Regular to Irregular . . . That Is the Question

Spanish has what you call irregular verbs. They are a bit on the strange side. Some would say they can be a blend of stem-changing and spelling-changing or one or the other. Either way, they are not regular verbs!

As I go through the various irregular verbs below, I have included a very short video clip pronouncing the verbs you see in the tables. Feel free to listen and re-listen to the clips. It will help you hear how these verbs sound.

First, let's handle the spelling-changing type. I've placed where the change occurs in bold and underline.

• i to í (with an accent mark)

-ar

Guiar (to guide)

Guío Guías Guía

Guiamos Guiáis

Guían

Other verbs that work like this are: enviar, confiar, and criar.

• u to ú (with an accent mark)

-ar

Continuar (to continue)

Continúo Continúas Continúa

Continuamos Continuáis

Continúan

Other verbs that work like this are: acentuar, actuar, and graduar.

• Reunir is similar to the above u to ú verbs

-ir

Reunir (to assemble, gather together)

Reúno Reúnes Reúne

Reunimos Reunís

Reúnen

• ui to uy

-ir

Incluir (to include)

Incluyo Incluyes Incluye

Incluimos Incluís

Incluyen

Other verbs that work like this are: concluir, construir, distribuir, contribuir, huir, and destruir.

Second, here are some verbs change form only in certain instances. I've tried to block them out the best that I can to help you learn them easier.

• These verbs only change form in the first person (Yo) form

-ar	-er	-er	-er	-er	-er	-er	-er	-ir
Dar (to give)	Caer (to fall)	Hacer (to make)	Poner* (to put)	Traer** (to bring)	Valer (to be worth)	Saber (to know (as in facts))	Ver (to see)	Salir (to go out)
Doy	Caigo	Hago	Pongo	Traigo	Valgo	Sé	Veo	Salgo
Das Da Damos Dais Dan	Caes Cae Caemos Caéis Caen	Haces Hace Hacemos Hacéis Hacen	Pones Pone Ponemos Ponéis Ponen	Traes Trae Traemos Traéis Traen	Vales Vale Valemos Valéis Valen	Sabes Sabe Sabemos Sabéis Saben	Ves Ve Vemos Veis Ven	Sales Sale Salimos Salís Salen

* Verbs that conjugate like poner are: componer, disponer, proponer, and suponer.

** Verbs that conjugate like traer are: atraer and distraer.

Please also note the Vosotros forms conjugate differently (there is no accent mark as usually done in that form) for the verbs dar and ver.

• These verbs change form in all but the Nosotros and Vosotros forms

-ar	-er	-ir	-ir	-ir
Estar (to be)	Tener (to have)	Decir (to say)	Venir (to come)	Oír (to hear)
Estoy Estás Está	Tengo Tienes Tiene	Digo Dices Dice	Vengo Vienes Viene	Oigo Oyes Oye
Estamos Estáis	Tenemos Tenéis	Decimos Decís	Venimos Venís	Oímos Oís
Están	Tienen	Dicen	Vienen	Oyen

• These are miscellaneous irregular verbs. Please note where they change.

-er	-er	-ir
Haber* (to have)	Ser (to be)	Ir (to go)
He Has Ha Hemos	Soy Eres Es Somos Sois Son	Voy Vas Va Vamos Vais Van
Habéis
Han

* The verb haber has a very special third-person singular form, hay, which means "there is, there are".

Please also note that for ser and ir the Vosotros forms do not contain any accent marks.

There you have it. All of the irregular Spanish verbs in the present tense. It's not too bad, huh? Like stem-changing and spelling-changing verbs, there is no good way to keep these irregular verbs straight except to memorize them. I've mentioned conversing with friends, family and pets using these verbs as much as possible. You can also write out flashcards to drill yourself or make a game of it. For you techies out there, maybe try using a flashcard app on your smartphone or tablet. There are free versions and paid apps out there at your disposal. Either way, use these verbs often and as much as you can in conversations and in writing. Before you know it, you will get it. Best of luck to you all.

¡Hasta luego!

~Keith

Tooth fairy, the Mouse?

As children, we grew up knowing and believing in the Tooth fairy. When one of our teeth came out, we would place it under our pillow and the next morning the Tooth fairy would have given us a coin in its place -- much to our delight.

Spanish and many Latin American children grow up knowing a much different character: el Ratoncito Pérez (Pérez Mouse). This cute little mouse would take a child's tooth which was placed under their pillow. They too would receive a coin or trinket in exchange. It takes many variations from country to country. This time honored creature originated in 1894 in Madrid. In some parts of Mexico, Peru and Chile, he is known as el Ratón de los Dientes (the Tooth Mouse). Other countries such as Italy and France have variations on this little rodent and what he is called in their respective cultures.

The original Ratoncito Pérez had a small sword and sort of a white knight look. Back in 2006, director Juan Pablo Buscarini recreated this fabled mouse into a live action movie. The Argentine director updated the mouse to a more modern look and story line. In 2008, a sequel came out for all to enjoy.

As I've mentioned in my book, So You Want to Learn Spanish?, a wonderful way to learn the language is by learning its cultural aspects and real-life situations. Why not enjoy these two films in Spanish? I did not find them on Netflix, Hulu, or Vudu to stream, but you can watch the trailer to the sequel on YouTube here in Spanish:
http://youtu.be/dQsXTEv9sXU.

You can purchase the original movie on blu-ray through Amazon at this link:
http://www.amazon.com/Hairy-ratoncito-sue%C3%B1os-Blu-Ray-Import/dp/B003RD9I1Y/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1366494749&sr=8-2&keywords=el+ratoncito+perez.

Of course, you'll find a few children's books through Amazon too starring Ratón Pérez. Either way, I hope you spend some time seeking out Spanish to watch, listen and/or read. It will help you with getting the exposure you need to the language, but also help you delve into the understanding of another culture slightly different than your own. What a wonderful way to get in touch with your childhood and improve your Spanish!

¡Hasta luego!
~Keith

Spelling that Sounds Right

Spanish has what you would call "spelling-changing" verbs. The reason being is only to maintain the same sound as the verb changes person (first person, second person, third person, etc.). If these verbs did not change their spelling, it wouldn't sound at all like they should. The spelling change happens in the first person form (Yo) as you will see below. Let's take a closer look!

G to J: 

-er	-ir
Proteger (to protect)	Elegir (to elect)
Protejo	Elijo
Proteges Protege Protegemos Protegéis Protegen	Eliges Elige Elegimos Elegís Eligen

Other verbs that make this type of change in the Yo form are as follows: coger, escoger, corregir, dirigir, exigir, and fingir. In the example above, Elegir, has a stem change where the E changes to I in all of the forms except the Nosotros and Vosotros forms. Please see my blog post on stem-changing verbs here.

GU to G:

-ir

Distinguir (to distinguish)

Distingo

Distingues Distingue Distinguimos Distinguís Distinguen

Other verbs that make this type of change in the Yo form are as follows: seguir and conseguir. Now these verbs also have a stem change where the E changes to I in all of the forms except the Nosotros and Vosotros forms. Please see my blog post on stem-changing verbs here.

C to ZC:

-er	-ir
Conocer (to know (as in a person))	Conducir (to drive)
Conozco	Conduzco
Conoces Conoce Conocemos Conocéis Conocen	Conduces Conduce Conducimos Conducís Conducen

Other verbs that make this type of change in the Yo form are as follows: parecer, agradecer, aparecer, merecer, obedecer, ofrecer, permanecer, reconocer, introducir, producir, and traducir.

C to Z:

-er

Convencer (to convince)

Convenzo

Convences Convence Convencemos Convencéis Convencen

Other verbs that make this type of change in the Yo form are as follows: vencer, torcer, ejercer, and mecer.

As with stem-changing verbs, there really is no good way to learn these special verbs in the present tense other than by memorization. I mentioned using flashcards either in the physical sense with index cards or by downloading either a free or paid flashcard app for your smartphone or tablet. Drill yourself as much as possible. Practice conversing with others. Before you know it, you will master them!

¡Hasta luego!

~Keith