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23 Most Common Spanish Verbs

Are you ready to learn a big chunk of the Spanish language? In English, if you know the 800 most common words, you’ll understand 75% of day-to-day speech. Same with Spanish!


Learning the most important words before any others is extremely important, and good on you for taking that step!


In this article, we will go over the 23 most common Spanish verbs, and I’ll explain the ones that aren’t “super self-explanatory”. We’ll see how all of these verbs look in their conjugated forms and in sentences.


At the end of the article, I’ll even give you an additional 20 verbs & example sentences for each! Let's take a look at these common Spanish verbs!


¿Estás listo/a? (Are you ready)

Empecemos (Let’s start)


picture of two woman dancing and a title that says "23 common spanish verbs"

Intro: How Spanish Verbs Work

Spanish verbs are broken up into 3 main categories - AR, ER, and IR verbs. Each type comes with rules that show us how to conjugate the verbs.


In total, there are about 10 "very commonly used conjugations." But don't worry, if you just keep learning, you'll acquire these conjugations without hurting your brain. Just keep reading, listening, and reading materials like this and you'll never have to "study".



How (Common) Spanish Verbs Get Conjugated

In this article, we will only explore the present tense conjugations for Tú (You) Yo (I) Él, Ella, & Usted (He/Her/You-Formal). In the Spanish language, conjugating is made relatively easy and soon it will become second nature for you.


Whenever we conjugate many verbs - such as Hablar (To speak), we just take the verb ending off (AR) and add the corresponding letter(s) for the subject we are conjugating for. Check it out:


Hablar (To Speak)

Yo = O: Hablar (- AR) + O = Hablo (I speak)

Tú = AS: Hablar (- AR) + AS = Hablas (You speak)


So you see, we simply remove the verb ending (AR/ER/IR) and we add the corresponding letter(s) for “who” is doing the verb.



Verb 1 - Ser (To be)

Ser is one of two words that translates as “To be” with the other being Estar. The difference between Ser and Estar is that Ser is used for more permanent nouns.


For example: I am a doctor (Ser), I am from the USA (Ser), I am German & Italian (Ser).

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Soy (Am)

Tú (You)

Eres (Are)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Es (Is)

Ex:

Yo soy doctor

(I am a doctor)



Verb 2 - Estar (To be)

Estar means “To be” and it’s used to describe temporary states of being. For example: I am happy (Estar), it’s okay (Estar), he is playing (Estar).

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Estoy (Am)

Tú (You)

Estás (Are)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Está (Is)

Ex:

Yo estoy en el bus

(I am on the bus)



Verb 3 - Tener (To have)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Tengo (Have)

Tú (You)

Tienes (Have)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Tiene (Has)

Ex:

Yo tengo 3 gatos

(I have three cats)



Verb 4 - Hacer (To do, To make)

Fun fact - it’s difficult for native Spanish speakers to understand the difference between “To do” and “To make” because for them, it’s the same thing (Hacer).


So whether you are trying to “make bread” or “do homework” - both are Hacer.

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Hago (Do)

Tú (You)

Haces (Do)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Hace (Does)

Ex:

Tú haces todas las tareas

(You do all of the homework)



Verb 5 - Decir (To say, To tell)

Decir is usually easy for English speakers to acquire, but for a brief explanation: To express the word “Say” like in the sentence “I want to say something” - you use Decir. In addition, if you want to say “You were telling me something” - you also use Decir.

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Digo (Say)

Tú (You)

Dices (Say)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Dice (Says)

Ex:

Él dice que no quiere ir

(He says he doesn't want to go)



Verb 6 - Ir (To go)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Voy (Go)

Tú (You)

Vas (Go)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Va (Goes)

Ex:

Yo voy al parque cada domingo

(I go to the park every Sunday)



Verb 7 - Ver (To see)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Veo (See)

Tú (You)

Ves (See)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Ve (Sees)

Ex:

Tú ves un gato por allí

(You see a cat over there)



Verb 8 - Poder (To be able to, can)

Poder can also be used as a noun (el poder) which means "the power." For example, in the sentence "no tengo el poder de cambiarlo" or "I don't have the power to change it."

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Puedo (Can)

Tú (You)

Puedes (Can)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Puede (Can)

Ex:

Yo no puedo resistir

(I can't resist)



Verb 9 - Poner (To put, To place)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Pongo (Put)

Tú (You)

Pones (Put)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Pone (Puts)

Ex:

Él pone a prueba a ese niñp

(He puts that kid to the test)



Verb 10 - Saber (To know)

To know, that sounds self=explanatory, right? The thing is, saber also means "to taste." Not a joke, but luckily, you use the same conjugations for both meanings, like in the sentence - "Ese helado sabe bien" (that ice-cream tastes good).

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Sé (Know)

Tú (You)

Sabes (Know)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Sabe (Knows)

Ex:

Yo sé de dónde tú eres

(I know where you are from)



Verb 11 - Querer (To want)

This word is used just like the verb “To want” in English, however, you can also use it to say that you love someone. So if you say “Te quiero” (I want you) it means “I love you.”

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Queiro (Want)

Tú (You)

Quieres (Want)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Quiere (Wants)

Ex:

Ella quiere ir a México mañana

(She wants to go to Mexico tomorrow)



Verb 12 - Venir (To come)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Vengo (Come)

Tú (You)

Vienes (Come)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Viene (Comes)

Ex:

La gente va y viene

(People come and go)



Verb 13 - Dar (To give)

To give sounds pretty straight forward, and it is. However this verb is also used to say "To give birth," like this - "dar la luz" (to give the light - meaning, to give birth).

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Doy (Give)

Tú (You)

Das (Give)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Da (Gives)

Ex:

Yo le doy comida cada día

(I give him food every day)



Verb 14 - Hablar (To talk, To speak)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Hablo (Talk)

Tú (You)

Hablas (Talk)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Habla (Talks)

Ex:

Usted nunca me habla

(You never talk to me)



Verb 15 - Pensar (To think)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Pienso (Think)

Tú (You)

Piensas (Think)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Piensa (Thinks)

Ex:

Yo pienso que es ridículo

(I think that it's ridiculous)



Verb 16 - Salir (To go out, To leave)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Salgo (Go out)

Tú (You)

Sales (Go out)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Sale (Goes out)

Ex:

Ella normalmente sale de su trabajo a las 6

(She normally leaves work at 6)



Verb 17 - Comer (To eat)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Como (Eat)

Tú (You)

Comes (Eat)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Come (Eats)

Ex:

Yo como mucho arroz

(I eat a lot of rice)



Verb 18 - Llevar (To carry, To wear)

Apart from being the verb that means “To carry & To wear”, we can also use Llevar to talk about how much time we have spent doing something.


For example, if somebody asks “How long have you been living here” you can respond “Llevo 5 años viviendo aquí” which means “I have been living here for 5 years.”

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Llevo (Carry)

Tú (You)

Llevas (Carry)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Lleva (Carries)

Ex:

Ella lleva su mochila a la casa

(She carries her backpack home)



Verb 19 - Vivir (To live)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Vivo (Live)

Tú (You)

Vives (Live)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Vive (Lives)

Ex:

Yo vivo en esta calle

(I live on this street)



Verb 20 - Dejar (To leave, To let)

This verb is extremely common and can be used in many contexts. For example, if you want to say "to quit smoking" you say "dejar de fumar." Dejar can also be used to say "leave a relationship" like in the sentence "La dejé hace tres meses" (I left her three months ago).

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Dejo (Leave)

Tú (You)

Dejas (Leave)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Deja (Leaves)

Ex:

Tú dejas tu ropa en el piso

(You leave your clothes on the floor)



Verb 21 - Sentir (To feel)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Siento (Feel)

Tú (You)

Sientes (Feel)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Siente (Feels)

Ex:

Tú te sientes feliz cada día

(You feel happy every day)



Verb 22 - Conocer (To know, To meet)

Some people get this word mixed up with Saber. This verb is used most commonly for people. For example: “¿Tú conoces a esta artista? (Do you know this artist?).


Whereas, Saber would be incorrect in this sentence, conocer is used to express the idea of “knowing something.” You can also use this verb to say that you "met someone."

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Conozco (Am familiar with)

Tú (You)

Conoces (Are familiar with)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Conoce (Is familiar with)

Ex:

Yo conozco a ese hombre

(I know that man)



Verb 23 - Empezar (To begin)

Subject

Conjugation

Yo (I)

Empiezo (Start)

Tú (You)

Empiezas (Start)

Él/Ella/Usted (He/She/You-Formal)

Empieza (Starts)

Ex:

Él empieza a estudiar hoy

(He starts studying today)



Bonus Verbs In Spanish

Here are some extra super common Spanish verbs that you should make sure you know asap. As a Spanish speaker, I can tell you that I hear almost all of these words daily. Good luck studying them, you got this!

Verb

Meaning

Parecer

To seem, To appear

Necesitar

To need

Creer

To believe

Seguir

To follow, To continue

Trabajar

To work

Llamar

To call

Recibir

To receive

Abrir

To open

Cerrar

To close

Gustar

To like

Jugar

To play

Mirar

To look at, To watch

Entender

To understand

Comprar

To buy

Tomar

To take, To drink

Conocer

To know, To meet

Pensar

To think

Salir

To go out, To leave

Volver

To return

Necesitar

To need







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