The 20 most important irregular Spanish verbs
These 20 irregular Spanish verbs appear in almost every conversation. Master them and your Spanish will transform overnight.
Irregular verbs break the standard conjugation rules — but the good news is that the most important ones are so common you'll learn them faster than you think, simply through exposure. Here are the 20 you need to know first.
The top 5 — learn these first
Ser — to be (permanent)
Irregular in almost every tense. Present: soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son. Preterite: fui, fuiste, fue. Note: ser and ir share the same preterite forms — context makes the meaning clear.
Estar — to be (temporary/location)
Present: estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están. The accent marks in estás, está, estáis are easy to forget but important.
Tener — to have
Present: tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen. The yo form (tengo) is the key irregularity. Also forms part of many idiomatic expressions: tener hambre (to be hungry), tener miedo (to be afraid).
Ir — to go
Present: voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van. Also used to form the immediate future: voy a comer (I'm going to eat).
Hacer — to do / to make
Present: hago, haces, hace, hacemos, hacéis, hacen. Preterite: hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis, hicieron.
Essential verbs 6–15
Poder — to be able to / can
Stem-changing (o→ue): puedo, puedes, puede, podemos, podéis, pueden.
Querer — to want / to love
Stem-changing (e→ie): quiero, quieres, quiere, queremos, queréis, quieren.
Decir — to say / to tell
Present: digo, dices, dice, decimos, decís, dicen. Preterite: dije, dijiste, dijo.
Saber — to know (facts/how to)
Present yo: sé. Otherwise regular. Preterite: supe, supiste, supo.
Ver — to see
Present: veo, ves, ve, vemos, veis, ven. Imperfect: veía (regular -ía endings).
Venir — to come
Present: vengo, vienes, viene, venimos, venís, vienen.
Dar — to give
Present: doy, das, da, damos, dais, dan. Preterite: di, diste, dio.
Salir — to leave / to go out
Present yo: salgo. Otherwise regular.
Poner — to put / to place
Present yo: pongo. Preterite: puse, pusiste, puso.
Traer — to bring
Present yo: traigo. Preterite: traje, trajiste, trajo.
Verbs 16–20: high frequency, worth knowing
Conocer — to know (people/places)
Present yo: conozco. Otherwise regular in present.
Seguir — to follow / to continue
Stem-changing (e→i): sigo, sigues, sigue, seguimos, seguís, siguen.
Oír — to hear
Present: oigo, oyes, oye, oímos, oís, oyen.
Caer — to fall
Present yo: caigo. Otherwise regular.
Haber — to have (auxiliary)
Used to form compound tenses. Present: he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han.
How to learn them
Don't try to memorise all 20 at once. Pick 3 per week and focus on the present tense first. Use each verb in at least 5 original sentences. Once you can use the present confidently, tackle the preterite — which is where most irregularities become more complex.