{"id":3581,"date":"2020-04-27T18:42:24","date_gmt":"2020-04-27T18:42:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/?p=3581"},"modified":"2023-03-22T10:57:00","modified_gmt":"2023-03-22T10:57:00","slug":"stem-changing-verbs-in-spanish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/stem-changing-verbs-in-spanish\/","title":{"rendered":"A Guide to Stem-changing Verbs in Spanish"},"content":{"rendered":"

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There are many common, everyday verbs that fall into the category of stem-changing verbs in Spanish. That\u2019s why it\u2019s important to understand what they are and how they work.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve talked a lot about the different irregular verb conjugations in Spanish on this blog, as well as the regular verb conjugations. But there is a certain type of verb that we haven\u2019t really addressed, and it\u2019s somewhere between regular and irregular verbs. Stem-changing verbs in Spanish are conjugated differently from regular verbs, but unlike irregular verbs, they all follow the same pattern.<\/p>\n

Please note:<\/strong> if you do not know the conjugations for regular verbs, this post will be confusing for you. First check out our guide to conjugations in Spanish<\/a>, and then come back to continue.<\/p>\n

So, what is a stem and how exactly do these verbs change?<\/h2>\n

A stem is the part of the verb that comes before the ending (which, in infinitive verbs, is always either ar, er, or ir). In regular conjugations, the stem doesn\u2019t change, where in irregular conjugations, it can be completely different. In stem-changing verbs, the change is in the last vowel of the stem.<\/p>\n

Stem-changing verbs in Spanish can also be thought of as 1, 2, 3, 6<\/strong> verbs. This is because in the traditional conjugation tables, the conjugations that change are the first, second, third and sixth.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s see that visualized.<\/p>\n

Stem-changing verbs in Spanish: affected conjugations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
1<\/strong><\/td>\nyo<\/strong><\/td>\nI<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2<\/strong><\/td>\nt\u00fa<\/strong><\/td>\nyou<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
3<\/strong><\/td>\nusted, \u00e9l, ella<\/strong><\/td>\nyou (formal), he, she<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
4<\/td>\nnosotros<\/td>\nwe<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
5<\/td>\nvosotros<\/td>\nplural you (informal)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/strong><\/td>\nustedes, ellos, ellas<\/strong><\/td>\nplural you (formal), they<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

In other words, the affected conjugations are in singular, the first person (yo), the second person (t\u00fa) and second person formal (usted), the third person (\u00e9l, ella), and in plural, the second person formal (ustedes), and the third person (ellos, ellas).<\/p>\n

It might be easier to think of it as the ones that are not affected as there are fewer: just nosotros<\/em> and vosotros<\/em>. In case you were wondering about vos, it is also unaffected. These are conjugated just as they are when it\u2019s a regular verb.<\/p>\n

There are a few different ways that stem-changing verbs in Spanish can change. The key is in the vowels in the verb. Let\u2019s see the different possibilities:<\/p>\n