The Essential List: How to Learn 116 Common Spanish AR Verbs
Verbs are like pizzas—you can never have too many.
And like the satisfying crust that ends a tasty slice of pizza, all Spanish verbs end in –r.
Or –ar, –er and –ir to be more precise.
On today’s menu, we have –ar verbs.
Sure, you need to learn the most common Spanish verbs. Those essential Spanish verbs will help you survive real-life conversations. You can even try playing games to learn verb conjugations for all those useful words.
But for any Spanish learner, –ar verbs in particular are an essential part of the Spanish-learning diet.
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Why Learn Spanish -ar Verbs?
It’s easier to learn words in groups of similar words. -Ar verbs share the same construction, so you can easily link them in your mind. This will make all of the words easier to remember.
Learning a lot of –ar verbs at once will reinforce your learning of conjugations. Since verbs with the same ending share the same sets of conjugations, you’ll know how to conjugate all of these verbs. For instance, as you work on mastering the Spanish present tense, you’ll always know that the –ar ending is replaced as follows:
yo -o
tú -as
él/ella/usted -a
nosotros -amos
vosotros -áis
ellos/ellas/ustedes -an
Precise verbs make you sound more advanced. You can get by with simpler verbs, but when you know very specific verbs, it epically upgrades your language skills and fluency.
Since learning –ar verbs as a group will help improve your learning, let’s jump in with this set of 116 verbs.
The Top 116 Spanish AR Verbs All Learners Must Know
Learning is one thing; knowing is another thing altogether. You can try memorizing this list of verbs but we recommend learning them in context to make them easier to remember and actually use in conversation.
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1. Abrazar
To hug, to hold, to embrace
Usage note: When referring to hugging someone, we use the reflexive abrazarse.
2. Acabar
To end, to finish
3. Aceptar
To accept, to agree to
4. Acercar
To move closer, to bring closer, to give a ride
Conjugation note: In the past tense, the first person (yo form) conjugation changes the second c to a q and becomes acerqué.
5. Acompañar
To accompany, to go with
6. Acordar
To agree, to remind, to award (in Latin America)
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes from o to ue (acuerd–) for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations—every conjugation not including nosotros and vosotros.
7. Admirar
To admire, to amaze
8. Adoptar
To adopt, to take
9. Adorar
To adore
10. Agravar
To aggravate, to worsen
11. Almorzar
To have lunch
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes from o to ue (almuerz–) for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
In the preterite, the z changes to a c for the yo form—almorcé.
12. Amar
To love
13. Andar
To go, to walk, to take, to work, to feel, to be about
Andar most often means “to walk,” but it can also mean “to take” (as in a mode of transportation), “to work” (as in a machine functioning), “to feel” or “to be about” (for approximating things).
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the root changes to anduv– for all conjugations.
14. Arreglar
To fix, to arrange, to tidy up, to solve, to sort out
15. Atacar
To attack, to tackle
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is ataqué.
16. Avanzar
To advance
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the z changes to a c for the yo form.
17. Ayudar
To help
18. Bailar
To dance
19. Bajar
To descend, to diminish
20. Buscar
To search, to look for
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is busqué.
21. Cambiar
To change, to exchange
22. Caminar
To walk
Usage note: Caminar usually means “to walk,” but in Latin America, it can also mean “to work” (as in a machine working).
23. Cantar
To sing
24. Celebrar
To celebrate
25. Cenar
To have dinner
26. Cerrar
To close, to conclude, to turn off
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to cierr– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
27. Charlar
To chat
28. Chistar
To start to speak
29. Cocinar
To cook
30. Comprar
To buy
31. Contar
To count, to tell
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to cuent– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
32. Continuar
To continue
Conjugation note: In the present tense, there’s an accent over the u for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
33. Cortar
To cut
34. Dar
To give
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the yo form is doy and the vosotros form is dais. The preterite is:
yo di
tú diste
él/ella/usted dio
nosotros dimos
vosotros disteis
ellos/ellas/ustedes dieron
35. Declarar
To declare
36. Dejar
To allow, to let, to leave, to lend.
37. Demostrar
To demonstrate, to prove
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to demuestr– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
38. Descansar
To rest, to sleep
39. Desear
To desire
40. Dibujar
To draw
41. Dispensar
To give, to grant, to excuse, to forgive
42. Empezar
To begin
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to empiez– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
In the preterite, the yo form is empecé.
43. Emplear
To use, to spend, to employ
44. Enseñar
To teach, to show
45. Encontrar
To find, to encounter
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to encuentr– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
46. Entrar
To enter, to fit, to pierce, to join, to start, to feel, to understand, to participate
Entrar usually means “to enter.”
47. Entregar
To submit, to turn in
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is entregué.
48. Enviar
To send, to mail
Conjugation note: In the present tense, there’s an accent over the i for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
49. Escuchar
To listen
50. Esperar
To wait, to hope or to expect
51. Estar
To be
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the yo form is estoy and the tú, él/ella/usted, vosotros and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations have an accent over the a.
The preterite is:
yo estuve
tú estuviste
él/ella/usted estuvo
nosotros estuvimos
vosotros estuvisteis
ellos/ellas/ustedes estuvieron
52. Estudiar
To study
53. Explicar
To explain
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is expliqué.
54. Expresar
To express
55. Faltar
To lack, to miss
56. Felicitar
To congratulate
57. Formar
To form, to comprise, to instruct
58. Fumar
To smoke
59. Funcionar
To function
60. Ganar
To win, to earn
61. Gobernar
To govern, to steer
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to gobiern– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
62. Gritar
To yell
63. Gustar
To like
Conjugation note: This verb is most often conjugated with indirect object pronouns me, te, le, nos, os and les.
64. Habitar
To dwell, live, to inhabit, to occupy
65. Hablar
To talk
66. Importar
To matter, to import
67. Indicar
To indicate, to gesture, to prescribe
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is indiqué.
68. Invitar
To invite, to treat someone to something (when offering to pay for a meal, activity, outing, etc.)
69. Jugar
To play
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to jueg– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
In the preterite, the yo form is jugué.
70. Juntar
To collect, to put together
71. Lavar
To wash
72. Limpiar
To clean
73. Llamar
To call
74. Llegar
To arrive, to come, to reach
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is llegué.
75. Llorar
To cry, to whine
76. Luchar
To fight
77. Matar
To kill
78. Mejorar
To improve
79. Mirar
To look
80. Mostrar
To show
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to muestr– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
81. Nadar
To swim
82. Necesitar
To need
83. Nevar
To snow
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to niev– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations—although, why you would need to use some of these conjugations remains a mystery.
84. Observar
To observe
85. Ocupar
To occupy
86. Olvidar
To forget
87. Organizar
To organize
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is organicé.
88. Pagar
To pay
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is pagué.
89. Parar
To stop
90. Pasar
To pass, to happen
91. Pensar
To think
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to piens– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
92. Pintar
To paint, to draw, to smudge, to describe
93. Practicar
To practice
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is practiqué.
94. Preguntar
To ask
95. Preparar
To prepare
96. Presentar
To present, to introduce
97. Probar
To test, to taste
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to prueb– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
98. Realizar
To realize, to carry out
Usage note: Realizar means “to realize.” However, it’s important to note that this type of “to realize” means “to carry out” rather than “to become aware of.” Rather, darse cuenta de means “to become aware of.”
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is realicé.
99. Recomendar
To recommend
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to recomiend– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
100. Recordar
To remember, to remind
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to recuerd– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
101. Regresar
To return
102. Respirar
To breathe
103. Sacar
To take, get, to take out, to remove
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is saqué.
104. Saltar
To jump
105. Saludar
To greet, to say hello to
106. Separar
To separate
107. Soñar
To dream
Conjugation note: In the present tense, the root changes to sueñ– for the yo, tú, él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes conjugations.
108. Sospechar
To suspect
109. Terminar
To end, to finish
110. Tocar
To touch, to play (an instrument)
Conjugation note: In the preterite, the yo form is toqué.
111. Tomar
To take, to drink
112. Trabajar
To work
113. Tratar
To treat, to try
114. Usar
To use
115. Viajar
To travel
116. Visitar
To visit
So, that’s a wrap!
Grab a slice of these –ar verbs and bite into learning.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
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