Present Tense Conjugation of E-IE Stem‐Changing Verbs
Some verbs in Spanish do not follow the regular verb patterns of conjugation, changing a vowel in the stem. Such verbs are called stem-changing verbs. These verbs have all the regular endings but have a change occur in the stem of the verb in certain forms. Stem-changing verbs could be –ar, –er, or –ir verbs.
The most common stem change is e to ie. For verbs in this group, the letter e in the stem of the infinitive will change to ie in all forms except nosotros/nosotras and vosotros/vosotras.
Look at how the e-ie verb pensar ("to think") changes forms:
| Subject |
Verb
|
Meaning |
| yo |
pienso
|
I think |
| tú |
piensas
|
you think |
| él ella usted |
piensa
|
he thinks she thinks you (formal) think |
| nosotros nosotras |
pensamos
|
we think we think |
| vosotros vosotras |
pensáis
|
you (plural) think you (plural) think |
| ellos ellas ustedes |
piensan
|
they think they think you (formal, plural) think |
Here are some other e-ie stem-changing verbs:
cerrar - to close
empezar - to start, begin
entender - to understand
perder - to lose
querer - to want
Now that you know the pattern of a e-ie stem-changing verb, you could form the present tense of any other e-ie verb:
Quiero ir a este café. - I want to go to this cafe.
Tú piensas comprar un televisor. - You think to buy a television.
Él entiende chino. - He understands Chinese.
Nosotros cerramos la casa. - We lock the house.
Vosotros empezáis hoy una nueva vida. - You (plural) start a new life today.
Los muchachos pierden el dinero. - The boys are losing the money.
