The 20 Most Common Spanish Verbs (And How to Conjugate Them)

If you’re learning Spanish, these are the verbs to prioritise. They appear constantly in everyday speech, reading, and writing — and many of them are irregular, which means you need to learn the forms explicitly rather than following a pattern.

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The List

1. Ser — to be (permanent)

Used for identity, origin, profession, characteristics, and telling time.

soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son

• Soy profesora. — I’m a teacher.
• Son las tres. — It’s three o’clock.

2. Estar — to be (temporary/location)

Used for states, feelings, location, and progressive tenses.

estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están

• Está cansada. — She’s tired.
• ¿Dónde estás? — Where are you?

3. Tener — to have

Used for possession, age, and many fixed expressions.

tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen

• Tengo veinte años. — I’m twenty.
• Tienes razón. — You’re right.

4. Hacer — to do / to make

Irregular in many tenses. Also used in weather expressions and time expressions.

hago, haces, hace, hacemos, hacéis, hacen

• ¿Qué haces? — What are you doing?
• Hace frío. — It’s cold.

5. Ir — to go

One of the most irregular verbs in Spanish. Also used as auxiliary: ir a + infinitive for near future.

voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van

• Voy al mercado. — I’m going to the market.
• Vamos a comer. — We’re going to eat.

6. Poder — to be able to / can

Stem-changing (o → ue). Used for ability and permission.

puedo, puedes, puede, podemos, podéis, pueden

• No puedo dormir. — I can’t sleep.
• ¿Puedes ayudarme? — Can you help me?

7. Decir — to say / to tell

Irregular. Essential for reporting speech.

digo, dices, dice, decimos, decís, dicen

• ¿Qué dices? — What are you saying?
• Me dijo que vendría. — He told me he would come.

8. Dar — to give

Irregular in the present (first person) and preterite.

doy, das, da, damos, dais, dan

• Te doy el libro. — I’ll give you the book.
• Dame un momento. — Give me a moment.

9. Saber — to know (facts / how to)

Irregular first person present (sé). See also: saber vs conocer.

sé, sabes, sabe, sabemos, sabéis, saben

• No sé. — I don’t know.
• ¿Sabes nadar? — Can you swim? (do you know how to)

10. Querer — to want / to love

Stem-changing (e → ie). Used for both wanting things and expressing love.

quiero, quieres, quiere, queremos, queréis, quieren

• Quiero café. — I want coffee.
• Te quiero. — I love you.

11. Venir — to come

Irregular. Note: venir de = to have just done something.

vengo, vienes, viene, venimos, venís, vienen

• ¿De dónde vienes? — Where are you coming from?
• Vengo de comer. — I’ve just eaten.

12. Poner — to put / to place

Irregular first person (pongo). Also used in many expressions.

pongo, pones, pone, ponemos, ponéis, ponen

• Pon la mesa. — Set the table.
• ¿Dónde pongo esto? — Where do I put this?

13. Salir — to leave / to go out

Irregular first person (salgo).

salgo, sales, sale, salimos, salís, salen

• Salgo a las ocho. — I leave at eight.
• ¿Salimos esta noche? — Shall we go out tonight?

14. Llevar — to carry / to take / to wear / to have been

Very versatile. Llevar + gerund = to have been doing something for a time.

llevo, llevas, lleva, llevamos, lleváis, llevan

• Lleva un abrigo rojo. — She’s wearing a red coat.
• Llevo tres años estudiando español. — I’ve been studying Spanish for three years.

15. Ver — to see / to watch

Irregular in the preterite and imperfect.

veo, ves, ve, vemos, veis, ven

• ¿Has visto esa película? — Have you seen that film?
• Lo veo difícil. — I see it as difficult.

16. Hablar — to speak / to talk

A fully regular -ar verb — the model for all regular -ar verbs.

hablo, hablas, habla, hablamos, habláis, hablan

• ¿Hablas inglés? — Do you speak English?
• Hablemos mañana. — Let’s talk tomorrow.

17. Comer — to eat

A fully regular -er verb — the model for all regular -er verbs.

como, comes, come, comemos, coméis, comen

• ¿Has comido? — Have you eaten?
• Comemos a las dos. — We eat at two.

18. Creer — to believe / to think

Regular, but watch the preterite: creyó, creyeron.

creo, crees, cree, creemos, creéis, creen

• No lo creo. — I don’t believe it.
• Creo que sí. — I think so.

19. Encontrar — to find / to meet

Stem-changing (o → ue).

encuentro, encuentras, encuentra, encontramos, encontráis, encuentran

• No encuentro las llaves. — I can’t find my keys.
• Me encontré con ella ayer. — I ran into her yesterday.

20. Pasar — to happen / to pass / to spend (time)

Highly versatile: time, events, objects.

paso, pasas, pasa, pasamos, pasáis, pasan

• ¿Qué pasó? — What happened?
• Pasa el tiempo. — Time passes.
• Pasé el verano en México. — I spent the summer in Mexico.

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How to Learn These

The most effective approach is active production — not just recognising these verbs when you read them, but being forced to produce the correct form on demand. That means drilling conjugation tables, then using the verbs in sentences.