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Spanish (Spain)

### Preterite stem changes: e to i

In the preterite tense, certain **-ir** verbs undergo a stem change where the **e** in the stem changes to an **i**. 

Unlike the present tense, this change **only** happens in the third-person forms: **él/ella/usted** and **ellos/ellas/ustedes**. The other forms keep the regular **e** in the stem.

| Pronoun | pedir | sentir |
| --- | --- | --- |
| yo | pedí | sentí |
| tú | pediste | sentiste |
| él/ella/usted | **pidió** | **sintió** |
| nosotros/nosotras | pedimos | sentimos |
| vosotros/vosotras | pedisteis | sentisteis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | **pidieron** | **sintieron** |

You can use these verbs to describe past behaviors, like making a choice or making a bad excuse (**una excusa**).

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### Reflexive verbs and plural forms

This rule also applies to many common reflexive verbs, such as **sentirse** (to feel), **vestirse** (to get dressed), **divertirse** (to have fun), and **despedirse** (to say goodbye). As always, place the reflexive pronoun (**se**) right before the conjugated verb.

Use these forms to talk about how a group got ready, or if someone took the blame (**la culpa**) for a situation.

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Other everyday verbs that follow this **e → i** pattern include **servir** (to serve), **repetir** (to repeat), and **seguir** (to follow).

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Preterite stem changes e to i (pidió, sintió)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular subjects and 'ser' (yo soy, esto es)

Plural nouns and definite articles (los, las)

Plural pronouns and 'ser' (somos, sois, son)

Adjective agreement (-o, -a, -os, -as)

Indefinite articles (un, una, unos, unas)

Simple negation (no)

Yes/no questions

Regular '-ar' verbs (-o, -as, -a...)

Regular '-er' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Regular '-ir' verbs (-o, -es, -e...)

Locative adverbs (aquí, allí)

Question words (quién, cómo)

The verb estar (estoy, estás)

The preposition en (en)

Ser vs. estar

The verb tener (tengo, tienes)

Possessive determiners (mi, tu, su)

Origin and possession (de, del)

The verb ir (voy, vas)

Destination (a, al)

The personal 'a' (a)

Stem-changing verbs: e to ie

Stem-changing verbs: o to ue

Irregular first-person verbs

Reflexive verbs (me, te, se)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, dos, tres)

Numbers 11 to 20 (once, doce, trece)

Counting by tens to 100 (treinta, cuarenta, cien)

Compound numbers up to 99 (veintiuno, treinta y uno)

Days of the week (el lunes, el martes)

The family and the personal 'a' (a mi tío, a mi prima)

Months of the year

Telling time (es la, son las)

Verbs of liking (me gusta)

Plural agreement with verbs of liking (gustan)

Degree modifiers (muy, mucho)

Formal address (usted, ustedes)

Direct object pronouns (lo, la, los, las)

The near future (ir a)

Obligation (tener que)

Present continuous (-ando, -iendo)

Affirmative commands (tú, vosotros)

Basic Food and Drink

The Human Body: Head and Arms

The Human Body: Legs and Health

Wardrobe Essentials

Fresh Produce

Meals and Proteins

Public Transport

Hello and goodbye (hola, ¿qué tal?)

Thank you, sorry, OK (gracias, vale)

There is, there are (hay)

My building (la escalera, el ascensor)

Describing people (moreno, rubio, tímido)

Land and sea (el mar, el río, el norte)

Sightseeing (la plaza, la catedral)

Asking the way (cerca, a la derecha, todo recto)

In class (¿puedes repetir?)

Verb + infinitive (quiero comer, sé leer)

What's your name? (me llamo, encantado)

Phone, computer and email

Hundreds and thousands (doscientos, mil)

What do you do? (¿a qué te dedicas?)

Personal details (la edad, la fecha de nacimiento)

Me neither (también, tampoco, ni)

How much is it? (el precio, la vuelta)

What's the weather like? (hace sol, nieva)

Free time (el concierto, el tenis)

At the bar (¿qué vas a tomar?)

The Natural World

Demonstratives (este, ese, aquel)

Prepositions of place (encima de, debajo de)

Prepositional pronouns (para mí, contigo)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primero to décimo)

Adverbs of frequency (a veces, nunca)

Exclamations (¡qué...!)

Indefinite pronouns (algo, alguien)

Indefinite determiners (algún, ningún)

Indirect object pronouns (le, les)

Double object pronouns (me lo, te la)

Double object pronouns (se lo, se la)

Verbs of preference (encantar, interesar)

Impersonal obligation (hay que)

Starting and finishing actions (empezar a, terminar de)

Adjective comparatives (más que, menos que)

Comparatives of equality (tan como)

Noun comparatives (tanto como)

Question	Answer
to choose	elegir
The customer chose the most expensive dish on the menu.	El cliente eligió el plato más caro del menú.
to feel	sentirse
the fault, the blame	la culpa
She felt sad because it was her fault and cried.	Ella se sintió triste porque fue su culpa y lloró.
to lie	mentir
the excuse	la excusa
The boy lied and made a very bad excuse.	El niño mintió y puso una excusa muy mala.
to get dressed	vestirse
to have fun	divertirse
The boys got dressed in old clothes and had a lot of fun.	Los chicos se vistieron con ropa vieja y se divirtieron mucho.
to say goodbye	despedirse
to follow	seguir
The guest said goodbye to the family and followed his path.	El invitado se despidió de la familia y siguió su camino.
My friend ordered the food, but the waiter served another dish.	Mi amigo pidió la comida, pero el camarero sirvió otro plato.
They chose the movie and had a lot of fun at the cinema.	Ellas eligieron la película y se divirtieron mucho en el cine.
The teacher repeated the question, but the student didn't answer.	El profesor repitió la pregunta, pero el estudiante no respondió.
The lady got dressed fast, took the handbag and said goodbye.	La señora se vistió rápido, cogió el bolso y se despidió.
She gave a false excuse, but the police followed her.	Ella dio una excusa falsa, pero la policía la siguió.
The patient felt very bad and the doctor called the hospital.	El paciente se sintió muy mal y el médico llamó al hospital.
the decision	la decisión
The boss lied about the decision.	La jefa mintió sobre la decisión.
He was to blame for the bad decision.	Él tuvo la culpa de la mala decisión.
to feel (something); to be sorry	sentir
I am sorry to arrive late.	Siento llegar tarde.
The patient felt a lot of pain.	El paciente sintió mucho dolor.
She felt fear and cried.	Ella sintió miedo y lloró.
Yesterday I felt very cold in the street.	Ayer sentí mucho frío en la calle.

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