Overview
For pronunciation reasons, there are several Spanish verbs that undergo a spelling change in certain preterite tense conjugations. These verbs fall into two groups.
Group 1: -car, -gar, and -zar Verbs
The first-person singular (yo) endings of these verbs undergo the following changes:
Verb Type Change Example
-car c changes to qu
busqué
-gar g changes to gu
cargué
-zar z changes to c
almorcé
Conjugation Examples
Here is an example of the full preterite tense conjugation for each type of verb.
Subject -car Conjugation -gar Conjugation -zar Conjugation
yo
busqué
jugué
crucé
tú
buscaste
jugaste
cruzaste
él, ella, usted
buscó
jugó
cruzó
nosotros
buscamos
jugamos
cruzamos
vosotros
buscasteis
jugasteis
cruzasteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
buscaron
jugaron
cruzaron
Common -car, -gar, and -zar Verbs
Here is a list of some common -car, -gar, and -zar verbs you're likely to hear.
-car Verbs -gar Verbs -zar Verbs
acercar
agregar
abrazar
educar
apagar
gozar
aparcar
cargar
almorzar
atacar
castigar
lanzar
pecar
conjugar
aterrorizar
roncar
llegar
memorizar
empacar
negar
comenzar
buscar
pagar
danzar
colocar
pegar
rezar
edificar
enjuagar
organizar
sacar
fregar
tropezar
tocar
averiguar
destrozar
marcar
ligar
Group 2: -caer, -eer, -oer, -oír, and -uir Verbs
The third person singular, third person plural and second person formal singular endings of these verbs all undergo the same change.
Subject Change Example
Third person singular (él, ella) i changes to e
leyó
Third person plural (ellos, ellas) i changes to e
leyeron
Second person formal singular (usted) i changes to e
leyó
Conjugation Examples
Here is an example of the full preterite tense conjugation for each type of verb.
Preterite Conjugations for Caer, Leer, Roer, Oír and Concluir
Subject caer Conjugation leer Conjugation roer Conjugation oír Conjugation concluir Conjugation
yo
caí
leí
roí
oí
concluí
tú
caíste
leíste
roíste
oíste
concluíste
él, ella, usted
cayó
leyó
royó
oyó
concluyó
nosotros
caímos
leímos
roímos
oímos
concluímos
vosotros
caísteis
leísteis
roísteis
oísteis
concluísteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
cayeron
leyeron
royeron
oyeron
concluyeron
Common -caer, -eer, -oer, -oír, and -uír Verbs
Here is a list of some common -caer, -eer, -oer, -oír, and -uír verbs you're likely to hear.
-caer Verbs -eer Verbs -oer Verbs -oír Verbs -uir Verbs
decaer
creer
corroer
entreoír
atribuir
recaer
poseer
distribuir
proveer
construir
releer
diluir
incluir
influir
disminuir
destituir
huir
contribuir
recluir
