In Spanish, -ir and -er ending verbs have similar endings in the present tense, but differ in their conjugation endings. Here’s a breakdown of the differences:
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Present Tense:
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-er Verbs:
- Yo: -o (e.g., como from "comer")
- Tú: -es (e.g., comes)
- Él/Ella/Usted: -e (e.g., come)
- Nosotros/as: -emos (e.g., comemos)
- Vosotros/as: -éis (e.g., coméis)
- Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes: -en (e.g., comen)
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-ir Verbs:
- Yo: -o (e.g., vivo from "vivir")
- Tú: -es (e.g., vives)
- Él/Ella/Usted: -e (e.g., vive)
- Nosotros/as: -imos (e.g., vivimos)
- Vosotros/as: -ís (e.g., vivís)
- Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes: -en (e.g., viven)
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Key Differences:
- The endings for nosotros/as are different: -emos for -er verbs vs. -imos for -ir verbs.
- The endings for vosotros/as also differ: -éis for -er verbs vs. -ís for -ir verbs.
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Past Tense (Preterite):
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-er Verbs:
- Yo: -í (e.g., comí)
- Tú: -iste (e.g., comiste)
- Él/Ella/Usted: -ió (e.g., comió)
- Nosotros/as: -imos (e.g., comimos)
- Vosotros/as: -isteis (e.g., comisteis)
- Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes: -ieron (e.g., comieron)
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-ir Verbs:
- Yo: -í (e.g., viví)
- Tú: -iste (e.g., viviste)
- Él/Ella/Usted: -ió (e.g., vivió)
- Nosotros/as: -imos (e.g., vivimos)
- Vosotros/as: -isteis (e.g., vivisteis)
- Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes: -ieron (e.g., vivieron)
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Summary: While both -er and -ir verbs share some common endings in various tenses, the key distinctions come in the present tense for "nosotros" and "vosotros," and they have identical endings in the preterite tense for the first and second persons but follow the same pattern.
Understanding these nuances will help you in correctly conjugating each type of verb in different contexts.