The present indicative* tense is used similarly in Spanish and in English. The main difference is that the present tense is often used in Spanish when one would use the present progressive tense in English. So while one might say, in English, "I am studying Spanish", in Spanish one would be more likely to simply say "Estudio español".

Below are the forms of the present indicative tense for regular -ar, -er, and -ir verbs. Because the "vosotros" form is used only in Spain, it is included in parentheses.

*the word "indicative" is used here to distinguish this form from the present subjunctive.

Notes

1. Many verbs have irregular "yo" forms in the present tense. These include:

2. There is a large group of verbs whose stem vowels change when conjugated in all forms except nosotros and vosotros. It is always the stressed vowel that changes. There are three groups of "stem-changing" verbs. The first has an e that changes to ie, and this is the largest of the three groups. An example is empezar:

The second group has an e that changes to i, as in conseguir:

The third group has an o that changes to ue, as in soñar:

3. There are also verbs that have spelling alternations in the present tense, such as conseguir above. These alternations are necessary to accurately represent the pronunciation of the words. The three most common spelling alternations in the present tense are between g/j, g/gu, and c/z. An example of the g/j alternation is found in the conjugation of proteger "to protect":

The g/gu alternation is found with seguir:

The c/z alternation is found with convencer:

The final spelling variation comes from a general rule that prohibits 3 consecutive vowels in Spanish. That means that when an i ends up between two other vowels, it becomes a y. This spelling rule applies in the present tense forms of verbs ending in -uir and -oir. The verb contribuir is one example:

[Return to Unit 1]