The third group of Spanish verbs ends in -ir. The endings are almost identical to regular -er verbs — only the nosotros form differs.
How it works
To conjugate a regular -ir verb in the present indicative, drop the -ir ending from the infinitive and add one of the endings below.
The endings are: -o, -es, -e, -imos, -en.
Notice that the nosotros form ends in -imos (not -emos). This is the only difference between -er and -ir verbs in the present tense.
Vivir — to live
Let's conjugate vivir. Drop -ir to get the stem viv-, and add each ending.
| Subject | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| yo | vivo |
| tú | vives |
| él / ella / usted | vive |
| nosotros / nosotras | vivimos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | viven |
Yo vivo en Ciudad de México.
I live in Mexico City.
¿Dónde vives tú?
Where do you live?
Common regular -ir verbs
| Infinitive | Meaning |
|---|---|
| escribir | to write |
| abrir | to open |
| partir | to depart, to divide |
| decidir | to decide |
| recibir | to receive |
| subir | to go up, to get in |
| permitir | to allow |
| describir | to describe |
Los estudiantes abren sus libros en la página diez.
The students open their books to page ten.
-er vs -ir side by side
It helps to see both groups in the same table. Only the nosotros row differs.
| Subject | comer (-er) | vivir (-ir) |
|---|---|---|
| yo | como | vivo |
| tú | comes | vives |
| él / ella / usted | come | vive |
| nosotros | comemos | vivimos |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comen | viven |
Common mistakes
❌ Nosotros vivemos en Santiago.
Wrong: using -emos (the -er ending) instead of -imos.
✅ Nosotros vivimos en Santiago.
Correct: -ir verbs use -imos for nosotros.
❌ Ella escribo una carta.
Wrong: -o is the yo ending, not the ella ending.
✅ Ella escribe una carta.
Correct: third person singular -ir verbs take -e.
❌ Ellos abran la puerta.
Wrong: -an is the -ar third person plural ending.
✅ Ellos abren la puerta.
Correct: -ir (and -er) verbs use -en for third person plural.
❌ Yo decido, tú decides, ella decide, nosotros decidemos.
Wrong: the nosotros form mixes up -er and -ir endings.
✅ Yo decido, tú decides, ella decide, nosotros decidimos.
Correct: the only difference between -er and -ir is the nosotros form.
You now know all three regular patterns. Next up: stem-changing verbs.
Related Topics
- Regular -ar VerbsA1 — How to conjugate regular verbs ending in -ar in the present indicative.
- Regular -er VerbsA1 — How to conjugate regular verbs ending in -er in the present indicative.
- Uses of the Present TenseA1 — The main situations where Spanish uses the present indicative — with examples of each.