Spanish Grammar Rules Cheatsheet

1. Past Participle ("-ado" / "-ido")

• Usage: You would use the past participle when discussing completed actions or events that happened in the past.

• Example Setting: Talking about your weekend activities ("He hablado con mis amigos" - I have spoken with my friends).

• Rule: After "he", "has", "ha", "hemos", "habéis", "han" (the present perfect tense of "haber"), the verb usually ends with "-ado" for -ar verbs and "-ido" for -er and -ir verbs.

• Examples:

  • He hablado (I have spoken)

  • Has comido (You have eaten)

  • Ha vivido (He/she/it has lived)

2. Present Progressive ("-ando" / "-iendo"):

• Usage: This tense is used to talk about actions that are currently happening at the moment of speaking.

• Example Setting: Describing ongoing activities or situations ("Estoy hablando con el cliente" - I am speaking with the client).

• Rule: After "estar" (in its various forms: estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están), the verb typically ends with "-ando" for -ar verbs and "-iendo" for -er and -ir verbs to form the present progressive.

• Examples:

  • Estoy hablando (I am speaking)

  • Estás comiendo (You are eating)

  • Está viviendo (He/she/it is living)

3. Future Tense ("-é", "-ás", "-á", "-emos", "-éis", "-án"):

• Usage: Use the future tense when discussing actions that will occur in the future.

• Example Setting: Planning events or making predictions ("Mañana hablaré con el jefe" - Tomorrow I will speak with the boss).

• Rule: To form the future tense, add these endings directly to the infinitive form of the verb.

• Examples:

  • Hablaré (I will speak)

  • Comerás (You will eat)

  • Vivirá (He/she/it will live)

  • Viviremos (We will live)

  • Vivirán (They will live)

4. Conditional Tense ("-ía", "-ías", "-ía", "-íamos", "-íais", "-ían"):

• Usage: The conditional tense is used to express hypothetical or possible actions in certain situations.

• Example Setting: Expressing desires, wishes, or hypothetical scenarios ("Comerías sushi si estuvieras en Japón?" - Would you eat sushi if you were in Japan?).

• Rule: To form the conditional tense, add these endings to the infinitive form of the verb.

• Examples:

  • Hablaría (I would speak)

  • Comerías (You would eat)

  • Viviría (He/she/it would live)

  • Viviríamos (We would live)

  • Vivirían (They would live)

5. Imperfect Tense for -ar Verbs ("-aba", "-abas", "-aba", "-ábamos", "-abais", "-aban"):

• Usage: Use the imperfect tense to describe ongoing or habitual actions in the past, or to set the scene for another past action.

• Example Setting: Narrating past events or describing past habits ("Cuando era niño, hablaba mucho" - When I was a child, I used to talk a lot).

• Rule: To form the imperfect tense for -ar verbs, use these endings.

• Examples:

  • Hablaba (I/he/she/it was speaking, used to speak)

  • Hablábamos (We were speaking, used to speak)

6. Imperfect Tense for -er and -ir Verbs ("-ía", "-ías", "-ía", "-íamos", "-íais", "-ían"):

• Usage: Similar to the -ar imperfect tense, this form describes ongoing or habitual past actions for -er and -ir verbs.

• Example Setting: Providing background information or describing past states ("Él siempre comía frutas por la mañana" - He always used to eat fruits in the morning).

• Rule: To form the imperfect tense for -er and -ir verbs, use these endings.

• Examples:

  • Comía (I/he/she/it was eating, used to eat)

  • Vivía (I/he/she/it was living, used to live)

  • Comíamos (We were eating, used to eat)

7. Subjunctive Present ("-e", "-es", "-e", "-emos", "-éis", "-en" for -ar verbs and "-a", "-as", "-a", "-amos", "-áis", "-an" for -er and -ir verbs):

• Usage: The present subjunctive is used to express desires, doubts, wishes, or hypothetical situations.

• Example Setting: Expressing hopes, demands, or desires ("Espero que él hable con la verdad" - I hope that he speaks the truth).

• Rule: To form the present subjunctive, switch the typical -ar endings with -er/-ir endings and vice versa.

• Examples:

  • (ar verbs) Hable (that I speak), Hables (that you speak)

  • (er verbs) Coma (that I eat), Comas (that you eat)

  • (ir verbs) Viva (that I live), Vivas (that you live)

8. Subjunctive Imperfect ("-ara", "-aras", "-ara", "-áramos", "-arais", "-aran" for -ar verbs and "-iera", "-ieras", "-iera", "-iéramos", "-ierais", "-ieran" for -er and -ir verbs):

• Usage: This tense is used to express hypothetical or uncertain past actions, often in conjunction with a conditional clause.

• Example Setting: Talking about past unreal situations or hypothetical scenarios ("Si yo fuera rico, viajaría por todo el mundo" - If I were rich, I would travel the world).

• Rule: To form the imperfect subjunctive, take the third person plural of the preterite, drop the -ron ending, and add these endings.

• Examples:

  • (ar verbs) Hablara (that I spoke), Hablaras (that you spoke)

  • (er verbs) Comiera (that I ate), Comieras (that you ate)

  • (ir verbs) Viviera (that I lived), Vivieras (that you lived)