<p> Spanish Stem Changing Verbs (Boot Verbs)</p><p>So, you now know about regular verbs, irregular verbs, and verbs with irregular “yo” forms. Now it is time to talk about Stem-changing verbs (also called boot verbs).</p><p>Spoiler Alert: You’ve already know one!!! The verb Tener is a combination of a verb with an irregular “yo” form (Tengo) and a stem-changing verb (the rest of the verb).</p><p>Look at the infinitive: Tener. What is the stem? …..Ten. Now think about the conjugations of the verb Tener in the present tense. With the exception of the “yo” form (because it is irregular), what do you notice that is different from a regular verb.</p><p>Tengo Tenemos</p><p>Tienes Tenéis</p><p>Tiene Tienen</p><p>If you said that the “e” in “Ten” became an “ie” for all the subjects except the “nosotros” and “vosotros” forms then you are right (Tú tienes razón). Plus, you now know the rule for stem-changing verbs: The stem changes in all subjects EXCEPT “nosotros” and “vosotros”. </p><p>There are four types of stem-changing verbs in Spanish in the present tense:</p><p>E-IE</p><p>Pensar – to think</p><p>Pensar + infinite – to plan to do something</p><p>Empezar – to start</p><p>Empezar a + infinitive – to start to do something</p><p>Entender – to understand</p><p>Comenzar – to commence</p><p>Comenzar a + infinitive – to commence doing something</p><p>Preferir – to prefer Querer – to want</p><p>E – I</p><p>Pedir – to ask for / to order</p><p>Servir – to serve</p><p>Repetir – to repeat</p><p>O – UE</p><p>Dormir – to sleep</p><p>Almorzar – to eat lunch</p><p>Poder – to be able to</p><p>U - UE</p><p>Jugar – to play</p><p>Act. 1: Conjugate the following verbs in the present tense.</p><p>Yo (jugar)</p><p>Nosotros (servir)</p><p>Tú (querer)</p><p>María (pensar)</p><p>Vosotras (dormir)</p><p>Usted (almorzar)</p><p>Nosotros (querer)</p><p>Vosotros (jugar)</p><p>Yo (comenzar)</p><p>Nosotras (empezar)</p><p>Tú (poder)</p>