Conjugation of VERBS in Spanish

The Spanish It is a Roman language derived from Latin and is the second most widely spoken language in the world after Mandarin Chinese. It is a very well structured language and it finds similarities when it comes to conjugate your verbs with other languages ​​of the same origin such as Italian, French or Catalan.

Be clear on verb conjugations It will help you to be able to modify a verb to adapt it to the specific linguistic need of that moment. In this lesson from a PROFESSOR we want to explain the main characteristics of the conjugation of verbs in Spanish, give you examples and show you exercises so you can practice clearly.

Index

1. How do you conjugate verbs in Spanish?
2. Indicative mood, a conjugation of verbs in Spanish
3. Subjunctive mode
4. Imperative and impersonal forms
5. Spanish verb conjugation exercises

Thanks to the verb conjugations we can modify the verb of a sentence so that match the subject in a correct way. The verb is capable of representing the time, the aspect, the mode, the person and the number of the person doing the action.

Verbs have three possible conjugations according to the way the infinitive ends:

• First conjugation: They are the verbs ending in -ar. For example: sing
• Second conjugation: They are the verbs ending in -er. For example: running
• Third conjugation: They are the verbs ending in -ir. For example: laugh

In addition, when using conjugations it must be taken into account that they are formed bytwo particles:

• The root: It is the first part of the verb and remains unchanged in each of its forms.
• Termination: This is the second part of the verb and it will vary as we conjugate the verb, to adapt to the subject in time, mode, aspect, person and number.

For instance, the verb dance has a root that is dance- and an ending that is changing that is -ar.

Most verbs in Spanish are regular, but there are some that are irregular and that means that its ending is different from what we usually use in verbs of the same conjugation. For example, the verb to be in its conjugation of the simple past perfect is I was, on the other hand, a regular verb such as dreaming would be conjugated as I dreamed.

The simple modes are formed using only the word that refers to the verb, instead, the compound modes they will conjugate the verb to have followed the verb in participle. For example: We have swum

Next we are going to show you the different modes and tenses to conjugate a verb and examples so you can see it clearly.

Image: Youtube

The indicative mood is the one we use to talk about facts that are real or that are taken to be true. It is not used to talk about hypotheses or assumptions, but is used to talk about truths. Is the way most used both in oral and written language. It is composed of 5 simple beats and 5 compound beats that are as follows.

Present indicative

The present indicative is used to express actions that are happening in the present, to indicate stable routines or events that will happen in the very near future. For instance:

• I play
• You play
• He / she plays
• We play
• You play
• They play

Past imperfect indicative

The past imperfect indicative is used to indicate an action in the past which we do not know if it has ended or not. It is also used to talk about habitual actions from the past. For instance:

• I played
• You played
• He / she played
• We played
• You were playing
• They played

Past perfect simple indicative

The simple past perfect indicative is a verb conjugation that places us in the past with a action already completed, but that is still valid in the present. For instance:

• I played
• You played
• He / she played
• We play
• You played
• They played

Future simple indicative

The future simple indicative is used to indicate actions that will happen after the moment in which it is spoken. There is always a bit of uncertainty, since we do not talk about real events but they have not yet happened. For instance:

• I'll play
• You will play
• He / she will play
• We will play
• You will play
• They will play

Simple conditional of indicative

The simple indicative conditional is used for express wishes or to ask very courteously. For instance:

• I'd play
• You would play
• He / she would play
• We would play
• You would play
• They would play

Perfect past tense indicative

The past perfect indicative compound is used to describe an action that has taken place in the very near past, but is totally finished. For instance:

• I have played
• You have played
• He / she has played
• We have played
• You have played
• They have played

Past perfect indicative

The past perfect indicative is a verb form that is used to talk about events that happened in the past, but that it is not known for sure if they have been finalized or are still valid. For instance:

• I had played
• You had played
• He / she had played
• We had played
• You had played
• They had played

Past tense of indicative

The past tense of indicative is a tense used rather in literature and expresses an action of the past that has already been completely concluded. It is not very common to hear it in colloquial language, since we tend to use the simple past perfect more. For instance:

• I have played
• You had played
• He / she had played
• We would have played
• You would have played
• They had played

Future composed of indicative

The future compound indicative shows a very certain future in which it is very possible that what we are saying happens. For instance:

• I will have played
• You will have played
• He / she will have played
• We will have played
• You will have played
• They will have played

Indicative compound conditional

The compound indicative conditional is a tense used to show a distant wish and that we have no assurance that it will happen. It is more a longing of our heart. For instance:

• I would have played
• You would have played
• He / she would have played
• We would have played
• You would have played
• They would have played

We continue to know the conjugation of verbs in Spanish to speak of the subjunctive. And is that the Subjunctive mode is used in the Spanish language when there is a need to express a hypothesis that at the moment is uncertain or to indicate what our wishes are regarding a situation or idea.

It is a way less used than the indicative both in oral and written language and is made up of 3 simple times and 3 compound times, which are as follows.

Present subjunctive

The present subjunctive is used in sentences where a fact is not expressed but the speaker's opinion. For instance:

• I play
• You play
• He / she plays
• We play
• You play
• They play

Imperfect subjunctive

The imperfect subjunctive expresses a I wish the speaker had and what has happened recently. There are two ways to conjugate it and you can choose the one that suits you best on each occasion. They are both equally correct and mean exactly the same thing. For instance:

• I will play or play
• You will play or play
• He / she will play or play
• We will play or play
• You will play or play
• They will play or play

Future simple subjunctive

The future simple subjunctive is not widely used in today's language. It expresses events that will happen in the future and that are highly desired but totally uncertain. For instance:

• I'll play
• You play
• He / she will play
• We will play
• You will play
• They will play

Past perfect subjunctive compound

The past perfect subjunctive tells about a fairly recent past and that is totally desirable. For instance:

• I have played
• You have played
• He / she has played
• We have played
• You have played
• They have played

Past perfect subjunctive

The past perfect subjunctive is that form that shows a past that would have been desirable for the speaker. There are also two different ways to conjugate this time and you can choose the one that suits you best each time, both are completely correct. For instance:

• I would have or would have played
• You would have or would have played
• He / she would have or would have played
• We would have or would have played
• You would have or would have played
• They would have or would have played

Future compound of subjunctive

The future compound subjunctive expresses a desire of the speaker who is positioned in a Next future. This verb form is practically no longer used. For instance:

• I would have played
• You would have played
• He / she would have played
• We would have played
• You would have played
• They would have played

Image: A classy class

The imperative is a grammatical mode that is used when conjugating verbs in Spanish and is used to formulate orders and commands. Sometimes we can also use it for requests and wishes but always from a mandatory point of view. The conjugations of Spanish verbs that follow these modes are as follows.

Imperative

At imperative mode we indicate that you have to do something in a direct way. It does not have first person, since it is only to give orders to other individuals. For instance:

• Me -
• You play
• He / she plays
• We play
• You play
• They play

Negative imperative

The negative imperative is a verb mode used to give orders in a negative way. The first person is not used either, since it will always be to prohibit an action to another individual For example:

• Me -
• You don't play
• He / she does not play
• We do not play
• You don't play
• They don't play

Within the impersonal forms we can find the infinitive, the gerund and the participle. Are they don't have people bending therefore they remain unchanged without depending on the subject. Let's see them one by one.

Infinitive

The infinitive is the essence of a verb, that is to say, the general name that we put to a verb to designate it regardless of subsequent conjugations. For example: Play

Compound infinitive

It is the complex form of the verb in the infinitive. For example: Have played

Gerund

The gerund indicates that the action is taking place right now. For example: Playing

Compound gerund

It is the compound form of the gerund. For example: Having played

Participle

The participle is a verb mode that acts as an adjective in sentences. It agrees in gender and number with the subject. For instance:

• Played
• Move
• Played
• Plays

Here are some exercises of Spanish verb conjugation pso you can practice verb modes and tenses.

Complete the following sentences with the corresponding verb form:

1. Would you __ (like) adopt this cat? I think __ (to be) lost.
2. __ (hug) her when she told me she was pregnant.
3. When __ (turn) 25 we will go on a trip together.
4. I asked the fruit vendor to __ (give) me three apples, but I don't think she __ (understand) me because she only gave me two.
5. I __ (love) having a lot of money to buy clothes.
6. I sincerely hope that the mechanic __ (fix) the car, because if not I don't know how we __ (go) on vacation.
7. Luckily they got to the theater before __ (start) the show.
8. How could it be that at his age __ (playing) the violin so well.
9. The coach has told me that I should __ (drink) a lot of water so as not to become dehydrated.

Solution

We leave you here the solution to the previous exercise so that you can check your answers:

1. Would you like to adopt this cat? I think he IS lost.
2. I HUGGED her when she told me she was pregnant.
3. When she turns 25 we will go on a trip together.
4. I asked the grocer to GIVE me three apples, but I think he didn't UNDERSTAND me because he only gave me two.
5. I would LOVE to have a lot of money to buy clothes.
6. I sincerely hope that the mechanic FIXES the car already, because if not I don't know how we will go on vacation.
7. Luckily they got to the theater before the show STARTED.
8. How could it be that at his age he PLAYED the violin so well.
9. The coach has told me that I should DRINK a lot of water so as not to become dehydrated.

If you want to read more articles similar to Conjugation of Spanish verbs - with exercises, we recommend that you enter our category of Grammar and Linguistics.

• Bueso, I., Fernández, I. B., & Fernández, R. V. (2000). Basic Spanish grammar: with exercises (Vol. 2, No. 3). Editorial Edinumen.
• Frau, J. M., & Torrione, M. (1998). Spanish verbs: systematic exercises for learning them. Editions OPHRYS.