Spanish Verbs 15: Exercises to Perfect Tense Usage

Quick Guide — Spanish Verbs 15 for Intermediate LearnersLearning Spanish verbs is one of the most powerful ways to boost your fluency. This guide—designed for intermediate learners—focuses on a curated set called “Spanish Verbs 15”: fifteen verbs that appear frequently, are versatile across tenses, and include a mix of regular and irregular conjugation patterns. Mastering these verbs will give you functional control over everyday conversation, narrative storytelling, and expressing opinions or hypothetical situations.

Why these 15 verbs matter

These fifteen verbs are high-frequency in spoken and written Spanish. They cover actions, states, movement, communication, possession, and auxiliary meanings. Together they allow you to form a wide variety of sentences, from simple descriptions to complex subordinate clauses. Practice these verbs across multiple tenses and moods—not only will you expand vocabulary, you’ll also internalize common conjugation patterns.

The list: Spanish Verbs 15

1. ser — to be (essential/permanent traits)
2. estar — to be (states/locations)
3. tener — to have
4. haber — to have (auxiliary/there is)
5. ir — to go
6. hacer — to do/make
7. decir — to say/tell
8. poder — to be able/can
9. querer — to want/love
10. ver — to see
11. dar — to give
12. saber — to know (facts/how)
13. poner — to put/place
14. venir — to come
15. salir — to leave/go out

Core conjugations to focus on

Intermediate learners should be comfortable with at least these forms for each verb:

• Present indicative (yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, ellos)
• Preterite and imperfect past (for narration vs background)
• Future simple
• Conditional (for polite requests and hypotheticals)
• Present subjunctive (for wishes, doubts, impersonal expressions)
• Imperative (commands; tú, usted, nosotros, vosotros, ustedes)
• Present perfect (he + past participle) and pluperfect (había + participle)

Examples:

• ser (present): soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son
• ir (preterite): fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fuisteis, fueron
• decir (present subjunctive): diga, digas, diga, digamos, digáis, digan

Irregularities and traps — what to watch for

• Ser vs estar: use ser for identity and essential characteristics; estar for temporary states and locations.
• Haber is used as an auxiliary to form compound tenses (he hablado) and impersonally (hay — there is/are). Don’t confuse haber with tener.
• Stem-changing verbs (e.g., poder → puedo, quieres) change in certain present-tense forms and in subjunctive.
• Spelling changes in preterite for some verbs (e.g., hacer → hizo; poner → puse) and irregular stems (tener → tuve).
• Verbs that change meaning with reflexive pronouns or prepositions: salir vs salir de; poner vs ponerse (to set vs to put on).

Practice routines and activities

1. Conjugation drills: write full conjugation tables for each verb in targeted tenses.
2. Sentence transformation: convert sentences between tenses (present → preterite → imperfect → future).
3. Story-building: write a 200–300 word past-tense narrative using all 15 verbs at least once.
4. Role-play dialogs: create short conversations (ordering food, giving directions, making plans) emphasizing natural uses.
5. Cloze tests: use texts with blanks for the verbs to practice context-based selection.
6. Flashcards: include infinitive, English meaning, and 3 irregular conjugations on the card.

Sample lesson (45 minutes)

• 0–5 min: warm-up — quick oral review of present forms (rapid-fire).
• 5–15 min: focused conjugation practice for 3 selected verbs (e.g., ser, tener, hacer).
• 15–25 min: reading exercise — short paragraph containing several target verbs; identify tenses and meanings.
• 25–35 min: speaking drill — pair work for creating sentences using future and conditional.
• 35–45 min: writing task — write 6 sentences using subjunctive and present perfect.

Common example sentences (with translations)

• Yo soy estudiante desde 2018. — I have been a student since 2018.
• ¿Dónde estás? — Where are you?
• Ella tiene dos hermanos. — She has two brothers.
• Hay muchas opciones. — There are many options.
• Vamos al cine mañana. — We’re going to the cinema tomorrow.
• Hice la tarea anoche. — I did the homework last night.
• ¿Puedes ayudarme? — Can you help me?
• Querría una taza de café, por favor. — I would like a cup of coffee, please.
• Lo vi ayer. — I saw him yesterday.
• Dime la verdad. — Tell me the truth.
• Sé la respuesta. — I know the answer.
• Pon los libros en la mesa. — Put the books on the table.
• Ven aquí un momento. — Come here for a moment.
• Salimos a las ocho. — We left/are leaving at eight.

Errors intermediate learners often make

• Overusing ser with temporary states (e.g., soy cansado instead of estoy cansado).
• Incorrect use of haber vs tener for possession/auxiliary.
• Using present tense where preterite is expected in narration.
• Mismatching subjunctive triggers (using indicative after expressions needing subjunctive).
• Forgetting accents in preterite forms or in the conditional.

Tips to accelerate mastery

• Focus on function, not just form: practice when to use a tense (how it changes meaning).
• Use spaced repetition for irregular forms.
• Record yourself speaking and compare to native audio.
• Read graded stories and underline the 15 verbs to see context frequency.
• Make compound tenses a habit by practicing with haber regularly.

Mini quiz (answers below)

1. Choose the correct form: “Si yo ___ (tener) tiempo, te llamaría.”
2. Correct the sentence: “Ella es cansada.”
3. Fill in: “No creo que él ___ (decir) la verdad.”
4. Translate: “We had already left when she arrived.”
5. Conjugate: poner (usted) in the present subjunctive.

Answers:

1. tuviera / tuviese (or tuviera for the conditional clause)
2. Ella está cansada.
3. diga
4. Ya habíamos salido cuando ella llegó.
5. ponga

Master these 15 verbs across tenses and contexts and your ability to express complex ideas in Spanish will grow fast.