Spanish grammar rules
The whole map, A1 to B2. Each page opens with a straight answer, then the rule in full with tables and examples — and several come with a drill. Free to read, and any rule goes into your own notebook in one click.
A114 rules
Ser vs. estar (both mean "to be")
Use ser for identity, origin, material, time and lasting traits. Use estar for location, temporary states and the result of a change. Es alegre means he is a cheerful person; está alegre means he is cheerful right now.
with drillGustar and verbs that work like it
Gustar works backwards. The thing liked is the subject and the person is an indirect object, so me gusta el café literally means the coffee is pleasing to me. Use gusta with a singular noun or an infinitive, gustan with a plural.
with drillHay vs. está / están
Hay says that something exists and never changes form: hay un problema, hay tres sillas. Está and están say where an already known thing is. Hay un banco en la plaza introduces it; el banco está en la plaza locates it.
with drillPresent tense: stem-changing verbs (boot verbs)
In e→ie, o→ue and e→i verbs the stressed stem vowel changes in every form except nosotros and vosotros — which is why the pattern is drawn as a boot. Quiero, quieres, quiere, queremos, queréis, quieren.
Subject pronouns
Yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, ellos/ellas/ustedes. Spanish verb endings already show the person, so the pronoun is normally left out and added only for contrast or emphasis.
Possessive adjectives
Possessives agree with the thing owned, not the owner: mi, tu and su only add -s in the plural, while nuestro and vuestro change gender too. Su is ambiguous, so de él, de ella or de usted is added when it matters.
Present tense: regular verbs
Drop -ar, -er or -ir and add the endings: hablo, hablas, habla, hablamos, habláis, hablan. The present covers what is true now, what happens regularly, and plans that are as good as settled.
Present tense: common irregular verbs
The common irregulars fall into groups: irregular in the yo form only (hago, pongo, salgo, conozco), fully irregular (soy, estoy, voy, he), and go-verbs that also change their stem (tengo/tienes, vengo/vienes, digo/dices).
Near future: ir a + infinitive
Conjugate ir (voy, vas, va, vamos, vais, van), add a and the infinitive: voy a estudiar. This is the everyday way to talk about plans, and in speech it is far more common than the future tense.
Indefinite articles: un, una, unos, unas
Un goes with masculine nouns, una with feminine; unos and unas mean some or a few. Spanish drops them before an unmodified profession: soy profesor, but soy un profesor excelente.
Definite articles: el, la, los, las
Spanish has four words for the, matching gender and number: el, la, los, las. A + el becomes al and de + el becomes del. Feminine nouns starting with a stressed a- take el in the singular: el agua, but las aguas.
Adjective agreement
Adjectives match their noun: those ending in -o change to -a, -os and -as; those ending in -e or a consonant change only for number. Most adjectives follow the noun — una casa blanca.
Negation: no, nunca, nada, nadie
No goes straight before the verb. Spanish uses double negatives as standard: no veo nada, no viene nadie. If the negative word comes before the verb, no disappears: nunca viene.
Noun gender and plurals
Most nouns ending in -o are masculine and most ending in -a are feminine, with a known set of exceptions (el problema, el día, la mano). Add -s after a vowel and -es after a consonant.
A210 rules
Indirect object pronouns (me, te, le, nos, os, les)
Indirect object pronouns say to whom or for whom something happens: me, te, le, nos, os, les. They stand before the conjugated verb, or attach to an infinitive or gerund. Le doy el libro — I give the book to him.
with drillDirect object pronouns (lo, la, los, las)
Direct object pronouns replace the thing being acted on: me, te, lo/la, nos, os, los/las. They match gender and number and stand before the conjugated verb. ¿Ves la casa? — Sí, la veo.
with drillPresent continuous: estar + gerundio
Estar plus the gerund (-ando for -ar verbs, -iendo for -er and -ir) describes what is happening right now: estoy comiendo. Unlike English, Spanish does not use it for future plans — for those use the present or ir a + infinitive.
with drillPretérito indefinido: regular verbs
The preterite (pretérito indefinido) reports finished actions. Regular -ar verbs take -é, -aste, -ó, -amos, -asteis, -aron; -er and -ir verbs share -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, -ieron.
Pretérito imperfecto
The imperfect describes what used to happen or was happening: -ar verbs take -aba endings, -er and -ir verbs take -ía. Only ser, ir and ver are irregular. Use it for habits, descriptions, age, clock time and weather in the past.
Reflexive verbs (verbos reflexivos)
A reflexive verb sends the action back to the subject and carries me, te, se, nos, os, se: me levanto — I get myself up. The same pronoun also marks a change of state (se enfadó) and mutual actions (se abrazan).
Pretérito perfecto: he hablado
Haber in the present plus the participle: he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han + hablado, comido, vivido. In Spain it covers today, this week, ever and never; in much of Latin America the preterite takes its place.
Muy vs. mucho
Muy modifies adjectives and adverbs and never changes: muy rápido, muy bien. Mucho modifies verbs and nouns, and in front of a noun it agrees: mucho trabajo, muchas gracias, trabajo mucho.
Pretérito indefinido: irregular verbs
A group of verbs takes a new stem and one shared set of unstressed endings -e, -iste, -o, -imos, -isteis, -ieron: tuve, estuve, pude, puse, hice, quise, vine, dije. Ser and ir share a single form: fui, fuiste, fue.
Comparatives and superlatives
Más or menos + adjective + que for comparisons, tan + adjective + como for equals, el/la más + adjective + de for superlatives. Four are irregular: mejor, peor, mayor, menor.
B19 rules
Por vs. para
Para points forward: purpose, destination, deadline, recipient. Por points back or through: cause, means, exchange, duration, movement across a space. Lo hago para ti is I am doing it for you to have; lo hago por ti is I am doing it because of you.
with drillIndefinido vs. imperfecto: the scene and the event
The preterite (indefinido) reports a finished event that moves the story forward. The imperfect describes the scene around it: background, habits, ongoing states, age, weather and time. Llovía cuando salí — it was raining (scene) when I left (event).
with drillFuturo simple
Add -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án to the whole infinitive: hablaré, comeré, viviré. Twelve verbs change their stem (tendré, haré, podré, diré). The future also expresses a guess about the present: serán las cinco — it must be five.
with drillTwo pronouns together: se lo, se la
When both pronouns appear the indirect one comes first: te lo doy. Before lo, la, los and las the pronouns le and les turn into se — se lo doy, never le lo doy.
Condicional simple
Add -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían to the infinitive: hablaría. The twelve verbs that are irregular in the future are irregular here too. Use it for would, for polite requests (¿podrías…?) and for guesses about the past.
The imperative: commands
Affirmative tú is the third-person present (habla, come); negative tú and every usted form use the subjunctive (no hables, hable, no hable). Pronouns attach to affirmative commands (dímelo) and stand before negative ones (no me lo digas).
Presente de subjuntivo: forms and core uses
Take the yo form, drop the -o and swap the vowel: hablar → hable, comer → coma. It follows expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and necessity — quiero que vengas, es importante que estudies.
Pluscuamperfecto: había hablado
The imperfect of haber (había, habías, había, habíamos, habíais, habían) plus the participle. It marks what had already happened before another moment in the past: cuando llegué, ya se habían ido.
Useful verbal periphrases
Fixed combinations of verb + preposition + infinitive carry meanings Spanish has no single tense for: acabar de (have just done), volver a (do again), ponerse a (start), seguir + gerundio (keep doing), dejar de (stop).
B25 rules
Imperfecto de subjuntivo (-ra / -se)
Take the ellos form of the preterite, drop -ron and add -ra or -se: hablaron → hablara or hablase. Both endings mean the same thing. You need it after past-tense triggers and in si clauses about the unreal: si tuviera tiempo…
Subjunctive vs. indicative in subordinate clauses
The indicative states what the speaker treats as fact. The subjunctive appears when the main clause expresses wish, doubt, emotion, denial, or a purpose that has not happened yet. Creo que viene, but no creo que venga.
Conditional sentences with si
Three patterns: si + present + future for the possible (si llueve, no saldré); si + imperfect subjunctive + conditional for the unreal (si tuviera dinero, viajaría); si + pluperfect subjunctive + conditional perfect for the impossible past.
Passive voice and impersonal se
Se plus a third-person verb is how Spanish usually avoids naming an agent: se venden pisos, se habla español. The full passive with ser plus participle exists but sounds formal and mostly appears in writing.
Reported speech and tense shift
When the reporting verb is in the past, the present becomes imperfect, the preterite becomes pluperfect, the future becomes conditional, and commands become the imperfect subjunctive. Dijo que estaba cansado.
Grammar sticks when it comes from your own lessons
Trazo turns what you actually study into rules, vocabulary and practice — these pages are the starting library, not the product. Start from a level pack, or write your first lesson and let it sort itself out.