Irregular Verbs in Present Tense (Part 2)

In this topic we will we will learn and practice using more Irregular Spanish Verbs in Present Tense.

The majority of Spanish verbs in Present Tense are Regular Verbs. ‘Regular’ signifies that such verbs follow the same pattern and are conjugated (endings changed) in the same way. We learned the conjugation rules for Regular Verbs earlier in the course. This is great, but unfortunately there are also Irregular Spanish Verbs in Present Tense.

Irregular verbs do not follow the same one-size-fits-all, easy-to-learn patterns as the Regular verbs. With Irregular verbs you have to remember each specific conjugation. There are Irregular verbs in every tense (present, past, future, etc). In this topic we will look specifically at Irregular Spanish Verbs in Present Tense.

With Irregular Verbs it is helpful to group them into five categories. Each category is a collection of similarly Irregular Verbs that follow the same conjugation pattern. In this topic we will analyse the second of these categories.

Irregular Spanish verbs in the present tense that change O to UE

All of these verbs follow the same pattern of switching O to UE for all persons except Nosotros/as and Vosotros/as when conjugated in Present Tense.

Poder: To be able to/Can
Encontrar: To find
Volver: To return
Dormir: To sleep
Costar: To cost
Recordar: To remember
Acostarse: To go to bed

Let’s look more closely at one of these verbs…

Poder (To be able to/Can)

(Yo) puedo: I can
(Tú) puedes: You can (informal)
(Usted) puede: You can (formal)
(Él/ella) puede: He/She can
(Nosotros/as) podemos: We can
(Vosotros/as) podéis: You can (group/informal)
(Ustedes) pueden: You can (group/formal)
(Ellos/as) pueden: They can

Here are some example sentences using this type of irregular Spanish verbs:

¿Puedes hablar más alto?: Can you speak louder?
Antonio no encuentra su chaqueta: Antonio can’t find his jacket.
No puedo trabajar más. Necesito unas vacaciones: I can’t work anymore. I need some holiday.
¿Cuando vuelves del trabajo?: When are you coming back from work?
Podemos ir contigo al supermercado: We can go with you to the supermarket.
Mis hijos duermen muy poco: My children sleep very little.
¿Podéis bajar el volumen de la radio?: Can you lower the volume on the radio?
¿Cuánto cuesta ese libro?: How much does that book cost?
Mi padre no puede comer comida con sal. Tiene la tensión alta: My father cannot eat food with salt. He has high blood pressure.
No recuerdo dónde está mi teléfono móvil: I don’t remember where my mobile phone is.

Coming across Irregular Verbs for the first time can be a frustrating experience. You have just learned the clear and consistent patterns for conjugating regular verbs and then you learn that there are many other rogue verbs knocking about.

Don’t worry, give yourself time. Don’t expect to remember the Irregular Verbs right away. Little by little you will become more familiar with them as you see and hear them more as will have happened with Ser, Estar, Tener, and Querer.