How to Conjugate Spanish Verbs (Present Tense)

Last Updated: January 31, 2023 References Approved

Conjugating verbs in Spanish can be tricky. To conjugate a regular verb in the present tense, all you have to do is know your subject, remove the ending from the verb, and add the ending for the corresponding subject. When you start conjugating reflexive or irregular verbs, the rules change a bit, but you can still do it once you learn a few key facts. If you want to know how to conjugate Spanish verbs in the present tense, just follow these steps.

Sample Conjugations

Present Tense Conjugation of Regular Spanish Verbs

Sample Present Tense Conjugation of Spanish Stem Changing Verbs

Sample Present Tense Conjugation for Highly Irregular Verbs

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Conjugating Regular Verbs

1
Understand subjects. The subject is the noun that the verb is referring to. To conjugate a verb in Spanish, you'll first need to be familiar with the several different personal subject pronouns in the language. Here they are:^{[1]
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- Yo — I(formal)
- Tú — you (singular familiar)
- Usted — you (singular formal)
- Él, ella — he, she
- Nosotros/as — we
- Vosotros/as — you (plural familiar)
- Ustedes — you (plural formal)
- Ellos/as — they
  - Note that while there are eight different subjects, there are only six different forms for conjugation. Él, ella, and usted are conjugated the same way, and so are ellos, ellas, and ustedes.
2
Determine the subject. Once you're familiar with subjects, you'll need to find the corresponding noun for the verb. If the verb is necesitar (to need), who is it that needs something? Is it you? The person you're talking to? A group of boys? The subject will determine the form of the conjugation.

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3
Remove the ending. All Spanish verbs have the endings of either "-ar," "-ir," or "-er." Once you remove the current ending, you can add on the new corresponding ending. Unless the verb is reflexive; then it will have "se" tacked on past the end of the verb.
4
Conjugate "-ar" verbs. Once you learn the form of conjugation for "-ar" verbs in the present tense, you can just add the form to the end of any regular "-ar" verbs. Here are the rules for conjugating them in the present tense, using the verb hablar (to talk):^{[2]
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- Yo: o - hablo
- Tú: as - hablas
- Él, Ella, Usted: a - habla
- Nosotros/as: amos - hablamos
- Vosotros/as: áis - habláis
- Ellos/as, Ustedes: an - hablan
5
Conjugate "-er" verbs. Learn the form for conjugating "-er" verbs in the present tense and just add it to the end of each verb.^{[3]
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- Yo: o - bebo
- Tú: es - bebes
- Él, Ella, Usted: e - bebe
- Nosotros/as: emos - bebemos
- Vosotros/as: éis - bebéis
- Ellos/as, Ustedes: en - beben
6
Conjugate "-ir" verbs. Learn the form for conjugating "-ir" verbs in the present tense and just add it to the end of each verb. Here are the endings for the verb "-ir" in the present tense, using the verb vivir (to live):^{[4]
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- Yo: o - vivo
- Tú: es - vives
- Él, Ella, Usted: e - vive
- Nosotros/as: imos - vivimos
- Vosotros/as: ís - vivís
- Ellos/as, Ustedes: en - viven

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Conjugating Reflexive Verbs

1
Learn the conjugate the pronoun "se". To conjugate a reflexive verb, the first thing you'll have to do is to learn how to conjugate it depending on the subject pronoun. Each subject pronoun has a distinct form of se. These conjugated forms of se will work in any tense. Here they are:^{[5]
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- Yo: me
- Tú: te
- Él, Ella, Usted: se
- Nosotros/as: nos
- Vosotros/as: os
- Ellos/as, Ustedes: se
2
Place the form of "se" in front of the verb. Before you proceed, you can place the appropriate form of "se" before the verb. You can think of this as removing the "se" at the end of the verb before you conjugate it. Remove the "se" ending from the end -- you've already conjugated it.^{[6]
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3
Conjugate the verb. Now just conjugate the verb according to the rules of conjugating a verb in the present tense -- provided that it's a regular verb. Place the verb after the correct form of se and you'll be done conjugating. You can eliminate the subject pronoun before the reflexive pronoun when you make a statement using a reflexive verb; for example, you can say "Yo me lavo" to say "I wash myself," but the statement "Me lavo" is more common. Here are the forms of the conjugated reflexive verb levanto (to get up) in the present tense:^{[7]
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- Yo: me levanto
- Tú: te levantas
- Él, Ella, Usted: se levanta
- Nosotros/as: nos levantamos
- Vosotros/as: os levantáis
- Ellos/as, Ustedes: se levantan

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Conjugating Irregular Verbs

1
Conjugate stem-changing verbs. These verbs are also referred to as “radical changing verbs”, which means “stem” or “root” in Spanish. In stem-changing verbs, the stem vowel of the verb changes in the present tense. However, the stem does not change in the nosotros or vosotros forms of the verb. There are a few different ways that the stem vowel can change. Here are some examples:^{[8]
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- Conjugate verbs with a stem change from o to ue using dormir (to sleep) as an example:
  - Yo: duermo
  - Tú: duermes
  - Él, Ella, Usted: duerme
  - Nosotros/as: dormimos
  - Vosotros/as: dormís
  - Ellos/as, Ustedes: duermen
- Conjugate verbs with a stem change from e to ie using querer (to want) as an example:
  - Yo: quiero
  - Tú: quieres
  - Él, Ella, Usted: quiere
  - Nosotros/as: queremos
  - Vosotros/as: queréis
  - Ellos/as, Ustedes: quieren
- Conjugate verbs with a stem change from e to i using seguir (to follow or continue) as an example:
  - Yo: sigo
  - Tú: sigues
  - Él, Ella, Usted: sigue
  - Nosotros/as: seguimos
  - Vosotros/as: seguís
  - Ellos/as, Ustedes: siguen
2
Conjugate verbs that change in the first person. Some verbs are irregular in their first-person present tense form. The rest of the forms of the verbs will follow the conventions of conjugating regular verbs. It's best to memorize these verbs to conjugate them correctly.^{[9]
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- Conjugate verbs that change from c to zc in the first person:
  - Conocer (to be acquainted with): Yo conozco
  - Agradecer (to thank): Yo agradezco
  - Ofrecer (to be acquainted with): Yo ofrezco
- Conjugate verbs that have a g appear in the first person:
  - Caer (to fall): Yo caigo
  - Salir (to go out): Yo salgo
  - Tener (to have): Yo tengo
  - Traer (to bring): "Yo traigo"
- Conjugate verbs with others changes in the yo form:
  - Dar (to give): Yo doy
  - Saber (to know): Yo sé
  - Ver (to see): Yo veo
3
Conjugate other irregular verbs in the present tense. There are other commonly used verbs -- and some not so commonly used -- that are not stem-changing verbs but which are just conjugated in an irregular way. Memorizing these words will help you speak basic Spanish. Here are some of the most common irregular verbs conjugated in the present tense:^{[10]
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- Estar (to be):
  - Yo: estoy
  - Tú: estás
  - Él, Ella, Usted: está
  - Nosotros/as: estamos
  - Vosotros/as: estáis
  - Ellos/as, Ustedes: están
- Ser (to be):
  - Yo: soy
  - Tú: eres
  - Él, Ella, Usted: es
  - Nosotros/as: somos
  - Vosotros/as: sois
  - Ellos, Ellas, Ustedes: son
- Ir (to go):
  - Yo: voy
  - Tú: vas
  - Él, Ella, Usted: va
  - Nosotros/as: vamos
  - Vosotros/as: vais
  - Ellos/as, Ustedes: van

Community Q&A

Question

What is the difference between "ser" and "estar"?

Donagan

Top Answerer

"Ser" indicates a permanent (or nearly so) state of being, such as in saying "I am tall." "Estar" is a less permanent state of being or location, such as when saying "I am tired," or "I am in the house."
Question

How do I say "We are here" in Spanish?

Community Answer

"Estamos aqui."
Question

Is "hacer" also an irregular verb, and if so, how do I conjugate it?

Donagan

Top Answerer

Yes, it's irregular. Simple present tense: hago, haces, hace, hacemos, hacéis, hacen.