Introduction
Learning to speak about actions that involve a group of people is essential for everyday Spanish. This article focuses on basic sentences using we, explaining how to form them, common verbs and phrases, and practical examples you can use in conversation, travel, work, and social situations.
- Why learn we sentences first?
- Basic present tense patterns
- Common verbs with nosotros
- Negative we sentences
- Using reflexive verbs with nosotros
- Past tense: simple past (pretérito) and imperfect
- Future and near-future we sentences
- We sentences with modal-like verbs
- Questions with we
- Common mistakes and how to avoid them
- Useful vocabulary lists for we sentences
- Short practice dialog you can memorize
- Exercises to build fluency
- Conclusion
Why learn we sentences first?
Using we sentences lets you include yourself with others naturally. Native speakers often talk as a group when making plans, giving updates, or sharing responsibility. For beginners, mastering the we form builds confidence and opens up simple conversations.
Subject pronoun and verb agreement
The subject pronoun for we is nosotros or nosotras. Use nosotros if the group is all men or mixed gender, and nosotras if the group is all women. For most everyday learning, many beginners default to nosotros for mixed groups.
Verb endings change to match nosotros/nosotras. For regular verbs, use -amos for -ar verbs, -emos for -er verbs, and -imos for -ir verbs in the present tense. This is a key pattern to recognize and practice.
Basic present tense patterns
Here are three core patterns you will use often. Each example includes the infinitive, the conjugated form for we, and a short English note.
Hablar — hablamos — we speak / we are speaking
Comer — comemos — we eat / we are eating
Vivir — vivimos — we live
Examples in simple conversation
Use these practical examples to understand how we sentences sound and how they are used.
Hablamos con el profesor después de clase.
Comemos en la cafetería todos los viernes.
Vivimos cerca de la estación.
Common verbs with nosotros
Beginner learners should prioritize verbs that appear in everyday contexts. Below are useful verbs and sample we sentences.
Ir — vamos — Vamos al mercado mañana.
Querer — queremos — Queremos café y pan.
Poder — podemos — Podemos ayudar con la tarea.
Necesitar — necesitamos — Necesitamos más información.
Tener — tenemos — Tenemos una reserva para las siete.
Tip: irregular verbs to memorize
Some high-frequency verbs are irregular in the nosotros form. These are essential to learn early because they appear in many contexts.
Ir — vamos (not *irmos)
Hacer — hacemos
Decir — decimos
Traer — traemos
Poner — ponemos
Negative we sentences
To make negative sentences with we, place no before the verb. This is simple and follows the same conjugation pattern.
No hablamos con ella hoy.
No comemos carne los lunes.
No podemos asistir al evento.
Practical negative examples
No tenemos suficiente dinero.
No vamos a la reunión esta semana.
No queremos más sopa.
Using reflexive verbs with nosotros
Reflexive verbs use reflexive pronouns like nos with nosotros. These are common for daily routines.
Levantarse — nos levantamos temprano.
Ducharse — nos duchamos por la mañana.
Sentarse — nos sentamos en la terraza.
Examples in routines
Nos despertamos a las seis todos los días.
Nos acostamos temprano cuando tenemos trabajo temprano.
Past tense: simple past (pretérito) and imperfect
Beginners should learn two common past tenses. The pretérito is for completed actions. The imperfect is for habitual or ongoing past actions.
Pretérito endings for nosotros: -amos for -ar verbs, -imos for -er and -ir verbs.
Hablamos con el guía ayer.
Comimos en ese restaurante la semana pasada.
Vivimos en esa ciudad por tres años (pretérito).
Imperfect endings for nosotros: -ábamos for -ar verbs, -íamos for -er and -ir verbs.
Hablábamos mucho cuando éramos niños.
Comíamos juntos cada domingo.
Contrast examples
Fuimos al museo ayer. (completed action)
Íbamos al museo cada año. (habitual action)
Future and near-future we sentences
Two useful ways to express future actions are the simple future and the near-future with ir + a + infinitive.
Near future: Vamos a estudiar esta tarde.
Simple future: Estudiaremos para el examen mañana.
Practical future examples
Vamos a salir en diez minutos.
Haremos la reserva esta noche.
We sentences with modal-like verbs
Modal verbs express ability, obligation, permission, and desire. They often appear with nosotros forms in everyday speech.
Deber — debemos — Debemos terminar el proyecto.
Poder — podemos — ¿Podemos entrar ahora?
Querer — queremos — Queremos ver el menú.
Permitir — permitimos — No siempre permitimos mascotas.
Polite group requests
Use nosotros forms to make polite requests or offers when speaking for a group.
¿Podemos usar su baño?
¿Nos puede ayudar con esta maleta?
Questions with we
Forming questions with we usually requires inversion or intonation. The verb form stays the same. For yes/no questions, add question marks and adjust intonation. For information questions, start with a question word.
¿Vamos al cine esta noche?
¿Dónde comemos mañana?
¿Cuándo nos vemos?
Example dialogues for practice
Person A: ¿Vamos al parque?
Person B: Sí, vamos a las cuatro.
Person A: ¿Qué comemos?
Person B: Comemos tacos cerca de la plaza.
Common mistakes and how to avoid them
Mistake: Using the wrong pronoun gender. Beginners sometimes use nosotras when the group is mixed. When in doubt, use nosotros for mixed groups.
Mistake: Forgetting verb agreement. Do not use the infinitive with nosotros in present tense. Incorrect: *nosotros hablar*. Correct: hablamos.
Mistake: Misplacing the reflexive pronoun. Remember the pronoun goes before the conjugated verb: nos bañamos, not bañamosnos.
Quick practice drills
Create short sentences for daily life. Replace the subject with we and conjugate accordingly.
I work — Nosotros trabajamos.
I buy groceries — Nosotros compramos comestibles.
I clean the house — Nosotros limpiamos la casa.
Useful vocabulary lists for we sentences
Travel and plans: ir, reservar, salir, llegar, partir, volver
Food and eating: comer, beber, cenar, desayunar, almorzar, cocinar
Household and routines: limpiar, cocinar, lavar, ordenar, descansar
Work and study: estudiar, trabajar, reunirse, enseñar, aprender
Sample situational phrases
On a schedule: Tenemos clase a las nueve.
At a restaurant: Pedimos la cuenta, por favor.
On public transport: Vamos en el autobús de la tarde.
In a hotel: Nos gustaría hacer el check-in ahora.
Short practice dialog you can memorize
Nosotros: Hola, tenemos una reservación a nombre de García.
Recepcionista: Perfecto, ¿nos puede dar su identificación?
Nosotros: Sí, aquí está.
Pronunciation and stress tips
Nosotros stresses the second syllable: no-SO-tros. For verb endings, focus on the vowel that marks the tense: -amos, -emos, -imos. Practice saying short sentences aloud to connect subject and verb smoothly.
Exercises to build fluency
Exercise 1: Convert I sentences to we sentences. Example: Yo como arroz. — Nosotros comemos arroz.
Exercise 2: Make negative we sentences about daily habits. Example: Nosotros no vemos televisión por las mañanas.
Exercise 3: Create three short dialogues using we for planning an outing, ordering food, and asking for help.
Conclusion
Mastering we sentences gives you a powerful tool to speak for a group in common situations. Focus on pronoun agreement, basic verb endings, irregular verbs, and practical vocabulary. Use the provided examples and drills to build confidence and start using nosotros or nosotras naturally in conversations and everyday Spanish.
