The Present Tense of Stem-Changing Verbs: e  ie, e  i, o  ue (El tiempo presente de los verbos de cambio radical)

Please watch the following videos  Stem changing verbs E- IE  Stem changing verbs E- I  Stem changing verbs O- UE

Stem ‐ Changing Verbs in the Present Tense  For the verbs presented so far, the ending is what is irregular. There is, however, a different kind of predictable verb conjugation in which the stem of the verb changes and the endings are normal—even the yo form! The stem of a verb is what is left when you remove the infinitive ending ( ‐ ar, ‐ er, or ‐ ir ).

Stem ‐ Changing Verbs in the Present Tense  Because the stem of the verb changes, these verbs are called stem ‐ changing verbs, or stem ‐ changers. You must learn each particular verb and remember that it is a stem ‐ changer. It is impossible to identify that a verb is a stem ‐ changer by simply looking at the infinitive unless you recognize a previously learned stem ‐ changer with a prefix.

Stem ‐ Changing Verbs in the Present Tense  The hardest part about stem ‐ changers is that you have to memorize the verbs in which stem changes occur. Once you memorize the type of stem change a verb undergoes, the actual patterns of the stem ‐ changing verbs are quite simple; because all the conjugation endings are regular, conjugating these verbs is easy.

Stem ‐ Changing Verbs in the Present Tense  When you learn the meanings of the verbs below, memorize what kind of stem change each undergoes as well.  The patterns for stem ‐ changing verbs are very consistent. All forms of the verb will undergo a stem change except for nosotros/nosotras. The best way to see the patterns is to consider a few examples.

There is a fairly large group of verbs in Spanish that undergo changes in their stem when conjugated in the present tense. These changes occur only in the first (yo) and second (tú) persons singular and third persons singular (el, ella, ud.) and plural (ellos, ellas, uds.). When a line is drawn around the forms that change, the resulting shape vaguely resembles a boot or high-top shoe; thus, these verbs are sometimes informally called “boot” or “shoe” verbs. There are three types or classes of “boot” verbs.

e>ie stem-changers  The most common stem change is e>ie. That means the stressed letter e in the stem of the verb will change to ie in certain forms of the verb. If a verb has two e 's in the stem, it will always be the second e that undergoes a stem change. In the lists and charts below, the specific e that changes to ie is underlined.  The verb cerrar is typical of an ‐ ar verb with an e>ie stem change. In Table, the ie is underlined where the stem change occurs. Notice that nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras do not undergo a stem change.

 -Acertar. To guess, to be correct  Apretar. To tighten, to squeeze  Atravesar. To cross  -Cerrar. To close.  - Comenzar. To begin  Confesar. To confess  Despertar. To wake up  -Empezar. To begin  Gobernar. To govern  Helar. To freze  -Negar. Do deny  -Pensar. To think  Quebar. To break  -Recomendar. To recomend  Remendar. To patch  -Sentar. To sit down  Temblar. To tremble  -Tropezar. To stumble, to bump in to Listed below are some commonly used ‐ ar verbs that undergo an e>ie stem change exactly like that shown in Table.

The verb perder is a typical ‐ er verb with an e>ie stem change. The forms of this verb presented in Table serve as an example for all the verbs listed below.

The following list includes common ‐ er verbs that undergo the stem change e>ie.

entiendo entiendes entiende entendemos Entendéis entienden Type 1: e  ie We’ll use entender, to understand, as an example of this type. The stem undergoes the change only when stressed.

Here are some other common e  ie verbs: empezar, comenzar to begin pensar (+ infinitive) to think; to plan (to do something) perder to lose querer to want, to love preferir to prefer

tengo tienes tiene tenemos tenéis tienen Tener (to have), venir (to come) The verbs tener and venir are what might be called partial stem-changing verbs; the yo forms do not have the stem change, but they do have an irregularity. vengo vienes viene venimos venís vienen Tengo exámenes mañana. I have exams tomorrow. Vengo de la biblioteca. I’m coming from the library.

sirvo sirves sirve servimos servís sirven Type 2: e  i We’ll use servir, to serve, as an example of this type. Note: All e  i verbs are -ir verbs.

Here are some other common e  i verbs: repetir to repeat, to have a second helping pedir to ask for, to request medir to measure, to be a certain height teñir to dye, to color

almuerzo almuerzas almuerza almorzamos almorzáis almuerzan Type 3: o  ue We’ll use almorzar, to have lunch, as an example of this type.

 The second ‐ most common type of stem change that occurs in Spanish verbs is o>ue. Now that you understand how to conjugate stem ‐ changing verbs in general, learning about the verbs with an o>ue stem change will be relatively easy. Type 3: o  ue

Common ‐ ar verbs that undergo a stem change o>ue:

Common ‐ er verbs that undergo a stem change o>ue:

By now, you understand that a stem ‐ changing verb will have regular verb endings, so Table is the only example of an o>ue stem ‐ changer.

The following verbs also undergo an o>ue stem change; because they are ‐ ir verbs, however, the nosotros/nosotras ending is ‐ imos. Common ‐ ir verbs that stem change o>ue:

The verb jugar is usually listed with the o>ue stem ‐ changing verbs because it follows the same pattern. However, you may notice there is no o to change to ue in the verb jugar. It is the only u>ue stem ‐ changer in the Spanish language. Because it means “to play” (a sport or game), it's a popular word in both Spanish- and English ‐ speaking cultures. See Table for the unusual verb forms of jugar.

juego juegas juega jugamos jugáis juegan The verb jugar, to play (games or sports), follows the same pattern as o  ue verbs, but the change is u  ue.

Here are some other common o  ue verbs: volver to return, to come back costar* to cost dormir to sleep encontrar to find poder to be able; can recordar to remember soñar (con) to dream (about) * Costar is normally used only in the third persons.

The verbs querer and preferir Expressing desires and preferences Querer and preferir are important stem- changing verbs that have multiple uses.

quiero quieres quiere queremos queréis quieren querer When used with a thing as the direct object, querer means to want.

¿Quiere un sándwich de pollo? Sí, y quiero papas fritas también, por favor.

querer When used with a person as the direct object, querer means to love. quiero quieres quiere queremos queréis quieren

Quiero mucho a su hija, señor Vega.

prefiero prefieres prefiere preferimos preferís prefieren preferir Preferir, of course, means to prefer.

¿Quiere un sándwich de pollo? No señor, prefiero una hamburguesa.

Both querer and preferir can be used with an infinitive directly after them Rafael quiere esquiar, pero su novia prefiere patinar. Rafael wants to ski, but his girlfriend prefers to skate. quiero quieres quiere queremos queréis quieren We start with an appropriate person and number of querer or preferir... and then add any infinitive. estudiar escribir viajar bailar leer comer aprender dormir estudiar

pienso piensas piensa pensamos pensáis piensan Thinking and planning The verb pensar is another very useful stem- changing verb.

Thinking and planning Pensar basically means “to think.” Me gusta ir al parque para pensar y descansar. I like to go to the park to think and rest.

Thinking and planning ¿En qué piensas? Pensar en means “to think about.” Gabriela siempre piensa en sus estudios. Pensamos en el bienestar de la familia. Gabriela is always thinking about her studies. We’re thinking about the wellbeing of the family. What are you thinking about?

Thinking and planning Pensar de means “to think of” (to have an opinion about.) ¿Qué piensas de las novelas de Márquez? What do you think of Márquez’s novels? Pensar que means “to think that” (in answer to the above question, for example.) Yo pienso que sus novelas son maravillosas. I think that his novels are wonderful.

pensar + infinitive = to plan to do something Thinking and planning Pensar also has a special use... Pensamos escuchar música en el parque esta tarde. We’re planning to listen to music in the park this afternoon.

Thinking and planning ¿Qué piensas hacer después de clase? Después de clase, yo pienso... ¿Qué piensas hacer este fin de semana? Este fin de semana, pienso... ¿Qué piensan hacer Uds. (tú y tu familia) en las vacaciones de verano? En las vacaciones de verano, pensamos...

FIN