Spanish conjugation explanation

Verbs ending in -ñer, -ñir, -llir

<p>Verbs ending in <strong style="font-style: italic;">-ñer</strong>, <strong style="font-style: italic;">-ñir</strong>, <strong style="font-style: italic;">-ller</strong>, and <strong style="font-style: italic;">-llir</strong> undergo a spelling change to facilitate pronunciation. Because the consonants <strong>ñ</strong> and <strong>ll</strong> already contain a palatal sound (similar to the English "y" sound), the <strong>unstressed i</strong> found in certain conjugation endings is absorbed and dropped.</p>

<p>This change occurs when the grammatical ending starts with the diphthongs <strong>ie</strong> or <strong>io</strong>. Specifically:</p>

<ul>

<li><strong>-ió</strong> becomes <strong>-ó</strong></li>

<li><strong>-ieron</strong> becomes <strong>-eron</strong></li>

<li><strong>-iendo</strong> becomes <strong>-endo</strong></li>

<li><strong>-iera</strong> becomes <strong>-era</strong></li>

</ul>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">1.

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/23/" target="_blank">Gerund</a>

<p>In regular verbs like

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/esp/partir/" title="Click to see conjugations for partir" target="_blank">partir</a>

<p style="font-style: italic;">partir &#8594; partiendo<br />gruñir &#8594; gruñ<span class="green_emphasis">endo</span></p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">El perro está <span class="green_emphasis">gruñendo</span> al cartero. (<span style="font-style: italic;">The dog is growling at the mailman.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Están <span class="green_emphasis">tañendo</span> las campanas. (<span style="font-style: italic;">They are ringing the bells.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">2.

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/18/" target="_blank">Preterite</a>

<p>The change affects the third person singular (S/3) and third person plural (P/3) forms. While regular verbs take <span style="font-style: italic;">-ió</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">-ieron</span>, these verbs take <span style="font-style: italic;">-ó</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">-eron</span>.</p>

<p style="font-style: italic;">partir (S/3) &#8594; partió vs. zambullir (S/3) &#8594; zambull<span class="green_emphasis">ó</span><br />partir (P/3) &#8594; partieron vs. zambullir (P/3) &#8594; zambull<span class="green_emphasis">eron</span></p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">El niño se <span class="green_emphasis">zambulló</span> en la piscina. (<span style="font-style: italic;">The boy dove into the pool.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Al final, ellos no <span class="green_emphasis">riñeron</span> por el dinero. (<span style="font-style: italic;">In the end, they didn't quarrel over the money.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">3. Subjunctive Forms</div>

<p>Because the

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/20/" target="_blank">Imperfect Subjunctive</a>

<p><strong>Regular derivation:</strong> part<span class="in_word_highlight">ieron</span> &#8594; part<span class="in_word_highlight">iera</span><br /><strong>-ñir/-llir derivation:</strong> gruñ<span class="in_word_highlight">eron</span> &#8594; gruñ<span class="in_word_highlight">era</span></p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Yo quería que él <span class="green_emphasis">tañera</span> el piano. (<span style="font-style: italic;">I wanted him to play the piano.</span>)</div>

<p>This pattern is similar to

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/conjugationExplanation/spanish_i_to_y/" target="_blank">the i → y change</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/esp/leer/" title="Click to see conjugations for leer" target="_blank">leer</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/esp/calumniar/" title="Click to see conjugations for calumniar" target="_blank">creer</a>