HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH, Verbos en español
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HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH (1/3)
Verbs are words that express than
an action takes place
or that
a state of being exists
(
to run, to
eat, to see, to want, to be,
etc.). The verb is the most important element of a sentence.
The
infinitive
form of a verb is a form that expresses the meaning of the verb (what the action or state
is); it does
not
tell us
who
is doing the action or
when
it’s happening.
- In Spanish, the infinitive form of the verbs end in the following letter combinations:
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
.
Here are, then, the infinitive forms of three common verbs:
hablar
comer
escribir
In each verb above, the part that comes before the
-ar
,
-er
or
-ir
ending is called the
stem
(or
root
).
This is the part that contains the actual meaning of the verb. Thus:
habl-
has to do with speech
com-
has to do with food
escrib-
has to do with writing
Note that these stems can also be found in other words that are not verbs; thus,
una persona
habl
adora
is a person who speaks a lot;
la
com
ida
is food, and
un
escri
tor
is a person who writes.
The other part of the verb is the infinitive ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
). This part doesn’t so much express
meaning
as give
instructions
: if we want to express that a specific person (I, you, the students, the man,
etc.) does the action at a specific time (in the past, now, in the future), we have to modify the infinitive
form (since it only expresses
what
, not
who
or
when
). In Spanish, we generally do this by removing the
ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
) from the infinitive and then adding certain endings to the stem that’s left.
There are different groups of endings depending on the time frame. So, the endings that we use to
express that an action happens or is happening in the present are different from those that express a past
or future action. There are also different endings depending on who is doing the action (the person or
thing doing the action is called the
subject
).
Within any time frame (past, present, future), there is generally one set of endings for those verbs that
end in
-ar
, and a different set for those that end in
-er
or
-ir
(sometimes the
-er
and
-ir
endings look
exactly the same; sometimes there are minor differences). Here are some example sets:
time frame
Æ
present present
present
past*
past*
person doing action
È
-ar
-er
-ir
-ar -er & -ir
yo -o -o -o -é -í
tú -as -es -es -aste -iste
él/ella/usted -a -e -e -ó -ió
nosotros/as -amos -emos -imos -amos -imos
ellos/ellas/ustedes -an -en -en -aron -ieron
*
The past tense is presented in the second semester of Spanish; for those who haven't yet studied it,
don't worry: it’s presented here only to help illustrate certain concepts.
So, if I want to use the verb
hablar
, I begin with the knowledge that it ends in
-ar
:
- First, I decide what
time frame
I’m dealing with; to talk about the present (now), I know that I need to
choose an ending from the 2
nd
column (
-o
,
-as
,
-a
,
-amos
,
-an
); if I want to talk about the past (last
night, for example), I’m going to need to choose from the 5
th
column (
-é
,
-aste
,
ó
,
-amos
,
-aron
).
- Next, I determine who is going to be
the subject
(the person or thing doing the action) in my sentence;
if “I” will be the subject, I’ll pick the
-o
ending from the 2
nd
column (if I’ve decided to talk about now) or
the
-é
ending from the 5
th
column (to talk about last night).
- If my brothers (=
ellos
) were the subject, I would be choosing between
-an
and
–aron
.
D. Cabanel-Bleuer (2008)
HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH (2/3)
If I want to use the verb
comer
, I don’t even look at the 2
nd
or 5
th
columns; this verb ends with
-er
, so I
know right away that I’ll be choosing from different sets of endings (3
rd
or 6
th
columns).
- Again, I choose my time frame first: present (= 3
rd
column)
- Next, I determine who the subject is: my brothers (=
ellos, ellas, ustedes
form)
In the examples above, we’ve used the verbs
hablar
,
comer
and
escribir
as representative of all
regular
verbs in each group.
Regular
just means that the verb follows the rules of formation for that tense. Note
that the rules of formation for the present tense are:
1- remove the infinitive ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
)
2- add the appropriate ending to the remaining stem
Most verbs are regular. As you learn new verbs, in addition to remembering what they mean and whether
they end in
-ar
,
-er
or
-ir
(so you know what set of endings to choose from when the time comes to
modify the verb), you also need to know whether the verb is regular or not. If it is, you will modify it in
the exact same way that you did with the “model” verbs (
hablar
,
comer
,
escribir
).
So, imagine that you learn three new verbs:
mirar
,
beber
and
vivir
.
1. You learn what each stem means (
mir-
has to do with looking;
beb-
with beverages;
viv-
with life).
2. You learn how each verb ends (in other words, that the first verb is mirar, not *
mirir
).
3. You also learn that all three are
regular
.
Now, when you want to modify them to express that someone is doing the action at a given time, you
know what set of endings to choose from, as well as what process to follow when modifying (= the same
process that you followed with the “model” verbs).
As luck would have it, not all verbs are regular. Since you can’t predict how you’ll manipulate these
“nonconformist” verbs (as you can with the regular, which you know follow certain patterns), you’ll
generally have to learn the process of modification and the sets of endings for each verb individually. On
the positive side, sometimes the irregularities occur with a group of verbs, not just one, so you can at
least learn what the irregularity is and then apply it to more than one case.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
We’ve seen above that, to express that a certain action occurs or is occuring in the present tense, we
follow the following process of modification:
1- remove the infinitive ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
)
2- add the appropriate ending (from the appropriate group) to the remaining stem
Sometimes, we want to talk about an action, but we don’t want to express that it occurs (or is occurring);
rather, we want to express that it’s something that we
want
or
need
or
plan
or
like
to occur. In these
situations, we’ll actually use the verb in its infinitive form (the one that ends in
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
), but we’ll
combine it with another verb that we
will
modify. Here are some common combinations:
To express a
desire
to do the action:
desear
+ infinitive
Deseo
hablar
español.
querer
+ infinitive Mi amigo
quiere
comer
una manzana.
tener ganas de
+ infinitive Mi hermana y yo
tenemos
ganas de
ver
una película.
[various forms of]
quisiera
+ infinitive ¿
Quisiera
usted hablar
con
el gerente?
[me/te/le/nos/les] gustaría
+ infinitive ¿
Te gustaría
ir
al cine esta noche?
To express a
preference
to do the action:
preferir
+ infinitive
Tú
prefieres
dormir
en el sofa.
D. Cabanel-Bleuer (2008)
HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH (3/3)
To express the
necessity
of doing or an
obligation
to do the action:
necesitar
+ infinitive
Los estudiantes
necesitan
estudiar
más.
tener que
+ infinitive
La profesora
tiene que
dormir
más.
deber
+ infinitive
Debo
ir
a la biblioteca hoy.
Notice that the phrases above express a specific person's or persons' responsibilities (
yo necesito, ella
tiene que, nosotros debemos,
etc.) We can also express a
general
or
impersonal obligation
; in this
case, the focus is on the action, not on the person who has to do it:
Hay que
+ infinitive
Hay que
tener
amigos para ser feliz.
Es necesario
+ infinitive
Es necesario
dormir
bien todas las noches.
To express an
intention
or
plan
to do the action:
ir a
+ infinitive
Mañana
vamos a
visitar
el museo de arte.
pensar
+ infinitive
Pienso
preparar
flan el viernes.
To express the
ability
(
based on knowledge
, or
knowing how
) to do an action:
saber
+ infinitive
Yo
sé
tocar el piano, pero mi amigo
sabe
tocar el violín
To express the
ability
or
possibility
(
no obstacles
) to do an action:
poder
+ infinitive
Sé esquiar pero hoy no
puedo
esquiar porque tengo clase.
To express a
positive
or
negative
opinion about the action:
(no) [me/te/le/nos/les] gusta
+ infinitive
Me
gusta
correr
pero
no me
gusta
jugar
al béisbol.
Remember that we also have a special combination to express that the action is happening
right now
.
This is called the
present progressive
tense. Here, we combine the present tense of the verb
estar
(modified to the appropriate person, of course) with the
gerund
form of the verb. Whereas the infinitive
form of the verb ends in
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
, the gerund form ends in
-ando
or
-iendo
. See p.207-8 of
Dos
mundos:En breve
, 3a ed. for more on this.
estar
+ gerund
Ahora mi mamá
está
hablando
con mi hermano
y yo
estoy
leyendo
el periódico.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
After reading the above, you should know what the following terms mean:
verb
,
stem
,
infinitive form
,
infinitive ending
,
conjugation
,
subject
,
regular
.
D. Cabanel-Bleuer (2008)
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl chiara76.opx.pl
HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH (1/3)
Verbs are words that express than
an action takes place
or that
a state of being exists
(
to run, to
eat, to see, to want, to be,
etc.). The verb is the most important element of a sentence.
The
infinitive
form of a verb is a form that expresses the meaning of the verb (what the action or state
is); it does
not
tell us
who
is doing the action or
when
it’s happening.
- In Spanish, the infinitive form of the verbs end in the following letter combinations:
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
.
Here are, then, the infinitive forms of three common verbs:
hablar
comer
escribir
In each verb above, the part that comes before the
-ar
,
-er
or
-ir
ending is called the
stem
(or
root
).
This is the part that contains the actual meaning of the verb. Thus:
habl-
has to do with speech
com-
has to do with food
escrib-
has to do with writing
Note that these stems can also be found in other words that are not verbs; thus,
una persona
habl
adora
is a person who speaks a lot;
la
com
ida
is food, and
un
escri
tor
is a person who writes.
The other part of the verb is the infinitive ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
). This part doesn’t so much express
meaning
as give
instructions
: if we want to express that a specific person (I, you, the students, the man,
etc.) does the action at a specific time (in the past, now, in the future), we have to modify the infinitive
form (since it only expresses
what
, not
who
or
when
). In Spanish, we generally do this by removing the
ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
) from the infinitive and then adding certain endings to the stem that’s left.
There are different groups of endings depending on the time frame. So, the endings that we use to
express that an action happens or is happening in the present are different from those that express a past
or future action. There are also different endings depending on who is doing the action (the person or
thing doing the action is called the
subject
).
Within any time frame (past, present, future), there is generally one set of endings for those verbs that
end in
-ar
, and a different set for those that end in
-er
or
-ir
(sometimes the
-er
and
-ir
endings look
exactly the same; sometimes there are minor differences). Here are some example sets:
time frame
Æ
present present
present
past*
past*
person doing action
È
-ar
-er
-ir
-ar -er & -ir
yo -o -o -o -é -í
tú -as -es -es -aste -iste
él/ella/usted -a -e -e -ó -ió
nosotros/as -amos -emos -imos -amos -imos
ellos/ellas/ustedes -an -en -en -aron -ieron
*
The past tense is presented in the second semester of Spanish; for those who haven't yet studied it,
don't worry: it’s presented here only to help illustrate certain concepts.
So, if I want to use the verb
hablar
, I begin with the knowledge that it ends in
-ar
:
- First, I decide what
time frame
I’m dealing with; to talk about the present (now), I know that I need to
choose an ending from the 2
nd
column (
-o
,
-as
,
-a
,
-amos
,
-an
); if I want to talk about the past (last
night, for example), I’m going to need to choose from the 5
th
column (
-é
,
-aste
,
ó
,
-amos
,
-aron
).
- Next, I determine who is going to be
the subject
(the person or thing doing the action) in my sentence;
if “I” will be the subject, I’ll pick the
-o
ending from the 2
nd
column (if I’ve decided to talk about now) or
the
-é
ending from the 5
th
column (to talk about last night).
- If my brothers (=
ellos
) were the subject, I would be choosing between
-an
and
–aron
.
D. Cabanel-Bleuer (2008)
HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH (2/3)
If I want to use the verb
comer
, I don’t even look at the 2
nd
or 5
th
columns; this verb ends with
-er
, so I
know right away that I’ll be choosing from different sets of endings (3
rd
or 6
th
columns).
- Again, I choose my time frame first: present (= 3
rd
column)
- Next, I determine who the subject is: my brothers (=
ellos, ellas, ustedes
form)
In the examples above, we’ve used the verbs
hablar
,
comer
and
escribir
as representative of all
regular
verbs in each group.
Regular
just means that the verb follows the rules of formation for that tense. Note
that the rules of formation for the present tense are:
1- remove the infinitive ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
)
2- add the appropriate ending to the remaining stem
Most verbs are regular. As you learn new verbs, in addition to remembering what they mean and whether
they end in
-ar
,
-er
or
-ir
(so you know what set of endings to choose from when the time comes to
modify the verb), you also need to know whether the verb is regular or not. If it is, you will modify it in
the exact same way that you did with the “model” verbs (
hablar
,
comer
,
escribir
).
So, imagine that you learn three new verbs:
mirar
,
beber
and
vivir
.
1. You learn what each stem means (
mir-
has to do with looking;
beb-
with beverages;
viv-
with life).
2. You learn how each verb ends (in other words, that the first verb is mirar, not *
mirir
).
3. You also learn that all three are
regular
.
Now, when you want to modify them to express that someone is doing the action at a given time, you
know what set of endings to choose from, as well as what process to follow when modifying (= the same
process that you followed with the “model” verbs).
As luck would have it, not all verbs are regular. Since you can’t predict how you’ll manipulate these
“nonconformist” verbs (as you can with the regular, which you know follow certain patterns), you’ll
generally have to learn the process of modification and the sets of endings for each verb individually. On
the positive side, sometimes the irregularities occur with a group of verbs, not just one, so you can at
least learn what the irregularity is and then apply it to more than one case.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
We’ve seen above that, to express that a certain action occurs or is occuring in the present tense, we
follow the following process of modification:
1- remove the infinitive ending (
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
)
2- add the appropriate ending (from the appropriate group) to the remaining stem
Sometimes, we want to talk about an action, but we don’t want to express that it occurs (or is occurring);
rather, we want to express that it’s something that we
want
or
need
or
plan
or
like
to occur. In these
situations, we’ll actually use the verb in its infinitive form (the one that ends in
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
), but we’ll
combine it with another verb that we
will
modify. Here are some common combinations:
To express a
desire
to do the action:
desear
+ infinitive
Deseo
hablar
español.
querer
+ infinitive Mi amigo
quiere
comer
una manzana.
tener ganas de
+ infinitive Mi hermana y yo
tenemos
ganas de
ver
una película.
[various forms of]
quisiera
+ infinitive ¿
Quisiera
usted hablar
con
el gerente?
[me/te/le/nos/les] gustaría
+ infinitive ¿
Te gustaría
ir
al cine esta noche?
To express a
preference
to do the action:
preferir
+ infinitive
Tú
prefieres
dormir
en el sofa.
D. Cabanel-Bleuer (2008)
HOW VERBS WORK IN SPANISH (3/3)
To express the
necessity
of doing or an
obligation
to do the action:
necesitar
+ infinitive
Los estudiantes
necesitan
estudiar
más.
tener que
+ infinitive
La profesora
tiene que
dormir
más.
deber
+ infinitive
Debo
ir
a la biblioteca hoy.
Notice that the phrases above express a specific person's or persons' responsibilities (
yo necesito, ella
tiene que, nosotros debemos,
etc.) We can also express a
general
or
impersonal obligation
; in this
case, the focus is on the action, not on the person who has to do it:
Hay que
+ infinitive
Hay que
tener
amigos para ser feliz.
Es necesario
+ infinitive
Es necesario
dormir
bien todas las noches.
To express an
intention
or
plan
to do the action:
ir a
+ infinitive
Mañana
vamos a
visitar
el museo de arte.
pensar
+ infinitive
Pienso
preparar
flan el viernes.
To express the
ability
(
based on knowledge
, or
knowing how
) to do an action:
saber
+ infinitive
Yo
sé
tocar el piano, pero mi amigo
sabe
tocar el violín
To express the
ability
or
possibility
(
no obstacles
) to do an action:
poder
+ infinitive
Sé esquiar pero hoy no
puedo
esquiar porque tengo clase.
To express a
positive
or
negative
opinion about the action:
(no) [me/te/le/nos/les] gusta
+ infinitive
Me
gusta
correr
pero
no me
gusta
jugar
al béisbol.
Remember that we also have a special combination to express that the action is happening
right now
.
This is called the
present progressive
tense. Here, we combine the present tense of the verb
estar
(modified to the appropriate person, of course) with the
gerund
form of the verb. Whereas the infinitive
form of the verb ends in
-ar
,
-er
,
-ir
, the gerund form ends in
-ando
or
-iendo
. See p.207-8 of
Dos
mundos:En breve
, 3a ed. for more on this.
estar
+ gerund
Ahora mi mamá
está
hablando
con mi hermano
y yo
estoy
leyendo
el periódico.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
After reading the above, you should know what the following terms mean:
verb
,
stem
,
infinitive form
,
infinitive ending
,
conjugation
,
subject
,
regular
.
D. Cabanel-Bleuer (2008)
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]