Spanish verbs can look complicated when you first start learning them.
You learn one word such as hablar, and then suddenly you see:
hablo
hablas
habla
hablamos
habláis
hablan
At first, these may look like six completely different words.
But they aren’t.
There is a pattern behind them.
And once you understand that pattern, many Spanish -AR verbs become much easier to conjugate.
In this guide, we’ll break everything down into small, easy steps.
You’ll learn:
- What Spanish -AR verbs are
- How regular -AR verbs work
- The six present-tense endings
- How to conjugate hablar, bailar, and cantar
- How to pronounce every form
- What makes an -AR verb stem-changing
- How jugar, volar, and cerrar change
- How to spot regular vs irregular verbs
- Common mistakes beginners make
- A quick 2-minute revision method
No giant grammar chart.
No complicated explanations.
Just patterns, examples, pronunciation, and practice.
Let’s begin.
What Is an -AR Verb?
Spanish infinitive verbs commonly end in:
-AR
-ER
-IR
For example:
Hablar = to speak
Comer = to eat
Vivir = to live
Today, our focus is:
-AR verbs
Some very common -AR verbs include:
Hablar — to speak
Pronunciation: ah-BLAR
Bailar — to dance
Pronunciation: bye-LAR
Cantar — to sing
Pronunciation: kan-TAR
Jugar — to play
Pronunciation: hoo-GAR
Volar — to fly
Pronunciation: boh-LAR
Cerrar — to close
Pronunciation: seh-RRAR
The first three are useful examples of regular -AR verbs.
The last three show us common stem-changing patterns.
The Secret Behind Regular -AR Verbs
Here’s the easiest rule to remember.
Take the infinitive.
Remove:
-AR
What remains is called the stem.
Then add the correct present-tense ending.
Let’s use:
HABLAR
Remove:
-AR
You get:
HABL-
Now add the appropriate ending.
That’s the entire basic process.
The Six Regular -AR Endings
For YO, use:
-O
Pronunciation: oh
For TÚ, use:
-AS
Pronunciation: ahs
For ÉL / ELLA / USTED, use:
-A
Pronunciation: ah
For NOSOTROS, use:
-AMOS
Pronunciation: AH-mohs
For VOSOTROS, use:
-ÁIS
Pronunciation: eyes
For ELLOS / ELLAS / USTEDES, use:
-AN
Pronunciation: ahn
Now put them together:
O – AS – A – AMOS – ÁIS – AN
This is the pattern worth memorizing.
Once you know it, you can use it with many regular -AR verbs.
HABLAR: To Speak
Let’s start with the most useful example.
HABLAR
Meaning:
to speak
Pronunciation:
ah-BLAR
Remove -AR.
You get:
HABL-
Now let’s conjugate it.
Yo hablo
Meaning:
I speak
Pronunciation:
AH-bloh
The h is silent.
So don’t pronounce the beginning like the English “h” in “house.”
Think:
hablo → AH-bloh
Tú hablas
Meaning:
You speak
Pronunciation:
AH-blahs
Here:
HABL + AS = HABLAS
The stem remains:
HABL-
Él habla
Meaning:
He speaks
Pronunciation:
AH-blah
The ending is:
-A
So:
HABL + A = HABLA
Ella habla
Meaning:
She speaks
Pronunciation:
AH-blah
Same verb form.
The subject tells you who is speaking.
Usted habla
Meaning:
You speak — formal
Pronunciation:
oo-STED AH-blah
The verb is still:
habla
Nosotros hablamos
Meaning:
We speak
Pronunciation:
ah-BLAH-mohs
The ending is:
-AMOS
So:
HABL + AMOS = HABLAMOS
Vosotros habláis
Meaning:
You speak — plural, mainly used in Spain
Pronunciation:
ah-blah-EES
Notice the written accent:
habláis
That accent helps indicate where the stress falls.
Ellos hablan
Meaning:
They speak
Pronunciation:
AH-blahn
The ending is:
-AN
So:
HABL + AN = HABLAN
Ellas hablan
Meaning:
They speak — feminine group
Pronunciation:
AH-blahn
Same verb form:
hablan
Ustedes hablan
Meaning:
You speak — plural
Pronunciation:
oos-TEH-des AH-blahn
The exact use of ustedes varies by region, but the verb form remains:
hablan
Notice the Pattern
Look at the beginning of every form:
hablo
hablas
habla
hablamos
habláis
hablan
The stem:
HABL-
stays the same.
Only the ending changes.
That’s why hablar is a regular -AR verb.
BAILAR: To Dance
Now let’s try another regular verb.
BAILAR
Meaning:
to dance
Pronunciation:
bye-LAR
Remove:
-AR
You get:
BAIL-
Now let’s build it.
Yo bailo
I dance.
Pronunciation:
BYE-loh
Tú bailas
You dance.
Pronunciation:
BYE-lahs
Él baila
He dances.
Pronunciation:
BYE-lah
Ella baila
She dances.
Pronunciation:
BYE-lah
Usted baila
You dance — formal.
Pronunciation:
oo-STED BYE-lah
Nosotros bailamos
We dance.
Pronunciation:
bye-LAH-mohs
Vosotros bailáis
You dance — plural, mainly Spain.
Pronunciation:
bye-lah-EES
Ellos bailan
They dance.
Pronunciation:
BYE-lahn
Ellas bailan
They dance.
Pronunciation:
BYE-lahn
Ustedes bailan
You dance — plural.
Pronunciation:
oos-TEH-des BYE-lahn
Again, the stem:
BAIL-
doesn’t change.
Only the ending changes.
Regular pattern confirmed.
CANTAR: To Sing
Now let’s try one more regular -AR verb.
CANTAR
Meaning:
to sing
Pronunciation:
kan-TAR
Remove:
-AR
You get:
CANT-
Now conjugate it.
Yo canto
I sing.
Pronunciation:
KAN-toh
Tú cantas
You sing.
Pronunciation:
KAN-tahs
Él canta
He sings.
Pronunciation:
KAN-tah
Ella canta
She sings.
Pronunciation:
KAN-tah
Usted canta
You sing — formal.
Pronunciation:
oo-STED KAN-tah
Nosotros cantamos
We sing.
Pronunciation:
kan-TAH-mohs
Vosotros cantáis
You sing — plural, mainly Spain.
Pronunciation:
kan-tah-EES
Ellos cantan
They sing.
Pronunciation:
KAN-tahn
Ellas cantan
They sing.
Pronunciation:
KAN-tahn
Ustedes cantan
You sing — plural.
Pronunciation:
oos-TEH-des KAN-tahn
Once again:
CANT-
stays the same.
That’s the regular pattern.
Now Comes the Interesting Part
So far, everything has been easy.
But what happens when an -AR verb doesn’t keep its stem exactly the same?
That’s when we meet:
Stem-changing verbs
A stem-changing verb changes a vowel in its stem when conjugated.
And here’s something important:
“Irregular” does not always mean “random.”
Many stem-changing verbs follow clear patterns.
For example:
U → UE
O → UE
E → IE
Once you recognize the pattern, the verb becomes much easier to understand.
JUGAR: U → UE
JUGAR
Meaning:
to play
Pronunciation:
hoo-GAR
The important change is:
U → UE
So instead of:
jugo
we get:
juego
Pronunciation:
HWEH-goh
Now let’s look at the forms.
Yo juego
I play.
Pronunciation:
HWEH-goh
Tú juegas
You play.
Pronunciation:
HWEH-gahs
Él juega
He plays.
Pronunciation:
HWEH-gah
Ella juega
She plays.
Pronunciation:
HWEH-gah
Usted juega
You play — formal.
Pronunciation:
oo-STED HWEH-gah
Nosotros jugamos
We play.
Pronunciation:
hoo-GAH-mohs
Notice:
jugamos
doesn’t have the UE change.
Vosotros jugáis
You play — plural, mainly Spain.
Pronunciation:
hoo-GAHEES
Ellos juegan
They play.
Pronunciation:
HWEH-gahn
Ellas juegan
They play.
Pronunciation:
HWEH-gahn
Ustedes juegan
You play — plural.
Pronunciation:
oos-TEH-des HWEH-gahn
The key pattern remains:
U → UE
VOLAR: O → UE
Now let’s look at another stem-changing -AR verb.
VOLAR
Meaning:
to fly
Pronunciation:
boh-LAR
This time:
O → UE
So:
VOLAR → VUELO
Pronunciation:
BWEH-loh
Let’s look at the forms.
Yo vuelo
I fly.
Pronunciation:
BWEH-loh
Tú vuelas
You fly.
Pronunciation:
BWEH-lahs
Él vuela
He flies.
Pronunciation:
BWEH-lah
Ella vuela
She flies.
Pronunciation:
BWEH-lah
Usted vuela
You fly — formal.
Pronunciation:
oo-STED BWEH-lah
Nosotros volamos
We fly.
Pronunciation:
boh-LAH-mohs
Again, notice:
volamos
keeps the original o.
Vosotros voláis
You fly — plural, mainly Spain.
Pronunciation:
boh-LAHEES
Ellos vuelan
They fly.
Pronunciation:
BWEH-lahn
Ellas vuelan
They fly.
Pronunciation:
BWEH-lahn
Ustedes vuelan
You fly — plural.
Pronunciation:
oos-TEH-des BWEH-lahn
The key pattern:
O → UE
CERRAR: E → IE
Now for our third stem-changing example.
CERRAR
Meaning:
to close
Pronunciation:
seh-RRAR
The important change is:
E → IE
So:
CERRAR → CIERRO
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rroh
Let’s look at the forms.
Yo cierro
I close.
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rroh
Tú cierras
You close.
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rrahs
Él cierra
He closes.
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rrah
Ella cierra
She closes.
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rrah
Usted cierra
You close — formal.
Pronunciation:
oo-STED SYEH-rrah
Nosotros cerramos
We close.
Pronunciation:
seh-RRAH-mohs
Notice:
cerramos
doesn’t change to cierramos.
Vosotros cerráis
You close — plural, mainly Spain.
Pronunciation:
seh-RRAHEES
Ellos cierran
They close.
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rran
Ellas cierran
They close.
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rran
Ustedes cierran
You close — plural.
Pronunciation:
oos-TEH-des SYEH-rran
The key pattern:
E → IE
The Three Big Patterns
Now you have three important examples.
JUGAR
U → UE
juego
VOLAR
O → UE
vuelo
CERRAR
E → IE
cierro
That’s your first stem-changing toolkit.
Why Does the Stem Change?
This is where beginners sometimes overthink Spanish.
You don’t need to understand every historical reason behind the vowel changes before you can use them.
For practical learning, think of a stem-changing verb as having:
a basic stem
plus
a predictable vowel change in certain forms
For example:
jugar
becomes:
juego
in forms where the stem change applies.
But:
jugamos
keeps the original vowel.
The same broad idea appears with:
volar → vuelo
but:
volamos
and:
cerrar → cierro
but:
cerramos
This is why paying attention to the pattern is more useful than assuming every form changes.
Regular vs Stem-Changing: The Fast Test
Whenever you learn a new -AR verb, ask three questions.
Question 1: Does it end in -AR?
If yes, you’ve identified the verb family.
Question 2: What is the stem?
Remove:
-AR
For example:
hablar → habl-
Question 3: Does the stem change?
If no:
It’s following the regular pattern.
If yes:
Look for the vowel change.
For example:
jugar → u → ue
volar → o → ue
cerrar → e → ie
This method is much easier than blindly memorizing every form.
Common Beginner Mistake #1: JUGAR → JUGO
A learner may think:
jugar → jugo
because they simply removed -AR and added -O.
That works for regular verbs.
But jugar is stem-changing.
So:
Yo juego
is correct.
Not:
Yo jugo
Remember:
JUGAR → U → UE
Common Beginner Mistake #2: VOLAR → VOLO
The same problem happens with volar.
A regular pattern might make you expect:
volo
But the present-tense stem-changing form is:
vuelo
Remember:
O → UE
Common Beginner Mistake #3: CERRAR → CERRO
With cerrar, learners may expect:
cerro
But the stem-changing form is:
cierro
Remember:
E → IE
Common Beginner Mistake #4: Changing Nosotros
This is especially important.
Learners sometimes see:
juego
and assume:
jugamos → juegamos
But the correct form is:
jugamos
Likewise:
vuelo
doesn’t become:
vuelamos
The correct form is:
volamos
And:
cierro
doesn’t become:
cierramos
The correct form is:
cerramos
So when learning stem-changing verbs, don’t simply apply the vowel change everywhere.
Learn where the change actually occurs.
Pronunciation: A Simple Way to Practice
Don’t try to perfect your Spanish accent overnight.
Start by reading each form slowly.
For example:
Hablo
AH-bloh
Then:
Hablas
AH-blahs
Then:
Habla
AH-blah
Then:
Hablamos
ah-BLAH-mohs
Then
habláis
Then:
ah-blah-EES
Hablan
AH-blahn
Now do the same with the stem-changing verbs.
Juego
HWEH-goh
Juegas
HWEH-gahs
Vuelo
BWEH-loh
Vuelas
BWEH-lahs
Cierro
SYEH-rroh
Cierras
SYEH-rrahs
The goal isn’t to read the English-style pronunciation forever.
It’s simply a bridge that helps you get comfortable with the sounds.
A Quick Challenge
Let’s see how well you understand the patterns.
Complete each sentence mentally.
1. Yo ______ español.
Verb:
hablar
Answer:
hablo
Pronunciation:
AH-bloh
2. Nosotros ______ juntos.
Verb:
bailar
Answer:
bailamos
Pronunciation:
bye-LAH-mohs
3. Ella ______ muy bien.
Verb:
cantar
Answer:
canta
Pronunciation:
KAN-tah
4. Yo ______ al fútbol.
Verb:
jugar
Answer:
juego
Pronunciation:
HWEH-goh
5. Nosotros ______ a casa.
Verb:
volar
Answer:
volamos
Pronunciation:
boh-LAH-mohs
6. Yo ______ la puerta.
Verb:
cerrar
Answer:
cierro
Pronunciation:
SYEH-rroh
If you got these right, you’re already using the patterns rather than simply guessing.
Your 2-Minute Cheat Sheet
Need to review everything quickly?
Here it is.
REGULAR -AR
Remove:
-AR
Then add:
O – AS – A – AMOS – ÁIS – AN
Examples:
Hablar → hablo
Bailar → bailo
Cantar → canto
The stem stays the same.
STEM-CHANGING -AR
Look for a vowel change.
Jugar → U → UE
juego
Volar → O → UE
vuelo
Cerrar → E → IE
cierro
And remember:
The stem change doesn’t necessarily appear in every form.
One More Smart Learning Trick
When learning a new verb, don’t only write:
Jugar = to play
Instead, write:
Jugar
U → UE
Juego
That immediately gives your brain three pieces of information:
The verb.
The change.
A useful example.
Do the same with:
Volar
O → UE
Vuelo
And:
Cerrar
E → IE
Cierro
For regular verbs, write:
Hablar
No stem change
Hablo
This makes revision much faster.
What About Saber vs Conocer?
Once you start learning Spanish verbs, another pair will almost certainly appear:
Saber vs Conocer
Both verbs can be translated as “to know”, but they are not used in exactly the same situations.
That’s why translating word-for-word from English can sometimes lead to mistakes.
If you want the easy trick for remembering which one to use, check out:
👉 [Saber vs Conocer in Spanish: The Easy Trick to Know Which One to Use]
It’s a useful next lesson once you’re building your Spanish verb vocabulary.
And Don’t Forget Por vs Para
Another famous Spanish challenge is:
Por vs Para
Both can sometimes be translated as “for”, but they are used differently depending on the context.
Instead of trying to memorize a giant list of exceptions, it’s much easier to learn the main ideas with clear examples.
Continue here:
👉 [Por vs Para: Can You Get All of Them Right?]
Understanding these two words will help you build more natural Spanish sentences.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are all -AR verbs regular?
No.
Many -AR verbs follow the regular pattern, but some are stem-changing or have other irregularities.
That’s why it’s useful to check whether the stem changes.
What are the regular -AR endings?
The present-tense endings are:
-O
-AS
-A
-AMOS
-ÁIS
-AN
Remember:
O – AS – A – AMOS – ÁIS – AN
Is jugar a regular -AR verb?
Jugar is an -AR verb, but it is stem-changing in the present tense.
Its key change is:
U → UE
For example:
yo juego
Is volar a regular -AR verb?
Volar is stem-changing in the present tense.
Its key change is:
O → UE
For example:
yo vuelo
Is cerrar a regular -AR verb?
Cerrar has an E → IE stem change in the relevant present-tense forms.
For example:
yo cierro
Do stem changes happen in every form?
No.
This is one of the most important things to remember.
For example:
yo juego
but:
nosotros jugamos
And:
yo vuelo
but:
nosotros volamos
So don’t automatically apply the stem change to every form.
Final Takeaway
Spanish -AR verbs become much easier when you stop treating every conjugation as a completely new word.
Start with the basic system.
O – AS – A – AMOS – ÁIS – AN
For regular verbs:
Hablar → hablo
Bailar → bailo
Cantar → canto
The stem stays the same.
Then watch for stem-changing verbs.
Jugar → juego
U → UE
Volar → vuelo
O → UE
Cerrar → cierro
E → IE
The biggest trick is simple:
Don’t memorize everything separately.
Find the pattern first.
When you meet a new -AR verb, ask:
Does it end in -AR?
What is the stem?
Does the stem change?
Which ending do I need?
Those four questions can make Spanish conjugation feel much more manageable.
And if you’re studying Spanish on a busy schedule, remember:
You don’t need to master everything in one sitting.
Learn one pattern.
Practice a few examples.
Say them out loud.
Then come back and review.
That’s how complicated-looking Spanish grammar gradually becomes automatic.
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