If you find it challenging to understand the conjugation of the Spanish verbs ir, dar, and estar, then this article is for you. Today we’ll learn how these verbs differ from other verbs. Let’s get started.
The key is in the first person singular
The verbs ir (to go), dar (to give), and estar (to be) are irregular verbs because they are conjugated differently for the first person singular pronoun yo (I). For the rest of the pronouns, the conjugation is the same as for any other regular verb ending in -ar.
Note: Ir is also irregular for the fact that its present and past simple conjugations are spelled completely differently from its infinitive form. The past simple conjugation for this verb would be as follows: yo fui, tú fuiste, él/ella fue, nosotros fuimos, ustedes fueron, ellos/ellas fueron. As for the present tense conjugation, we will present it to you in the table below.
Let’s take a look at the following table showing the present simple of ir, dar, and estar:
| Pronoun | Ir | Dar | Estar |
| Yo | voy | doy | estoy |
| Tú | vas | das | estás |
| Él/Ella/Eso | va | da | está |
| Nosotros | vamos | damos | estamos |
| Ustedes | van | dan | están |
| Ellos/Ellas | van | dan | están |
As you can see, the only conjugation that differs from the others is the one for yo. Here are a few examples to illustrate this:
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- Normalmente, voy a jugar a golf los sábados. (Normally I go to play golf on Saturdays.)
- Yo siempre le doy el desayuno a mi gato muy temprano en la mañana. (I always give my cat breakfast very early in the morning.)
- Estoy triste porque perdí al jugar los dieciocho hoyos. (I’m sad because I played 18 holes and lost.)
Image by Stefan Waldvogel Stefan Waldvogel from Pixabay
The above sentences show how to use these verbs in the first person singular. But what about all the other pronouns? Let’s see some more examples:
- Tú siempre vas a jugar al patio de tu amigo. (You always go to your friend’s yard to play.)
- Nosotros damos jugo de naranja a los bomberos cada vez que podemos. (We give the firefighters orange juice every time we can.)
As you can see, when using a pronoun other than yo—such as the second person singular tú and the first person plural nosotros—we conjugate these verbs as we would regular verbs ending in -ar.
Great! Now you know how to conjugate ir, dar, and estar, and how to use these verbs in your Spanish sentences.
Written by Humberto Aparicio