Spanish

Present Tense

Learn the basic present-tense pattern for regular verbs you use every day.

6 min

The idea

Spanish verbs change their ending to show who is doing the action.

Start with three verb families: -ar, -er and -ir.

Three model verbs

01hablarto speak02comerto eat03vivirto live04The ending tells you which pattern the verb follows.

For “I,” regular verbs use -o in all three families.

Infinitive

hablar, comer, vivir

I form

habloPronunciation: AH-bloh, como, vivoPronunciation: BEE-bohI speak, I eat, I live

Hablar in the present

01habloI speak02hablasyou speak03hablahe, she or you formal speaks04hablamoswe speak05habláisyou all speak, Spain06hablanthey or you all speak

Notice the -er and -ir patterns

01como / comesKOH-mes / come / comemos / coméis / comen02vivo / vives / vive / vivimos / vivís / viven03The biggest difference is in nosotros and vosotros.

Do not overbuild

You do not need every verb ending before you start speaking.

Prioritize yo, tú and the forms you hear often. Add the full pattern gradually through real sentences.

Use the tense in daily life

01Hablo un poco de españolAH-bloh oon POH-koh deh es-pah-NYOL.I speak a little Spanish.02Como a las dos.I eat at two.03Vivo en Valencia.I live in Valencia.04¿Trabajas aquí?Do you work here?05¿Hablas inglés?AH-blahs een-GLEHSDo you speak English?

Remember this

Learn verbs inside useful sentences, not as isolated tables.

Hablo un poco de español. Vivo en Valencia. Trabajo por la mañana. Repeated patterns make the endings familiar.

Lesson complete

Reviewed 2026-09-07

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