Present Tense Verbs in Spanish, Part 3: The Present Perfect Tense
Whenever you travel to a new place, whether it be local or foreign, one of the common questions you’ll get is: “How long have you been here?” If you decide to travel to a Spanish-speaking country, you might also be asked: “How long have you studied Spanish?” Can you see what these questions have in common? Yes, they both have the word “have,” which is a clue to the present tense verb in...Read More
Subjunctive Spanish Endings for -AR Verbs in Every Tense
What exactly is the Spanish subjunctive and what’s the big deal about their endings? It’s a grammatical mood used when the speaker feels uncertain about the action of the sentence or is expressing a subjective opinion. In other words, it expresses the meaning of the verb as a non-reality: Si fuera contenta. (If I were content.) In this case, contentment is a wish, and...Read More
Quick Lessons on Spanish Future Tense Endings for the Fast Learner
¿Será que quieres hablar sobre el futuro en español? Are you stuck in the present with your Spanish? If you’re ready to branch out and bulk up your verb tenses to include all Spanish future tenses, you are in the right place. Sharpen your skills while learning how to spot and use future tense endings in Spanish. Four powerful verb tenses allow you to express your thoughts,...Read More
The Ultimate Guide to Conjugating and Using the Spanish Verb Venir
It looks like you’re ready to crack the code to the Spanish verb venir! You’ve likely noticed that most Spanish verbs make use of various diacritics (accent marks) in different tenses, resembling a strange form of hieroglyphs. Surely, trying to grasp their meanings is like deciphering a safe combination! For example, do you know the difference between yo vengo and yo vendré?...Read More
All You Ever Needed to Know About Spanish (Simple) Past Tense Verbs
What did you do last weekend? Did you study Spanish with a friend? Talking about past events is crucial to conversations—we use it to tell stories, talk about memories, and share previous events and feelings. Communicating prior events is a huge part of almost every conversation, which is why it is so important to learn this tense in your second language: Spanish. Let’s explore the Spanish...Read More
100+ Sentences with the Spanish Verb Ser
I’m sure you’re having tons of fun learning Spanish…. but conjugating verbs might make you want to rip your hair out! Most notable for beginners is the fact that two verbs exist in Spanish to express what one verb (“to be”) does in English: ser and estar. How do you know which one to use? Arguably, irregular verbs are one of the most difficult aspects of learning Spanish, but the good news...Read More
Estar and Ser: Funny Mistakes and How to Use the Verbs the Right Way!
How to correctly use estar and ser is the cause of countless headaches among new learners of the Spanish language. But it shouldn’t be like that, once you understand how it works, estar and ser are just like any other Spanish verb. “To Be” a Straightforward Verb The power of the verb “to be” is that it expresses who you are, how you feel, what you do for a living, and many other...Read More
36 Spanish Prefixes That Will Increase Your Vocabulary Times 100!
Is it really possible to increase your vocabulary 100 times in such a simple way, you wonder? Today is your lucky day—thanks to these Spanish prefixes, the answer is yes! Although studying grammar lacks luster and excitement at times, it’s hard to deny the charm and utility of the mighty little prefix. Tiny it is, while trivial it is not. By learning these compacted half-words, you...Read More
Common Ways to Use the Spanish Subjunctive to Enhance Conversation
In our three-part series about the Spanish subjunctive, we explore the most pressing questions about it, such as what is it? When and how to use it? Then, we dig a bit deeper and focus on the present and imperfect tenses of the feared subjuntivo. Let’s assume that you’ve mastered the theory about the Spanish subjunctive and now you want to go directly to the action of using it in...Read More