Commonly confused

Ir vs Venir: go vs come in Spanish

Like llevar and traer, ir and venir are directional opposites. Ir means movement away from the current location; venir means movement toward the current location of the speaker or listener. The tricky part: Spanish is stricter about perspective than English, which often uses "come" where Spanish demands "ir".

Key distinction

Ir = moving away from where you are; venir = moving toward where the speaker or listener currently is.

Present tense — side by side

ir to go
yo voy
tú vas
él/ella va
nosotros vamos
vosotros vais
ellos/ellas van
Full conjugation table →
venir to come
yo vengo
tú vienes
él/ella viene
nosotros venimos
vosotros venís
ellos/ellas vienen
Full conjugation table →

When to use ir

Going somewhere (away from current location)

  • Voy al supermercado. I'm going to the supermarket.
  • ¿Adónde vas? Where are you going?

Near-future plans (ir + a + infinitive)

  • Voy a estudiar esta noche. I'm going to study tonight.
  • Va a llover. It's going to rain.

When to use venir

Coming toward where the speaker is

  • Ven aquí, por favor. Come here, please.
  • Viene a visitarme mañana. She's coming to visit me tomorrow.

Joining the other person where they currently are

  • ¿Vienes a la fiesta? Are you coming to the party (where I'll be)?
  • Ahora voy — ya voy. I'm coming — I'll be right there. (Speaker uses ir to signal movement toward listener's location)

Common mistakes to avoid

✗ Ahora vengo. ✓ Ahora voy.

In Spanish, when you say "I'm coming" to someone waiting for you (you're moving toward them), you use ir — because from YOUR starting point, it's movement away. "Ahora voy" = I'm on my way.

✗ Voy a tu fiesta. ✓ Voy a tu fiesta. / Voy a ir a tu fiesta.

Actually valid — you are moving toward the party location. But note: if you're already AT the party talking to the host, you'd use venir.

Memory trick

"Venir" looks like "venue" — the place everyone comes TO. If you're heading to the venue, use venir (you're coming toward it). If you're leaving from somewhere, use ir.

The phone call test

If someone calls and says ¿Vienes?, they're asking whether you're coming to where THEY are. You would respond Sí, ya voy (Yes, I'm on my way) — using ir, because from your position you're moving away toward them.

Ir + a + infinitive: the near future

The construction ir + a + infinitive is the most common way to express the near future in conversational Spanish — far more common than the formal future tense: Voy a llamarte (I'm going to call you). This construction uses ir, never venir.

Venir + gerund

Like llevar, venir can be combined with a gerund to express an ongoing action: Viene diciéndolo desde hace años (He's been saying it for years).

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More commonly confused verbs

ser vs estar Ser describes what something fundamentally IS; estar describes how something IS right now. Read guide → saber vs conocer Saber = knowing facts or skills; conocer = being acquainted with people, places, or things. Read guide → pedir vs preguntar Preguntar = to ask a question; pedir = to ask for / request something. Read guide → llevar vs traer Llevar = moving something away from the reference point; traer = moving something toward the reference point. Read guide →
← All confused verb guides