Spanish Conjugation: Every Tense with Examples

The present tense is the most-used tense in Spanish. It describes actions happening now, habitual actions, and general truths. Regular verbs follow predictable patterns based on their infinitive ending.

How to conjugate regular verbs

Remove the infinitive ending and add the appropriate personal ending. For example, hablar (to speak) becomes hablo (I speak), hablas (you speak), and so on.

-AR verbs: hablar (to speak)

• yo: hablo (I speak)
• tú: hablas (you speak)
• él/ella/Ud.: habla (he/she speaks)
• nosotros: hablamos (we speak)
• vosotros: habláis (you all speak)
• ellos/Uds.: hablan (they speak)

-ER verbs: comer (to eat)

• yo: como (I eat)
• tú: comes (you eat)
• él/ella/Ud.: come (he/she eats)
• nosotros: comemos (we eat)
• vosotros: coméis (you all eat)
• ellos/Uds.: comen (they eat)

-IR verbs: vivir (to live)

• yo: vivo (I live)
• tú: vives (you live)
• él/ella/Ud.: vive (he/she lives)
• nosotros: vivimos (we live)
• vosotros: vivís (you all live)
• ellos/Uds.: viven (they live)

The most commonly used Spanish verbs are irregular in the present tense. These five verbs appear in nearly every conversation and must be memorized individually: ser, estar, ir, tener, and hacer.

Ser (to be: permanent identity)

Use ser for identity, profession, origin, and permanent traits.

• yo: soy (I am)
• tú: eres (you are)
• él/ella/Ud.: es (he/she is)
• nosotros: somos (we are)
• vosotros: sois (you all are)
• ellos/Uds.: son (they are)

Estar (to be: temporary location or condition)

Use estar for location, emotions, and temporary states.

• yo: estoy (I am)
• tú: estás (you are)
• él/ella/Ud.: está (he/she is)
• nosotros: estamos (we are)
• vosotros: estáis (you all are)
• ellos/Uds.: están (they are)

Ir (to go)

Use ir for movement and the near future (ir + a + infinitive).

• yo: voy (I go)
• tú: vas (you go)
• él/ella/Ud.: va (he/she goes)
• nosotros: vamos (we go)
• vosotros: vais (you all go)
• ellos/Uds.: van (they go)

Tener (to have)

Use tener for possession, age, obligations, and common idioms.

• yo: tengo (I have)
• tú: tienes (you have)
• él/ella/Ud.: tiene (he/she has)
• nosotros: tenemos (we have)
• vosotros: tenéis (you all have)
• ellos/Uds.: tienen (they have)

Hacer (to do/make)

Use hacer for actions, creation, weather, and time expressions.

• yo: hago (I do/make)
• tú: haces (you do/make)
• él/ella/Ud.: hace (he/she does/makes)
• nosotros: hacemos (we do/make)
• vosotros: hacéis (you all do/make)
• ellos/Uds.: hacen (they do/make)

The preterite tense describes completed actions in the past. Use it for things that happened once, at a specific time, or within a defined period. Regular -ar verbs use one set of endings. -er and -ir verbs share the same endings.

-AR verbs: hablar (spoke)

• yo: hablé (I spoke)
• tú: hablaste (you spoke)
• él/ella/Ud.: habló (he/she spoke)
• nosotros: hablamos (we spoke)
• ellos/Uds.: hablaron (they spoke)

-ER and -IR verbs: comer (ate), vivir (lived)

• yo: comí (I ate)
• tú: comiste (you ate)
• él/ella/Ud.: comió (he/she ate)
• nosotros: comimos (we ate)
• ellos/Uds.: comieron (they ate)

Key irregular preterites

Ser and ir share the same preterite forms:

• yo: fui (I was/went)
• tú: fuiste (you were/went)
• él/ella/Ud.: fue (he/she was/went)
• nosotros: fuimos (we were/went)
• ellos/Uds.: fueron (they were/went)

Tener, hacer, and estar follow a u-stem pattern:

• tener: tuve, tuvo, tuvieron (had)
• hacer: hice, hizo, hicieron (did/made)
• estar: estuve, estuvo, estuvieron (was)

Beyond present and preterite, three other indicative tenses are essential for fluent Spanish. The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions. The future describes what will happen. The conditional describes what would happen.

Imperfect tense: describing the past

Use the imperfect for repeated actions, background information, and states of being in the past.

Regular -ar verbs: hablar > hablaba, hablabas, hablaba, hablábamos, hablaban

Regular -er and -ir verbs: comer > comía, comías, comía, comíamos, comían

Irregular verbs:

• ser: era, eras, era, éramos, eran (I used to be)
• ir: iba, ibas, iba, íbamos, iban (I used to go)

Future tense: describing what will happen

The future uses the entire infinitive as the stem, then adds future endings.

Regular verbs: hablar > hablaré, hablarás, hablará, hablaremos, hablarán

Irregular stems (common ones):

• tener: tendré, tendrás, tendrá, tendremos, tendrán (will have)
• hacer: haré, harás, hará, haremos, harán (will do/make)
• ir: iré, irás, irá, iremos, irán (will go)
• ser: seré, serás, será, seremos, serán (will be)

Conditional tense: describing what would happen

The conditional uses the infinitive stem plus conditional endings.

Regular verbs: hablar > hablaría, hablarías, hablaría, hablaríamos, hablarían

Irregular verbs use the same irregular stems as the future:

• tener: tendría, tendrías, tendría, tendríamos, tendrían (would have)
• hacer: haría, harías, haría, haríamos, harían (would do/make)
• estar: estaría, estarías, estaría, estaríamos, estarían (would be)

Language teachers often refer to the Super 7: the seven most high-frequency verbs in Spanish. These verbs appear in virtually every conversation. Mastering them across all tenses gives you enormous communicative power.

The Super 7 are:

• ser (to be, permanent identity)
• estar (to be, temporary location or condition)
• ir (to go)
• tener (to have)
• hacer (to do or make)
• poder (to be able to, can)
• querer (to want)

How to use each verb

1. Ser: Use for identity, origin, profession, personality, time, and essential characteristics. Example: "Soy estudiante." (I am a student.)

2. Estar: Use for location, emotions, conditions, and temporary states. Example: "Estoy cansado." (I am tired.)

3. Ir: Use for movement and the near future with ir + a + infinitive. Example: "Voy a comer." (I am going to eat.)

4. Tener: Use for possession, age, obligations (tener que), and idioms. Example: "Tengo hambre." (I am hungry. Literally: I have hunger.)

5. Hacer: Use for doing, making, weather, and time expressions. Example: "Hace calor." (It is hot.)

6. Poder: Use for ability and permission. Example: "Puedo ayudar." (I can help.)

7. Querer: Use for wants and desires. Example: "Quiero agua." (I want water.)

Practice strategy

FluentFlash's conjugation flashcards drill these verbs in every tense using spaced repetition. This builds automatic recall so you do not have to think through endings each time you speak.