Alphabet and Pronunciation
Articles Gender and Agreement
Plurals
Contractions
Adjectives
Adverbs
Comparison
Possessives
Demonstratives
Subject and Object Pronouns  
Reflexive Pronouns and Verbs Prepositional Pronouns
Dative of Interest   Relative Pronouns Interrogatives and Exclamations
Negatives
Personal A
Verb Conjugations:  Tense and Mood
Verb Conjugations:  Person and Number Present Tense
Future Tense
Imperfect Tense
Preterit Tense
Compound (Perfect) Tenses 
Conditional Mood
Subjunctive Mood 
Commands
Passive and Impersonal Constructions Participles and Progressive Tenses
Infinitives
Stem-Changing
Verbs  Ir A  (Periphrastic Future)
Ser and Estar
Tú and Usted
Numbers
Prepositions
Conjunctions
Interjections
Sentences

Alphabet and Pronunciation

a as in ah!
b a cross between the B in bed and the V in very
  (but pronounced by touching both lips together instead of
  touching the bottom lip to the top teeth) -- more like B when at the beginning of a
   word, more like V when between vowel sounds
c as in cat before a consonant or the vowels A, O, U. as in city before I and E
  (American  Spanish) like the TH in think before I and E (Castilian Spanish)
ch as in check
d as in dog when at the beginning of a word (but with the between the teeth instead
   of behind them) like TH in this between vowel sounds or at word end
e as in egg when before two consonants. otherwise, like the A in ache
f as in feather
g as in go before a consonant or the vowels A, O, U. like a hard H
  (between hello and ach! ) before I and E
h always silent
i as in machine
j a hard H sound (between hello and ach! )
k as in kiss
l as in limb
ll like the Y in yes
m as in make
n as in no. before C and G, like the NG sound in think
ñ like the NY sound in onion
o as in open when before two consonants. otherwise, as in organ
p as in pill
q like the C in cut (que is pronounced KAY)
r at the beginning of a word, trilled on the tongue as in r-r-r-ring at the middle or
   end, tapped once like a T or D sound
s as in sing. before B, D, G, L, M, N or R, as in mesmerize
t as in top
u as in rule when before a consonant. like the W in wide when before a vowel. silent, after
    G or Q (unless written ü)
v a sound between the B in bed and the V in very (made by touching both lips together)
x as in axe when between two vowels. before a consonant, like the S in stranger
   in Mexican place names, like the H in hello
y as in yes. alone or at the end of a word, like the I in machine
z like the C in city (American Spanish). like the TH in think (Castilian Spanish)




Articles

The DEFINITE ARTICLE (artículo definido) agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies and has four forms:
Masculine: el (singular) los (plural)
Feminine: la (singular) las (plural)
Examples:
el río (the river)
los refrescos (the refreshments)
la guitarra (the guitar)
las chicas (the girls)

Definite articles are often used in Spanish where English would omit them, for example:
1) with abstract nouns: El amor es una fuerza irresistible. (Love is an irresistible force.)
2) with nouns used in a general sense: Prefiero los caballos. (I prefer horses.)
3) with parts of the body and articles of clothing: Tengo el brazo roto. (I have a
      broken arm.)
4) with titles, except in direct address: El señor García está aquí. (Mr. Garcia is here.)


There is also a NEUTER ARTICLE (artículo neutro), lo, which can be used before an adjective (or a past participle used adjectivally) to make it function as a noun:
lo humano (that which is human)
lo dicho (that which has been said)

NOTE: Do not confuse the neuter article lo with the masculine singular direct object pronoun lo: Lo vi en la calle. (I saw it in the street.)

The INDEFINITE ARTICLE (artículo indefinido) agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies and has four forms.
Masculine: un (singular) unos (plural)
Feminine: una (singular) unas (plural)
Examples:
un médico bueno (a good doctor)
una lengua bella (a beautiful language)
Tengo unos libros buenos. (I have some good books.)
Dénos unas naranjas, por favor. (Give us some oranges, please.)

NOTE: Feminine nouns beginning with a stressed a sound take the masculine definite article in the singular for reasons of euphony, for example:
El alma es un fin, no un medio. (The soul is an end, not a means.)
Las almas quieren hacerse inmortales. (Souls long to become immortal.)

Gender and Agreement



The GENDER (género) of a Spanish noun is either masculine (masculino) or feminine (femenino). Generally speaking, masculine nouns end in -o and feminine nouns end in -a; but nouns referring to males are masculine and nouns referring to females are feminine, regardless of the ending:
El policía mató a tiros al ladrón. (The policeman gunned down the thief.)
La actriz se veía pobre y sin amigos. (The actress found herself poor and friendless.)

Nouns ending in -ista are masculine, unless referring to a woman:
un comunista (a communist)
un pianista (a pianist)

Nouns ending in -ad, -ud, or -ión are feminine:
la ciudad (the city)
la juventud (the youth)
la dirección (the address)
Other common exceptions include el día (the day), la mano (the hand), and masculine nouns ending in -ma (of Greek derivation): el idioma (the language); el poema (the poem); el clima (the climate).

There is AGREEMENT (concordancia) between a noun and its modifiers with respect to both gender and number; if a noun is feminine and singular, its modifiers must be feminine and singular:
Ella compró una casa bonita. (She bought a pretty house.)
Plural nouns of mixed gender take the masculine:
Los niños están enfermos. (The children are ill.)

Plurals



The PLURAL of nouns and adjectives is regularly formed by adding -s to words ending in a vowel and -es to words ending in a consonant:
Tiene los ojos negros. (He has dark eyes.)
Prefiero las canciones de cuna. (I prefer lullabies.)
A final z changes to c in the plural:
Encienda la luz. (Turn on the light.)
Desde aquí podemos ver las luces de la ciudad. (We can see the lights of the city from here.)

Contractions



There are only two CONTRACTIONS (contracciones) in Spanish: al and del. Al is a contraction of the preposition a (to, for, at, by) and the masculine singular definite article el: Vamos al mercado. (Let's go to the store.)
Al entrar en la clase, la profesora comenzó a hablar. (Upon entering the classroom, the professor began to speak.)
Del is a contraction of the preposition de (of, from, with) and the masculine singular definite article el:
¿Qué piensas del nuevo profesor? (What do you think of the new teacher?).

NOTE: The preposition a and de does not contract with the personal pronoun él:
Se lo doy a él. (I give it to him.)

Adjectives



An ADJECTIVE (adjetivo) agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies. Like nouns, adjectives usually end in -o for the masculine (plural -os) and -a for the feminine
(plural -as):

un libro bueno (a good book)
muchos estudiantes (many students)
una costumbre francesa (a French custom)
otras habitaciones (other rooms)

Some adjectives whose masculine singular ends in a consonant form the feminine by adding -a:
un muchacho francés (a French boy)
una muchacha francesa (a French girl)
un baile encantador (a charming dance)
una canción encantadora (a charming song)

Other adjectives ending in a consonant have the same form for both masculine and feminine:
un hombre joven (a young man)
una mujer joven (a young woman)
unos bailes populares (some popular dances)
unas canciones populares (some popular songs)

Descriptive adjectives usually follow the nouns they modify:
un día lluvioso (a rainy day)
When they precede the noun, such adjectives change meaning, acquiring a less literal sense:
Hay que dar limosna a un hombre pobre. (One must give alms to a poor man.)
BUT
El pobre hombre está con un pie en la fosa. (The poor guy has one foot in the grave.)

Adjectives precede the nouns they modify whenever they:
1) express an essential or characteristic quality:
la dulce miel (the sweet honey)
las verdes hojas (the green leaves)
2) point out, limit or quantify:
este hombre (this man)
su marido (her husband)
menos caliente (less hot)
dos lecciones (two lessons)

Adjectives can be used as nouns, in which case they take a definite article:
Los ricos también tienen sus problemas. (Rich people have their problems, too.)

Adjectives are occasionally used adverbially:
Vive feliz en la ciudad. (He lives happily in the city.)


Adverbs



Many ADVERBS (adverbios) are formed from adjectives, by adding the suffix -mente to the feminine singular form:
Ella es muy rica. (She is very rich.)
Está ricamente vestida. (She is richly dressed.)

In a series of adverbs, only the last one takes the -mente suffix, while the other adverbs
have the form of feminine adjectives:
Escribe clara, rápida y correctamente. (She writes clearly, quickly and correctly.)

Comparison



The COMPARATIVE (comparativo) of an adjective or adverb is formed by preceding it with más (more) or menos (less):
Esta lección es más fácil. (This lesson is easier.)
Lo puedo hacer más fácilmente. (I can do it more easily.)

The SUPERLATIVE (superlativo) of an adjective is formed by adding the definite article to
the comparative form:
Esta lección es la más fácil. (This lesson is the easiest one.)

The superlative of an adverb is expressed by adding the neuter article lo to the comparative form:
lo más fácilmente (the most easily)

The superlative of a noun is expressed by mejor (best) and peor (worst) preceded by the
appropriate definite article:
la mejor respuesta (the best answer)

The ABSOLUTE SUPERLATIVE (superlativo absoluto) of an adjective indicates a high degree of some quality, rather than a comparison. It is formed by adding the suffix -ísimo/a to the adjective or adverb:
Es una mujer riquísima. (She is an extremely wealthy woman.)
Está riquísimamente vestida. (She is very richly dressed.)

Possessives



The POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES (adjetivos posesivos) are:
mi or mío/a (emphatic); (my)
tu or tuyo/a (emphatic); (your)
su or suyo/a (emphatic); (his, her, its)
nuestro/a (our)
vuestro/a (your)
su or suyo/a (their)

Possessive adjectives have a short form when they precede the noun and a longer (emphatic) form when they follow it:
mis amigos (my friends)
una amiga mía (a female friend of mine)
All these forms add -s to form the plural. They agree in gender and number with the thing possessed, not with the possessor:
mis libros (my books)
nuestras cosas (our things)

NOTE: When referring to clothing, parts of the body, and so on, a definite article is regularly used instead of a possessive adjective:
Tiene algo en la mano. (He has something in his hand.)
Póngase Ud. los zapatos. (Put on your shoes.)

The POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS (pronombres posesivos) are formed by adding the appropriate definite article to the long form of the possessive adjective:
el mío, la mía, los míos, las mías (mine)
el tuyo, la tuya, los tuyos, las tuyas (yours)
el suyo, la suya, los suyos, las suyas (his, hers, its)
el nuestro, la nuestra, etc. (ours)
el vuestro, la vuestra, etc. (yours)
el suyo, la suya, etc. (theirs)

Possessive pronouns, like possessive adjectives, agree with the thing possessed rather than with the possessor:
tus cartas y las mías (your letters and mine)
su casa y la nuestra (their house and ours)

Demonstratives



The DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES (adjetivos demostrativos) are:
Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine
Singular Singular Plural Plural
este esta estos estas (this)
ese esa esos esas (that)
aquel aquella aquellos aquellas (that)
Demonstrative adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun they modify:
estos libros (these books)
esa bicicleta (that bicycle)
aquellos edificios (those buildings)

Este refers to something near the speaker; ese refers to something at a distance from the speaker but in the vicinity of the person spoken to; aquel refers to something at a distance from both the speaker and the listener.

The DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS (pronombres demostrativos) are formed by adding a written accent to the demonstrative adjectives. They agree in gender and number with the nouns the represent: No prefiero esta mesa; quiero aquélla (I don't like this table; I want that one over there).

The neuter demonstrative pronouns esto, eso and aquello do not have written accents since there are no neuter demonstrative adjectives with which they might be confused. They always refer to a general idea, a situation, or an indefinite thing, and never have a specific noun antecedent:
¿Qué es esto? (What's this?)
La casa es muy pequeña, y él no quiere eso. (The house is very little, and he doesn't want that.)

Subject and Object Pronouns



The PERSONAL PRONOUNS (pronombres personales) have different forms depending on whether they are the subject (sujeto), direct object (objeto directo) or indirect object (objeto indirecto).

SUBJECT:
First person:
yo (I)
nosotros/as (we)
Second person (familiar):
tú (you)
vosotros/as (you)
Second person (polite):
Usted (you)
Ustedes (you)
Third person:
él (he, it)
ellos (they)
ella (she)
ellas (they)

DIRECT OBJECT:
First person:
me (me)
nos (us)
Second person (familiar):
te (you)
os (you)
Second person (polite):
le, la (you)
los, las (you)
Third person:
lo (him, it)
los (them)
la (her, it)
las (them)

NOTE: in parts of Spain, le is often used instead of lo for the direct object pronoun meaning him.

INDIRECT OBJECT:
First person:
me (me)
nos (us)
Second person (familiar):
te (you)
os (you)
Second person (polite):
le (you)
les (you)
Third person:
le (him, her, it)
les (them)

Subject pronouns (with the exception of Ud.) are regularly omitted, since they can be determined from the conjugated verb forms:
Traigo los refrescos. (I'm bringing the soft drinks.)
Tienes razón. (You're right.)

When the subject pronouns are used, it is in order to emphasize or clarify:
Yo quiero hacer eso. (I want to do that.)
Ella cantaba mientras él tocaba la guitarra. (She sang while he played the guitar.)

POSITION: Object pronouns (direct and indirect) usually precede the verb, but can be attached to infinitives and present participles, and must be attached to affirmative commands:

Lo escribo en español. (I'm writing it in Spanish.)
Quiero escribirlo en español. or Lo quiero escribir en español. (I want to write it in Spanish.)
Estoy escribiéndolo en español. or Lo estoy escribiendo en español. (I'm writing it in Spanish.)
Escríbalo Ud. en inglés. (Write it in English.)

When a verb has two object pronouns, the indirect object is given first. The indirect object pronouns le and les change (for reasons of euphony) to se before lo, la, los and las:
Deseo dárselo a ellos. (I want to give it to them.)
Se lo quiero enviar a ella. (I want to send it to her.)

Reflexive Pronouns and Verbs



The REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS (pronombres reflexivos) are:
First person:
me (myself)
nos (ourselves)
Second person (familiar):
te (yourself)
os (yourselves)
Second person (polite):
se (yourself)
se (yourselves)
Third person:
se (himself, herself, itself)
se (themselves)

Reflexive pronouns are always used with reflexive verbs (verbs expressing an action whose subject is also its object, i.e. where the doer acts upon himself). Sometimes the literal meaning of the reflexive pronouns (myself, etc.) can be translated into English, but usually they cannot be translated in isolation from the verb:
Me lavo. (I wash myself.)
Me acuesto muy tarde. (I go to bed very late.)
Me quejo del trabajo. (I complain about the work.)
Me acuerdo de eso. (I remember that.)
Ya me voy. (I'm going away now.)

Reflexive pronouns normally precede the conjugated verb, but are attached to the infinitive, the present participle, and affirmative commands:
Quiero lavarme. (I want to wash up.)
Estoy lavándome. (I am washing myself.)
Lávense Uds.. (Wash yourselves.)

The reflexive pronouns can also be used in a reciprocal sense, meaning each other:
Nos amamos. (We love each other.)
Se escriben todos los días. (They write each other every day.)

Prepositional Pronouns



The PREPOSITIONAL PRONOUNS (objetos de la preposición) are:
First person:
mí (me)
nosotros/as (us)
Second person (familiar):
tí (you)
vosotros/as (you)
Second person (polite):
Ud. (you)
Uds.(you)
Third person:
él (him, it)
ella (her, it)
ellos (them)

Reflexive:
sí (him/her/it/yourself, themselves/yourselves)
Neuter:
ello

Prepositional pronouns are the object of the preposition that they follow:
Es demasiado difícil para mí. (It's too difficult for me.)
No podemos hacerlo sin ella. (We can't do it without her.)

The neuter pronoun ello is used instead of lo after a preposition, when reference is being made to a general idea that has already been expressed:
Tendrás buen éxito; no hay ninguna duda de ello. (You'll be successful; there's no doubt about it.)

The prepositional pronouns mí, tí and sí combine with the preposition con (with) to become conmigo, contigo and consigo:
¿Quieres ir conmigo? (Do you want to come with me?)
Lo trae consigo. (He's bringing it with him.)

Dative of Interest



An indirect object pronoun is occasionally used in a construction called the DATIVE OF INTEREST (dativo de interés), indicating possession, separation, advantage or disadvantage:
Se me acabó el dinero. (My money ran out on me.)

Relative Pronouns



RELATIVE PRONOUNS (pronombres relativos) introduce a subordinate clause and replace something mentioned earlier in the sentence. They can function as either subject or object pronouns without any change in form.
The most common relative pronoun is que:
El hombre que está hablando es un amigo mío. (The man who is talking is a friend of mine.)
La lección que estudias es muy fácil. (The lesson that you're studying is quite simple.)

After a preposition, que is used as the relative pronoun for things, quien or quienes for persons:
La habitación en que vivo es muy cómoda. (The room in which I live is very cosy.)
La mujer de quien hablabas es extranjera. (The woman about whom you were speaking is a foreigner.)


The compound relative pronouns el/la que (plural, los/las que) or el/la cual (plural, los/las cuales) are used interchangeably after prepositions of more than one syllable, or to avoid confusion and ambiguity:
Estos son mis libros, entre los que hay un diccionario de bolsillo. (These are my books, among which there is a pocket dictionary.)
Ayer fuí al cine con la madre de Juan, la cual es francesa. (Yesterday I went to the cinema with Juan's mother, who is French.)

The neuter forms lo que and lo cual are used when the antecedent is a general idea: Siempre dice lo que piensa (He always says what he thinks); Me habló de sus problemas, lo cual no me gustó (He spoke to me about his troubles, which didn't please me).

The relative pronoun cuyo/a (plural cuyos/as) usually functions as an adjective meaning whose or of which. It can refer to both persons and things, and always agrees in gender and number with the thing possessed rather than with the possessor:
¿Te acuerdas de la niña cuyos padres la abandonaron? (Do you remember the little girl whose parents abandoned her?)

Interrogatives and Exclamations



INTERROGATIVES (interrogativos) ask a question, and are distinguished by their written accents. The most common interrogatives are:
¿Quién? (Who?) ¿Cuántos? (How many?)
¿Qué? (What?) ¿Dónde? (Where?)
¿Cuál? (Which?) ¿Por qué? (Why?)
¿Cómo? (How?) ¿Para qué? (Why?)
¿Cuánto? (How much?) ¿Cuándo? (When?)
Qué asks for a definition or description (what?), while cuál (plural, cuáles) asks for a choice or distinction (which?):
¿Qué es el alma? (What is the soul?)
¿Cuáles son tus libros favoritos? (Which are your favorite books?)

Used in that way, qué and cuál are interrogative pronouns. When an interrogative adjective is required, qué is used for both senses (what? and which?):
¿Qué días vas al hipódromo? (Which days do you go to the racetrack?)

NOTE: Interrogatives are also used in indirect questions, where a question is referred to without being directly asked: No sé quién es (I don't know who she is). The direct question was: ¿Quién es esa mujer? (Who is that woman?).

Exclamatory words (exclamaciones) also have written accents. The most common one is ¡Qué...! used in front of an adjective, adverb or noun:
¡Qué casa! (What a house!)
¡Qué delicioso! (How delicious!)
¡Qué fácilmente lo haces tú! (How easily you do it!)
In literary usage, ¡Cuán...! may replace ¡Qué...!: ¡Cuán fácilmente lo haces tú!

When an adjective follows a noun in this construction, it is preceded by más (most) or tan (so):
¡Qué casa más bonita! (What a pretty house!)
¡Qué niños tan alegres! (What happy children!)

Negatives



The most common NEGATIVES (negativos) are:
no (no, not) nunca (never)
nada (nothing) jamás (never)
nadie (nobody) tampoco (neither)
ninguno/a (not any) ni...ni (neither...nor)
A verb is negated by placing no in front of it:
No sé. (I don't know.)

When there is an object pronoun in front of the verb, no is placed before the object pronoun:
No lo veo. (I don't see it.)

Double negatives are standard in Spanish:
No veo a nadie en la calle. (I don't see anybody in the street.)
No tengo ni papel ni pluma. (I don't have either paper or pen.)

Negatives are also used in comparisons:
Ella escribe mejor que nadie. (She writes better than anybody.)
Ahora lo necesito más que nunca. (Now I need it more than ever.)

Personal "A"



When the direct object of a verb is a person or a domestic animal, it is preceded by the personal a (la preposición personal a) which has no English equivalent:
Veo a mi amigo. (I see my friend.)
Hay que buscar al perro. (We must look for the dog.)
No invito a nadie. (I'm not inviting anyone.)

The personal a is not used, however, with the verb tener (to have):
Tengo un amigo. (I have a friend.)

Verb Conjugations: Tense and Mood



Spanish verbs belong to one of three CONJUGATIONS (conjugaciones) which can be distinguished by the endings of the infinitive forms.
First Conjugation -AR: hablar (to talk)
Second Conjugation -ER: comer (to eat)
Third Conjugation -IR: vivir (to live)
The form of a verb depends on:
1) its conjugation group
2) its tense (time reference) and mood (intent)
3) the person and number of its subject

Spanish has four SIMPLE TENSES (tiempos simples):
PRESENT (presente):
hablo (I talk)
FUTURE (futuro):
hablarás (you will talk)
IMPERFECT (pretérito imperfecto):
hablaba (she used to talk)
PRETERITE (pretérito indefinido):
hablaron (they talked)

There are also four COMPOUND TENSES (tiempos compuestos):
PRESENT PERFECT (préterito perfecto):
hemos comido (we have eaten)
FUTURE PERFECT (futuro perfecto):
habréis comido (you all will have eaten)
PLUPERFECT or PAST PERFECT (pretérito pluscuamperfecto):
habían comido (they had eaten)
PRETERITE PERFECT or PAST ANTERIOR (pretérito anterior):
hube comido (I had eaten)

There are four MOODS (modos) in Spanish:
INDICATIVE (indicativo):
To express a fact:
Está  en el banco. (It's in the bank.)
SUBJUNCTIVE (subjuntivo):
To express a wish, an emotional attitude, or a doubt:
Quiero que Ud. venga. (I want you to come.)
Siento que no venga Ud.. (I'm sorry you're not coming.)
Dudo que venga Ud.. (I doubt that you'll come.)
CONDITIONAL (potencial or condicional):
Expressing the idea of would:
Juan no lo haría así. (Juan wouldn't do it that way.)
IMPERATIVE (imperativo):Expressing a direct command: ¡Venga Ud.! (Come!)

Verb Conjugations: Person and Number



A finite verb agrees in PERSON (persona) and NUMBER (número) with its subject (the doer of the action), even when the subject is understood without being expressed by a noun or pronoun.
There are two numbers:
SINGULAR:
(Yo) veo a Juan. (I see Juan.)
(Tú) debes hacerlo. (You must do it.)
Ud. tiene razón. (You're right.)
(Ella) quiere a su gato. (She loves her cat.)
PLURAL:
(Nosotros) vemos el cielo. (We see the sky.)
(Vosotros) debéis trabajar. (You should work.)
¿Tienen Uds. dinero? (Do you all have money?)
(Ellos) quieren comer. (They want to eat.)

There are three persons: First person is the speaker, second person is the one spoken to, and third person is the one spoken about.
FIRST PERSON SINGULAR:
(Yo) soy maestro. (I'm a teacher.)
FIRST PERSON PLURAL:
(Nosotros) somos alumnos. (We are pupils.)
SECOND PERSON FAMILIAR, SINGULAR:
(Tú) eres guapo. (You are good-looking.)
SECOND PERSON FAMILIAR, PLURAL:
(Vosotros) sois feos. (You are ugly.)
SECOND PERSON POLITE, SINGULAR (uses third person verb forms):
Ud. es muy amable. (You are very kind.)
SECOND PERSON POLITE, PLURAL:
Uds. son muy amables. (You all are very kind.)
THIRD PERSON SINGULAR:
(Ella) es trabajadora. (She is hard-working.)
THIRD PERSON PLURAL:
(Ellos) son perezosos. (They are lazy.)


NOTE: The usted/ustedes (polite "you") form of address is second person but uses third person verb forms, which lends an air of respectful distance on the part of the speaker.

Present Tense



The PRESENT TENSE (presente) of regular verbs is formed by removing the infinitive ending (-AR, -ER or -IR) and adding personal endinngs to the verb stem. There is a different set of personal endings for each of the three conjugations:

FIRST CONJUGATION (hablar)
hablo (I talk) hablamos (we talk)
hablas (you talk) habláis (you talk)
habla (he, she, it talks) hablan (they talk)
SECOND CONJUGATION (comer)
como (I eat) comemos (we eat)
comes (you eat) coméis (you eat)
come (he, she, it eats) comen (they eat)
THIRD CONJUGATION (vivir)
vivo (I live) vivimos (we live)
vives (you live) vivís (you live)
vive (he, she, it lives) viven (they live)
The present tense is commonly used in conversation to refer to actions which will take place in the immediate future:
Vengo más tarde. (I'll come later.)

It is sometimes used in literature to replace the preterite, lending a sense of immediacy to historical narrative. This is called the vivid present.
Cortés admira la bondad y liberalidad del gran Montezuma. (Cortez admired the goodness and generosity of the great Montezuma.)

Future Tense



The FUTURE TENSE (futuro) of regular verbs is formed by adding personal endings to the infinitive. The endings are the same for all three conjugations.
hablaré (I will talk) comeré, viviré, etc.
hablarás (you will talk)
hablará (he, she, it will talk)
hablaremos (we will talk)
hablaréis (you will talk)
hablarán (they will talk)
In addition to expressing future time, the future tense can express uncertainty or probability in the present:
Serán las cinco. (It must be about five o'clock.)

Imperfect Tense



The IMPERFECT TENSE (pretérito imperfecto) of regular verbs is formed by removing the infinitive ending (-AR, -ER or -IR) and adding personal endings to the verb stem. There is one set of endings for the first (-AR) conjugation and a second set of endings shared by the second (-ER) and third (-IR) conjugations.

FIRST CONJUGATION (hablar)
hablaba (I was talking) hablábamos (we were talking)
hablabas (you were talking) hablabais (you were talking)
hablaba (he, she, it was talking) hablaban (they were talking)
SECOND CONJUGATION (comer)
comía (I was eating) comíamos (we were eating)
comías (you were eating) comíais (you were eating)
comía (he, she, it was eating) comían (they were eating)
THIRD CONJUGATION (vivir)
vivía (I used to live) vivíamos (we used to live)
vivías (you used to live) vivíais (you used to live)
vivía (he, she, it used to live) vivían (they used to live)
The imperfect tense is used to describe a situation in the past, or an action which was ongoing or repeated:
Eran las once. (It was eleven o'clock.)
Queríamos comer bien. (We wanted to eat well.)
Todos los días llegábamos tarde. (We used to arrive late every day.)

Preterit Tense



The PRETERITE TENSE (pretérito indefinido) of regular verbs is formed by removing the infinitive ending (-AR, -ER or -IR) and adding personal endings to the verb stem. As with the imperfect tense, there is one set of endings for the first (-AR) conjugation and a second set of endings shared by the second (-ER) and third (-IR) conjugations.

FIRST CONJUGATION (hablar)
hablé (I talked) hablamos (we talked)
hablaste (you talked) hablasteis (you talked)
habló (he, she, it talked) hablaron (they talked)
SECOND CONJUGATION (comer)
comí (I ate) comimos (we ate)
comiste (you ate) comisteis (you ate)
comió (he, she, it ate) comieron (they ate)
THIRD CONJUGATION (vivir)
viví (I lived) vivimos (we lived)
viviste (you lived) vivisteis (you lived)
vivió (he, she, it lived) vivieron (they lived)
The preterite tense narrates an action with a definite beginnning or ending in the past:
Comenzó a llover. (It began to rain.)
Juan cenó conmigo ayer. (Juan ate supper with me yesterday.)

The preterite is also used to indicate an event which took place while another action (in the imperfect tense) was ongoing: Dormía cuando llegué. (He was sleeping when I arrived.)

Compound (Perfect) Tenses



The COMPOUND TENSES (tiempos compuestos) are formed with the AUXILIARY VERB (verbo auxiliar) haber and the PAST PARTICIPLE (participio pasivo) of the main verb. The past participle in compound tenses is invariable in form.

The PRESENT PERFECT (pretérito perfecto) uses the present tense of the auxiliary verb haber:
he comido (I have eaten)
has comido (you have eaten)
ha comido (he, she, it has eaten)
hemos comido (we have eaten)
habéis comido (you have eaten)
han comido (they have eaten)

The FUTURE PERFECT (futuro perfecto) uses the future tense of the auxiliary verb haber:
habré comido (I will have eaten )
habrás comido (you will have eaten)
habrá  comido (he, she, it will have eaten)
habremos comido (we will have eaten)
habréis comido (you will have eaten)
habrán comido (they will have eaten)

The PLUPERFECT or PAST PERFECT (pretérito pluscuamperfecto) uses the imperfect tense of haber:
había comido (I had eaten)
habías comido (you had eaten)
había comido (he, she, it had eaten)
habíamos comido (we had eaten)
habíais comido (you had eaten)
habían comido (they had eaten)

The PRETERITE PERFECT or PAST ANTERIOR (pretérito anterior) uses the preterite tense of haber:
hube comido (I had eaten)
hubiste comido (you had eaten)
hubo comido (he, she, it had eaten)
hubimos comido (we had eaten)
hubisteis comido (you had eaten)
hubieron comido (they had eaten)

NOTE: This is strictly a literary tense; in conversation, the preterite or pluperfect is used. The preterite perfect is only found after conjunctions of time, such as cuando (when), después que (after), apenas (scarcely) or luego que (as soon as):
Después que hube comido, salí. (After I had eaten, I went out.)

The PERFECT INFINITIVE (infinitivo compuesto) is composed of the infinitive of haber and the past participle of the verb: haber comido (to have eaten).

The PERFECT PARTICIPLE (gerundio compuesto) is composed of the present participle of haber and the past participle of the verb: habiendo comido (having eaten).

Conditional Mood



The CONDITIONAL MOOD (modo potencial) expresses the idea of would (contingent possibility):
Lo haría hoy, pero no tendré tiempo. (I would do it today, but I won't have time.)
Lo habría hecho ayer, pero no tenía tiempo. (I would have done it yesterday, but I didn't have time.)
Elena dijo que vendría. (Elena said that she would come.)

It can also be used to express wonderment or doubt in the past, just as the future tense can be used in the present:
¿Qué hora sería cuando desayuné ayer? (I wonder what time was it when I ate breakfast yesterday?)

The conditional is formed (like the future) by adding a single set of personal endings to the infinitives of all three conjugations. (The endings are identical to those of the imperfect tense of second and third conjugation verbs; the only difference is that those are added to the stem, rather than to the entire infinitive form.)
hablaría (I would talk) comería, viviría, etc.
hablarías (you would talk)
hablaría (he, she, it would talk)
hablaríamos (we would talk)
hablaríais (you would talk)
hablarían (they would talk)
The CONDITIONAL PERFECT (potencial perfecto) is a compound tense using the conditional of the auxiliary verb haber and the past participle of the main verb:
habría comido (I would have eaten)
habrías comido (you would have eaten)
habría comido (he, she, it would have eaten)
habríamos comido (we would have eaten)
habríais comido (you would have eaten)
habrían comido (they would have eaten)
NOTE: The conditional is often treated as though it were a tense rather than a mood; strictly speaking, however, the conditional is a mood which has two tenses: a simple tense used when referring to present possibilities, and a compound tense used when referring to possibilities in the past.

Subjunctive Mood



The SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD (modo subjuntivo) is generally used in dependent clauses introduced by que (that) when the main clause expresses a wish, a strong emotional attitude, or an uncertainty:
Te ruego que escribas en español. (I beg you to write in Spanish.)
Tenían miedo de que ella no volviera. (They were afraid that she might not come back.)
Dudo que sea la verdad. (I doubt that it's the truth.)

The subjunctive is also used for FORMAL COMMANDS, for the negative of INFORMAL COMMANDS, for HORTATORY COMMANDS (English "Let's...! ") and after IMPERSONAL EXPRESSIONS:
es necesario que... (it is necessary that...)
Tenga Ud.. (Have this.)
¡No hables! (Don't talk!)
¡Comamos! (Let's eat)
Es una lástima que no quiera venir. (It's a pity that he doesn't want to come.)

The PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE is regularly formed by adding one set of personal endings to the stem of -AR verbs and a second set of endings to verbs of the -ER and -IR conjugations:

FIRST CONJUGATION (hablar) PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE
hable (I talk) hablemos (we talk)
hables (you talk) habléis (you talk)
hable (he, she, it talks) hablen (they talk)
SECOND CONJUGATION (comer) PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE
coma (I eat) comamos (we eat)
comas (you eat) comáis (you eat)
coma (he, she, it eat) coman (they eat)
THIRD CONJUGATION (vivir) PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE
viva (I live) vivamos (we live)
vivas (you live) viváis (you live)
viva (he, she, it lives) vivan (they live)
The IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE is formed by adding a set of endings terminating in either -RA or -SE (with no difference in usage or meaning) to the verb stem, with one set of endings for first conjugation (-AR) verbs and another set of endings for second (-ER) and third (-IR) conjugation verbs: Esperaba que él llegara/llegase tarde (I was expecting him to arrive late).

FIRST CONJUGATION (hablar)
hablara OR hablase (I talked)
hablaras OR hablases (you talked)
hablara OR hablase (he, she, it talked)
habláramos OR hablásemos (we talked)
hablarais OR hablaseis (you talked)
hablaran OR hablasen (they talked)
SECOND CONJUGATION (comer)
comiera OR comiese (I ate)
comieras OR comieses (you ate)
comiera OR comiese (he, she, it ate)
comiéramos OR comiésemos (we ate)
comierais OR comieseis (you ate)
comieran OR comiesen (they ate)
THIRD CONJUGATION (vivir)
viviera OR viviese (I lived)
vivieras OR vivieses (you lived)
viviera OR viviese (he, she, it lived)
viviéramos OR viviésemos (we lived)
vivierais OR vivieseis (you lived)
vivieran OR viviesen (they lived)
The PERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE is a compound tense formed by the present subjunctive of haber and the past participle of the main verb.
haya comido (I have eaten)
hayas comido (you have eaten)
haya comido (he, she, it has eaten)
hayamos comido (we have eaten)
hayáis comido (you have eaten)
hayan comido (they have eaten)
The PLUPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE is a compound tense formed by the imperfect subjunctive of haber and the past participle of the main verb.
hubiera/hubiese comido (I had eaten)
hubieras/hubieses comido (you had eaten)
hubiera/hubiese comido (he, she, it had eaten)
hubiéramos/hubiésemos comido (we had eaten)
hubierais/hubieseis comido (you had eaten)
hubieran/hubiesen comido (they had eaten)

Commands



Familiar COMMANDS (mandatos), when positive, are expressed by means of the imperative mood. The second person singular (tú) forms are identical to the third person singular of the present tense:
El niño duerme. (The child is sleeping.)
¡Duerme tú! (Go to sleep!)

The second person plural (vosotros) forms are based on the infinitive, with a -d substituted for the final -r:
¡Dormid vosotros! (Go to sleep, all of you!)

NEGATIVE familiar commands, both singular and plural, are expressed by the present subjunctive:
¡No duermas tú! (Don't go to sleep!)

The present subjunctive is used for formal commands, both positive and negative: Duerma Ud. (Please go to sleep). It is also used for indirect commands (introduced by the conjunction que):
Está cansado; que se acueste. (He's tired; let him go to bed.)

For impersonal commands given in a general sense (directions on a bottle or an examination paper, for instance) the impersonal pronoun se is attached to the subjunctive:
Agítese antes de usar. (Shake before using.)
Escríbase en español. (Write in Spanish.)

Hortatory commands can be expressed either with the subjunctive or with the phrase vamos a and an infinitive:
Durmamos. (Let's go to sleep.)
Vamos a dormir. (Let's go to sleep.)

Object pronouns are attached to affirmative commands, but they precede negative and indirect commands:
Tráigamelo Ud.. (Bring it to me.)
No me lo traiga Ud.. (Don't bring it to me.)
Que lo traiga Juan. (Let Juan bring it.)

Passive and Impersonal Constructions



In the PASSIVE VOICE (voz pasiva), the subject is acted upon by an outside agent. When the agent is specified, the passive voice is expressed by:
SUBJECT + ser + past participle + por + AGENT
for example: Esta carta fue escrita por un amigo mío. (This letter was written by a friend of mine.)

Since the past participle acts as an adjective, it agrees in gender and number with the subject. If the passive subject is a thing and the agent is not mentioned, then a PASSIVE REFLEXIVE (pasiva reflexiva) construction is used, with the reflexive pronoun se preceding the verb and the passive subject following it:
Aquí se venden cigarrillos. (Cigarettes are sold here.)

Se is also used to form IMPERSONAL CONSTRUCTIONS, with se used as an indefinite subject pronoun similar to the English "one" or the impersonal "you" and "they. " This construction is often difficult-- if not impossible-- to distinguish from the passive reflexive (textbooks differ in their classification of common phrases like Se habla español (Spanish is spoken / One speaks Spanish). There are two main criteria to be met: the verb must be in the singular, since se is singular when used as a subject pronoun, and se should be easily translated as one or you:
¿Cómo se va al teatro? (How does one get to the theater?)
¿Cómo se dice eso en español? (How do you say that in Spanish?)

Participles and Progressive Tenses



The PRESENT PARTICIPLE (gerundio) is formed by adding the suffix -ando to the stem of first conjugation (-AR) verbs and -iendo to the stem of second (-ER) and third (-IR) conjugation verbs (or -yendo if the stem ends in a vowel).
hablar (to talk) hablando (talking)
comer (to eat) comiendo (eating)
vivir (to live) viviendo (living)
leer (to read) leyendo (reading)
The present participle is used with the verb estar to form the PROGRESSIVE TENSES
(tiempos progresivos), which express an ongoing action: Estoy estudiando español (I am studying Spanish); Estabas leyendo el periódico (You were reading the newspaper). The same construction is used with seguir and continuar: Sigue llorando (She keeps on crying); Continuan estudiando (They continue studying). The present participle is also used with the verb ir to express an action which is gradual or incremental: Va mejorando (It is getting better).

NOTE: The progressive construction is never used for estar, venir and ir.

The PAST PARTICIPLE (participio pasivo) is formed by adding the suffix -ado to the stem of -AR verbs, -ido to the stem of -ER and -IR verbs (or -ído if the stem ends in a vowel).
cerrar (to close) cerrado (closed)
perder (to lose) perdido (lost)
recibir (to receive) recibido (received)
caer (to fall) caído (fallen)
When used with the auxiliary verb haber to form compound tenses, the past participle has an invariable ending:
Hemos cerrado la tienda. (We have closed the store.)
Habrá perdido las llaves. (He will have lost the keys.)
Habías recibido una carta. (You had received a letter.)
Entraron después de que hubo caído. (They entered after she had fallen down.)

When used adjectivally, however, past participles agree in gender and number with the nouns they modify:
La tienda está cerrada. (The store is closed.)
Las llaves están perdidas. (The keys are lost.)

Infinitives



The INFINITIVE (infinitivo) is a verb form that is not limited by person or number; "to be" is an English infinitive. Spanish/English dictionaries always identify a verb by its infinitive.

A COMPLEMENTARY INFINITIVE completes the meaning of a preceding conjugated verb:
No puedo hablar de eso. (I can't talk about that.)
Quiero comer en un restaurante. (I want to eat in a restaurant.)
Ella piensa vivir con ellos. (She intends to live with them.)

After a preposition, the infinitive form of a verb must always be used:
Prefiero leer antes de dormir. (I prefer to read before going to sleep.)

A common temporal expression consists of the contraction al (literally, "at the", but translate "upon") together with an infinitive:
Al despertar, me di cuenta de lo que había hecho. (Upon awakening, I realized what I had done.)

Infinitives can be used as VERBAL NOUNS (nombres verbales). When used that way, they are considered to be masculine singular, and may be preceded by the definite article el:
El escribir bien es un arte. (Writing well is an art.)
Trabajar es lo que importa. (Working is what matters.)

NOTE: Confusion arises for English-speaking students from the fact that verbal nouns in English have the same form as present participles. In the sentence "Singing is fun," for example, the word "singing" is a verbal noun; but it is a present participle in the sentence "I am singing" (present progressive tense). In Spanish, the first example would use an infinitive El cantar es agradable, while the second one would use a present participle Estoy cantando.

This confusion is compounded by the fact that English verbal nouns are called gerunds and Spanish present participles are called gerundios. It is advisable, perhaps, to avoid using the terms gerund and gerundio altogether; verbal noun and present participle are unmistakable in their meaning.

Stem-Changing Verbs



Many verbs in Spanish change the spelling of their stems in certain conjugated forms. These verbs can be divided into three major groups:
GROUP 1
Verbs ending in -AR or -ER that change the stem vowel from E to IE or from O to UE in the indicative and subjunctive moods of the present tense, except in the plurals of the first and second persons (nosotros "we" and vosotros "you").
Pensar (to think)

INDICATIVE SUBJUNCTIVE
pienso piense (I think)
piensas pienses (you think)
piensa piense (he, she, it thinks)
pensamos pensemos (we think)
pensáis penséis (you think)
piensan piensen (they think)
Volver (to return)

INDICATIVE SUBJUNCTIVE
vuelvo vuelva (I return)
vuelves vuelvas (you return)
vuelve vuelva (he, she, it returns)
volvemos volvamos (we return)
volvéis volváis (you return)
vuelven vuelvan (they return)


GROUP 2
Verbs ending in -IR with the same changes as above, and an additional change of E to I or O to U in the third person of the preterite tense, in the first and second person plural forms of the present subjunctive, and in the entire imperfect subjunctive conjugation as well as the present participle.
Sentir (to feel)
Present Indicative: siento, sientes, siente, sentimos, sentís, sienten
Preterite: sentí, sentiste, sintió, sentimos, sentisteis, sintieron
Present Subjunctive: sienta, sientas, sienta, sintamos, sintáis, sientan
Imperfect Subjunctive: sintiera, sintieras, sintiera, sintiéramos, sintierais, sintieran
Present Participle: sintiendo
Dormir (to sleep)
Present Indicative: duermo, duermes, duerme, dormimos, dormís, duermen
Preterite: dormí, dormiste, durmió, dormimos, dormisteis, durmieron
Present Subjunctive: duerma, duermas, duerma, durmamos, durmáis, duerman
Imperfect Subjunctive: durmiera, durmieras, durmiera, durmiéramos, durmierais, durmieran
Present Participle: durmiendo


GROUP 3
Verbs in -IR which only change E to I.
Pedir (to request)
Present Indicative: pido, pides, pide, pedimos, pedís, piden
Preterite: pedí, pediste, pidió, pedimos, pedisteis, pidieron
Present Subjunctive: pida, pidas, pida, pidamos, pidáis, pidan
Imperfect Subjunctive: pidiera, pidieras, pidiera, pidiéramos, pidierais, pidieran
Present Participle: pidiendo

"Ir A" (Periphrastic Future)

The future tense may be expressed periphrastically (that is, in a roundabout way) by using the construction ir a followed by an infinitive. This periphrastic future construction can also be used with reference to the past, by conjugating ir in the imperfect tense:
Voy a cantar. (I am going to sing.)
Iban a bailar. (They were going to dance.)

Ser and Estar

Ser and estar both mean to be. Ser is used to express WHAT something is, while estar expresses WHERE or HOW it is:
Nosotros éramos buenos amigos. (We were good friends.)
Miguel está en la oficina. (Miguel is in the office.)
Pablo está enfermo. (Pablo is sick.)
Estar is also used with the present participle to form the progressive tenses, present and past. Examples:
Juan está estudiando. (Juan is studying.)
Ellos estaban bailando el tango. (They were dancing the Tango.)

Tú and Usted



Tú (the plural vosotros/as is used exclusively in Spain) is the second person pronoun (English "you"). It is used for the familiar form of address when speaking to family members, close friends, children and pet animals:
¿Tú te sientes bien? (Do you feel okay?)

The polite form of the second person pronoun is usted (plural, ustedes) for both masculine and feminine. It derives from the phrase Vuestra Merced (Your Grace), and is therefore abbreviated either Vd. or Ud. (plural Vds. or Uds.). Although it indicates the second person mode of address, it is conjugated with third person verb forms (English "he/she/it"). This lends a respectful sense of distance to the conversation:
¿Sigue Ud. estudiando el español?
(Do you continue studying Spanish?)

NOTE: Ustedes (Uds.) is used in Latin America in place of vosotros/as.

Numbers



CARDINAL NUMBERS (cardinales) are the numbers used for counting:
0 cero
1 uno/a
2 dos
3 tres
4 cuatro
5 cinco
6 seis
7 siete
8 ocho
9 nueve

10 diez
11 once
12 doce
13 trece
14 catorce
15 quince
16 dieciséis
17 diecisiete
18 dieciocho
19 diecinueve

20 veinte
21 veintiuno/a
22 veintidós

30 treinta
31 treinta y uno/a

40 cuarenta
50 cincuenta
60 sesenta
70 setenta
80 ochenta
90 noventa

100 cien(to)
101 ciento uno

200 doscientos/as
300 trescientos/as
400 cuatrocientos/as
500 quinientos/as
600 seiscientos/as
700 setecientos/as
800 ochocientos/as
900 novecientos/as

1.000 mil
1.500 mil quinientos
2.000 dos mil
1.000.000 un millón

Uno in compound numbers loses the -o before masculine nouns, whether singular or plural: treinta y un días (thirty-one days).
Dates (months and years) are cardinal numbers in Spanish, except for the first of the month: El 9 (nueve) de marzo de 1995 (mil novecientos noventa y cinco) (the ninth of October, 1995). This does not apply to instances like the following: Hoy es el primero de octubre (Today is October first).

Note that Spanish reverses the English usage of commas and periods in numbers: 1.250 kilómetros = 1,250 kilometers; 1,25 litros = 1.25 liters.

The ORDINAL NUMBERS (ordinales) are used to establish a relative position:
primer(o)/a (first)
segundo/a (second)
tercer(o)/a (third)
cuarto/a (fourth)
quinto/a (fifth)
sexto/a (sixth)
séptimo/a (seventh)
octavo/a (eighth)
noveno/a (ninth)
décimo/a (tenth)

After ten, cardinal numbers are generally used to indicate the ordinals:
Alfonso Trece (Alfonso the Thirteenth)
el siglo veinte (the twentieth century)

Prepositions



PREPOSITIONS (preposiciones) are the connecting words that show the relationships between words in the sentence. Nouns, pronouns, noun phrases, gerunds or noun clauses can be the complement of the prepositions:
Simple prepositions in Spanish include the following:
a     to, at
con with
contra against
de of, from
desde from, since
durante during
en in, on
entre between
hacia toward
hasta until
para for, in order to
por for, by
sin without
sobre over
tras after
Vamos a Barcelona. (We are going to Barcelona.)
Viene con su hermano. (She's coming with her brother.)
Quiero gasolina sin plomo. (I want unleaded gasoline.)

Conjunctions



CONJUNCTIONS (conjunciones) join words, phrases and clauses together.
The most commonly used conjunction in Spanish is y (and).
con su espada y con su pluma
(with his sword and his pen)
Other commonly used conjunctions:
o or
ni nor
pero but

Interjections



An INTERJECTION (interjección) is a word or expression often given emotive value in the stream of speech. Interjections are rarely used in formal or business writing. In print interjection is usually followed by exclamation mark or a coma:
¡ay! (oh!, ouch!)
¡por Dios! (for goodness sakes!)

Sentences



A sentence consists of the subject (the topic of the sentence) and the predicate (what is said about the subject).
Yo compro suéteres en el Rastro.
(I buy sweaters in the Rastro.)
Yo (I) is the subject of the sentence and compro suéteres (buy sweaters) is the predicate.

The most common forms of subject are nouns and pronouns Noun phrase and noun clause may be the subject of a sentence:
Los niños en la escuela reciclan las latas. (noun phrase)
(The children in the school recycle cans.)
Los toros de Pamplona y los muchachos de Pamplona corren rapidamente. (noun clauses)
(The bulls of Pamplona and the boys of Pamplona run fast.)

The most common form of the predicate is one consisting of the verb of action and direct or indirect object:
La niña ve el elefante.
(The girl sees the elephant.)
Elefante is a direct object of the present tense verb ve.