How it works
Verbs in -er and -ir work like -ar verbs: drop the ending and add the person's ending, with e where -ar verbs have a: habla → come, vive.
-er and -ir verbs have the same endings except for nosotros (-emos / -imos) and vosotros (-éis / -ís).
Endings
| Person | comer | vivir |
|---|---|---|
| yo | como | vivo |
| tú | comes | vives |
| él / ella / usted | come | vive |
| nosotros / nosotras | comemos | vivimos |
| vosotros / vosotrasSpain | coméis | vivís |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | comen | viven |
Common regular verbs
- -er: comer (to eat), beber (to drink), leer (to read), aprender (to learn), comprender (to understand), vender (to sell), correr (to run)
- -ir: vivir (to live), escribir (to write), abrir (to open), recibir (to receive), subir (to go up), compartir (to share)
Examples
- Como fruta todos los días.I eat fruit every day.
- ¿Dónde vives?Where do you (informal) live?
- Mi abuela lee el periódico por la mañana.My grandmother reads the newspaper in the morning.
- Aprendemos español juntos.We learn Spanish together.
- Vivimos cerca del centro.We live near the centre.
- Los niños escriben una carta a su abuelo.The children are writing a letter to their grandfather.
- ¿Ustedes beben café?Do you all drink coffee?
Common mistakes
- Wrong:
Nosotros vivemos en Kyiv.Right: ✓ Nosotros vivimos en Kyiv.-ir verbs take -imos, not -emos. - Wrong:
¿Tú comas carne?Right: ✓ ¿Tú comes carne?-as is the ending of -ar verbs; -er verbs take -es. - Wrong:
Lemos mucho.Right: ✓ Leemos mucho.leer: stem le- + -emos gives a double e.