11.10.1
Derivatives
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Derivatives
Derivatives are verbs that can be made from other verbs.

They follow the same pattern
- In Spanish, verbs that contain other verbs follow their conjugation.
- E.g. 'desconocer' (to not know) comes from 'conocer' (to know).
- In this example 'conocer' has an irregular conjugation pattern.
- This means that 'desconocer' would follow the same pattern.

Prefixes
- In Spanish derivatives happen because of prefixes attached to verbs.
- All Spanish prefixes are attached to the beginning of a verb.
- These prefixes change the meaning but not how the verb is conjugated.
- E.g. 'animar' means to encourage, ''desanimar' means to discourage.
- E.g. I encourage would be 'animo' and I discourage would be 'desanimo'.

Common prefixes
- 'Mal' means bad, it gives a verb a negative meaning.
- E.g. 'Maldecir' (to speak badly of).
- 'Ben' means good, verbs have a positive meaning when used with 'ben'.
- E.g. 'Bendecir' (to speak well of).

Common prefixes
- 'Des' means 'un', a verb has a negative meaning when combined with 'des'.
- E.g. 'Desanimar' (to discourage).
- 'Dis' means not, it helps to express opposites.
- E.g. 'Disociar' (to dissociate).

Prefixes
- 'Pre' means before, if 'pre' is added with a verb, the verb gains the meaning of something done before.
- E.g.'Preparar' (to prepare).
- 'Ex' means out of, the verb gains a sense of pulling out.
- E.g. 'Extraer' (to extract).

Common prefixes
- 'Con' by itself means with but with a verb means together.
- E.g. 'Convivir' (to live together).
- 'Com' is also used to add the meaning together or with to a verb.
- E.g. 'Compartir' (to share.
- 'Co' is the final prefix used with this meaning.
- E.g. 'Coordinar' (to coordinate).

Common prefixes
- 'Inter' means among/between, the verb has a sense of putting oneself between something when combined with 'inter.
- E.g. 'Intervenir' (to intervene).
- 'Re' means again, the verb suggests that the action has been done before.
- E.g. 'Rehacer' (to redo).

Common prefixes
- 'Sobre' can mean different things, but when added to a verb it normally means over.
- E.g. 'Sobrevivir' (to overcome).
- 'Sub' is the opposite to 'sobre', meaning under.
- E.g. 'Subrayar' (to underline).

Common prefixes
- 'Contra' means against, verbs have a sense of going against something when using 'contra'.
- E.g. 'Contradecir' (to contradict).
- 'Uni' means one, it adds a uniting sense to verbs.
- E.g. 'Unir' (to unite).

Common prefixes
- 'Equi' means equal. Verbs that use 'equi' have a sense of making things equal.
- E.g. 'Equilibrar' (to balance).
Common AR Derivatives

Comportarse- to behave
- 'Comportarse' is a derivative of 'portar', meaning to carry.

Comparar - to compare
- 'Comparar" is a derivative of 'parar', meaning to stop.

Disculpar - to apologise
- 'Disculpar' is a derivative of 'culpar', meaning to blame.

Descargar - to download
- 'Descargar' is a derivative of 'cargar', meaning to load.

Aprobar - to approve
- 'Aprobar' is a derivative of 'probar', meaning to try or to taste.
1The Basics
1.1Pronouns
1.2Verbs
1.3Nouns
1.4Adjectives
1.5Abbreviations
2Home & Abroad
2.2Holiday
2.4Everyday Life, Traditions & Communities
3Education & Employment
3.2School Trips
3.4Future Plans
4Personal Life & Relationships
4.1House & Home
4.2Daily Routines & Helping at Home
4.3Family & Friends
5The World Around Us
5.1Environmental Issues
5.2Weather
5.3Travel & Transport
5.5Information & Communication
6Social Activities, Fitness & Health
6.1Special Occasions
6.2Hobbies & Interests
6.3Shopping & Money Matters
6.4Injuries, Illness & Health
7Listening
7.1Town & Region
7.2Holiday
7.3Customs
7.4Education
7.5Personal Life & Relationships
7.6The Media & Technology
7.7Social Activities
7.8The Environment
7.9Fitness & Health
8Common Tenses
8.1Present Tense
8.1.1Regular AR Verbs8.1.2Negative Verbs8.1.3Irregular AR Verbs8.1.4Irregular AR Verbs: Exceptions8.1.5Regular ER Verbs8.1.6Irregular ER Verbs8.1.7Irregular ER Verbs 28.1.8Regular IR Verbs8.1.9Irregular IR Verbs8.1.10Irregular IR Verbs 28.1.11Irregular IR Verbs 38.1.12Irregular IR Verbs 48.1.13Verb Phrases8.1.14The Use of 'Se'
8.2Preterite Tense
8.2.1Regular AR Verbs8.2.2Irregular AR Verbs (1/4)8.2.3Irregular AR Verbs (2/4)8.2.4Irregular AR Verbs (3/4)8.2.5Irregular AR Verbs (4/4)8.2.6Regular ER Verbs8.2.7Irregular ER Verbs (1/5)8.2.8Irregular ER Verbs (2/5)8.2.9Irregular ER Verbs (3/5)8.2.10Irregular ER Verbs (4/5)8.2.11Irregular ER Verbs (5/5)8.2.12Regular IR Verbs8.2.13Irregular IR Verbs (1/6)8.2.14Irregular IR Verbs (2/6)8.2.15Irregular IR Verbs (3/6)8.2.16Irregular IR Verbs (4/6)8.2.17Irregular IR Verbs (5/6)8.2.18Irregular IR Verbs (6/6)
8.3Imperfect Tense
8.4Preterite vs Imperfect Tenses
8.5Future Tense
9Important Verbs
9.1To Be - 'Ser' & 'Estar'
9.2To Like - 'Gustar'
9.3To Have - 'Tener'
10Advanced Tenses
10.1The Simple Future
10.2Conditional Tense
10.3Continuous Tenses
10.4Perfect Tense
10.5Present Subjunctive
10.5.1Present Subjunctive: AR Verbs10.5.2Present Subjunctive: ER Verbs10.5.3Present Subjunctive: IR Verbs10.5.4Irregular AR Verbs (1/3)10.5.5Irregular AR Verbs (2/3)10.5.6Irregular AR Verbs (3/3)10.5.7Irregular ER Verbs (1/2)10.5.8Irregular ER Verbs (2/2)10.5.9Irregular IR Verbs (1/3)10.5.10Irregular IR Verbs (2/3)10.5.11Irregular IR Verbs (3/3)10.5.12The Verb 'Ir'10.5.13Subjunctive Uses
10.6Imperfect Subjunctive
11Extra Grammar
11.2Negatives
11.3Nouns
11.4Asking Questions
11.5Adjectives
11.6Adverbs
11.7Conjunctions
11.8Pronouns
11.9By, With, From, Of
11.10Verbs
11.11Comparisons
Jump to other topics
1The Basics
1.1Pronouns
1.2Verbs
1.3Nouns
1.4Adjectives
1.5Abbreviations
2Home & Abroad
2.2Holiday
2.4Everyday Life, Traditions & Communities
3Education & Employment
3.2School Trips
3.4Future Plans
4Personal Life & Relationships
4.1House & Home
4.2Daily Routines & Helping at Home
4.3Family & Friends
5The World Around Us
5.1Environmental Issues
5.2Weather
5.3Travel & Transport
5.5Information & Communication
6Social Activities, Fitness & Health
6.1Special Occasions
6.2Hobbies & Interests
6.3Shopping & Money Matters
6.4Injuries, Illness & Health
7Listening
7.1Town & Region
7.2Holiday
7.3Customs
7.4Education
7.5Personal Life & Relationships
7.6The Media & Technology
7.7Social Activities
7.8The Environment
7.9Fitness & Health
8Common Tenses
8.1Present Tense
8.1.1Regular AR Verbs8.1.2Negative Verbs8.1.3Irregular AR Verbs8.1.4Irregular AR Verbs: Exceptions8.1.5Regular ER Verbs8.1.6Irregular ER Verbs8.1.7Irregular ER Verbs 28.1.8Regular IR Verbs8.1.9Irregular IR Verbs8.1.10Irregular IR Verbs 28.1.11Irregular IR Verbs 38.1.12Irregular IR Verbs 48.1.13Verb Phrases8.1.14The Use of 'Se'
8.2Preterite Tense
8.2.1Regular AR Verbs8.2.2Irregular AR Verbs (1/4)8.2.3Irregular AR Verbs (2/4)8.2.4Irregular AR Verbs (3/4)8.2.5Irregular AR Verbs (4/4)8.2.6Regular ER Verbs8.2.7Irregular ER Verbs (1/5)8.2.8Irregular ER Verbs (2/5)8.2.9Irregular ER Verbs (3/5)8.2.10Irregular ER Verbs (4/5)8.2.11Irregular ER Verbs (5/5)8.2.12Regular IR Verbs8.2.13Irregular IR Verbs (1/6)8.2.14Irregular IR Verbs (2/6)8.2.15Irregular IR Verbs (3/6)8.2.16Irregular IR Verbs (4/6)8.2.17Irregular IR Verbs (5/6)8.2.18Irregular IR Verbs (6/6)
8.3Imperfect Tense
8.4Preterite vs Imperfect Tenses
8.5Future Tense
9Important Verbs
9.1To Be - 'Ser' & 'Estar'
9.2To Like - 'Gustar'
9.3To Have - 'Tener'
10Advanced Tenses
10.1The Simple Future
10.2Conditional Tense
10.3Continuous Tenses
10.4Perfect Tense
10.5Present Subjunctive
10.5.1Present Subjunctive: AR Verbs10.5.2Present Subjunctive: ER Verbs10.5.3Present Subjunctive: IR Verbs10.5.4Irregular AR Verbs (1/3)10.5.5Irregular AR Verbs (2/3)10.5.6Irregular AR Verbs (3/3)10.5.7Irregular ER Verbs (1/2)10.5.8Irregular ER Verbs (2/2)10.5.9Irregular IR Verbs (1/3)10.5.10Irregular IR Verbs (2/3)10.5.11Irregular IR Verbs (3/3)10.5.12The Verb 'Ir'10.5.13Subjunctive Uses
10.6Imperfect Subjunctive
11Extra Grammar
11.2Negatives
11.3Nouns
11.4Asking Questions
11.5Adjectives
11.6Adverbs
11.7Conjunctions
11.8Pronouns
11.9By, With, From, Of
11.10Verbs
11.11Comparisons
Practice questions on Derivatives
Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.
- 1
- 2
- 3Identify the correct meaning of the prefixes:True / false
- 4
- 5How do you say 'they behave' in Spanish?Multiple choice
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