Present of Second-Conjugation Verbs
Take off -t and you have the tu, viņš and viņi form: runāt → runā. Add -ju, -jam and -jat for es, mēs and jūs: runāju, runājam, runājat.
How It Works
The pattern.
- runāt (to speak): runāju, runā, runā, runājam, runājat, runā
- dzīvot (to live): dzīvoju, dzīvo, dzīvo, dzīvojam, dzīvojat, dzīvo
- spēlēt (to play): spēlēju, spēlē, spēlē, spēlējam, spēlējat, spēlē
Only es, mēs and jūs have endings, and each one starts with j: -ju, -jam, -jat. Tu, viņš/viņa and viņi/viņas all use the bare stem, so runā can mean "you speak", "he speaks" or "they speak". The pronoun or the context shows who.
How to recognise them. Verbs in -ot belong here: dzīvot, dejot, gatavot. Many verbs in -āt and -ēt do too, such as runāt, strādāt, maksāt, spēlēt, meklēt. But some verbs with the same endings follow the third conjugation instead, such as dziedāt → dziedu and redzēt → redzu. See verbs like redzēt. When you learn a new verb, learn its es form too.
Es is the same in the past. Es runāju means both "I speak" and "I spoke". Add a time word when it matters: Vakar runāju ar Annu (Yesterday I spoke with Anna). See the second-conjugation past.
Negation and reflexives. Ne- joins the verb: nerunāju, nestrādā. Reflexive verbs from this group keep the same stem, as in mazgāties → mazgājos; see reflexive verbs.
Examples (6)
- Es runāju latviski un angliski.
I speak Latvian and English.
- Vai tu šodien strādā?
Are you working today?
The tu form strādā is the bare stem.
- Viņa dzīvo Jelgavā.
She lives in Jelgava.
- Mēs spēlējam futbolu.
We play football.
Spēlēt → spēlējam, with -jam for mēs.
- Jūs labi dejojat!
You dance well!
- Viņi maksā ar karti.
They pay by card.
The they form maksā is the same as the he and she form.
Common Mistakes
Leaving out the j in the es form.
Es runāu latviski.Es runāju latviski.The es ending of these verbs is -ju: runāju, strādāju, dzīvoju.
Using a third-conjugation ending for mēs.
Mēs strādām Rīgā.Mēs strādājam Rīgā.Second-conjugation verbs keep the j: strādājam. The ending -ām belongs to verbs like lasīt (lasām).
Adding j to the he, she or they form.
Viņš runāj latviski.Viņš runā latviski.The viņš and viņi forms are just the stem, with no ending: runā.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Second-conjugation verbs change with the subject.
Related Patterns
- Present of First-Conjugation Verbs
Compares verbs with one-syllable infinitives, like nest → nesu.
Level 1 - Present Forms of Verbs Ending in -ītPresent of Verbs Like Lasīt
Contrasts verbs like lasīt, which drop their vowel in the present.
Level 1 - Present Forms of Verbs Ending in -ēt and -ātPresent of Verbs Like Redzēt
Shows the -ēt and -āt verbs that do not follow runāt, like redzēt.
Level 1 - Past of Second-Conjugation Verbs
Builds the past of these verbs; the es form is the same as in the present.
Level 2 - Reflexive Verbs in -ties
Reflexive verbs from this group keep the same stem, like mazgājos.
Level 2 - One Present Tense
One present form covers "I speak" and "I am speaking".
Level 1
Practice Present of Second-Conjugation Verbs in Bubblegum
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