I remember when I started my first year of high school. I was given the choice to learn either French or Spanish to fulfill the foreign language requirement for college. The decision was not a difficult one for me to make. My decision was based on what language did those around me speak the most. Where I grew up the majority of people living in my neighborhood spoke Spanish, so I decided to learn Spanish the best way that I knew how. I would study it in school and come home to practice it with my neighbors. We played a Mexican Bingo game called Loteria which helped me to acquire new vocabulary words in Spanish. The pictures used helped me to learn the Spanish word for each picture that it was associated with it in the game. The key to learning a new language fast is to learn the target language. The target language is the new language that you are trying to acquire. The target language that you are trying to learn from reading this post is Spanish. In this post, you will learn some from the ultimate guide to learn Spanish fast and some of the best-recommended strategies to do so.

In a study conducted by Amuzie and Winke (2009), they found that “one of the best ways to learn a foreign language is to study abroad” (p. 366). In this study, they looked at two different groups of foreign exchange students who came to the US to acquire English. These students, who took part in this study, reported that “they themselves should find opportunities to use their [second language] and that success in [second language] learning depends more on their own efforts outside of class” (Amuzie & Winke, 2009, p. 374).

The Ultimate Guide: Top 10 Ways to Learn Spanish Fast

There are several ways to learn Spanish fast. In addition, the list provided below will help you determine what is the best method for you to learn Spanish at your desired pace. Consult this list as often as needed with the desired outcomes that you have in mind to help you learn Spanish.

1. Start with a Purpose

When you want to begin learning a new language, you want to have a purpose in mind as to why you would want to study that language.

According to Saville-Troike and Barto (2016), “adding second languages at an older age often takes considerable effort, however, and thus requires motivation” (p. 10).

Here is a list of possible reasons why someone might be interested in learning Spanish:

•Invasion or conquest of one’s country by speakers of another language; •A need or desire to contact speakers of other languages in economic or other specific domains; •Immigration to a country where the use of a language other than one’s first language is required; •Adoption of religious beliefs and practices which involve the use of another language; •A need or desire to pursue educational experiences where access requires proficiency in another language; •A desire for occupational or social advancement which is furthered by knowledge of another language; •An interest in knowing more about peoples of other cultures and having access to their technologies or literature.

A purpose can be your reason why you find that language intriguing to study.

These are all very important questions to ask yourself as to why you want to learn Spanish. In other words, consider these as your overall goal and motivation as to why you want to learn Spanish. Or, maybe you want to learn How to Start a Spanish Conversation. Why do you want to learn Spanish? Leave a comment below.

2. Have a Goal in Mind

Once you know your purpose, set reasonable goals for you to accomplish your goals. For example, you might set a goal for yourself and say that you want to learn 5 new Spanish words in a week. This seems like a goal that you can manage on your own and you will then refer to a new list of Spanish vocabulary words that will help you learn the word and the meaning of the word. Refer to Spanish dictionary for a list of daily Spanish words or create a list of your own.

3. Learn Spanish Pronunciation

Learning Spanish pronunciation is key in learning the language. By learning how to pronunciate the correct words and sounds in Spanish, you are a step ahead of the rest. Spanish pronunciation is really important for language development; otherwise, a lot of the words that you will say will be said incorrectly. To begin, watch this short video introduction of the Spanish alphabet. This is part of the foundation to acquire a new language. Furthermore, this is a step in the right direction to help prepare you to learn Spanish.

4. Learn Spanish grammar and vocabulary

Spanish has a lot of vocabulary words that are similar to English. These words are known as Spanish cognates because they are similar to words found in both English and in Spanish. The goal is not to memorize these Spanish cognates in one sitting; however, try to memorize a chunk (5-10 words at a time) of these words and then say or write them down repeatedly.

Learning a new language requires a lot of repetition and you can do this by having a conversation with someone who is interested in learning these Spanish words with you.

5. Have conversations with Practice

One of the highly recommended ways to acquire a new language is by having a conversation. When you begin to practice the new vocabulary words that you have learned, you are teaching them to someone else and vice versa. As the saying goes, “practice is the mother of skill.” If you start practicing today, you will acquire new Spanish vocabulary in no time.

6. Learn Spanish vocabulary with context

Similar to playing a game of Loteria, you want to learn Spanish vocabulary words that are most useful to you. You can learn new Spanish words every day by identifying and associating common household items that are found in the kitchen with the Spanish equivalent. Once you have learned the Spanish vocabulary words for everything found in the kitchen, move on to the bathroom, bedroom, and living room. Before you know it, you will know all of the Spanish vocabulary words for different parts of your house.

7.  Learn how to understand people who speak Spanish fast.

As a student who is interested in learning how to speak Spanish, it can be quite difficult to try and understand Spanish when someone is speaking quickly.

There are several ways to overcome this issue.

First, choose your favorite form of Spanish broadcasting media to watch and/or listen to like the Spanish news, the Spanish novelas, or Spanish songs.

Second, whenever you come across a new word in Spanish, look it up and write it down.

Eventually, you will acquire the skill to understand spoken Spanish and exponentially grow your list of Spanish words in no time.

8. Practice Spanish pronunciation.

Learning Spanish vocabulary on your own can be very difficult in itself without having the proper support. It’s not as difficult as you may think.

The key to learning a new language is to learn it and practice it every day. Thus, I would personally recommend that you invest your time in an online Spanish course at Esperanza Española. By the way, the first course is FREE! Check it out.

9. Read as Much as Possible.

Remember when you were in school and your teacher(s) emphasized how important it was for you to read? The same thing applies in order to learn Spanish.

Lightbown and Spada (2013) state that “comprehension-based activities may best be seen as an excellent way to begin learning and as a supplement to other kinds of learning.”

Also, by reading in Spanish, you will have access to more vocabulary words, pictures, and tenses for you to recognize. See my Spanish book recommendations to get started today.

10. Make it a daily habit.

Once you have learned how implemented the 9 steps above, make it a part of your daily routine and you will see results in no time. Just make sure that you keep your goal in mind as you study Spanish and you will learn Spanish in no time. Guaranteed!

The Ultimate Guide to Spanish Conversation for Beginners

Holding a conversation can be natural for some and difficult for others. Moreover, anything that you want to become good at requires a lot of time, dedication, practice, and effort. Practice saying these basic greetings and questions that are most commonly used and you will learn how to start a conversation in Spanish.

¡Hola!

To begin a conversation in Spanish, similar to English, you can begin with the simple greeting, “¡Hola!” In English, this means “Hello!”

Buenos días

Depending on the time of day, there are several ways that you can greet people. If it’s morning, you can say “Buenos días” which means “Good morning!”

Buenas Tardes

If you are interested in greeting someone in the afternoon, you can greet them by saying “Buenas tardes” which means “Good afternoon.”

Buenas Noches

If you are interested in greeting someone in the evening, you can greet them by saying “Buenas Noches” which means “Good evening.”

Start a Spanish Conversation: Say Goodbye

When a conversation or event comes to a close, you can use these common four common ways to end the conversation.

Adiós

If you are leaving someone or an event, you can simply tell them “adiós” which means “Goodbye.”

Buenas Noches

If you are leaving an event or someone for the night, you can say goodbye to them by saying “Buenas Noches” which means “goodnight.”

Hasta Luego

If you have the intention to see someone again, you can tell them “hasta luego” which is a simple way of saying “see you later.”

Hasta mañana

If you plan on seeing someone the next day, simply let them know this by saying “hasta mañana” which is a nice way of saying “See you tomorrow!”

Hasta la próxima Semana

If you plan on seeing someone next week, simply let them know this by saying “Hasta la próxima Semana” which is a nice way of saying “See you next week!”

Hasta el próximo lunes

If you plan on seeing someone next Monday, simply let them know this by saying “Hasta el próximo lunes” which is a nice way of saying “See you next Monday!”

The Ultimate Guide to Basic Spanish Conversation Questions

Spanish questions and answers

¿cómo estás? (familiar)

If you are genuinely interested in knowing how someone is doing, who is a family member, friend, or the same age as you, you would say to them “¿cómo estás?” which simply means “how are you?”

¿cómo está usted? (formal)

If you are speaking to someone, who is older than you are or they are in an authority position (i.e. teacher, professor, supervisor, or government official), you would say to them “¿cómo está usted?” which simply means “how are you?”

¿Qué tal?

If you are speaking to someone and you want to know “how is it going?”, you can simply say to them, “¿Qué tal?”

The Ultimate Guide to Spanish Conversation Phrases

Bien.

If you are responding to someone who wanted to know how you were doing, a simple response by saying “bien,” which means “fine,” is good enough.

Mal.

If you are responding to someone who wanted to know how you were doing, and you aren’t personally doing too well. Let them know with the response “mal” which means “bad.”

Más o Menos.

If you are responding to someone who wanted to know how you were doing, and you are doing so-so. Let them know with the response “más o menos” which literally means“more or less.”

Muy bien. 

If you are responding to someone who wanted to know how you were doing, and you are doing very well. Let them know by saying “muy bien.”

Regular o Ok.

If you are responding to someone who wanted to know how you were doing, and you are doing ok. Let them know by saying either one of these phrases “regular” or “ok.”

The Ultimate Guide to Start a Spanish Conversation:

Counter-Responses

¿Y tú? (familiar)

After you have responded to someone question, who is a family member, friend, or the same age as you, you can reply back to them to keep the conversation going with the following question: “and you?”

¿Y usted? (formal)

After you have responded to someone’s question, who is older than you are or they are in an authority position (i.e. teacher, professor, supervisor, or government official), you can reply back to them to keep the conversation going with the following question: “and you?”

¿Qué Pasa?

If you are talking to someone and you want to know “what’s up?“, you can simply say to them, “¿Qué Pasa?”

How would you have the ability to get to know someone if you don’t know the best Spanish questions to ask them? Simple! You don’t.

Without having the prior knowledge of the basic simple questions, how would you get to know someone?

Aside from that, how would you be able to keep the conversation flowing naturally?

Questions are not only a crucial part of a conversation, but they also help someone to retrieve crucial information.

Questions are not only important in terms of continuing a conversation; however, they also give you the opportunity to learn something new. By asking someone simple questions, this gives the recipient the ability to provide information, to give an opinion, to explain, or to clarify.

The Ultimate Guide to the Best Spanish Questions to Know

To begin, start with these basic Spanish questions and continue to grow your vocabulary.

The 5 Ws and 1 H in Spanish

Similar to English, these are the most common questions that are found in Spanish. As a note, when these 5 Ws are used as a question, they all have an accent mark included. However, when they are used as a statement, the accent is omitted.

Who? (¿Quién(-es)?)

When you are asking about a specific person, you ask ¿quién? Additionally, if there is more than one person that you are asking about, you would make the question plural by saying ¿quiénes? However, there is more than one way to use the relative pronoun in Spanish.

Whom

If you are trying to say “whom,” then the question that you would ask is ¿A quién? For example, if you are trying to ask “For whom are you working?” Then, the appropriate Spanish question that you would ask is “¿A quién trabajas?

With Whom

If you are trying to say “with whom,” then the question that you would ask is ¿Con quién? For example, if you are trying to ask “With whom am I speaking?” Then, the appropriate Spanish question that you would ask is “¿Con quién hablo?”

Whose

If you are trying to say “whose,” then the question that you would ask is ¿de quién? For example, if you are trying to ask, “Whose books are these?” The Spanish version of the question would be “¿De quiénes son estas libros?

Here are a few examples with Quién(-es):

• ¿Quién es? – Who is it?
• ¿Quiénes son? – Who are they?
• ¿De quién son estos lapices? – Whose pencils are these?

What/Which – ¿Qué?/¿Cuál?

“What” can be expressed in two different ways: qué and cuál. When asking a question that begins with qué, there is only one possible answer. On the other hand, a question that begins with cuál is used eitherto ask for an opinion or as a choice between two options. Also, in some cases, cuál has a close resemblance to the word “which”. Here are a few examples with Qué and Cuál:

• ¿Qué haces? – What are you doing?
• ¿Qué es esto? – What’s this?
• ¿Cuál es tu color favorito? – What is your favorite color?
• ¿Cuál es tu comida favorita? – What is your favorite food?

If something you are asking about is plural, cuál becomes cuáles. For example, in the last example, if the question was “what are your favorite foods?” Then, the question asked would have been “¿Cuáles son tus comidas favoritas?   

When? (¿Cuándo?)

When in Spanish is easily translated to cuándo. However, please note that cuándo cannot be used when asking someone for the time (hours and/or minutes). When a question is dealing with time, the question would begin with qué hora as in “¿Qué hora es?” which means “What time is it?”

Here are a couple of examples with cuándo:

• ¿Cuándo es tú cumpleaños? – “When is your birthday?”
• ¿Cuándo vas a volver? – “When are you coming back?”

Where? (¿Dónde?) 

Where in Spanish is translated to dónde. However, it has two different meanings depending on where the preposition is placed in the question. For example, ¿Adónde? means “to where?” and ¿De dónde? means “From where?”

Here are a few examples with dónde:

• ¿Dónde está mi carro? – “Where is my car?”
• ¿Adónde va William? – “Where is William going?”
• ¿De dónde es Lisa? – “Where is Lisa from?”

Why? (¿Por qué?) – For what reason

Why in Spanish is translated to ¿por qué? Furthermore, it wants to know the reason why something was done.

Here are a few examples with ¿por qué?:

• ¿Por qué estas saliendo? – Why are you leaving?
• ¿Por qué vas a dormir temprano? – Why are you going to sleep early?
• ¿Por qué esta lloviendo? – Why is it raining?

Why? (¿Para qué?) – For what purpose

Why in Spanish can also be translated to ¿para qué? Additionally, it wants to know the purpose behind why something is done.

Here are a few examples with ¿para qué?:

• ¿Para qué estudias matematicas? – Why do you study mathematics?
• ¿Para qué vas al doctor cada mes? – Why do you go to the doctor every month?
• ¿Para qué trabajas? – Why do you work?

Why Should I Learn Spanish?

Believe it or not. Spanish is one of the easiest languages to learn especially if you are a native English speaker.

If you really want to learn Spanish, it all comes down to your motivation behind it. Where do you find your motivation? Motivation basically comes down to one thing your “why?” or, in other words, your purpose for learning Spanish.

This is a question that you may have asked yourself at one point or another.

Spanish is one of the most popular languages to study in the world (next to French and English).

Sure, you may live in an English speaking country and have no need to learn it because no one around you speaks Spanish. However, have you ever considered how you could improve your life by studying Spanish?

If you don’t know the answer to this question, read over the 45 Reasons Why Learning Spanish Could Improve Your Life to find your answer.

The Ultimate Guide to a Career

1. Being Bilingual Will Get You Hired

Spanish is a language that is spoken among 477 million native speakers from Central to South America. Of 477 million native speakers, Spanish is the second most common language in the US alone. By knowing Spanish, you will have a competitive edge that will make you more unique in a competitive job market.

Additionally, this is one of the main reasons why people choose to learn Spanish to give themselves a competitive edge over their competition.

2. A Better Suited For The Job

Whether you work in customer service, teaching, or the medical field knowing Spanish can make you better suited for the job.

For example, depending on your career field, you will have more access to customers and/or patients who are Spanish speakers. By knowing the language, you will have a better way of communicating with them.

When you know Spanish, you have a better way to help your customers and/or patients with their needs sooner rather than relying on someone else to be your translator when you can do it yourself.

3. Earn More Easily

When you know a second language, you have the ability to earn more money. According to a study conducted by The Economist, a person can earn anywhere from $50,000 to $125,000 extra just by knowing a foreign language alone.

4. Travel for Work

Have you ever considered to travel for work? Well, when you know a second language, you can do just that: travel. You can also live as an expat in a Spanish speaking country like Mexico, Panama, or Spain.

Even today, a lot of business is conducted in-person or face-to-face. If you are a proficient Spanish speaker, you will have new doors open for you and the opportunity to gain access to a lot of new career opportunities that are provided abroad.

5. Volunteer to Help Those in Need

100 Most Common Spanish Cognates

There are a lot of Spanish cognates that are found in English. What are cognates? Research says that Spanish cognates are words that look the same as a word you already know. Moreover, they also mean the same thing, too.

To clarify, continue reading to see what the 100 most common Spanish cognates are. Additionally, you will see most of the Spanish words that you already know.

Spanish Cognates beginning with A-C

First, the words listed below begin with the letter A in English and Spanish.

• Actor
• Admirable
• Agenda
• Alcohol
• Altar
• Animal
• Area
• Artificial
• Auto

Next, the words listed below begin with the letter B in English and Spanish.

B

• Balance
• Bar
• Base
• Brutal

Subsequently, the words listed below begin with the letter C in English and Spanish.

C

• Cable
• Canal
• Cáncer
• Canon
• Capital
• Carbón
• Cartón
• Central
• Cerebral
• Cheque
• Chocolate
• Circular
• Civil
• Club
• Collar
• Colonial
• Coma
• Combustión
• Conclusión
• Conductor
• Confusión
• Considerable
• Control
• Cordial
• Criminal
• Cordial
• Criminal
• Crisis
• Cultural

Spanish Cognates beginning with D-F

Moreover, the words listed below begin with the letter D in English and Spanish.

D

• Debate
• Decisión
• Diagonal
• Dimension
• Director
• Disco
• División
• Doctor
• Drama

For instance, the words listed below begin with the letter E in English and Spanish.

E

• Editorial
• Electoral
• Elemental
• Enigma
• Error
• Exclusive
• Excursion
• Experimental
• Explosión
• Expulsion
• Extensión
• Exterior

Additionally, the words listed below begin with the letter F in English and Spanish.

F

• Factor
• Familiar
• Fatal
• Federal
• Festival
• Final
• Flexible
• Formal
• Formula
• Frontal
• Fundamental

Spanish Cognates beginning with G-I

Above all, the words listed below begin with the letter G in English and Spanish.

G

• Gala
• Gas
• General
• Génesis
• Global
• Grave

In addition, the words listed below begin with the letter H in English and Spanish.

H

• Habitual
• Hobby
• Horizontal
• Horror
• Hospital
• Hotel

Conclusively, the words listed below begin with the letter I in English and Spanish.

I

• Idea
• Ideal
• Imperial
• Implacable
• Incursión
• Individual
• Industrial
• Inevitable
• Inferior
• Informal
• Informative
• Inseparable
• Inspector
• Interminable
• Invasión
• Invisible
• Irregular

Spanish Cognates beginning with J-L

Similarly, the words listed below are the only words that begin with the letter J or K in English and Spanish.

J

• Judicial

K

• Kilo

Subsequently, the words listed below are the only words that begin with the letter L in English and Spanish.

L

• Lateral
• Legal
• Liberal
• Literal
• Local

Spanish Cognates beginning with M-P

In addition, the words listed below begin with the letter M in English and Spanish.

M

• Macho
• Maestro
• Mango
• Manía
• Manual
• Marginal
• Mate
• Material
• Matrimonial
• Medieval
• Mediocre
• Melon
• Mental
• Menú
• Metal
• Miserable
• Moral
• Mortal
• Motel
• Motor
• Múltiple
• Municipal
• Musical

Next, the words listed below are the only words that begin with the letter N in English and Spanish.

N

• Noble
• Normal
• Nostalgia

Moreover, the words listed below are the only words that begin with the letter O in English and Spanish.

O

• Ópera
• Oral
• Oriental
• Original

Additionally, the words listed below begin with the letter P in English and Spanish.

P

• Panorama
• Particular
• Pasta
• Pastor
• Patio
• Patrón
• Peculiar
• Penal
• Perfume
• Personal
• Peseta
• Piano
• Plaza
• Plural
• Popular
• Pretension
• Principal
• Probable
• Propaganda
• Protector
• Provincial

Spanish Cognates beginning with R-T

Similarly, the words listed below begin with the letter R in English and Spanish.

R

• Radical
• Radio
• Región
• Regional
• Regular
• Religión
• Reunión
• Revision
• Ritual
• Rural

Therefore, the words listed below begin with the letter S in English and Spanish.

S

• Secular
• Sentimental
• Serial
• Sexual
• Similar
• Simple
• Singular
• Social
• Solar
• Solo
• Subversión
• Superficial
• Superior

Moreover, the words listed below begin with the letter T in English and Spanish.

T

• Taxi
• Televisión
• Terrible
• Terror
• Total
• Transcendental
• Triple
• Tropical

Spanish Cognates beginning with U & V

Lastly, these are the only few words listed below begin with the letter U in English and Spanish.

U

• Unión
• Universal
• Usual

Finally, the words listed below begin with the letter V in English and Spanish.

V

• Verbal
• Versión
• Vertical
• Violín
• Visible
• Visual
• Vital
• Vulgar
• Vulnerable

In conclusion, there are a lot of similarities between English and Spanish. As you can see, some of the words found in Spanish are also found in English and vice versa. In addition, if you want to read more about learning Spanish, read more about learning Spanish.

Related Posts:

• How to Conjugate Spanish Verbs
• 135 AR Spanish Verbs You Need to Know
• 155 ER Spanish Verbs that You Need to Know
• 175 IR Spanish Verbs that You Need to Know

Above all, there are a lot of similarities in the English and Spanish languages. Additionally, do you know any other Spanish cognates that aren’t listed here? What are some of your favorite Spanish cognates? Comment below.

The Ultimate Guide to Conjugating Spanish Verbs

Similar to English, the words that are used in Spanish are conjugated depending on the tense that is being used. In both English and Spanish, the subject, noun, will determine the form of the conjugated verb that is used in the sentence.

Visuals will be provided so that you can see how a verb is conjugated in Spanish. If you want to know how to conjugate verbs in the present tense, just follow the simple steps that are outlined below.

1. The Subject

The subject (noun or pronoun) is generally the word at the beginning of the sentence that the verb refers to. In order to conjugate a verb in Spanish, you will have to become familiar with the personal subject pronouns that are used in the language. Here is a list of them:

• Yo —  I (formal)
• Tú — you (singular familiar)
• Él, Ella — he, she
• Usted — you (singular formal)
• Nosotros/as — we
• Vosotros/as — you (plural familiar)
• Ustedes — you (plural formal)
• Ellos/as — they

Example:

2. What’s the subject?

As mentioned before, the subject is the noun or pronoun that starts off the beginning of the sentence. Once you have become familiar with the subject of the sentence, then it is time to move on to the verb.

If we continue using the verb hablar, we then want to know who is talking? In the example, I said that I speak Spanish. However, who is our new subject? Is it you? Is it him or her? Or them? Once we know who we are referring to as our subject, then we can refer to the next step which is conjugating.

3. Change the ending.

All Spanish verbs have three common endings. Spanish verbs usually end with either -ar, -er, or -ir. Identify the ending of the word that you would like to conjugate. Please note: If the verb is reflexive, then “se” will be added to the end of the word.

4. Conjugate verbs ending with -ar.

Once you have identified the ending of the verb, it is time to change it to the present tense. If the sentence is written in the present tense, this is the rule for all words ending with -ar.

• Yo — o: hablo
• Tú — as: hablas
• Él, Ella, Usted — a: habla
• Nosotoros/as — amos: hablamos
• Vosotros/as — áis: habláis
• Ellos/as — an: hablan

5. Conjugate verbs ending with -er.

Once you have identified the ending of the verb, it is time to change it to the present tense. If the sentence is written in the present tense, this is the rule for all words ending with -er. We will use the verb comer (to eat) as an example.

• Yo — o: como
• Tú — es: comes
• Él, Ella, Usted — e: come
• Nosotoros/as — emos: comemos
• Vosotros/as — éis: coméis
• Ellos/as — en: comen

6. Conjugate verbs ending with -ir.

Once you have identified the ending of the verb, it is time to change it to the present tense. If the sentence is written in the present tense, this is the rule for all words ending with -ir. We will use the verb escribir (to write) as an example.

• Yo — o: escribo
• Tú — es: escribes
• Él, Ella, Usted — e: escribe
• Nosotoros/as — imos: escribimos
• Vosotros/as — ís: escribís
• Ellos/as — en: escriben

Spanish Reflexive Verbs. What are they?

Spanish reflexive verbs are words that are used when the subject of a sentence performs an action on themselves. For example, me acuesto (I lie down). The subject refers to me lying down.

Spanish reflexive verbs are words that usually end with -se. Some of the common words that you may come across in Spanish include divertirse (to have fun), imaginarse (to imagine), levantarse (to get up), ponerse (to put on), and preguntarse (to wonder).     

1. How to Conjugate Reflexive Verbs

In order to conjugate a reflexive verb correctly, you will have to know how to conjugate it based on its reflexive pronoun. Here is a list of the reflexive pronouns that are used in Spanish.

2. Moving the Reflexive Pronoun

In this example, we are going to use the word levantarse (to get up). We know it is a reflexive pronoun because it ends with -se. However, we will remove the ending -se and we are going to move it from the end of the word to the beginning of the word.

Also, since the word ends with -ar, we will conjugate it using the first person form yo (refer back to the conjugate verbs ending with -ar) to see.

3. Conjugate based on the rules.

The example shown above is using the first person present tense of the yo form for the verb levantarse. However, let’s take a look at the verb imaginarse (to imagine) and conjugate it in the present tense. If we remove the -se and move it to the front of the word, we can conjugate it according to the correct form of the word that we need and/or choose. 

For example, we can say “yo me imagino” which means I imagine, but the correct way to say it is “me imagino.” Here is a list of examples for the conjugated reflexive verb imaginarse (to imagine) in the present tense:

• Yo — me imagino
• Tú — te imaginas
• Él, Ella, Usted — se imagina
• Nosotoros/as — nos imaginamos
• Vosotros/as — os imagináis
• Ellos/as — se imaginan

Conjugating Irregular Verbs in Spanish 

1. How to conjugate stem-changing verbs.

In Spanish, the main form of the verb is called the infinitive. The infinitive form of the verb consists of two parts: the stem and the ending. The ending is the last two letters of the word which ends in -ar, -er, or -ir. Additionally, the stem refers to everything else except for the ending. Here are some examples that you can refer to for yourself.

• Conjugate verbs that have a stem change from o to ue using contar (to count) as an example. Also, this has an -ar ending (refer back to the conjugate verbs ending with -ar) for conjugating instructions.
  • Yo — cuento
  • Tú — cuentas
  • Él, Ella, Usted — cuenta
  • Nosotoros/as — contamos
  • Vosotros/as — contáis
  • Ellos/as — cuentan

*Please note: the stem does not change in the nosotros and vosotros forms of the word.

• Conjugate verbs that have a stem change from e to ie using encender (to light) as an example. Also, this has an -er ending (refer back to the conjugate verbs ending with -er) for conjugating instructions.
  • Yo — enciendo
  • Tú — enciendes
  • Él, Ella, Usted — enciende
  • Nosotoros/as — encendemos
  • Vosotros/as — encendéis
  • Ellos/as — encenden
• Conjugate verbs that have a stem change from e to i using pedir (to ask for) as an example. Also, this has an -ir ending (refer back to the conjugate verbs ending with -ir) for conjugating instructions.
  • Yo — pido
  • Tú — pides
  • Él, Ella, Usted — pide
  • Nosotoros/as — pedimos
  • Vosotros/as — pedís
  • Ellos/as — piden

2. How to conjugate the most popular stem-changing verbs.

Similar to the words above these are the most popular words used in Spanish. However, what sets them apart is they are conjugated differently from the rest. Here are a few examples of the most popular Spanish words conjugated in the present tense.

• Estar (to be):
  • Yo: estoy
  • Tú: estás
  • Él, Ella, Usted: está
  • Nosotoros/as: estamos
  • Vosotros/as: estáis
  • Ellos/as: estan
• Ir (to go):
  • Yo: voy
  • Tú: vas
  • Él, Ella, Usted: va
  • Nosotoros/as: vamos
  • Vosotros/as: vais
  • Ellos/as: van
• Ser (to be):
  • Yo: soy
  • Tú: eres
  • Él, Ella, Usted: es
  • Nosotoros/as: somos
  • Vosotros/as: seis
  • Ellos/as: son

3. How to conjugate first person irregular verbs

Some verbs have irregular conjugation only in the first-person present form. In addition, these verbs will follow the conjugation patterns for words ending with -ar, -er, or -ir. Here are a few examples of words that are irregular in the first person:

• Words that change from z to zc in the first person:
  • Agradecer (to thank) – Yo agradezco
  • Conocer (to know of a person, place, or thing) – Yo conozco
  • Ofrecer (to offer) – Yo ofrezco
• Words that have a g in the first person:
  • Caer (to fall) – Yo caigo
  • Poner (to place) – Yo pongo
  • Salir (to leave) – Yo salgo
  • Tener (to have) – Yo tengo
  • Traer (to bring) – Yo traigo
• Other irregular words that change in the first person:
  • Dar (to give) – Yo doy
  • Saber (to know) – Yo sé
  • Ver (to see) – Yo veo

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References

Amuzie, G. L., & Winke, P. (2009). Changes in language learning beliefs as a result of study abroad. System, 37(3), 366-379. Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (2013). How languages are learned 4th edition-Oxford Handbooks for Language Teachers. Oxford university press. Saville-Troike, M., & Barto, K. (2016). Introducing second language acquisition. Cambridge University Press.

Practicingspanish.com. (2019). Spanish grammar – reflexive verbs, reflexive pronouns. Retrieved from http://www.practicingspanish.com/grammar19.html

Spanishdict.com. (2019). Conocer vs. saber. Retrieved from https://www.spanishdict.com/compare/conocer/saber?searchText=conocer%20vs%20saber

Studyspanish.com. (2019). Stem changing verbs e:i. Retrieved from https://studyspanish.com/verbs/lessons/piei

Studyspanish.com. (2019). Stem changing verbs e:ie. Retrieved from https://studyspanish.com/verbs/lessons/pieie

Studyspanish.com. (2019). Stem changing verbs o:ue. Retrieved from https://studyspanish.com/verbs/lessons/pioue

Wikihow. (2019). How to conjugate spanish verbs (present tense). Retrieved from https://www.wikihow.com/Conjugate-Spanish-Verbs-(Present-Tense)