Spanish creates new verbs all the time. When speakers need a verb for a new concept, they almost always reach for the first conjugation ending in -ar, and they combine it with a noun or adjective to make the meaning clear. Understanding the common patterns lets you guess verbs you've never seen and even create plausible ones yourself.
The Default Choice: -ar
The -ar conjugation is by far the most productive in modern Spanish. Virtually every new verb, whether borrowed from English or coined from existing Spanish material, belongs to this group. Technology and social media offer endless examples: programar (to program), tuitear (to tweet), chatear (to chat), guglear (to google), googlear (same idea, alternative spelling).
Mi hermano aprendió a programar videojuegos el verano pasado.
My brother learned to program video games last summer.
Voy a tuitear algo sobre el concierto apenas termine.
I'm going to tweet something about the concert as soon as it ends.
Turning Nouns into Verbs: -ear
The suffix -ear is a subcategory of -ar verbs, and it's especially common when turning a noun into a verb describing an activity. It often appears with short or one-syllable nouns: fax becomes faxear (to fax), correo becomes corretear, golpe becomes golpear (to hit), paso becomes pasear (to stroll).
Antes había que faxear los documentos; ahora todo es digital.
We used to have to fax documents; now everything is digital.
Abstract Actions: -izar
The suffix -izar attaches to nouns and adjectives to form verbs meaning to make into or to convert to. It corresponds to English -ize. Common examples include organizar (to organize), modernizar (to modernize), memorizar (to memorize), analizar (to analyze), realizar (to carry out).
Necesitamos organizar la reunión antes del próximo lunes.
We need to organize the meeting before next Monday.
La ciudad decidió modernizar el sistema de transporte público.
The city decided to modernize the public transportation system.
Making and Converting: -ificar
The suffix -ificar is similar to -izar and corresponds to English -ify. It means to make or to turn into. Examples include clasificar (to classify), simplificar (to simplify), identificar (to identify), verificar (to verify), justificar (to justify).
Voy a clasificar estos libros por tema antes de guardarlos.
I'm going to classify these books by subject before putting them away.
Gradual Change: -ecer
The suffix -ecer creates verbs expressing gradual change or the onset of a state. It belongs to the -er conjugation and is much less productive than the others, but it appears in many common verbs: oscurecer (to get dark), amanecer (to dawn), envejecer (to grow old), enriquecer (to enrich), florecer (to bloom).
Empieza a oscurecer más temprano en los meses de invierno.
It starts getting dark earlier in the winter months.
Patterns for Coining New Verbs
When Spanish speakers need a verb for something new, they almost always follow one of three patterns:
- Take a noun and add -ar or -ear: chat → chatear, text → textear.
- Take an adjective and add -izar or -ificar: moderno → modernizar, simple → simplificar.
- Add the prefix a- or en- plus -ar for change-of-state verbs: claro → aclarar (to clarify), rojo → enrojecer (to turn red).
Tengo que textear a mi mamá para decirle que llegué bien.
I have to text my mom to let her know I arrived safely.
Summary Table
| Suffix | Meaning | Base Word | Verb |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ar | default new verb | programa | programar |
| -ear | activity from noun | fax | faxear |
| -izar | to make, -ize | organización | organizar |
| -ificar | to make, -ify | clase | clasificar |
| -ecer | gradual change | oscuro | oscurecer |
For the finale of this section, check out the systematic cognate patterns that let you transform thousands of English words into correct Spanish on the fly.
Related Topics
- Common PrefixesB1 — Learn the most useful Spanish prefixes to expand your vocabulary and recognize word families at a glance.
- Noun-Forming SuffixesB1 — Build Spanish nouns from verbs and adjectives using the most productive noun suffixes, and learn the gender patterns each one follows.
- Adjective-Forming SuffixesB1 — Create Spanish adjectives from nouns and verbs using productive suffixes, including patterns for nationalities and places of origin.
- Cognate Patterns (-tion → -ción)B1 — Transform thousands of English words into correct Spanish by applying systematic sound correspondences between the two languages.