Spanish subject pronouns
Pronouns are very helpful words you use so that you don’t have to keep saying a person’s name over and over. Remember that Spanish has different pronouns for someone you know well — the familiar form — and for more formal relationships. The following table lists singular and plural pronouns for all occasions.
| Person | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| First person | yo = I | nosotros = we (male or mixed group) nosotras= we (female) |
| Second person familiar | tú = you | vosotros = you (male or mixed group) vosotras = you (female) |
| Second person formal | usted = you | ustedes = you (plural) |
| Third person | él = he ella = she |
ellos= they (male or mixed group) ellas= they (female) |
How to form simple tenses with regular Spanish verbs
The regular Spanish verbs that end in –ar, -er, and –ir take a pretty regular method in forming simple tenses. You start with the stem of the word and add an ending according to the person or pronoun you use. The following tables show how to change tenses for –ar verbs (hablar, to speak is the example) and –er and –ir verbs, in which comer, to eat, and vivir, to live, are the examples.
Simple tenses of regular –ar verbs
| Tense | Stem | yo | tú | él, ella, usted | nosotros, nosotras | vosotros, vosotras | ellos/as, ustedes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | habl + | -o | -as | -a | -amos | -áis | -an |
| Imperfect | habl + | -aba | -abas | -aba | -ábamos | -abais | -aban |
| Preterit | habl + | -é | -aste | -ó | -amos | -asteis | -aron |
| Future | hablar + | -é | -ás | -á | -emos | -éis | -án |
| Conditional | hablar + | -ía | -ías | -ía | -íamos | -íais | -ían |
| Present Subjunctive | habl + | -e | -es | -e | -emos | -éis | -en |
| Imperfect Subjunctive | habl + | -ara | -aras | -ara | -áramos | -arais | -aran |
| Imperfect Subjunctive (alternative) | habl + | -ase | -ases | -ase | -ásemos | -aseis | -asen |
The first imperfect subjunctive form is the one most commonly used, not the alternative.
Simple tenses of regular -er and –ir verbs
| Tense | Stem | yo | tú | él, ella, usted | nosotros, nosotras | vosotros, vosotras | ellos/as, ustedes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | com/viv + | -o | -es | -e/-a | -emos/-imos | -éis/-ís | -en |
| Imperfect | com/viv + | -ía | -ías | -ía | -íamos | -íais | -ían |
| Preterit | com/viv + | -í | -iste | -ió | -imos | -isteis | -ieron |
| Future | comer/vivir + | -é | -ás | -á | -emos | -éis | -án |
| Conditional | comer/vivir + | -ía | -ías | -ía | -íamos | -íais | -ían |
| Present Subjunctive | com/viv + | -a | -as | -a | -amos | -áis | -an |
| Imperfect Subjunctive | com/viv + | -iera | -ieras | iera | -iéramos | -ierais | -ieran |
| Imperfect Subjunctive (alternative) | com/viv + | -iese | -ieses | -iese | -iésemos | -ieseis | -iesen |
How to form present and past participles in Spanish
Regular Spanish verbs follow regular rules when they become present participles, verbs that end in –ing in English, and past participles, verbs that end in –ed or –en in English. The following tables show the rules for each verb form and offer examples.
Forming present participles
| Verb Ending | Rule | Example Verb | Present Participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ar | stem + -ando | hablar = to speak | hablando = speaking |
| -er or -ir | stem + -iendo | comer = to eat | comiendo = eating |
| vivir = to live | viviendo = living |
Forming past participles
| Verb Ending | Rule | Example Verb | Present Participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ar | stem + -ado | hablar = to speak | hablado = spoken |
| -er or -ir | stem + -ido | comer = to eat | comido = eaten |
| vivir = to live | vivido = lived |