Spanish Irregular Verbs in the Present: tener, ir, hacer (A1)

You meet someone at a language exchange in Mexico City. In two minutes you hear "¿Cuántos años tienes?", "¿Qué haces?" and "¿Vas a la fiesta?" Three questions, three of the most common verbs in Spanish: tener, hacer and ir. All three are irregular, so the endings from Spanish Present Tense: Regular -ar, -er and -ir Verbs (A1) won't get you there on their own. Learn these and you can talk about your age, your plans and the weather today.

Level: A1.

tener, ir and hacer

• tener has a -go yo form (tengo) and changes e to ie in three forms: tienes, tiene, tienen.
• ir looks nothing like its infinitive. Every form starts with v: voy, vas, va.
• hacer is regular except for yo: hago.

Vosotros is used in most of Spain; in Latin America ustedes covers every group. In Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and parts of Central America you'll hear vos instead of tú, with its own forms: vos tenés, vos hacés.

ser and estar

The two verbs for "to be" are both irregular:

• ser: soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son
• estar: estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están

When to use which is a topic of its own. The ser and estar deck covers it one rule of thumb at a time.

Stem changers: poder and querer

These two keep regular endings but change the vowel in the stem, in every form except nosotros and vosotros.

• poder (o→ue): puedo, puedes, puede, podemos, podéis, pueden
• querer (e→ie): quiero, quieres, quiere, queremos, queréis, quieren

Add an infinitive and you have two of the most useful patterns there are: "¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta?" (Can I pay by card?), "Quiero aprender español."

The "yo-irregular" verbs

Many verbs are irregular only in the yo form. Learn that one form and the rest are regular.

• -go: salir → salgo, poner → pongo, hacer → hago
• -go plus a stem change: decir → digo, dices, dice, decimos, decís, dicen; venir → vengo, vienes, viene, venimos, venís, vienen
• -zco: conocer → conozco
• Other irregular yo forms: ver → veo, dar → doy, saber → sé

Ver, dar, ir and ser have one-syllable vosotros forms (veis, dais, vais, sois), and those take no accent.

Phrases with tener, ir and hacer

Spanish uses tener where English uses "to be":

• tener hambre (to be hungry), tener sed (to be thirsty)
• tener frío, tener calor (to be cold, to be hot)
• tener sueño (to be sleepy), tener miedo (to be scared), tener prisa (to be in a hurry)
• tener ... años: "Tengo veinte años" (I'm twenty)
• tener que + infinitive (to have to): "Tengo que trabajar"

Ir a + infinitive is the easy way to talk about plans: "Voy a comer", "Vamos a viajar." It comes in a later deck.

Hacer describes the weather: hace frío, hace calor, hace sol, hace viento, hace buen tiempo.

Mistakes learners make

• "Soy veinte años." Age takes tener: tengo veinte años.
• "Estoy hambre." Hunger takes tener: tengo hambre.
• Mixing up hace frío and tengo frío. Hace frío is the weather; tengo frío is you.
• Regularising the yo form. Haco, teno and conoco aren't words. Say hago, tengo, conozco.
• Dropping the accent on sé. Sé means "I know"; se is a pronoun.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common irregular verbs in Spanish?

Ser, estar, tener, ir, hacer, poder, querer and decir are among the most used. Learn their present forms first.

How do you conjugate tener in the present tense?

Tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen.

Why do you say "tengo hambre" and not "estoy hambre"?

Hambre is a noun, "hunger", so Spanish says you have it. The same goes for sed, frío, calor and sueño.

What is the difference between saber and conocer?

Saber (yo sé) is for facts and skills: "Sé nadar." Conocer (yo conozco) is for people and places: "Conozco a Ana."

Try it

Say each card's answer out loud before you flip it, then answer the questions from the language exchange. ¿Cómo se dice "I'm twenty years old, and tomorrow I'm going to the beach"?