In my last blog post, I said that I would tell you how to conjugate Spanish verbs when using the pronoun “vos.”
A common beginner mistake is to confuse Latin America’s Spanish pronoun “vos” with Spain’s pronoun “vosotros.” The two are completely different. De hecho (in fact), “vos” is not even used in Spain. But of course, “vos” apparently has its “raíces” (roots) in Spain’s pronoun “vosotros.”
Or “si acaso” (just in case) – or as they say in Colombia — and other parts of Latin America — “por si las moscas” (just in case of flies), if you missed my last blog post, and if you are planning to take a trip soon to any part of Colombia, “tenga en cuenta” (take into account/keep in mind) that Medellín is one of the few places in Colombia — where you will hear “vos” used. I did not hear “vos” used in Cartagena, Santa Marta, Barranquilla, or any of the Caribbean costal cities of Colombia.
By the way, besides using “vos” they also “tutear” or us “tú” here in Medellín – and they also use “usted” in Medellin. So it is important to know which one to use and when.
And now how to conjugate verbs when using the pronoun “vos” . . . .
Conjugating “vos” is as easy as uno, dos tres. In the PRESENT tense, remember these CINCO (5) “reglas”
or “rules”:
1. With “ar” verbs, you drop “ar” and add “ás” to the stem.
In other words, with “ar” verbs in the present tense, you conjugate with the pronoun “vos” just like you’d conjugate with the pronoun “tú” except you put an accent on the last syllable. In the following examples, I have conjugated verbs using the pronouns “tú” on the left hand side and “vos ” on the right hand side so that you can see the difference:
tú hablas – vos hablás – you speak
tú cantas – vos cantás – you sing
tú compras – vos comprás – you buy
Keep in mind that the accent on the last syllable is not just a difference in writing. When you speak, you have to pronounce “hablás” different from the way you would pronounce “hablas” by making sure that the accent falls on the last syllable when saying the word “hablás.”
2. With “er” verbs, you drop “er” and add “és” to the stem. In other words, with “er” verbs in the present tense, you conjugate with the pronoun “vos” just like you’d conjugate with the pronoun “tú” except you put an accent on the last sylable.
In the following examples, I have conjugated verbs using
the pronouns “tú” on the left hand side and “vos ” on the right hand side so that you can see the difference:
tú comes – vos comés – you eat
tú corres – vos corrés – you run
Again, keep in mind that the accent on the last syllable is not just a difference in writing. When you speak, you have to pronounce “comés” different from the way you would pronounce “comes” by making sure that the accent falls on the last syllable when saying the word “comés.”
3. With “ir” verbs, you drop “ir” and add “ís” to the stem. In the following examples, I have conjugated verbs using the pronouns “tú” on the left hand side and “vos ” on the right hand side so that you can see the difference:
tú vives – vos vivís – you live
tú sufres – Vos sufrís – you suffer
4. The stems of verbs don’t change.
In the following examples, I have conjugated verbs using the pronouns “tú” on the left hand side and “vos” on the right hand side so that you can see the difference:
tú dices – vos decís – you say
tú almuerzas – vos almorzás – you eat lunch
tú vuelves – vos volvés – you return
5. The only irregular verbs are ser, ir, and haber (has).
tú eres – vos sos – you are
tú vas – vos vas – you go
tú has – vos has – you have
