Practice Makes Perfect Spanish Verb Tenses, Second ... - Ktooba.com

In Chapter 1, we discussed the two parts of the infi nitive: (1) the infi nitive ending
(-ar, -er, or -ir), and (2) the verb base (what remains when the infi nitive ending is
removed). Another word for the base is the stem. With regular verbs, the stem or
base always stays the same.
Th e verbs covered in this chapter show changes in the verb stem. Some of
these verbs also show irregularities in the verb ending. Th ere are three groups of
stem-changing verbs: o ue, e ie, and e i.
o > ue
Stem-changing verbs ·8·
Th e fi rst group of stem-changing verbs involves changing the o in the verb stem to
ue in all the conjugated forms except nosotros and vosotros. Th e verb endings in
the conjugation remain regular.
contar to count mover to move
dormir to sleep
cuento contamos muevo movemos duermo dormimos
cuentas contáis mueves movéis duermes dormís
cuenta cuentan mueve mueven duerme duermen
One of the features of stem-changing verbs is that the change takes place in the
fi rst-, second-, and third-person singular, and the third-person plural. If you
were to draw a line around these changed verb forms, you would come up with
something resembling a boot. Th is shape is oft en referred to as the “boot of
irregularity.”
Many people wonder, Why all this bother? Why not just conjugate these
verbs using the regular pattern covered in Chapter 1? Th e answer has to do with
sound: Spanish is nothing if not mellifl uous. Without the stem change, we would
have forms such as almorzo, moro, and dormo. It’s easy to hear how defi cient
these sounds are compared to their correct counterparts of almuerzo, muero, and
duermo. It’s well worth the eff ort to learn to conjugate these verbs, and aft er a bit,
you will be conjugating them correctly based on sound alone. Not making the
stem change will be painful to your delicate ears!
On the following page are several common o ue stem-changing verbs.
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