Understanding Spanish Verb Tenses
It is interesting to note that a verb’s tense will typically depend on when the action of the verb takes place in relation to time. The Spanish word for tense uses the appropriate word tiempo.
Most students will quickly come to appreciate that both English and Spanish have complex tenses that utilize auxiliary verbs. However, most beginner students of Spanish verb tenses will begin their learning adventure of Understanding Spanish Verb Tenses by becoming familiar with the following 4 types of simple tenses.
Understanding Spanish Verb Tenses – Present Tense
The most common tense in Spanish is the present tense. Most Spanish classes introduce the present tense first. An example of Present Tense would be something you are doing right now in this very moment, like reading this sentence.
Understanding Spanish Verb Tenses – Future Tense
In Spanish, the future tense is primarily used to relate or reference events that have not happened. An example would be that you are planning to go to the movies next week. However, the future tense can also indicate uncertainty about current events or it can be used for emphatic commands.
Understanding Spanish Verb Tenses – Past Tense
In Spanish, there are 2 past tenses commonly known as the imperfect and the preterite. The preterite is normally used to reference something that has occurred at a specific point in time. The imperfect is normally used when describing an event that does not have a specific time period.
Understanding Spanish Verb Tenses – Conditional Tense
This interesting tense is often referred to as the future hypothetical. This tense is different than the other tenses and it is unique because it is not connected clearly with any particular time period. The name basically tells it all. It is a tense that is used with reference to events that are hypothetical or conditional in nature. It should be noted that the conditional tense is not the same as a the subjunctive mood.
The various Spanish verb tenses are made by simply changing the endings of a verb. This process is commonly known as conjugation. In English, we at times will conjugate a verb by adding “ed” to the end. When we add “ed” to the ending of a verb, this implies that the verb or action is taking place in the past tense.
In Spanish, however, the verb conjugation process is much more extensive. For example, in English to describe the future tense we simply use additional words such as “shall” or “will”. In Spanish, unfortunately, you will need to learn 5 different types of conjugation for simple tenses.
The five different types of simple tenses include present tense conjugation, preterite conjugation, imperfect conjugation, future conjugation, and conditional conjugation.
Besides the simple tenses, mentioned above, it is possible to form perfect tenses in both English and Spanish by using the verb form “to have” in English and “haber” in Spanish along with the past participle. These compound tenses include the past perfect, present perfect, preterite perfect, conditional perfect, and future perfect.
Even though both English and Spanish share a common ancestor, the Spanish language has some tense usage peculiarities. They include past tense differences of estar and ser, ability to describe future events without using a future tense, conditional sentences that use other forms of verbs rather than the conditional tense, and using the auxiliary verb estar.
