8.2.14

Irregular IR Verbs (2/6)

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Radical Changing Stems (O → U)

In the preterite tense, some verbs change their stems in the 'él/ella' and 'ellos/ellas' forms, with the 'o' changing to a 'u'. The two verbs that follow this pattern are 'morir' and 'dormir'.

Illustrative background for Morir - to dieIllustrative background for Morir - to die ?? "content

Morir - to die

  • Morí - I died.
  • Moriste - you died.
  • Murió - he/she died.
  • Morimos - we died.
  • Moristeis - you died.
  • Murieron - they died.
Illustrative background for Dormir - to sleepIllustrative background for Dormir - to sleep ?? "content

Dormir - to sleep

  • Dormí - I slept.
  • Dormiste - you slept.
  • Durmió - he/she slept.
  • Dormimos - we slept.
  • Dormisteis - you slept.
  • Durmieron - they slept.

Irregular IR verbs

In the preterite tense, there are lots of verbs that change their stem or follow a different pattern to regular verbs. Here are some examples:

Illustrative background for Changing stem (e → i)Illustrative background for Changing stem (e → i) ?? "content

Changing stem (e → i)

  • Some IR verbs in the preterite tense change their stem.
    • In the 'él/ella' and the 'ellos/ellas' forms, the 'e' changes to an 'i'.
  • For example, elegir - to choose.
    • Elegí - I chose.
    • Elegiste - you chose.
    • Eligió - he/she chose.
    • Elegimos - we chose.
    • Elegisteis - you chose.
    • Eligieron - they chose.
Illustrative background for Changing stem (o → u)Illustrative background for Changing stem (o → u) ?? "content

Changing stem (o → u)

  • In the preterite tense, some verbs change their stems in the 'él/ella' and 'ellos/ellas' forms, with the 'o' changing to a 'u'.
  • The two verbs that follow this pattern are 'morir' and 'dormir'.
  • E.g. dormir - to sleep:
    • Dormí - I slept.
    • Dormiste - you slept.
    • Durmió - he/she slept.
    • Dormimos - we slept.
    • Dormisteis - you slept.
    • Durmieron - they slept.
Illustrative background for Changing stem (i → y)Illustrative background for Changing stem (i → y) ?? "content

Changing stem (i → y)

  • Most IR verbs that end in 'uir' change their stem in the 'él/ella' and 'ellos/ellas' forms of the preterite tense.
  • These verbs drop the 'i' from the stem and instead have a 'y'.
  • E.g. contribuir - to contribute:
    • Contribuí - I contributed.
    • Contribuiste - you contributed.
    • Contribuyó - he/she contributed.
    • Contribuimos - we contributed.
    • Contribuisteis - you contributed.
    • Contribuyeron - they contributed.
Illustrative background for Verbs ending in 'ducir'Illustrative background for Verbs ending in 'ducir' ?? "content

Verbs ending in 'ducir'

  • Verbs that end in 'ducir' change the 'c' to a 'j' in a preterite tense.
  • E.g. introducir - to introduce
    • Introduje - I introduced.
    • Introdujiste - you introduced.
    • Introdujo - he/she introduced.
    • Introdujimos - we introduced.
    • Introdujisteis - you introduced.
    • Introdujeron - they introduced.
Illustrative background for Decir - to sayIllustrative background for Decir - to say ?? "content

Decir - to say

  • 'Decir' is a strong preterite that follows two patterns: its root vowel changes from an 'e' to an 'i' and a 'j' is added to its stem:
    • Dije - I said.
    • Dijiste - you said.
    • Dijo - he/she said.
    • Dijimos - we said.
    • Dijisteis - you said.
    • Dijeron - they said.
Illustrative background for Ir - to go & ser - to beIllustrative background for Ir - to go & ser - to be ?? "content

Ir - to go & ser - to be

'Ir' is a strong preterite that follows the same irregular pattern as 'ser':

  • Fui - I went/was.
  • Fuiste - you went/were.
  • Fue - he/she/it went/was.
  • Fuimos - we went/were.
  • Fuisteis - you went/were.
  • Fueron - they went/were.

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