📜 Formas Impersonales del Verbo 📜
Master the Three Non-Personal Verb Forms!
Your Quest: Welcome to the Formas Impersonales, the three fundamental verb forms that don't change based on the subject! These are the building blocks of all Spanish verbs: the Infinitivo (the verb's "name"), the Gerundio (the "-ing" form), and the Participio (the "-ed" or "done" form). Master these three forms, and you'll unlock a deeper understanding of how Spanish verbs work across all tenses. They're called "impersonal" because they don't conjugate by person (yo, tú, él, etc.), they remain constant! (The same happens in English)
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Why These Forms Matter
The three impersonal forms are essential foundations of Spanish grammar. The Infinitivo is how verbs appear in the dictionary and is used after prepositions and other verbs. The Gerundio creates continuous tenses and expresses simultaneous actions. The Participio forms all four compound tenses and functions as an adjective. You've already been using these forms throughout your studies, now it's time to master them to make your learning and understanding easier!
THREE FORMS, INFINITE USES: Learn them once, apply them everywhere!
Quick Overview
| Spanish Name |
English Equivalent |
Example (-AR) |
Example (-ER) |
Example (-IR) |
| Infinitivo |
"to + verb" |
hablar (to speak) |
comer (to eat) |
vivir (to live) |
| Gerundio |
"-ing" |
hablando (speaking) |
comiendo (eating) |
viviendo (living) |
| Participio |
"-ed" / past participle |
hablado (spoken) |
comido (eaten) |
vivido (lived) |
The Infinitivo is the dictionary form of the verb (for my youngest students: the og form of the verb), it's how you look up verbs and how they're listed in vocabulary lists. In English, some examples are "to speak", "to eat", "to live". In Spanish, all infinitives end in -AR, -ER, or -IR. This is the form from which all conjugations are derived!
💥 When to Use the Infinitivo
1️⃣
After Prepositions
Antes de salir...
= Before leaving... (Literally translated: "Before of to leave")
Para aprender español...
= In order to learn Spanish...
Sin estudiar...
= Without studying... (Literally translated: "Without to study")
2️⃣
After Another Conjugated Verb
Quiero comer.
= I want to eat.
Puedo ayudarte.
= I can help you.
Me gusta bailar.
= I like dancing/to dance.
3️⃣
As a Noun (Subject or Object)
Hablar español es útil.
= Speaking Spanish is useful. (Literally translated: "To speak Spanish...")
Ver es creer.
= Seeing is believing. (Literally translated: "To see is to believe")
4️⃣
After "Hay que" (One must/It's necessary to)
Hay que estudiar más.
= One must study more. / It's necessary to study more.
5️⃣
Near Future (El Futuro Próximo): Ir + a + Infinitive = Going to do something
Mañana voy a estudiar español.
= Tomorrow I am going to study Spanish.
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Quick Recognition:
If you see a verb ending in -AR, -ER, or -IR and it's NOT conjugated, it's the infinitivo! In English, you can usually translate it with "to + verb" or sometimes "-ing" (depending on context).
The Gerundio is equivalent to the English "-ing" form. It's used to create progressive/continuous tenses (estar + gerundio) and to express actions happening simultaneously. Unlike English, Spanish uses the gerundio MUCH less frequently, we don't use it after prepositions or as nouns!
HABLAR
hablando
ESTUDIAR
estudiando
COMER
comiendo
BEBER
bebiendo
VIVIR
viviendo
ESCRIBIR
escribiendo
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Irregular Gerundios - Essential List
Stem/Root-Changing -IR Verbs (e→i, o→u)
-IR verbs that have stem changes in the present tense also change in the gerundio:
PEDIR (e→i)
pidiendo
SENTIR (e→i)
sintiendo
PREFERIR (e→i)
prefiriendo
DORMIR (o→u)
durmiendo
MORIR (o→u)
muriendo
SEGUIR (e→i)
siguiendo
Spelling Changes (i → y)
When the stem ends in a vowel, -iendo becomes -yendo:
LEER
leyendo
OÍR
oyendo
CREER
creyendo
CAER
cayendo
TRAER
trayendo
CONSTRUIR
construyendo
Other Irregulars
IR
yendo
PODER
pudiendo
VENIR
viniendo
DECIR
diciendo
💥 When to Use the Gerundio
1️⃣
Progressive/Continuous Tenses (ESTAR + gerundio)
Estoy comiendo.
= I am eating.
Estaba estudiando cuando llamaste.
= I was studying when you rang.
2️⃣
Simultaneous Actions (While doing something)
Aprendí mucho viajando por España.
= I learnt a lot travelling through Spain.
Cantando en la ducha, me relajo.
= Singing in the shower, I relax.
3️⃣
Expressing "By Doing" (Manner/Means)
Practicando mucho, mejorarás.
= By practising a lot, you'll improve.
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Important Difference from English:
Spanish does NOT use the gerundio after prepositions or as nouns! ❌ "Antes de comiendo" ✅ "Antes de comer" (Before eating). ❌ "Me gusta nadando" ✅ "Me gusta nadar" (I like swimming). Use the INFINITIVO instead!
The Participio (Past Participle) is equivalent to the English "-ed" form or irregular past participles like "done", "seen", "eaten". It has TWO main functions: forming compound tenses with HABER, and functioning as an adjective (as adjectives they will need gender and number). You will be using this form throughout all the compound tenses!
HABLAR
hablado
ESTUDIAR
estudiado
COMER
comido
BEBER
bebido
VIVIR
vivido
DECIDIR
decidido
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Irregular Participios - Complete Reference
These are the irregular past participles you've been using in all compound tenses. Memorise them, they're essential!
Most Common Irregulars
ABRIR
abierto
DECIR
dicho
ESCRIBIR
escrito
HACER
hecho
MORIR
muerto
PONER
puesto
ROMPER
roto
VER
visto
VOLVER
vuelto
Compound Verbs (Follow the Root)
Verbs formed from the irregulars above keep the same irregular participle:
DESCUBRIR
descubierto
DEVOLVER
devuelto
COMPONER
compuesto
PROPONER
propuesto
SATISFACER
satisfecho
PREDECIR
predicho
REHACER
rehecho
REVOLVER
revuelto
Other Important Irregulars
CUBRIR
cubierto
FREÍR
frito
IMPRIMIR
impreso
RESOLVER
resuelto
💥 When to Use the Participio
1️⃣
Compound Tenses (HABER + participio)
He comido.
= I have eaten. (Present Perfect)
Había terminado.
= I had finished. (Pluperfect)
Habré llegado.
= I will have arrived. (Future Perfect)
Habría estudiado.
= I would have studied. (Conditional Perfect)
2️⃣
As an Adjective (Agrees in Gender and Number!)
La puerta está cerrada.
= The door is closed. (feminine singular)
Los platos están rotos.
= The plates are broken. (masculine plural)
Las ventanas abiertas.
= The open windows. (feminine plural)
3️⃣
Passive Voice (SER + Participio = To be + Past Participle)
El libro fue escrito por Cervantes.
= The book was written by Cervantes.
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Critical Rule:
When used with HABER in compound tenses, the participio NEVER changes (always -ado/-ido/-irregular form). But when used as an adjective or with SER/ESTAR, it MUST agree in gender and number: abierto/abierta/abiertos/abiertas!
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Side-by-Side Comparison
| Verb |
Infinitivo |
Gerundio |
Participio |
| HABLAR |
hablar |
hablando |
hablado |
| COMER |
comer |
comiendo |
comido |
| VIVIR |
vivir |
viviendo |
vivido |
| PEDIR |
pedir |
pidiendo ⚠️ |
pedido |
| LEER |
leer |
leyendo ⚠️ |
leído |
| HACER |
hacer |
haciendo |
hecho ⚠️ |
| DECIR |
decir |
diciendo ⚠️ |
dicho ⚠️ |
🌟 ¡Has Dominado las Tres Formas! 🌟
You've mastered all three impersonal verb forms! You now understand the Infinitivo (the base form), the Gerundio (the progressive form), and the Participio (the compound form). These three forms are the building blocks of countless Spanish constructions. Remember: the infinitivo after prepositions and verbs, the gerundio for continuous actions, and the participio for compound tenses and adjectives. ¡Hora de practicar!
