Regular '-ar' Verbs
In Spanish, verbs are grouped by their endings. The largest group ends in -ar, like trabajar (to work) and estudiar (to study).
To conjugate them in the present tense, drop the -ar to find the stem, then add the ending that matches the subject:
| Subject | Ending | Example (trabajar) |
|---|
| yo | -o | trabajo |
| tú | -as | trabajas |
| él/ella/usted | -a | trabaja |
| nosotros/as | -amos | trabajamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | trabajáis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | -an | trabajan |
Dropping Pronouns
Because the verb ending usually tells you exactly who is doing the action, subject pronouns (yo, tú, etc.) are often dropped.
When talking about someone else (he, she, or it), you might need to include the subject pronoun for clarity. Adverbs like siempre (always) generally go before the verb.
Plural Subjects
The plural endings follow the same pattern. Notice the -áis ending for vosotros/as (you all), used to address groups informally in Spain.
When asking a question with a word like qué (what), the question word comes first, followed by the verb.
Negative Sentences
To make a sentence negative, simply place no directly before the verb.