If you’re new to verb conjugation tables, it can seem a bit overwhelming. The truth is, you conjugate verbs every day when you speak without thinking about it, it just looks a bit different in a foreign language! To make learning Spanish verb conjugations easier, we can break them down into two categories: regular and irregular.

Regular verbs follow a set conjugation pattern according to their endings (i.e. -ar, -er, and -ir verbs), so its easy to tell how they will be conjugated for each tense.

Irregular verbs, however, are a bit more challenging because they don’t follow the same patterns. Irregular verbs can also be divided into two sub-categories:

• stem-changing verbs (when the verb changes depending on how it is used in a sentence)
• spelling-changing verbs (when the consonants change to improve pronunciation)

While you’re getting your head around those, know that there are also reflexive verbs which refer to actions that are done on the subject itself (i.e. the subject and the object are the same).

In the present tense, “haber”, or “to have”, is irregular, so you’re just going to have to learn it off by heart!

Note that there is also an impersonal form of the verb “haber”, but we won’t cover this here. This form of the verb is used specifically as an auxiliary or “helping” verb, as opposed to the verb “tener”, which also means “to have”.

The Present Tense of Haber

ConjugationTranslationyo heI havetú hasYou (informal) haveél/ella/ello/uno haHe/she/one hasusted haYou (formal) havenosotros hemosWe havevosotros habéisYou all (informal) haveellos/ellas hanThey haveustedes hanYou all (formal) have

Here are some examples to show you how to use the verb “haber” in the present tense:

• He estudiado toda la tarde (I have studied the whole afternoon)
• Hemos salido, nos vemos luego! (We have gone out, see you later!)

In the preterite (past) tense, “haber” is also irregular, as you can tell by the stem-change: hub-

The Preterite Tense of Haber

ConjugationTranslationyo hubeI hadtú hubisteYou (informal) hadél/ella/ello/uno huboHe/she/one had/there wasusted huboYou (formal) hadnosotros hubimosWe hadvosotros hubísteisYou all (informal) hadellos/ellas hubieronThey hadustedes hubieronYou all (formal) had

The preterite tense refers to completed actions in the past. Here are some ways “haber” is used in this way:

• Hube dicho algo importante (I had said something important)
• Hubísteis comido cuando llegué (You all had eaten when I arrived)

When it comes to the imperfect past tense, “haber” is conjugated according to the regular -er verb conjugation pattern:

The Imperfect Tense of Haber

ConjugationTranslationyo habíaI used to havetú habíasYou (informal) used to haveél/ella/ello/uno habíaHe/she/one used to haveusted habíaYou (formal) used to havenosotros habíamosWe used to havevosotros habíaisYou all (informal) used to haveellos/ellas habíanThey used to haveustedes habíanYou all (formal) used to have

To understand how the imperfect tense conjugation of “haber” works, here are two sample sentences:

• Ella ya se había ido cuando la llamó (She had already left when he called her)
• Ya habían dicho que ayudarían (They had already said that they would help)

In the future tense, “haber” is also irregular, because of the stem change i.e. habr-

The Future Tense of Haber

ConjugationTranslationyo habréI will havetú habrásYou (informal) will haveél/ella/ello/uno habráHe/she/one will haveusted habráYou (formal) will havenosotros habremosWe will havevosotros habréisYou all (informal) will haveellos/ellas habránThey will haveustedes habránYou all (formal) will have

To help you understand how “haber” is conjugated in the future tense, here are some examples:

• Habré completado todo mi trabajo para mañana (I will have completed all my work by tomorrow)
• Habrás vendido tu casa el año que viene (You will have sold your house by next year)

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