The _presente de indicativo_ (similar to the present simple in English) in Spanish is the first tense you will learn in a Spanish class. Knowing this simple tense is very useful as it is the first step to communicating actions, thoughts and ideas. The _presente de indicativo_ can be used used to describe an action happening at the moment or in the very near future, to describe a routine or repeated actions, or to allude to stable and permanent situations.
Use of presente de indicativo
The presente de indicativo is used to express:
Facts
Ella se llama Juanita. (She is called Juanita.)
Tiene pelo rubio. (She has blonde hair.)Actions in the present
Yo como una manzana. (I eat an apple.)Routines or frequent actions
Cada viernes juega al tenis. (Every Friday, she plays tennis.)Characteristics or general truths
ex: Los mexicanos hablan español. (Mexicans speak Spanish.)
Los perros ladran. (Dogs bark.)The amount of time an action has been taking place
Ella vive aquí desde hace tres anos. (She has lived here for three years.)Future actions accompanied by a time expression
El tren llega a las dos de la tarde. (The train arrives at two in the afternoon.)
Conjugation of presente de indicativo
There are three endings to Spanish verbs: -AR, -ER, or -IR. To make presente indicativo, we remove the ending of the verb and add the appropriate ending according to pronoun.
| -AR hablar | -ER comer | -IR vivir | |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablo | como | vivo |
| tú | hablas | comes | vives |
| él/ella/usted | habla | come | vive |
| nosotros/-as | hablamos | comemos | vivimos |
| vosotros/-as | habláis | coméis | vivís |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hablan | comen | viven |
Common irregular verbs
These are some of the most common Spanish verbs that you will most likely be using on a daily basis. The best thing is to memorize them as soon as you can: ser (to be), estar (to be), ir (to go), oir (to hear), oler (to smell).
| SER | ESTAR | IR | OIR | OLER | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | soy | estoy | voy | oigo | huelo |
| tú | eres | estás | vas | oyes | hueles |
| él/ella/usted | es | está | va | oye | huele |
| nosotros/-as | somos | estamos | vamos | oímos | olemos |
| vosotros/-as | sois | estáis | vais | oís | oléis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | son | están | van | oyen | huelen |
Once you remember the endings, conjugating the present can be quite easy! If you’re looking to learn even more, take a look at the Spanish courses we offer.
Posted in Learn Spanish
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