{"id":4496,"date":"2021-07-12T15:25:06","date_gmt":"2021-07-12T15:25:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/?p=4496"},"modified":"2021-07-12T15:25:08","modified_gmt":"2021-07-12T15:25:08","slug":"seguir-conjugation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/seguir-conjugation\/","title":{"rendered":"Follow Me, Please: A Guide to \u201cSeguir\u201d Conjugation in Spanish"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Has someone ever stopped you in the street to ask directions, and you\u2019ve found yourself absolutely unable to tell them which way to go? We\u2019ve all been there, and those situations only get more difficult when you\u2019re trying to help someone in a different language. Try saying the following sentence in Spanish: \u201cKeep going straight for two blocks until you see a coffee shop, then turn right and follow the signs for the museum.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Did you manage it? No matter how confident you feel, it\u2019s always good to learn something new or brush up on your skills. In this blog post, we\u2019re going to learn the Spanish verb seguir<\/strong>, which you have to use twice in the sentence above! Seguir <\/strong>translates to multiple different verbs in English, including to follow<\/em>, and to continue\/keep going<\/em>. I promise it\u2019s not as confusing as it sounds once you get into it! This article will give you the most important foundations and building blocks for using the verb. We\u2019ll go over the different meanings of the verb, and explore many different tenses of seguir<\/strong> conjugation so that you can master it all in one place. Once you\u2019re done reading, why not try the custom seguir <\/strong>Cloze Collection at the end of this post to go over what you\u2019ve learned?<\/p>\n

<\/a>What Kind of Verb is Seguir<\/em>?<\/h2>\n

Part of what makes seguir <\/strong>a bit complicated is that it is an irregular verb<\/strong>. If you\u2019ve learned with us before, you\u2019ll know that we love irregular verbs. From dormir<\/strong><\/a> (to sleep) <\/em>to o\u00edr<\/strong><\/a> (to hear<\/em>), we\u2019re steadily growing our collection of irregular verb guides on this blog. If you\u2019re in the mood to keep reading once you\u2019re done with this post, feel free to check other irregular verbs out by clicking the links!<\/p>\n

So, back to seguir<\/strong>. What makes seguir <\/strong>an irregular verb is that it doesn\u2019t follow the traditional rules for Spanish verbs ending in ir, er,<\/strong> or ar<\/strong>. In regular verbs, the stem of the verb doesn\u2019t change no matter how you conjugate it. For example, amar<\/strong> (to love<\/em>) is a regular verb. When you conjugate it in the first-person present tense, it becomes yo amo <\/strong>(I love<\/em>). The stem of the verb remains \u201cam\u201d. <\/strong>On the other hand, the first-person present tense of seguir <\/strong>is yo sigo<\/strong> (I follow\/ I continue)<\/em>. As you can see, the stem of the verb changes from \u201csegu\u201d<\/strong> to \u201csig\u201d<\/strong>, making it irregular. Unfortunately, because irregular verbs change so much, you often have to memorize verb tables for all tenses until you know them by heart. Don\u2019t worry too much, though, it\u2019ll become muscle memory with enough practice!<\/p>\n

<\/a>The Different Meanings of Seguir<\/em><\/h2>\n

We mentioned above that seguir <\/strong>can mean both to follow <\/em>and to continue\/keep going. <\/em>So, how do you distinguish between both meanings? In the case of seguir<\/strong>, you can very reliably tell which meaning is being used based on the context of the rest of the sentence. For example, if your friend says \u201cSegu\u00ed a tu cantante preferido en Instagram<\/strong>\u201d (I followed your favorite singer on Instagram)<\/em>, you can immediately tell that seguir <\/strong>means to follow. <\/em>Conversely, if your family members say \u201cSigue adelante, todo te va a salir bien\u201d <\/strong>(keep going, everything is going to turn out great), <\/em>you\u2019ll know that seguir <\/strong>means to continue\/keep going. <\/em><\/p>\n

It can be worrying to feel uncertain about exactly what seguir <\/strong>means in each situation. However, the good thing is the conjugation of the verb remains the same no matter which meaning you\u2019re referring to. Don\u2019t be afraid to lean on context and keep practicing. You\u2019ll be able to parse out different meanings of seguir <\/strong>in no time!<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s get into seguir<\/strong> conjugation.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Seguir<\/em> Verbals<\/h2>\n

I always like to start things off by getting the complicated stuff out of the way so the rest feels easy by comparison. Seguir <\/strong>verbals can be challenging, mainly because verbals are verbs that don\u2019t act like verbs <\/strong>in a sentence. Instead, they act as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. Let\u2019s go over three of seguir\u2019s <\/strong>verbals so you can identify them quickly: el infinitivo <\/strong>(the infinitive<\/em>), el gerundio <\/strong>(the gerund)<\/em>, and el participio <\/strong>(participle)<\/em>.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Infinitivo (infinitive)<\/em><\/h3>\n

The infinitive<\/em> of the verb seguir <\/strong>is simply \u201cseguir\u201d<\/strong>. That\u2019s because seguir <\/strong>doesn\u2019t need to be conjugated when it isn\u2019t the active verb in a sentence. Here\u2019s an example:<\/p>\n