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?
Nosotros vivimos cerca del parque.
We live near the park.
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 |
Ella escribe cartas a su abuela.
She writes letters to her grandmother.
Los estudiantes abren sus libros en la página diez.
The students open their books to page ten.
Ustedes deciden qué hacer mañana.
You all decide what to do tomorrow.
-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.