If you are learning Spanish you have to study tons of grammar rules that, in most cases, are a bit tedious. However, studying should be a fun activity.
Think about the verb ‘‘to study’’, for example. The Spanish translation is estudiar, a verb mainly used to talk about the actual action of devoting some time and attention in order to learn something.
In some other cases, it can be translated as ‘‘to look into’’, ‘‘to look at’’, and ‘‘to consider’’ depending on the context. As far as its conjugation, it is a regular verb with no big stem or spelling changes in the verb tenses, so it’s a pretty easy one to remember.
Present
|
Yo |
estudio |
Nosotros |
estudiamos |
|
Tú |
estudias |
Vosotros |
estudiáis |
|
Él/Ella/Ud. |
estudia |
Ellos/Ellas/Uds. |
estudiamos |
Example sentence:
Yo estudio francés en Paris. -- I study French in Paris.
Imperfect
|
Yo |
estudiaba |
Nosotros |
estudiábamos |
|
Tú |
estudiabas |
Vosotros |
estudiabais |
|
Él/Ella/Ud. |
estudiaba |
Ellos/Ellas/Uds. |
estudiaban |
Example sentence:
Nosotros estudiábamos en la misma escuela. -- We used to go to the same school.
Notice how the verb estudiar is used in this sentence. In several Spanish-speaking countries, ‘‘studying in the same school’’ basically means ‘‘going to the same school.’’
Preterite
|
Yo |
estudié |
Nosotros |
estudiamos |
|
Tú |
estudiaste |
Vosotros |
estudiasteis |
|
Él/Ella/Ud. |
estudió |
Ellos/Ellas/Uds. |
estudiaron |
Example sentence:
Tu hermana estudió en el extranjero y aprendió a hablar cuatro idiomas extranjeros. -- Your sister studied abroad and learned how to speak four foreign languages.
Notice that the conjugation for nosotros in this tense is similar to the conjugation for nosotros in the present tense.
Future
|
Yo |
estudiaré |
Nosotros |
estudiaremos |
|
Tú |
estudiarás |
Vosotros |
estudiareis |
|
Él/Ella/Ud. |
estudiará |
Ellos/Ellas/Uds. |
estudiarán |
Example sentence:
Estudiaremos todas las posibilidades. – We’ll look at all the possibilites.
Conditional
|
Yo |
estudiaría |
Nosotros |
estudiaríamos |
|
Tú |
estudiaría |
Vosotros |
estudiaríais |
|
Él/Ella/Ud. |
estudiaría |
Ellos/Ellas/Uds. |
estudiarían |
Example sentence:
Ciertamente, yo estudiaría ese argumento sino fuera tan vago. -- I would certainly look into that argument if it weren’t so vague.
Estudiar Used in Context
- Yo no creo que vaya a estudiar más de tres materias este semestre. -- I don’t think I will take more than three courses this semester.
- Estudiar idiomas extranjeros es increiblemente entretenido. -- Studying foreign languages is incredibly entertaining.
- Yo estudio matemáticas durante 30 minutos todos los días. – I study math for 30 minutes every day.
- Ella estudiaría contigo si tú no te distrajeras tan fácilmente. -- She would study with you if you didn’t get distracted so easily.
- Tu hermano no estudió para la prueba y ese es un problema. -- Your brother didn’t study for the test and that’s a problem.
- Estudiaré en Canadá el año que viene. -- I will study in Canada next year.
Take a Good Look at Estudiar
Studying new subjects doesn’t have to be boring, and neither does learning the verb estudiar in Spanish. Its conjugation is very simple and this word can be used in various contexts and, of course, everyday conversation.