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- Present tense: regular -ar verbs
Present tense: regular -ar verbs
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Most Spanish verbs end in -ar, and they all follow the same pattern. Learn it once and use it hundreds of times.
The pattern
Take off -ar to find the stem, then add the ending.
No pronoun needed
The ending shows who is doing the action, so Spanish usually leaves out the pronoun.
Hablo inglés. = I speak English. Escuchamos música. = We listen to music.
Use the pronoun only for emphasis or contrast: Yo estudio, pero él no.
Hablo inglés. = I speak English. Escuchamos música. = We listen to music.
Use the pronoun only for emphasis or contrast: Yo estudio, pero él no.
Useful -ar verbs
estudiar (to study), trabajar (to work), bailar (to dance), cantar (to sing), nadar (to swim), mirar (to look at, watch), tocar (to play an instrument), visitar, viajar (to travel), cocinar (to cook)
The present tense means both "I dance" and "I am dancing".
The present tense means both "I dance" and "I am dancing".
Translate: We listen to music and they watch TV.
- We listen: escuchamos.
- to music: música.
- they watch TV: miran la tele.
Answer: Escuchamos música y miran la tele.
Regular -ar verbs: stem + -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. Subject pronouns are usually left out because the ending shows the person.
The interactive lesson includes the diagrams for this topic.
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