Present Tense Verbs
Verbs explained and the rules and uses of the present tense
Verbs Explained
Verbs in Spanish can be a little complex and hard to understand for beginners. In Spanish the form the verbs takes depends on many factors.
- Tense: Are you speaking about something in past, present or future?
- Is the subject of the verb singular or plural?
- Is the sentence in the first person (I, we), second person (you) or third person (he, she or they)?
- There are also different moods such as the imperative (commands) and the subjunctive (belief or desire)
The infinitive form is the base form that you'll find in translations. For example the verb "correr" is the infinitive form of the verb. In English it means "to run". The infinitive forms end in 'ar', 'er' and 'ir'.
For level 3 of our Spanish for Kids section we'll introduce you to the infinitive forms of many common Spanish verbs. We'll focus on showing you how to change the verbs for:
- Present Tense
- Singular and Plural
- First person (yo, nosotros), second person (tu, usted, vosotros, ustedes) and third person (el, ella, ellos or ellas).
Start by taking a look at the Uses of the Present Tense below and then move on to the regular 'ar', 'er' and 'ir' verbs in Spanish.
Rules and Uses
Click or tap on the following rules and uses of the present tense in Spanish to view sentences and listen to audio.
Used to express an on going action or one that is generally repeated.
An action that is currently happening.
Action began in the past and continues in the present. They are fromed with the verb 'hacer' + the expresion of time + 'que' + present tense verb.
Used to express an historic event that occurred in the past.
Used to express an action that has not yet happened.
Used to express an on-going action which will occur over and over now and in the future.
Used to express an on-going action which will occur over and over now and in the future.
Action began in the past and continues in the present. They are formed with the verb 'hacer' + an expression of time + 'que' + present tense verb.
Action began in the past and continues in the present. They are formed with the verb 'hacer' + an expression of time + 'que' + present tense verb.
Action began in the past and continues in the present. They are formed with the verb 'hacer' + an expression of time + 'que' + present tense verb.