Original post date: July 31, 2024 –

GRAMMAR PRACTICE

Let’s talk about verbs! If you’ve been learning Spanish for awhile now, you know that verb endings change depending on who is doing the action (conjugation). You can also indicate who or what is doing the action by using subject pronouns.

Want to review these concepts?

• Subject Pronouns. Note: if you’re traveling with me to Oaxaca, México on the Spanish immersion program this October, you will not need to learn vos (which is more common in Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Costa Rica) or vosotros (which is more common in Spain).
• Explore this page for conjugating Present Tense Verbs: regular, irregular, and stem-changing.
• Here is a fill-in-the-blank Conjugation Drill for present tense verbs.
• For past tense, check out the Preterite and Imperfect tenses.

Now it’s time for a verb refresh! Take a look at the following lists of verbs. Make flashcards of the words you don’t know yet, and practice throughout the next few days/weeks.

Remember: don’t overwhelm yourself. Choose whatever amount of verbs feels doable and reasonable for your own learning style. Acquiring some new verbs is better than stressing about the size of the list – and therefore not learning any verbs at all!

VERB LISTS

Useful Verbs while Traveling:

• Viajar (to travel)
• Llegar (to arrive)
• Salir (to leave)
• Visitar (to visit)
• Explorar (to explore)
• Comprar (to buy)
• Comer (to eat)
• Beber (to drink)
• Pagar (to pay)
• Hablar (to speak)
• Entender (to understand)
• Aprender (to learn)
• Conocer (to know, to meet)
• Buscar (to look for)
• Encontrar (to find)
• Reservar (to reserve)
• Dormir (to sleep)
• Descansar (to rest)
• Necesitar (to need)
• Querer (to want)
• Poder (to be able to)
• Ir (to go)
• Venir (to come)
• Llevar (to take, to carry)
• Traer (to bring)
• Ayudar (to help)
• Preguntar (to ask)
• Responder (to answer)
• Usar (to use)
• Llamar (to call)

Ordering in a Restaurant

1. Pedir (to order)
2. Escoger (to choose)
3. Recomendar (to recommend)
4. Servir (to serve)
5. Cocinar (to cook)
6. Probar (to taste, to try)
7. Desear (to desire, to wish)
8. Tomar (to take, to drink)
9. Reservar (to reserve)
10. Llegar (to arrive)
11. Sentarse (to sit down)
12. Leer (to read)
13. Decidir (to decide)
14. Cenar (to have dinner)
15. Almorzar (to have lunch)
16. Desayunar (to have breakfast)
17. Compartir (to share)
18. Llevar (to take, to carry out)
19. Preguntar (to ask)
20. Responder (to answer)
21. Sugerir (to suggest)

Going on a Tour

1. Caminar (to walk)
2. Mostrar (to show)
3. Explicar (to explain)
4. Observar (to observe)
5. Sacar fotos / tomar fotos (to take photos)
6. Admirar (to admire)
7. Disfrutar (to enjoy)
8. Escuchar (to listen)
9. Preguntar (to ask)
10. Responder (to answer)
11. Anotar (to note down)
12. Mirar (to look)
13. Seguir (to follow)
14. Descubrir (to discover)
15. Entender (to understand)
16. Aprender (to learn)

Taking a Taxi

1. Llamar (to call)
2. Subir (to get in, to get on)
3. Bajar (to get out, to get off)
4. Manejar (to drive)
5. Dirigirse (to head towards)
6. Llegar (to arrive)
7. Parar (to stop)
8. Esperar (to wait)
9. Cobrar (to charge)
10. Pagar (to pay)
11. Girar / doblar (to turn)

Going to the Market

1. Regatear (to bargain)
2. Ofrecer (to offer)
3. Comprar (to buy)
4. Vender (to sell)
5. Pesar (to weigh)
6. Seleccionar (to select)
7. Buscar (to look for)
8. Encontrar (to find)
9. Pagar (to pay)
10. Salir (to leave)

LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Time to practice your listening comprehension! Listen to this video about traveling. You can make the video faster or slower by clicking on the settings button at the bottom of the video and changing the playback speed. Make it faster for a challenge, or slow the video down to catch all the words.

Note: This video has several verbs in the past tense. Even if you aren’t proficient in the past tense, this video is still good listening practice! For example: if you know that the word explicar means to explain, you might recognize that the word explicaban looks very similar and is most likely a form of explicar. You can use these kinds of context clues for an idea of what’s happening in the video. Plus – it’s good to actually listen to people speaking Spanish, and not just read/study it! Even if you don’t know all the words. 🙂

Study suggestion: Listen to the whole video at a comfortable speed while looking at the subtitles in Spanish. Look up any new words that you feel are important to learn (and write them in your Spanish notebook or flashcards to review later). After getting a sense for the conversation and writing down a few key words, listen again without looking at the screen. Can you catch everything they’re saying? For an extra challenge, speed up the playback speed under video settings, and listen again without looking at the subtitles.

Keep going: Think about how you would add to this conversation. What would you talk about if you were sitting down with these two people, and they asked you about your travels? Now: actually say it aloud!! It’s one thing to think about what you would say – and another to actually say it! Even if you don’t have anyone to practice with, say what you would add to this conversation aloud. Look up any words you need. Write down new the words/phrases that you need to be part of this conversation in your Spanish notebook or make new flashcards. Then, try again with the new words. What would you say if you were part of this conversation?

¡Buena suerte!