Preterite Irregular Verbs Spanish Verb Conjugation

Now we’ll learn some irregular “er/ir” Spanish verbs that have stem changes. Remember that the stem is the core part of the verb. The endings are still the same with these irregulars. Do you remember the “er/ir” spine endings?

Let’s review them briefly here:

Let’s take a look and see how the stems change on these verbs. The first verb is “pedir”:

Notice that only the bottom two are irregular and have stem changes. The “e” changes to “i". Now we’ll go over the rest of the irregular verbs of this type:
Seguir (to continue or to follow)

Again, notice that the bottom row is irregular. As we go through the next few verbs, continue to take note of how the bottom row of each verb conjugation is irregular. Try to memorize how they’re different. Also, especially notice how they’re pronounced so you can start tuning your ear and memory to how they sound.

Now, we’ll look at the verb conseguir (to attain or to get)

Next is the verb repetir (to repeat)

Now the verb servir (to serve)

Continuing is the verb preferir (to prefer)

Next is the verb requerir (to require)

Now the verb sentir (to be sorry or to feel)

The next three verbs add a “y” to the irregular bottom line.
The first one is destruir. (to destroy)

The next one to add a “y” is incluir (to include)

The final one that adds a “y” is oír (to hear)

This final set changes from “o” to “u” on the bottom row.

First is the verb “morir” (to die)

And finally, the verb dormir (to sleep)

Now that you’ve had a chance to see all of these irregular verbs and how they work, we’ll learn a few new words, then go to our practice session. However, as I mentioned before, I do recommend reviewing this lesson more than once to help tune your ear to how these verbs sound.

Spine Spanish Practice Session #3/4

Here we’ll practice the irregular verbs you learned in the previous lesson. Remember, these verbs are stem changers. Here we go.

How did you do on these verbs? Are you starting to feel comfortable with them yet? If not, I recommend studying them once or twice before continuing. Otherwise, if you feel good about them, go on to the next lesson.

Irregular Spine (Spelling)

Now we’ll take a look at a few irregular spine verbs that have some spelling changes. These verbs sound the same when you say them but have a few spelling changes that are important to be aware of. The first few just change only in the “yo” form. These first four of this group have a “g” in them and need to have a spelling change so they will sound correct. For example, the word “to pay” is “pagar”. The “yo” form of this verb is “pagué”. If I put the “yo” ending, or an accented “é”, on the end, instead of being “pagué” it would be “pagé”. To make it sound correct, we need to add a “u” after the “g” to make it a hard “g”. Let’s take a look at the irregular “yo” forms of these verbs.

The next four verbs are similar to the last four, except in the “yo” form the “c” canges to “qu”. Let’s see how they work.

With the next three verbs, the “z” changes to a “c” in the “yo” form. Like the previous verbs, all the other forms except for the “yo” form are regular.

Now, we’ll look at the last few verbs in the “spelling changes” category. They have a lot of added accents and both have “y’s” on the bottom row. The first verb is “creer” or “to believe”. Watch for the accents and the “y’s” as we go through these.

The last verb in this “irregular” section is “leer” or “to read”. Again, watch for the irregular accents and the “y’s”.

Before we practice, you need to learn a couple of new words.

In the following practice session, we’ll go over these verbs that have spelling changes. Be sure and take note of the spelling changes so you can be prepared for the game.

Spine Spanish Practice Session

As you go over the set of Spanish verbs in this practice session, remember, they all have spelling changes. Try to guess how each one is spelled. Buena suerte (Good luck!).