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8.3. PRESENT TENSE: Irregular Verbs
There are a number of irregular verbs that are very important in order to be able to speak even basic Spanish. Since these verbs do not quite follow the pattern of conjugation that we have seen in the chapter on regular verbs, the conjugations will just have to be memorized.
We have found that repeating the conjugations of Spanish verbs out loud with examples is of great help.
Below is a list of important ‘ar’, ‘er’ and ‘ir’ verbs that do not have regular conjugations, but learning these verbs will greatly increase your ability to speak and understand Spanish.
IR – To go
Yo voy – I go
Tú vas – You go
Usted va – You go
Él/Ella va – He/She goes
Nosotros/Nosotras vamos – We go
Ustedes van – You go
Ellos/Ellas van – They go
Some examples of how to use the verb 'ir':
Yo voy al teatro – I go to the theatre ( ‘a el teatro’ becomes ‘al teatro’)
¿Tú vas solo? – Do you go alone?
Ella va a la escuela – She goes to school
Nosotros vamos al supermercado – We go to the supermarket (‘a el supermercado’ becomes ‘al supermercado’)
Ellos van a la farmacia – They go to the pharmacy
VENIR – To come
Yo vengo – I come
Tú vienes – You come
Usted viene – you come
Él/Ella viene – He/She comes
Nosotros/Nosotras venimos – We come
Ustedes vienen – You come
Ellos/Ellas vienen – They come
Some examples of how to use the verb 'venir':
Yo vengo aquí todos los días – I come here every day
Tú vienes con un amigo – You come with a friend
Ella viene más tarde – She comes later
Nosotras venimos aquí frecuentemente – We come here frequently
Ellas vienen con la familia – They come with the family
SALIR – To leave/go out
Yo salgo – I go out
Tú sales – You go out
Usted sale – You go out
Él/Ella sale – He/She goes out
Nosotros/Nosotras salimos – We go out
Ustedes salen – You go out
Ellos/Ellas salen – They go out
Some examples of how to use the verb 'salir':
Yo salgo temprano – I leave early
Tú sales tarde – You leave late
Él sale con un amigo – He leaves with a friend
Nosotros salimos juntos – We go out together
Ellas salen del cine – They leave the cinema (‘de el cine’ becomes ‘del cine’)
DECIR – To say
Yo digo – I say
Tú dices – You say
Usted dice – You say
Él/Ella dice – He/She says
Nosotros/Nosotras decimos – We say
Ustedes dicen – You say
Ellos/Ellas dicen – they say
Some examples of how to use the verb 'decir':
Yo digo la verdad – I tell the truth
¿Qué dices tú? – What do you say?
Ella dice que es cierto – She says it’s true/certain
Nosotros decimos no a la violencia – We say no to violence
Ellos dicen mentiras – They tell lies
HACER – To do
Yo hago – I do
Tú haces – You do
Usted hace – You do
Él/Ella hace – He/She does
Nosotros/Nosotras hacemos – We do
Ustedes hacen – You do
Ellos/Ellas hacen – They do
Some examples of how to use 'hacer':
Hago el proyecto – I do the project
¿Cómo haces esto? – How do you do this?
Ella hace una torta – She makes a cake
Hacemos una fiesta en el hotel – We are having a party at the hotel
Ellos hacen un buen trabajo – They do/are doing a good job