Spelling Changes in Verb Forms

Level 3

Some verbs change a letter so that the sound stays the same: tocar → toquei, chegar → cheguei, comezar → comecei, coñecer → coñezo.

How It Works

Verbs in -car, -gar and -zar: changes before e

The change appears in the eu form of the preterite, in the present subjunctive and in vostede commands.

  • c → qu: tocar → toquei, toque; buscar → busquei, busque
  • g → gu: chegar → cheguei, chegue; pagar → paguei, pague
  • z → c: comezar → comecei, comece; almorzar → almorcei, almorce

The other preterite forms keep the original letter: tocaches, tocou.

Verbs in -cer and -cir: changes before o and a

  • c → z: coñecer → coñezo, coñeza; vencer → venzo; cocer → cozo

Galician has no extra k sound here: coñezo, not Spanish-style conozco.

Verbs in -guer and -guir: the u drops before o and a

  • erguer → ergo, erga; seguir → sigo, siga; distinguir → distingo

Verbs in -guar: ü before e

To keep the u pronounced before e, add a diaeresis: averiguar → averigüei, averigüe.

Verbs with x never change

X spells the same sound before any vowel, so elixir → elixo, elixa and corrixir → corrixo stay regular (compare Spanish elijo).

These are the same spelling rules as in c, z and qu and g and gu, applied to verb endings.

Examples (6)

  1. Onte toquei a gaita na festa.

    Yesterday I played the bagpipes at the festival.

    Before the ending -ei, c becomes qu to keep the k sound.

  2. Cheguei tarde porque perdín o autobús.

    I arrived late because I missed the bus.

    Before e, g becomes gu to keep the hard g sound.

  3. Comecei a estudar galego en xaneiro.

    I started studying Galician in January.

    Comezar spells its th sound with c before e.

  4. Non coñezo a túa irmá.

    I do not know your sister.

    Before o, the c of coñecer becomes z.

  5. Espero que chegue a tempo.

    I hope he arrives on time.

    The subjunctive ending -e also needs gu.

  6. Sempre elixo a mesma mesa.

    I always choose the same table.

    Verbs with x do not change: elixir, elixo.

Common Mistakes

  • Keeping c before e.

    Onte tocei a gaita.
    Onte toquei a gaita.

    Tocei would be read with a th sound. Qu keeps the k sound of tocar.

  • Adding a k sound to -cer verbs.

    Non coñezco a túa irmá.
    Non coñezo a túa irmá.

    Galician -cer verbs only change c to z: coñezo, nazo, venzo.

  • Keeping z before e.

    Comezei ás nove.
    Comecei ás nove.

    Galician writes the th sound as c before e and i, so comezar gives comecei.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Spelling Changes in Verb FormsLevel 3

Learn This First

Verb spelling can change before a new ending to preserve a consonant sound.