Spanish 4 Grammar Concepts

Heli Martin

Table of Contents1. El Presente 2. Irregular yo form3. Irregulars 4. Ser5. Estar6. Ser y estar con adjectivos7. Gustar8. Verbs like gustar9. Nouns/articles/adjectives10. Preterite v Imperfect 11. Preterite y trigger words12. Preterite Conjugation13. Preterite Irregulars14. Imperfect y trigger words15. Imperfect conjugation 16. Imperfect Irregulars

17. Present Subjunctive18. Impersonal Expressions19. Subjunctive in Noun

clauses20. Subjunctive in

Adjective clauses21. Commands22. Object Pronouns23. Prepositional Pronouns24. Possessive adjectives +

pronouns 25. Demonstrative

adjectives + pronouns26. Reflexive Verbs27. Por y Para28. To become- hacerse,

ponerse, volverse, llegar a ser

El Presente • Used to express actions or situations

that are happening in the present• Used to express habitual actions or

actions that will take place in the near future

• Regular –ar, -er, -ir • -ar: o, as, a, amos, áis, an• -er: o, es, e, emos, éis, en • -ir: o, es, e, imos, ís, en

Irregular yo form• Irregular yo forms: many –er and –ir verbs have irregualr yo forms

in the present tense. • Verbs ending in –ger or –gir change to –jo

coger, colegir (e:i), dirigir, escoger, recoger…ex: Coger – changes to cojo in yo form

• Verbs ending in –guir change the gu to g in the yo formconseguir,distinguir, extinguir, seguir…ex: Conseguir (e:i) – changes to consigo in yo form

• Verbs ending in –cer or –cir change the c to z in yo form coercer, convencer, ejercer, esparicir, mecer, remecer, vencer, zurcir, conducir, producir, concocer, palcer, crecer, aparacerexceptions are hacer and decir

• Verbs that end in –uir add y before o, e, and a atribuir, concluir, construir, distruir, exclurir, destruir, incluirex: atribuir – atribuyo, atribuyes, atribuye, atribuimos, atribuís, atribuyen

Irregulars• Irregular in present tense or combine a stem change with an

irregular yo form or spell change• Stem changes: e-ie, o-ue, e-i• e-ie: acertar, advertir, negar, atravesar, entender, comenzar,

defendir, pensar…ex: cerrar- cierro, cierras, cierra, cerramos, cerráis, cierran

• o-ue:almorzar, rogar , dormir, volver, sonar, soler, poder, morir, encontrar…ex: contar- cuento, cuentas, cuenta, contamos, contáis, cuentan

• e-i: competir, concebir, despedir, medir, servir, repetir, vestir…ex: pedir- pido, pides, pide, pedimos, pedís, piden

• *Notice that there is no stem change in the Vosotros or Nosotros form*

• Ir: voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van• Dar: doy, das, damos, dais, dan • Tener: tengo, tienes, tiene, tenemos, tenéis, tienen• Venir: vengo, vienes, viene, venimos, venís, vienen

Description, Origin, Characteristics, Time,

Occupation, Relationship, Possession, Event, Date

Ser

Ser

• Means to be • Used to express an essential equality

soy somos

eres sois

es son

Health

Emotions

Location

Present Condition

Present Participles.Rules:•-ar to –ando•-er and –ir to –iendo or -yendo

Estar

Estar

• Means to be• Used to express

condition

estoy estamos

estás estáis

está están

Ser y estar con adjectivos• Ser is used with adjectives to describe inherent, expected qualities.• Estar is used to describe temporary or variable qualities, or a change in

appearance or condition.• Some adjectives change their meaning when used with either "ser" or

"estar".• Examples : Listo : means clever when used with ser

means ready when used estarMalo: means bad when used with ser means ill when used with estarRico: means rich when used with ser means tasty when used with estarVivo: means lively when used with ser means alive when used with estarBueno: means good when used with ser

means well when used with estarMoreno: means dark haired when used with ser

means suntanned when used with estarAburrido: means boring when used with ser

means bored when used with estarSeguro: means safe when used with ser

means sure, certain when used with estar

Gustar

• Means to like or to be pleasing• Me gusta el libro - I like the book• Me gustan los libros – I like the books• When the noun that you like is plural

use –an• Pronouns – me, te, le, nos, os, les • A mi me gusta, a ti te gusta, etc.

Verbs Like Gustar• These verbs follow the same conjugation as gustar with doler having an “e” stem changer.

Aburrir- to boreImportar- tp be important toCaer bien/mal- to (not) suitInteresar- to be interesting toDigustar- to hate soemthingParecer- to appear to beEncantar- to loveQuedar- to be left over, remainVolver loco- to be crazy about Faltar- to lackDoler- to hurtFascinar- to fascinateMolestar- to botherSorprender- to surpriseHacer falta- to miss

• The construction a + [prepositional pronoun] or a + [noun] can be used to emphasize who is pleased, bothered, etc.

• Faltar and quedar express what someone lacks or has left. Quedar is also used to talk about how clothing fits or looks on someone

Examples: Te falta pelo. Nos gustan los libros.

Nouns• In Spanish, nouns ending in –o, -or, -I, -s, and –ma are usually masculine.• Nouns ending in –a, -ora, -ión, -d, and –z are usually feminine.• Most nouns form the plural by adding –s to nouns ending in a vowel and –es to

nouns ending in a constant. • Nouns that end in –z change to –c before adding –es

el hombre los hombres a mujer las mujeresla novia las novias el lápiz los lápices

• If noun is singular and it ends in a vowel that is stressed, the plural form ends in –es. The plural form doesn’t change if the noun form ends in –s which is unstressed.el tabú los tabúes el lunes los lunesel israelí los isrealíes la crisis las crisis

Articles• Spanish definite and indefinite articles agree in gender and number with the nouns they

modify.• Definite articles are:

Singular Plural Masculine:el losFeminine: la las

• Indefinite articles:Singular Plural

Masculine: un unosFeminine: una unas

• In Spanish, a definite article is always used with an abstract noun : la belleza el amor

• An indefinite article is not used before nouns that indicate profession or place of origin unless they are followed by an adjective.Juan es profesor Juan es un profesor excelente

Adjectives• Spanish adjectives agree in gender and number with the nouns they modify.• Most adjectives ending in –e or a consonant have the same masculine and

feminine forms.• Masculine singular usually end in –o, -e, -l• Masculine plural usually end in –os, -es, -les• Feminine singular usually end in –a, -e, -l• Feminine plural usually end in –as, -es, les• They usually follow the noun they modify• If a single adjective modifies more than one noun, then you use the plural form• If at least one of the nouns is masculine, use the masculine form.• A few adjectives have shortened forms when they precede a masculine singular

noun: buenobuen, algunoalgun, primeroprimer, malomal, nungunoningun, tercerotercer

• When the adjective follows the noun, the meaning is more literal, but if it precedes the noun, the meaning is more figurative.

Preterite Imperfect

To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the imperfect, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following:

abaabasabaábamosabaisaban

The imperfect is used for actions in the past that are not seen as completed. Use of the imperfect tense implies that the past action did not have a definite beginning or a definite end.

To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the preterite, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following:

éasteóamosasteisaron

The preterite is used for actions in the past that are seen as completed. Use of the preterite tense implies that the past action had a definite beginning and definite end.

The preterite tells us specifically when an action took place.The imperfect tells us in general when an action took place.

El Pretérito y Trigger Words

It is a definite time in the past, and has a beginning or an ending.Trigger words that you could assume may deal with this are:

Ayer AnocheEl año pasadoLa semana pasada

Ante ayer

-í -imos

-iste -isteí s

-ió -ieron

ER

-í -imos

-iste -isteís

-ió -ieron

IR

El Pretérito

El Pretérito Irregulars

There are 3 main types of Irregular Pretérito verbs we have learned about. They are:

Car, Gar, y ZarCucarachaSpock

Car, Gar, y Zar Irregulars

-qué -camos

-caste casteís

-có -caron

-gué -gamos

-gaste -gasteís-gó -garon

-cé -zamos

-zaste -zasteís

-zo -zaron

Spock Irregulars!

3 different groupings.The words in each grouping are conjugated the same way.The groupings are:

1.IR y SER2.DAR y VER3.HACER

IR- to go SER- to be

Fui Fuimos

Fuiste Fuisteís

Fue Fueron

DAR- to give VER- to see

I Imos

Iste Isteís

Io Ieron

HACER…. TO MAKE OR DO

Hice Hicimos

Hiciste Hicisteís

Hito Hicieron

Cucaracha Verbs

Endings for all are the same:

Andar- aduvEstar- estuvPoder- pudPoner- pusQuerer- quisSaber- supTener- tuvVenir- vin

Conducir- condujProducir- produjTraducir- tradujDecir- dijTraer- traj

Cucaracha Verbs

Snake

• In the 3rd person, the stem change occurs.

• The stem change is to opposite vowel with the first vowel.

Dormi Dormimos

Dormiste Dormisteis

Durmio Durmierion

Snakeys

Follows same concept as SNAKE, but is more specific.In the 3rd person the stem change is the vowel “I” to the vowel “y”.Leer

Imperfect y Trigger Words• The imperfect tense is used to refer to actions in the past that occurred

repeatedly.• They have no definite end or beginning• Trigger words:

a menudo

a veces

cada día

cada año

con frecuencia

de vez en cuando

en aquella época

frecuentemente

generalmente

muchas veces

mucho

nunca

por un rato

siempre

tantas veces

todas las semanas

todos los días

todo el tiempo

varias veces

Imperfect

- ar -er and –ir

aba ábamosabas abaisaba aban

ía íamosías íaisía ían

Imperfect Irregulars

Present Subjunctive • Wedding-

Wishing/wantingEmotionsDoubtDisbeliefImpersonal expressionsNegationGod/grief

Impersonal Expressions

Es bueno que…

Es mejor que…

Es malo que…

Es importante

que… Es necesario que…

Es urgente que…

The Subjunctive in Noun Clauses• The subjunctive is used mainly in multiple clause sentences which express will,

influence, emotion, doubt, or denial. • Irregular yo forms:

conocer conozca seguir sigadecir diga tener tengahacer haga traer traigaoír oiga venir vengaponer ponga ver vea

• Verbs that have stem changes in the present subjunctive. Remember that only –ir verbs undergo stem changes in the nosotros/as and vosotros/as forms.pensar (e:ie) jugar (u:ue)mostrar (o:ue) entender (e:ie)resolver (o:ue) pedir (e:i)sentir (e:ie) dormir (o:ue)

• A clause it a group of words that contains both a conjugated verb and a subject. In a subordinate noun clause, a group of words function together as a noun.

• There are three types : verbs of will and influence, verbs of emotion, verbs of doubt or denial

Verbs of will and influence• Aconsejar- to advise• Importar- to be important; to matter• Insistir (en)- to insist (on)• Mandar- to order• Prohibir- to prohibit• Recomendar (e:ie)- to recommend• Rogar (o:ue)- to beg, to plead• Sugerir (e:ie)- to suggest• Desear- to desire, to wish• Es importante- its important • Es necesario- its necessary

• Pedir- to ask for; to request• Preferir- to prefer• Prohibir- to prohibit• Proponer- to propose• Querer- to want, to wish• Es urgente- its urgent• Exigir- to demand• Gustar- to like• Hacer- to make• Necisitar- to need

The infinitive, not the subjunctive, is used with verbs and expressions of will and influence if there is no change of subject in the sentence

Verbs of Emotion• Alegrarse (de)- to be happy• Es bueno que- it’s good• Es extraño- it’s strange• Es malo- it’s bad• Es mejor- it’s better• Es ridículo- it’s ridiculous • Es terrible- it’s terrible• Es una lastima- it’s a shame• Molestar- to bother

• Esperar- to hope, to wish• Gustar- to like; to be pleasing• Sentir (e:ie)- to be sorry, to

regret• Sorprender- to surprise• Temer- to be afraid, to fear• Es triste- it’s sad• Ojalá (que)- I hope (that), I

wish (that)• Tener miedo (de)- to be afraid

(of)When the main clause expresses emotion like hope, fear, joy, pity, or surprise, the verbs in the subordinate clause must be in the subjunctive if its subject is different from that of the main clause

Expressions of doubt, disbelief, and denial

• Dudar- to doubt• Negar (e:ie)- to deny• Es imposible- it’s impossible• Es improbable- it’s improbable• No es cierto- it’s not true, it’s not certain• No es seguro- it’s not certain

• No es verdad- it’s not true

• Es poco seguro- its uncertain • No es possible- it’s not possible• No es probable- it’s not probable• Negar- to deny• No creer- not to believe• No es evidente- it’s not evident• No estar seguro- not to be sure

When the main clause implies doubt, uncertainty, or denial the verb in the subordinate clause must be in the subjunctive if its subject is different from that of the main clause

The subjunctive in adjective clauses

• When the subordinate clause of a sentence refers to something that is known to exist, the indicative is used.

• When the antecendent is uncertain or indefinite, the subjunctive is used.

Antecedent certain indicative

Necisito el libro que tiene informacion sobre los prejuicios sociales

I need the book that has information about social prejudices.

Antecedent uncertain subjunctive

Necesito un libro que tenga informacion sobre los prejuicios sociales.

I need a book that has information about social prejudices.

Adjective Clauses

When the antecedent of an adjective clause is a negative pronoun (nadie/ninguno) the subjunctive is used:

Antecedent certain subjunctive

Ella tiene tres parientes que viven en Puerto Rico.

She has three relatives who live in Puerto Rico.

Antecedent uncertain subjunctive

Ella no tiene ningun pariente que vfiva en Madrid.

She doesn’t have any relatives who live in Madrid.

Adjective Clauses• The personal a is not used with direct objects that represent hypothetical

questions:subjunctive: Busco un abogado que sea honradoindicative: Conozco a un abogado que es honrado

• The personal a is maintained before nadie and alguien, even when their existence is uncertain:subjunctive: No conozco a nadie que se queje tanto como mi suegraindicative: Yo conozco a alguien que se queja aun mas

• The subjunctive is commonly used in questions with adjective clauses when the speaker is trying to find out information about which he or she is uncertain.

• If the person who responds knows the information, the indicative is used.

Commands• Affirmative tú: simply drop the s

los irregulares- di, haz, ve, pon, sal, sé, ten, ven• Negative tú: put it in yo form and change to opposite vowel

and add an ‘s’los irregulares- TVDISHES

• Affirmative Ud./Uds: put in yo form and change to opposite vowel los irregulares- TVDISHES

• Negative Ud./Uds: same as above • DOP + IOP + ‘sé’ can attach to an affirmative• DOP + IOP + ‘sé’ must go before the negative command

Indirect Commands

• The construction que + [verb] in the third person subjunctive can be used to express indirect commands that correspond to the English let someone do something.

• If the subject of the indirect command is expressed, it usually follows the verb

• Example: Que pase el siguienteLet the next person pass

• Pronouns are never attached to the conjugated verb when using the subjunctive

• Example: Que se lo den los otros; Que no se lo den

Object Pronouns• Direct object pronouns directly receive the action of the verb.• Indirect object pronouns identify to whom or for whom an action is done. • Indirect object pronouns:

me noste osle les

• Direct object pronounsme noste oslo/la los/las

• They both precede the conjugated verb• Indirect object example: Carla siempre me da boletas para el cine.• Direct object example: Ella los consigue gratis.

Object Pronoun Placement

• When the verb is an infinitive construction, object pronouns may either be attached to the infinitive or placed before the conjugated verb.

• Lo is also used to refer to an abstract thing or idea that has no gender.

• When the verb is in the progressive, object pronouns may either be attached to the present participle or placed before the conjugated verb.

Double Object Pronouns• The indirect object prounoun precedes the direct object pronoun when

they are used together in a sentenceMe mandaron los boletos por correo Me los mandaron por correo

• Le and les change to se when they are used with lo, la, los, or lasLe damos las revistas a Ricardo Se las damos

• When object pronouns are attached to infinitives, participles, or commands, a written accent is often required to maintain proper word stress:Infinitive: cantármelaPresent Participle: escribiéndoleCommand: acompáñeme

Prepositional Pronounsmí me myselfti you, yourselfUd. you, yourselfél him, itella her, it

nosotros/as us, ourselvesvosotros/as you, yourselvesUds. you, yourselvesellos themellas them sí themselves

Prepositional Pronouns• Prepositional pronouns function as the objects of

prepositions. Except for mí, ti, and sí, they are identical to their corresponding subject pronouns.

• A + [prepositional pronoun] is often used for clarity or emphasis.

• The pronoun sí (himself, herself, itself, themselves) is the prepositional pronoun used to refer back to the same third person subject.

• When mí, ti, and sí are used with con, they become conmigo, contigo, and consigo.

• These prepositions are used with tú and yo instead of mí and ti: entre, excepto, incluso, menos, salvo, según

Possessive Adjectives + Pronouns • Used to express ownership or possession• Spanish has two types of possessive adjectives: the short/unstressed

forms and the long/stressed forms.• Both of the forms agree in number and gender with the object owned and

not with the owner.

Short/Unstressed Long/Stressed

Mi(s) My Mío(s)/a(s) My; (of) mine

Tu(s) Your Tuyo(s)/a(s) Your; (of) yours

Su(s) Your; his; hers; its Suyo(s)/a(s) Your; (of yours); (of) his; (of) hers; (of) its

Nuestro(s)/a(s) Our Nuestro(s)/a(s) Our; (of) ours

Vuestro(s)/a(s) Your Vuestro(s)/a(s) Your; (of) yours

Su(s) Your; their Suyo(s)/a(s) Your; (of) yours; (of) theirs

Possessive Adjectives + Pronouns• Short possessive adjectives precede the nouns they

modify:En mi opinión… Nuestras revistas…

• Stressed possessive adjectives follow the nouns they modify and are used for emphasismi amgio el amigo míotus amigas las amigas tuyas

• Because su(s) and suyo(s)/a(s) have multiple meanings, the construction [article] + [noun] + de + [subject pronoun] is used to clarify the meaning.

• Possessive pronouns have the same forms as stressed possessive adjectives and are preceded by a definite article.No tengo mi papel Me prestas el tuyo

Demonstrative Adjectives + Pronouns

• Specify to which noun a speaker is referring to. • They precede the nouns that they modify and agree in number

and gender.

Singular Plural

Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine

EsteEseAquel

EstaEsaAquella

EstosEsosAquellos

EstasEsasAquellass

This; theseThat; thoseThat; those(over there)

Demonstrative Adjectives + Pronouns

• There are three sets of demonstrative adjectives.este : used to point out nouns that are close.ese : used to modify nouns that are not close.aquel : refer to nouns that are far away.

• Demonstrative pronouns are identical to demonstrative adjectives except they carry an accent mark on the stressed vowel.

• Esto, eso, and aquello are neuter pronouns that refer to unspecified things, ideas, or situations.

• They do not vary in gender or number.• They do not carry an accent mark.

Reflexive Verbs• In a reflexive construction, the subject of the verb both

performs and recieves the action.• To get or become is frequently expressed by the Spanish

verb ponerse + [adjective]• In the plural, reflexive verbs can express reciprocal actions

done to one another• The reflexive pronoun precedes the direct object pronoun.• Reflexive verbs always use reflexive pronouns:

Ex: lavarse – to wash (oneself)

Yo me lavo

Nosotros/as nos lavamos

Tú te lavas

Vosotros/as os laváis

Ud./Ella/Él se lava

Uds./Ellos/Ellas se lavan

Reflexive Verbs• Verbs used to describe daily routines and personal care:

acostarse- to go to bed afeitarse- to shavecepillarse- to brush (one’s hair) despertarse- to wake updormirse- to go to sleep ducharse- to take a showerlavarse- to wash oneself levantarse- to get upponerse- to put on (clothing) vestirse- to get dressed

• Many verbs change meaning when they are used with a refelxive pronounaburrir- to bore aburrirse- to be boredacordar- to agree acordarse(de)- to remembercomer- to eat comerse- to eat upir- to go irse(de)- to go away (from)paracer- to seem paracerse- to resemble, to look like

• Some spanish verbs and expressions are always relexive; many are followed by a, de, & enacercarse (a)- to approach; fijarse (en)- to take notice of; arrepentirse (de)- to repent (of); morirse (de)- to die (of); atreverse (de)- to dare (to); olvidarse (de)- to forget (about);convertirse (en)- to become; preocuparse (por)- to worry (about); darse cuenta (de)- to realize; quejarse (de)- to complain about; enterarse (de)- to find out (about); sorprenderse (de)- to be surprised (about)

Por y Para Uses of Para Uses of Por

Destination (toward, in the direction of)Deadline or a specific time in future (by, for)Purpose or goal + [infinitive] (in order to)Recipient (for)Comparison with others or opinion (for, considering)Employment (for)

Motion or a general location (along, through, around by)Duration of an action (for, during, in)Reason or motive for an action (because of, on account/behalf of)Object of a search (for, in search of)Means by which (by, by way, by means of)Exchange or substitution (for, in exchange for)Unit of measure (per, by)Agent (passive voice) (by)

Por y ParaExpressions with para:

No estar para bromas: to be in no mood for jokes

No ser para tanto: to not be so importantPara colmo: to top it all offPara que sepas: just so you knowPara siempre: forever

Expressions with por:Por allí/aquí: around there/here Por lo tanto: thereforePor casualidad: by chance/accident Por lo visto: apparentlyPor ejemplo: for example Por mas/mucho que: no matter how

much Por eso: therefore, for that reasonPor otro lado/parte: on the other handPor fin: finally Por primera vez: for the first timePor lo general: in general Por si acaso: just in casePor lo menos: at least Por supuesto: of course

To become- hacerse, ponerse, volverse, llegar a ser• There are several different Spanish equivalents for the English verb “to become”• Ponerse is followed by an adjective and express a change in mental, emotional, or

physical state that does not last long:Me puse enfermo en Caracas I got sick in Caracas.Heli se pone roja cuando habla Heli turns red when she talks

• Volverse is followed by an adjective and indicates a sudden, profound, change in mental or emotional state:Se ha vuelto loco He went crazyElla se ha vuelto insorportable She has become unbearable

• Hacerse is followed by a noun or adjective and indicate a change brought about by effort:Mi hermana se ha hecho abogado My sister has become a lawyerMi abuelo se hizo rico My grandfather became wealthy

• Llegar a ser may also be followed by a noun or adjective and it indicates a change that has occurred over time and does not imply effort:La novela que escribió el ano pasado ha llegado a ser un superventas.The novel that he wrote last year has become a best seller.

To become• There are often reflexive verb equivalents for ponerse

+ [adjective]• When used with object pronouns instead of reflexive

pronouns, such verbs convey that another person or thing is imposing mental, emotional, or physical state on some one else.ponerse alegre alegrarseponerse furioso/a enfurecerseponerse deprimido/a deprimirseponerse triste entristecerse