Workbook 4.

2 Stem Changing Verbs Nombre __________

SP 101 Sección
__________
Señor Owens

1. Remember the two ways in which the verbs venir and tener were irregular?
First, their yo form had a _____before the ‘o,’ and second, they had a stem
change in the ________________________.

2. Many Spanish verbs are stem changing in every form except __________
and vosotros/as.

3. Let’s go back and review what a stem is. The stem of a verb is the part of
the verb that is left once you take away _______________ending. In regular
verbs, the stem does not _________ no matter what ending you add on to it.

4. However, in stem changing verbs, the stem will change in every form but
_____. There are three common types of stem changing verbs: ____>____,
____>_____, and _________>__________.

5. How do you know which ones are stem-changers? __________________

Review the following examples:

The most common changes are like these verbs:

comenzar ____________________________________________________

medir _______________________________________________________

dormir ______________________________________________________

The stem change patterns above are the most common, but you will find a few
verbs that make a different stem change: from i to ie.

adquirer ____________________________________________________

inquirer _____________________________________________________
Another Rare Stem Change: u to ue

A verb that you will use often in Spanish is jugar (to play). Jugar is a stem-
changing verb with a u to ue stem change.

jugar ______________________________________________________

The Last and Strangest Stem Change: o to hue

You should note that the verb oler (to smell) is also irregular. You’ll need to
memorize this stem change if you want to talk of smelling the roses.
____________________________________________________________

Now you try these sentences:

1. I want to start the game now. ___________________________________

2. They are returning from a long vacation. __________________________

3. Diego starts to practice tennis tomorrow. __________________________

4. Are you planning to go to the restaurant? __________________________

5. We always order chicken. ______________________________________

6. They get to watch the game on TV. _______________________________

7. Do you follow the directions? ____________________________________

8. The student sleeps at his desk. __________________________________

9. Can you finish the lesson? ______________________________________

10. He closes the book before coming to class. ________________________

11. Do you have some good parks here? _____________________________

12. Who plays sports on the weekends? _____________________________