everything you say in your first months of Spanish uses this tense, and it is built from three short tables. Spanish endings carry the person, which is why the pronoun is usually left out: hablo already means I speak, and saying yo hablo adds emphasis rather than information.
The three sets
Take the infinitive, remove the last two letters, add the ending. The -er and -ir sets are identical except for nosotros.
| -ar hablar | -er comer | -ir vivir | |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablo | como | vivo |
| tú | hablas | comes | vives |
| él / ella / usted | habla | come | vive |
| nosotros | hablamos | comemos | vivimos |
| ellos / ustedes | hablan | comen | viven |
Why the pronoun disappears
The ending already says who. Spanish uses the pronoun for contrast or emphasis, so a learner who says yo in every sentence sounds like they are constantly correcting someone.
- Trabajo en Lima.I work in Lima. · normal
- Yo trabajo en Lima, ella trabaja en Cusco.I work in Lima, she works in Cusco. · contrast
What the present covers
More ground than the English present. It handles habits, facts, what is happening right now, and scheduled future events. Spanish reaches for estar + gerundio far less often than English uses the -ing form.
- Habit: estudio todos los días
- Fact: vivo en Comas
- Right now: ¿qué haces? — leo
- Near future: mañana ceno con ellos
- Since when: trabajo aquí desde 2019
Questions and negatives need no extra verb
There is no do or does. A question is the same sentence with different intonation and question marks; a negative just puts no in front of the verb.
- ¿Trabajas aquí?Do you work here?
- No trabajo aquí.I do not work here.
- ¿Dónde vives?Where do you live?
Tú, usted and ustedes
Usted takes the same ending as él, which surprises learners. In Peru and most of Latin America ustedes covers every plural you, formal or not.
| You | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| tú, informal | -as / -es | ¿tú hablas inglés? |
| usted, formal | -a / -e | ¿usted habla inglés? |
| ustedes, plural | -an / -en | ¿ustedes hablan inglés? |
Mistakes to avoid
Yo soy trabajo en Lima.
Trabajo en Lima.
Spanish has one verb per idea; ser is not an auxiliary.
¿Tú haces vivir aquí?
¿Tú vives aquí?
There is no do in Spanish questions.
Nosotros hablan español.
Nosotros hablamos español.
Nosotros takes -amos, -emos, -imos.
Try it
Nosotros ___ en Lima. (vivir)
¿Tú ___ café? (tomar)
Ellos ___ a las siete. (comer)
¿___ usted español?