Spanish regular -ir verbs in the present tense
Vocalyra teaching team · Last updated:
Spanish -ir verbs such as vivir, escribir and abrir are common in daily conversation. English does not usually change the present-tense verb for each person, but Spanish does. Regular -ir verbs follow a predictable set of endings. This guide teaches the pattern, the difference from -er verbs and the forms you will actually use to describe where you live and what you write.
Core pattern and forms
Remove -ir from vivir to get viv-. Add -o, -es, -e, -imos, -ís and -en: vivo, vives, vive, vivimos, vivís, viven. In most of Latin America, ustedes viven is the normal plural you; vosotros vivís is mainly used in Spain. For escribir, use escribo, escribes, escribe, escribimos, escribís, escriben. Spanish often omits the subject pronoun because the ending already shows the person. Vivo en Bogotá is a complete sentence.
| Target-language example | Meaning / function |
|---|---|
| yo vivo | I live |
| tú vives | you live |
| ella vive | she lives |
| nosotros vivimos | we live |
| vosotros vivís | you all live (Spain) |
| ustedes viven | you all live |
What your first language can hide
English speakers often use one form for every person, producing yo vive or nosotros viven. Correct Spanish needs yo vivo and nosotros vivimos. Compare -ir and regular -er verbs: both use -o, -es, -e and -en, but the nosotros forms differ, vivimos versus comemos. Not every -ir verb is regular: pedir becomes pido and pide in the present, and dormir becomes duermo in some forms. Keep those stem-changing verbs separate from the regular model.
Use it in a real situation
You can ask ¿Dónde vives? and answer Vivo cerca del centro. In an email, Escribimos a nuestros amigos means we write to our friends. To make a negative, put no before the conjugated verb: No abro la tienda los domingos. To form a direct question, Spanish normally uses intonation and question marks: ¿Abres la puerta? The opening inverted question mark matters in writing, even when the sentence has no question word.
Active practice and error correction
Conjugate vivir aloud for all six persons, then repeat with escribir and abrir. Make one sentence about yourself, one about a friend and one about your family. Ask a partner ¿Dónde vives? and ¿Escribes correos? Notice how the final vowels change. Finally, compare vivimos with comemos to reinforce the distinction between -ir and -er. Accuracy comes from producing complete short sentences, not merely recognising endings on a chart.
For an honest self-check, cover the answer column first and explain the choice in a complete sentence. Then read the model sentence aloud, make one small change, and write the result without looking. If your answer is wrong, identify whether the problem is meaning, agreement, tense, or word order before repeating it. Five accurate sentences you can use in conversation are worth more than fifty forms copied without understanding.
Five quick checks
Quick self-check
Conjugate vivir with yo.
Show answer
vivo
Conjugate vivir with nosotros.
Show answer
vivimos
Choose: tú (escribes / escribe).
Show answer
escribes
Negate: Abro la tienda.
Show answer
No abro la tienda.
Write the vosotros form of vivir.
Show answer
vivís