hablar means: to speak, to talk, to discuss, to converse, to call
Click to see all conjugation charts of hablar in every tense

In this conjugation lesson we will see how to inflect the verb hablar in the Presente tense of the Indicativo mood. It means we will see step by step how to create and translate forms of each grammatical person.

This lesson is specifically about the hablar conjugation. For a general overview of Simple Tenses conjugation see our Simple Tenses Conjugation Chart.

We also have a Video Presentation on how to conjugate verbs in Presente. It’s embedded below, but using the above link you may see additional information on conjugation in this tense as well as explanation of exceptions and special cases.

How to translate Presente to English

Notice that the English phrases provided below next to each conjugation are not direct translations from Spanish to English. They are usually the closest general equivalents. The example differences are:

• In Spanish conjugation, there is the form usted in the third person singular. But this person does not translate to the English third person singular. It translates to the so called formal you and uses the inflected form which is most often represented as he/she/it in English conjugation charts.
• Similar situation happens in the third person plural, where ustedes translates to the English plural formal you but uses the form which corresponds to the they form in English.
• Tenses are used differently in Spanish and English, so the actual translation should always take into account the context and focus on translating the meaning, not just words.
• In both languages each verb may have multiple meanings and not every meaning translates directly to the other language. Here also, the context and focusing on the particular meaning helps to create the most accurate translation.

The Spanish Presente de Indicativo tense translates to one of the following:

• The English Present tense, for instance:
  yo hablo

  I speak
• The English Present Progressive (also called Present Continuous) tense, for instance:
  ahora mismo yo hablo

  I am speaking right now
  
  Note however, that the Spanish equivalent of the Present Progressive also exists and is in common use – that’s Presente Progresivo (or Presente Continuo).

Note the timeline

The ability to correctly locate the intended position on the timeline is an important skill for proper use of tenses. So pay attention to the timeline in our lessons and visualize it while listening, speaking, reading or writing. After some practice you’ll be capable of selecting the right tense to use much easier.

Step by step instructions

Presente belongs to the simple tenses group, which means that all of its inflected forms are one word long. There are also compound (compuesto) tenses in Spanish language, where each inflected verb form consists of two words.The verb hablar has regular conjugation in the Presente tense of the Indicativo mood. It means this verb just follows the general rules for its group (-ar) without any exceptions, spelling corrections and the like. The basis for the conjugation in this tense is the stem of the verb, so we begin by splitting the infinitive into a stem and an ending. It’s really easy to do. Simply remove two letters from the end of the infinitive to get the ending — one of -ar, -er or -ir. What’s left is the stem. So for our verb:

• the stem is: habl-
• and the ending is: -ar

Use the stem habl- in each subject as the basis for the conjugations, the common prefix that each of the forms begins with. Next, add to this regular stem the endings specific to each person. Analyze the image showing all six endings. Note both the colors and shapes of the letters. They are arranged to help you find patterns and make it easier to remember these endings.Each grammatical person has a specific ending in each of the three conjugation groups -ar, -er, -ir. Add the regular ending -o for the first person singular to create hablo:

• yo hablo – I speak

And as before add the regular ending -as for the second person singular to create hablas:

• tú hablas – you speak

And similarly add the regular ending -a for the third person singular to create habla:

• él habla – he speaks
• ella habla – she speaks
• usted habla – (formal) you speak

Like in the previous case add the regular ending -amos for the first person plural to create hablamos:

• nosotros hablamos – we speak
• nosotras hablamos – (feminine) we speak

Again add the regular ending -áis for the second person plural to create habláis:

• vosotros habláis – (plural) you speak
• vosotras habláis – (feminine, plural) you speak

One more time add the regular ending -an for the third person plural to create hablan:

• ellos hablan – they speak
• ellas hablan – (feminine) they speak
• ustedes hablan – (formal, plural) you speak

Hurray! The conjugation is now done. That’s the final result:

yo	hablo	I speak
tú	hablas	you speak
él/ella/usted	habla	he/she/it speaks
nosotros/nosotras	hablamos	we speak
vosotros/vosotras	habláis	you speak
ellos/ellas/ustedes	hablan	they speak

Click to see all conjugation charts of hablar in every tense
But do not end your session yet – it’s important to repeat and practice the material in order to remember it. Check below for example phrases and next steps.

Example sentences

Next Steps to Perfection To practice this conjugation and test your skills check this Conjugation Exercise or the Memory Game To see other conjugation lessons for this verb choose another tense: PretéritoImperfectoCondicionalFuturoPretérito Perfecto CompuestoPretérito PluscuamperfectoFuturo PerfectoCondicional PerfectoPretérito Perfecto Compuesto (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto A (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto B (subjuntivo)Futuro Perfecto (subjuntivo)  For exercises and examples related to hablar visit our Exercise section To see conjugation charts in all tenses for hablar visit the Conjugator To explore other learning materials visit the Study section

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