Pattern: -ER and -IR share identical endings — one less thing to learn! The yo and él/ella forms carry accent marks (é, ó / í, ió). These matter — hablo (I speak) vs. habló (he spoke).
Spelling-Change Verbs (yo only)
These change spelling in the yo form only to preserve pronunciation. All other forms are normal.
The 7 most common Spanish verbs are all irregular in the preterite. Here's the pattern that makes them manageable.
🔑 The One Pattern to Know
All 7 verbs share the exact same endings. You only need to memorize each verb's new irregular stem. Then bolt on the same endings every time:
-e · -iste · -o · -imos · -isteis · -ieron
The no-accent signal: Regular preterite endings have accent marks (hablé, habló). The Super 7 endings have no accent marks at all (tuve, tuvo). When you see an irregular, the accents disappear. This is actually helpful — it tells you which group you're in.
Regular endings (accents ✓)
yo-é
tú-aste / -iste
él/ella-ó / -ió
nosotros-amos / -imos
vosotros-asteis / -isteis
ellos-aron / -ieron
Super 7 endings (no accents ✗)
yo-e
tú-iste
él/ella-o
nosotros-imos
vosotros-isteis
ellos-ieron
How to drill this: For each verb below, cover the forms and try to build them. Say the stem out loud, then add -e, -iste, -o, -imos, -isteis, -ieron. Example: tener → stem is tuv- → tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos, tuvisteis, tuvieron. Click any verb name to open its full WordReference table.
⚠️ SER and IR are identical in the preterite — both use fui, fuiste, fue… Context tells you which: "Fui al mercado" (I went — ir) vs. "Fui médico" (I was a doctor — ser).
⚡ HACER special case: The él/ella form is hizo (not hico) — c → z to preserve the soft sound. All other forms use hic-.
More Irregulars Using the Same Endings
These also use the Super 7 ending set. Just memorize the stem.