Essential irregular present forms for A1
CEFR A1
What you will learn
- Use high-frequency present forms of ir, tener and querer in concrete A1 messages.
- Read the complete paradigms of five essential irregular verbs without treating them as one regular rule.
- Distinguish A1 communicative chunks from the broader stem-change system that the PCIC develops at A2.
The idea
At A1, a few irregular forms carry essential messages: “voy” for movement, “tengo” for possession and age, “quiero” for wants, “puedo” for ability, and “hago” for activities. They are useful before a learner can control every irregularity in Spanish. The PCIC places the broad system of common vowel and consonant irregularities in A2. This page therefore assesses concrete A1 uses, while the complete tables are a reference that prevents partial or misleading paradigms.
In “querer” and “tener”, stressed e becomes ie in the singular rows and in the third-person plural: “quiero”, “tienes”, “quieren”. In “poder”, stressed o becomes ue: “puedo”, “puedes”, “pueden”. Nosotros and vosotros keep the unchanged stem because stress falls on the ending.
The yo forms “tengo” and “hago” also have their own consonantal change. The table records the complete facts; A1 practice below uses only high-frequency messages and does not pretend that one page completes the A2 irregular system.
Ir: complete present paradigm
| person | ir |
|---|---|
| yo | voy |
| tú | vas |
| él / ella / usted | va |
| nosotros / nosotras | vamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | vais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | van |
High-frequency reference paradigms
| person | tener | querer | poder | hacer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | tengo | quiero | puedo | hago |
| tú | tienes | quieres | puedes | haces |
| él / ella / usted | tiene | quiere | puede | hace |
| nosotros / nosotras | tenemos | queremos | podemos | hacemos |
| vosotros / vosotras | tenéis | queréis | podéis | hacéis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | tienen | quieren | pueden | hacen |
How it sounds
- Marta tiene un billete y quiere ir al centro.Marta is third-person singular. The third-person singular of tener is “tiene”. The third-person singular of querer is “quiere”. After conjugated querer, the action remains an infinitive: “ir”.
Your turn
Two or three, to check that the bit above landed.
Use the key and ticket in the image: Yo ___ la llave y el billete. (tener)
tengo — The high-frequency yo form of tener is tengo.
Use the transit map: Esta tarde nosotros ___ al centro en metro. (ir)
vamos — The nosotros form of ir is vamos.
Use the meal in the image: Antes de salir, yo ___ comer. (querer)
quiero — Querer changes e to ie in the stressed yo form, and the following action stays in the infinitive.
What your own language pushes you to say
Wrong Yo quero ir, pero no podo hoy.
Right Quiero ir, pero no puedo hoy.
The stressed stems of querer and poder change in the yo form. These are stored high-frequency forms at A1 and part of a wider pattern developed later.
Once it makes sense
Practise this: “Quiero”, “puedo”, “duermo”: verbs that change insidePractise this: “Tengo 20 años”, “hace frío”Practise this: “Tú” or “usted”: one English “you”, two Spanish onesThe present tense: three endings and you can talkOne English “to be”, three Spanish choicesMe gusta: the sentence turns round