Stem-changing Verbs, Verbs with Spelling Changes, and Irregular Verbs
Some Spanish preterite verbs undergo changes in the stem when conjugated. Others undergo more drastic spelling changes or are simply considered irregular. In this article, we'll take a look at some common verbs with tricky preterite conjugations, including
Stem-changing -ir verbs
Verbs with stems ending in a vowel
Verbs with j preterite stems
Verbs with uv preterite stems
Verbs with u preterite stems
Verbs with i preterite stems
The irregular verbs ser, ir, dar, and ver
Looking for an introduction to the past tense in Spanish? Check out our article on Spanish preterite tense forms.
Stem-changing -ir Verbs
Verbs ending in -ir that undergo stem changes in the present tense also under go stem changes in the preterite. These verbs have a stem change in the second person formal singular (usted), third person singular (él, ella) and third and second person plural (ellos, ellas and ustedes) forms.
These changes fall into two types:
e to i, as in the verbs sentir (to feel) and pedir (to ask for)
o to u, as in the verb dormir (to sleep)
Check out the conjugations for examples of these verb types below, paying careful attention the él, ella, usted and ellos, ellas, ustedes translations.
Preterite Conjugations of Sentir, Pedir, and Dormir
Subject sentir (to feel) pedir (to order) dormir (to sleep)
yo
sentí
pedí
dormí
tú
sentiste
pediste
dormiste
él, ella, usted
sintió
pidió
durmió
nosotros
sentimos
pedimos
dormimos
vosotros
sentisteis
pedisteis
dormisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
sintieron
pidieron
durmieron
¡Ojo! (Careful!) Reír and sonreír also have stem changes in the preterite. Check out the conjugations for these verbs below.
Preterite Conjugations of Reír and Sonreír
Subject reír (to laugh) sonreír (to smile)
yo
reí
sonreí
tú
reíste
sonreíste
él, ella, usted
rió
sonrió
nosotros
reímos
sonreímos
vosotros
reísteis
sonreísteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
rieron
sonrieron
Here are examples of other verbs with the spelling changes described above.
Spanish English
conseguir
to get
despedirse
to say goodbye
divertirse
to have fun
morir
to die
repetir
to repeat
servir
to serve, to function
sugerir
to suggest
vestirse
to get dressed
Verbs with j Preterite Stems
The majority of verbs ending in -ducir, as well as the verbs decir and traer, take a j in the preterite in all forms. In addition, the ellos, ellas, and ustedes forms of these verbs end in -eron instead of -ieron.
Check out the conjugations below for examples of these verb types.
Preterite Conjugations of Conducir and Traducir
Subject conducir (to lead) traducir (to translate)
yo
conduje
traduje
tú
condujiste
tradujiste
él, ella, usted
condujo
tradujo
nosotros
condujimos
tradujimos
vosotros
condujisteis
tradujisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
condujeron
tradujeron
Preterite Conjugations of Traer and Decir
Subject decir (to say) traer (to bring)
yo
dije
traje
tú
dijiste
trajiste
él, ella, usted
dijo
trajo
nosotros
dijimos
trajimos
vosotros
dijisteis
trajisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
dijeron
trajeron
Verbs with Stems Ending in a Vowel
Verbs that have stems ending in a vowel + -er or -ir take a y in the él, ella, usted and ellos, ellas, ustedes forms.
Verbs ending in a silent vowel + -er or -ir (like seguir) do not undergo this change.
Check out the conjugations below for examples of these verb types.
Preterite Conjugations of Caer, Leer, Roer, Oír, and Concluir
Subject caer (to fall) leer (to read) roer (to nibble) oír (to hear) concluir (to conclude)
yo
caí
leí
roí
oí
concluí
tú
caíste
leíste
roíste
oíste
concluiste
él, ella, usted
cayó
leyó
royó
oyó
concluyó
nosotros
caímos
leímos
roímos
oímos
concluimos
vosotros
caísteis
leísteis
roísteis
oísteis
concluisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
cayeron
leyeron
royeron
oyeron
concluyeron
Verbs that end in -uir, like concluir, construir, and incluir, do not have accents on their tú, nosotros or vosotros forms.
Verbs with uv Preterite Stems
Some common irregular verbs follow similar patterns in the preterite. For example, tener, andar, and estar all have preterite stems with uv.
Preterite Conjugations for Andar, Estar, and Tener
Subject andar (to walk) estar (to be) tener (to have)
yo
anduve
estuve
tuve
tú
anduviste
estuviste
tuviste
él, ella, usted
anduvo
estuvo
tuvo
nosotros
anduvimos
estuvimos
tuvimos
vosotros
anduvisteis
estuvisteis
tuvisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
anduvieron
estuvieron
tuvieron
Verbs with u Preterite Stems
These common irregular verbs swap the first vowel in the infinitive form to make a new preterite stem with u.
Check out the conjugations below for examples of these verb types.
Preterite Conjugations of Caber, Haber, Poder, Poner, and Saber
Subject caber (to fit) haber (to have) poder (to be able to) poner (to put) saber (to know)
yo
cupe
hube
pude
puse
supe
tú
cupiste
hubiste
pudiste
pusiste
supiste
él, ella, usted
cupo
hubo
pudo
puso
supo
nosotros
cupimos
hubimos
pudimos
pusimos
supimos
vosotros
cupisteis
hubisteis
pudisteis
pusisteis
supisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
cupieron
hubieron
pudieron
pusieron
supieron
Caber, poner, and saber have extra spelling changes in the preterite:
caber: the b changes to a p.
poner: the n changes to an s.
saber: the b changes to a p.
Verbs with i Preterite Stems
These common irregular verbs swap the first (or, in the case of querer, the second) vowel in the infinitive form to make a new preterite stem with i.
Check out the conjugations below for examples of these verb types.
Preterite Conjugations of Hacer, Querer, and Venir
Subject hacer (to do) querer (to want) venir (to come)
yo
hice
quise
vine
tú
hiciste
quisiste
viniste
él, ella, usted
hizo
quiso
vino
nosotros
hicimos
quisimos
vinimos
vosotros
hicisteis
quisisteis
vinisteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes
hicieron
quisieron
vinieron
In the él, ella and usted forms of hacer, the c changes to a z.
All preterite forms of querer swap the first r for an s.
The Irregular Verbs Ser, Ir, Dar, and Ver
The following irregular preterite forms are ones you've just got to memorize.
Preterite Conjugations of Ser, Ir, Dar, and Ver
Subject ser (to be) ir (to go) dar (to give) ver (to see)
yo
fui
fui
di
vi
tú
fuiste
fuiste
diste
viste
usted, él, ella
fue
fue
dio
vio
nosotros
fuimos
fuimos
dimos
vimos
vosotros
fuisteis
fuisteis
disteis
visteis
ustedes, ellos, ellas
fueron
fueron
dieron
vieron
