The -ir Verbs

The last group of verbs are called -ir verbs because their infinitive ends in -
ir. Below is a list of common -ir verbs and their meanings.

Common -ir Verbs

abrir escribir
to open to write

cubrir recibir
to cover to receive

Let’s see... She has on a

red and white polka-dot
skirt...blonde hair...red
shoes flying off...

describir subir
to describe to go up
or get on (a bus, etc.)

dividir vivir
to divide to live

418 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Once again, in order to use these words in present tense, we begin by
dropping the -ir from the infinitive. You then add the following endings
for each subject. Follow the conjugation of the verb abrir—to open—on the
chart below.

Forms of abrir—To Open

yo abro I open, I am opening, I do open

tú abres you open, you are opening, you do open (informal)

usted abre you open, you are opening, you do open (formal)
él abre he opens, he is opening, he does open
ella abre she opens, she is opening, she does open

nosotros abrimos we open, we are opening, we do open

(all males or a mixed group)
nosotras abrimos we open, we are opening, we do open
(all females)

ustedes abren you open, you are opening, you do open (plural)
ellos abren they open, they are opening, they do open
(all males or a mixed group)
ellas abren they open, they are opening, they do open
(all females)

Present Tense or Regular Verbs Ending in -ir

Subject
Pronoun -ir Verbs
yo o

tú es

usted e
él e
ella e

nosotros imos

nosotras imos

ustedes en
ellos en
ellas en

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 419

 Práctica (Practice)

Below are common -ir verbs. Listen and repeat as the teacher models the
following verbs in Spanish.

escuchen (listen)

repitan (repeat)

abrir ......................... to open

cubrir ....................... to cover

describir .................. to describe

dividir ..................... to divide

escribir .................... to write

recibir ...................... to receive

subir ......................... to go up or get on (a bus, etc.)

vivir ......................... to live

Now, listen and repeat the verbs again.

420 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Práctica (Practice)

Below are the conjugated forms of the verb abrir—to open. Listen and
repeat as the teacher models the following verb forms in Spanish.

escuchen (listen)

repitan (repeat)

yo abro........................... I open

tú abres .......................... you open (informal)

usted abre ..................... you open (formal)

él abre ............................ he opens

ella abre ......................... she opens

nosotros abrimos ......... we open (all males or a mixed group)

nosotras abrimos ......... we open (all females)

ustedes abren ............... you open (plural)

ellos abren ..................... they open (all males or a mixed group)

ellas abren ..................... they open (all females)

Now, listen and repeat the verb forms again.

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 421

 Práctica (Practice)

Match each Spanish sentences with the correct picture. Write the letter on the
line provided.

______ 1. El Sr. Ortíz abre la A.

tienda.

10 ÷ 5 =

B.
______ 2. Él cubre su carro.

______ 3. Usted vive en un C.

apartamento.

______ 4. El gato sube un árbol. D.

______ 5. Yo recibo una E.

invitación.

You are
invited to...

______ 6. Nosotros dividimos F.

diez por cinco.

422 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Práctica (Practice)

Use the list below to complete the following statements with the correct form of
the verb abrir—to open.

abre abres abro

abren abrimos

1. Ellas la puerta.

2. Yo el libro.

3. Él el refrigerador.

4. Nosotras el regalo.

5. Tú el cuaderno.

Use the list above to write your own sentences using the correct form of the
verb abrir—to open.

6. ___________________________________________________________

7. ___________________________________________________________

8. ___________________________________________________________

9. ___________________________________________________________

10. ___________________________________________________________

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 423

 Práctica (Practice)

Match each Spanish sentence with the correct English translation. Write the
letter on the line provided.

______ 1. Usted y yo subimos el A. The teacher opens the door.

bus.
B. She is dividing the candy.
______ 2. El estudiante escribe una
composición. C. You and I are getting on the
bus.
______ 3. Ustedes viven en la
ciudad. D. We are describing the
books.
______ 4. Los chicos reciben unos
regalos. E. The student is writing a
composition.
______ 5. El profesor abre la
puerta.
F. The boys are receiving
______ 6. Ella divide los dulces. some gifts.

______ 7. El gato sube un árbol. G. The cat is climbing a tree.

______ 8. Nosotros describimos los H. You live in the city.

libros.

424 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 The Verb tener (To Have)

The verb tener (to have) is considered to be an irregular verb. In other

words, you must learn how to use this verb by itself. The verb tener does
not follow the rules you have learned previously about -er verbs. Tener has
its own forms. You will need to learn the following conjugation of tener.
See the chart below.

Forms of tener—To Have

yo tengo I have, I do have, I am having

tú tienes you have, you do have, you are having

(informal)

usted tiene you have, you do have, you are having

(formal)
él tiene he has, he does have, he is having
ella tiene she has, she does have, she is having

nosotros tenemos we have, we do have, we are having

(all males or a mixed group)
nosotras tenemos we have, we do have, we are having
(all females)

ustedes tienen you have, you do have, you are having

(plural)
ellos tienen they have, they do have, they are having
(all males or a mixed group)
ellas tienen they have, they do have, they are having
(all females)

Here are some examples:

Tengo un libro. I have a book.

Tenemos una clase a la una. We have a class at one o’clock.

Tienes dos hermanos. You have two brothers.

Let’s practice saying and using the verb tener.

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 425

 Práctica (Practice)

Below are the conjugated forms of the verb tener—to have. Listen and
repeat as the teacher models the following verb forms in Spanish.

escuchen (listen)

repitan (repeat)

yo tengo................... I have

tú tienes................... you have (informal)

usted tiene .............. you have (formal)

él tiene ..................... he has

ella tiene .................. she has

nosotros tenemos ... we have (all males or a mixed group)

nosotras tenemos ... we have (all females)

ustedes tienen ........ you have (plural)

ellos tienen ............. they have (all males or a mixed group)

ellas tienen .............. they have (all females)

Now, listen and repeat the verb forms again.

426 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Práctica (Practice)

Use the list below to complete the following statements with the correct form of
the irregular verb tener—to have. Some forms of tener will be used more
than once.

tenemos tiene tienes

tengo tienen

1. Nosotras muchos libros grandes.

2. Mi papá un carro rojo.

3. Yo no libro.

4. Ella tres hermanas.

5. Usted una casa grande.

6. Tú una computadora.

7. Ellos no unas bicicletas.

8. Juanita unos lápices en la mochila.

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 427

 Práctica (Practice)

Use the lists below to write the correct form of the verb tener—to have and
what the following people have by using the picture clues. Some forms of
the verb tener will be used more than once.

forms of tener nouns

tenemos tienen dos estantes un cuaderno

tengo tienes tres reglas un diccionario
tiene un bolígrafo un mapa
una calculadora una mochila
una computadora unos radios

Modelo (Model): Pedro

Pedro tiene un lápiz.

1. Nosotros

___________________________________________________________

2. Ellos

___________________________________________________________

3. Tú

___________________________________________________________

4. Yo

___________________________________________________________

428 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 5. Ella no

___________________________________________________________

6. La clase

___________________________________________________________

7. Ustedes

___________________________________________________________

8. Él

___________________________________________________________

ON/C MRC M + M – OFF

+–

9. La profesora no CE
–

___________________________________________________________

10. Mis amigos

___________________________________________________________

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 429

 The Expression “tener que”—
To Tell What People “Have to Do”

Every language has its special expressions. This is true of Spanish as well.
You have just learned the verb tener to tell what people have. This verb is
also used in an expression called tener que. Tener que is always followed
by another verb. The expression then tells what people have to do. You
will conjugate tener just like you have already learned. Then you follow it
with the word que and another verb. Here are some examples:

Tengo que estudiar. I have to study.

Tenemos que ir al colegio. We have to go to school.

Ella no tiene que cocinar. She does not have to cook.

Compare the following sentences:

Tengo un libro. I have a book.

Tengo que leer un libro. I have to read a book.

Tenemos una clase a la una. We have class at one o’clock.

Tenemos que ir a clase a la una. We have to go to class at one
o’clock.

Tienes una mochila. You have a bookbag.

Tienes que comprar una mochila. You have to buy a
bookbag.

Please notice that the verb that tells what you have to do will always end in
-ar, -er, or -ir.

430 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Práctica (Practice)

Use the lists below to correctly write the following sentences in Spanish. Then
read the sentences to your partner.

forms of tener -ar verbs nouns

tenemos que buscar la abuela
tengo que hablar español
tiene que practicar un libro
tienen que trabajar el sábado
tienes que visitar

Modelo (Model): You have to buy a sandwich.

Tienes que comprar un sandwich.

1. Paco has to look for a book.

___________________________________________________________

2. We have to practice.

___________________________________________________________

3. They have to visit Grandmother.

___________________________________________________________

4. I have to speak Spanish.

___________________________________________________________

5. Ana and Pilar have to work on Saturday.

___________________________________________________________

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 431

 Las preguntas (Questions)

Asking questions is very easy in Spanish. Usually you can just lift your
voice at the end of the sentence and it becomes a question if you just want
a yes or no answer. When you use a subject or a subject pronoun in a
sentence

• put the verb first

• then put the subject and

• lift your voice at the end.

Remember to also use an upside-down question (¿) mark in front of the

sentence and a regular question mark at the end (?).

¿Tienes un libro?

The purpose of the upside-down question mark in reading is to let you

know that the sentence coming up is going to be a question so you know
to lift your voice at the end.

Listen as your teacher reads the following sentences:

Statement Question

Tienes un libro. ¿Tienes un libro?

You have a book. Do you have a book?

Buscas tu cuaderno. ¿Buscas tu cuaderno?

You are looking for your Are you looking for your notebook?
notebook.

Él estudia mucho. ¿Estudia él mucho?

He studies a lot. Does he study a lot?

María camina por el parque. ¿Camina María por el parque?

María walks through the park. Does María walk through the park?

432 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Práctica (Practice)

Write the following statements as questions.

Remember: Do the following to each question you write.

• Use an upside-down question mark (¿) at the beginning.

• Use a regular question mark (?) at the end.

• Put the verb first.

• Place the subject after the verb.

1. Tienes una computadora.

___________________________________________________________

2. Ellos tienen unos bolígrafos.

___________________________________________________________

3. Ustedes viajan por México.

___________________________________________________________

4. Ella trabaja mucho.

___________________________________________________________

5. Tengo que estudiar.

___________________________________________________________

6. Papá saca fotos.

___________________________________________________________

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 433

 7. Él gana mucho dinero.

8. Practicamos la guitarra.

9. Sabes jugar al fútbol.

10. Quieres mirar la televisión.

434 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Asking Questions for Information

If you want to ask a question for which you want information as an

answer instead of a yes or no, you will have to learn some new words.
These are words that ask for direct information. They are often called
interrogative words. You will need to learn the following words:

¿cuándo? when?

¿dónde? where?

¿adónde? (to) where?

¿cómo? how? or what? ¿ ?

¿por qué? why? ?
¿qué? what? ¿
¿a qué hora? at what time?

Look at the position of these words in the sentence. Remember, if you use
a subject pronoun in the sentence, you put it after the verb.

¿Cuándo estudias? When do you study?

¿Dónde está Miguel? Where is Miguel?

¿Adónde vas? Where are you going? (to where)

¿Cómo vas al colegio? How are you going to school?

¿Por qué vas? Why are you going?

¿Qué estudian ellos? What are they studying?

¿A qué hora come usted? At what time do you eat?

You are now going to practice asking and answering questions.

Remember: When someone asks a question using you, answer

with either I or with we.

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 435

 Práctica (Practice)

Use the list below to complete the following questions with the correct
interrogative word.

adónde por qué

cómo qué
cuando a qué hora

Modelo (Model): Question—¿ A qué hora estudias?

Answer—Estudio a las siete.

1. ¿ busca ella?

Ella busca su cuaderno.

2. ¿ van ellos?

Ellos van a la biblioteca.

3. ¿ comen ustedes?

Nosotros comemos a las siete y media.

4. ¿ estás?

Estoy bien, gracias.

5. ¿ tienes el libro de español?

Porque tengo que estudiar.

436 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information

 Práctica (Practice)

Use the list below to complete the following statements with the correct form of
the verb comer—to eat or querer—to want.

come como quieres

comemos quieren

1. César la manzana.

2. Nosotros los postres.

3. Tú unas vacaciones.

4. Yo la fruta.

5. Diego y Santos practicar la guitarra.

Match each Spanish -ir verb with the correct English word. Write the letter
on the line provided.

______ 6. abrir A. to cover

______ 7. cubrir B. to describe

______ 8. describir C. to divide

______ 9. dividir D. to go up or get on

______ 10. escribir E. to live

______ 11. recibir F. to open

______ 12. subir G. to receive

______ 13. vivir H. to write

Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information 437

 Match each Spanish sentence with the correct English translation.

______ 14. ¿Adónde vas? A. What are they studying?

______ 15. ¿Cuándo estudias? B. When do you study?

______ 16. ¿Dónde está María? C. Where are you going?

______ 17. ¿Qué estudian ellos? D. Where is María?

438 Unit 7: Asking Questions and Getting Information