Start with these verbs first. Each table shows the present tense and the preterite past tense so you can understand how the verb changes depending on who is doing the action.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | voy | I go / I’m going |
| Tú | vas | You go / you’re going |
| Él / Ella / Usted | va | He, she goes / you go formal |
| Nosotros | vamos | We go / we’re going |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | van | They go / you all go |
Voy a la tienda. = I’m going to the store.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | fui | I went |
| Tú | fuiste | You went |
| Él / Ella / Usted | fue | He, she went / you went formal |
| Nosotros | fuimos | We went |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | fueron | They went / you all went |
Fui a la tienda ayer. = I went to the store yesterday.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | tengo | I have |
| Tú | tienes | You have |
| Él / Ella / Usted | tiene | He, she has / you have formal |
| Nosotros | tenemos | We have |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | tienen | They have / you all have |
Tengo mucho trabajo hoy. = I have a lot of work today.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | tuve | I had |
| Tú | tuviste | You had |
| Él / Ella / Usted | tuvo | He, she had / you had formal |
| Nosotros | tuvimos | We had |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | tuvieron | They had / you all had |
Tuve una reunión hoy. = I had a meeting today.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hago | I do / I make |
| Tú | haces | You do / you make |
| Él / Ella / Usted | hace | He, she does / you do formal |
| Nosotros | hacemos | We do / we make |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | hacen | They do / you all do |
Estoy a punto de hacer café. = I’m about to make coffee.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | hice | I did / I made |
| Tú | hiciste | You did / you made |
| Él / Ella / Usted | hizo | He, she did / you did formal |
| Nosotros | hicimos | We did / we made |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | hicieron | They did / you all did |
Hice café esta mañana. = I made coffee this morning.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | quiero | I want |
| Tú | quieres | You want |
| Él / Ella / Usted | quiere | He, she wants / you want formal |
| Nosotros | queremos | We want |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | quieren | They want / you all want |
Quiero comer. = I want to eat.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | quise | I wanted / I tried to |
| Tú | quisiste | You wanted / you tried to |
| Él / Ella / Usted | quiso | He, she wanted / you wanted formal |
| Nosotros | quisimos | We wanted / we tried to |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | quisieron | They wanted / you all wanted |
Quise comer antes de la reunión. = I wanted to eat before the meeting.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | necesito | I need |
| Tú | necesitas | You need |
| Él / Ella / Usted | necesita | He, she needs / you need formal |
| Nosotros | necesitamos | We need |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | necesitan | They need / you all need |
Necesito concentrarme. = I need to focus.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | necesité | I needed |
| Tú | necesitaste | You needed |
| Él / Ella / Usted | necesitó | He, she needed / you needed formal |
| Nosotros | necesitamos | We needed |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | necesitaron | They needed / you all needed |
Necesité ayuda ayer. = I needed help yesterday.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | digo | I say / I tell |
| Tú | dices | You say / you tell |
| Él / Ella / Usted | dice | He, she says / you say formal |
| Nosotros | decimos | We say / we tell |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | dicen | They say / you all say |
Siempre digo eso. = I always say that.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | dije | I said / I told |
| Tú | dijiste | You said / you told |
| Él / Ella / Usted | dijo | He, she said / you said formal |
| Nosotros | dijimos | We said / we told |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | dijeron | They said / you all said |
Te dije que estaba trabajando. = I told you I was working.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | estoy | I am |
| Tú | estás | You are |
| Él / Ella / Usted | está | He, she is / you are formal |
| Nosotros | estamos | We are |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | están | They are / you all are |
Estoy trabajando ahora. = I’m working right now.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | estuve | I was |
| Tú | estuviste | You were |
| Él / Ella / Usted | estuvo | He, she was / you were formal |
| Nosotros | estuvimos | We were |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | estuvieron | They were / you all were |
Estuve ocupado todo el día. = I was busy all day.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | soy | I am |
| Tú | eres | You are |
| Él / Ella / Usted | es | He, she is / you are formal |
| Nosotros | somos | We are |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | son | They are / you all are |
Soy estudiante de español. = I’m a Spanish student.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | fui | I was |
| Tú | fuiste | You were |
| Él / Ella / Usted | fue | He, she was / you were formal |
| Nosotros | fuimos | We were |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | fueron | They were / you all were |
Fui principiante, pero estoy aprendiendo. = I was a beginner, but I’m learning.
Ser and ir use the same preterite forms: fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fueron. Context tells you if it means “was/were” or “went.”