Spanish Grammar Glossary

The process of changing a verb's ending to agree with its subject (person and number) and to express tense, mood, and aspect. Spanish verbs conjugate far more extensively than English ones — each tense has six distinct forms.

The base, unconjugated form of a verb — the form you'll find in a dictionary. In Spanish, all infinitives end in -ar, -er, or -ir (e.g. hablar, comer, vivir). The infinitive tells you the verb type but not who is doing the action or when.

The most common class of Spanish verb, whose infinitive ends in -ar (e.g. hablar, caminar, trabajar). Regular -ar verbs all follow the same conjugation pattern, making them the best starting point for learners.

The second class of Spanish verb, whose infinitive ends in -er (e.g. comer, beber, leer). Regular -er verbs follow their own conjugation pattern, distinct from -ar and -ir verbs.

The third class of Spanish verb, whose infinitive ends in -ir (e.g. vivir, escribir, abrir). Regular -ir verbs share many endings with -er verbs but differ in nosotros and vosotros forms.

A verb that follows its type's standard conjugation pattern without exception. Once you know the pattern for -ar, -er, or -ir verbs, you can conjugate any regular verb in that group automatically.

A verb that deviates from the standard conjugation pattern in one or more tenses. Some are irregular throughout (ser, ir); others only in the yo form (saber: sé) or in certain tenses. The most common verbs in Spanish tend to be irregular.

A verb whose vowel in the stem (the part before the infinitive ending) changes in certain conjugated forms. The three patterns are e→ie (querer: quiero), o→ue (poder: puedo), and e→i (pedir: pido). The change only affects the stressed syllable — nosotros and vosotros forms are usually unchanged.

A verb where the subject performs the action on itself. In Spanish, reflexive verbs are identified by the pronoun se attached to the infinitive (e.g. levantarse — to get up). They are conjugated with reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se.

The tense used to describe current actions, habits, and general truths. It is the most frequently used tense and the best starting point for beginners. Formed by replacing the infinitive ending with the appropriate present-tense ending.

The past tense used for completed, specific actions with a clear beginning and end. Often contrasted with the imperfect. Signal words include ayer (yesterday), el lunes pasado (last Monday), and de repente (suddenly).

The past tense used for habitual actions, ongoing states, and background descriptions. Contrasted with the preterite, which describes completed events. Signal words include siempre (always), normalmente (usually), and cuando era niño (when I was a child).

The tense used to express future events, predictions, and probability. Formed by adding endings directly to the infinitive. In everyday speech, the construction ir a + infinitive is more commonly used for planned future events.

The mood used to express what would happen under certain circumstances — equivalent to "would" in English (e.g. hablaría — I would speak). Also used for polite requests and reported speech. Formed by adding conditional endings to the infinitive.

A verb mood (not a tense) used to express wishes, doubts, emotions, hypotheticals, and uncertainty. Triggered by certain verbs and conjunctions, usually in a subordinate clause introduced by que. One of the most challenging aspects of Spanish grammar for English speakers.

The mood used to give commands, instructions, and direct requests. Spanish has distinct imperative forms for tú, usted, nosotros, vosotros, and ustedes — as well as affirmative and negative forms that often differ significantly.

The default verb mood used to state facts, ask questions, and describe objective reality. Most conjugation tables cover the indicative mood. Contrasted with the subjunctive (doubt/emotion) and imperative (commands).

In Spanish verb conjugation, subject pronouns indicate who performs the action: yo (I), tú (you, informal), él/ella (he/she), nosotros (we), vosotros (you all, Spain), ellos/ellas (they). Because Spanish verb endings already encode the subject, pronouns are often omitted in speech.

The Spanish equivalent of the English -ing form, created by replacing -ar endings with -ando, and -er/-ir endings with -iendo (e.g. hablando, comiendo). Used with estar to form progressive tenses (estoy hablando — I am speaking) and in other constructions.

The past participle in Spanish is formed by replacing -ar endings with -ado and -er/-ir endings with -ido (e.g. hablado, comido, vivido). Used with the auxiliary verb haber to form compound tenses such as the perfect (he hablado — I have spoken).

A verb used in combination with a main verb to form compound tenses. In Spanish, haber is the primary auxiliary — used to form all compound tenses (he comido — I have eaten, había llegado — I had arrived). Ser is used to form the passive voice.

A verb that expresses ability, permission, obligation, or possibility. Common Spanish modals include poder (can/to be able to), deber (must/should), querer (to want to), and tener que (to have to). They are typically followed by an infinitive.

Spanish has two verbs meaning "to be": ser (used for identity, origin, permanent characteristics, time) and estar (used for location, temporary states, and progressive tenses). Choosing incorrectly can change your meaning entirely.