Beginner guide to Spanish “Empezar”, “Avanzar”, and “Recordar”

Introduction

This beginner guide explains three essential Spanish verbs you will see everywhere: Empezar, Avanzar, and Recordar. Learn their meanings, common conjugations, practical phrases, and easy tips to use them in everyday situations in Latin American Spanish.

Overview: What these verbs mean and why they matter

Empezar means to begin or start. It often appears when talking about schedules, classes, activities, or simple actions like starting a meal.

Avanzar means to move forward, progress, or advance. You will find it in contexts like improving skills, moving in a line, or describing progress on a project.

Recordar means to remember or remind. It is used for memories, remembering facts, and also for reminding someone about something.

Basic conjugation patterns for beginners

Present tense: most useful for beginners

Empezar is a stem-changing verb: empezar – e becomes ie in stressed syllables.

yo empiezo

tú empiezas

él / ella / usted empieza

nosotros empezamos

ellos / ustedes empiezan

Empezar shows the common e→ie pattern many beginners will meet.

Avanzar is a regular -ar verb with no stem change in the present tense.

yo avanzo

tú avanzas

él / ella / usted avanza

nosotros avanzamos

ellos / ustedes avanzan

Avanzar follows the regular -ar conjugation you can apply to many verbs.

Recordar is a stem-changing verb: recordar – o becomes ue in stressed syllables.

yo recuerdo

tú recuerdas

él / ella / usted recuerda

nosotros recordamos

ellos / ustedes recuerdan

Recordar follows the o→ue pattern that also appears in verbs like poder and volver.

Common everyday phrases and signs

Here are realistic short phrases a beginner might see on schedules, signs, forms, or hear in conversations.

Schedule or announcement: Empezamos a las ocho.

Teacher or organizer: ¿Cuándo empezamos?

At a store or menu: El servicio empieza a las nueve.

Progress update: Vamos avanzando poco a poco.

Work context: El proyecto avanza bien.

Reminder message: Recuerda traer tu identificación.

Memory context: Yo no recuerdo la dirección.

Practical examples with translations and tips

Short dialogues and sample sentences you can practice aloud. Each Spanish line is useful for daily situations.

Example 1 – Class start

Estudiante: ¿A qué hora empieza la clase?

Profesor: La clase empieza a las nueve.

Tip: Use empieza for third-person or usted. For plans about yourself, say yo empiezo.

Example 2 – Progress at work

Compañero: ¿Cómo va el informe?

Tú: Avanza bien, solo faltan los gráficos.

Tip: Use avanza to report ongoing progress. To say I am making progress, use yo avanzo.

Example 3 – Reminder to a friend

Mensaje: Recuerda la cita mañana a las cuatro.

Tip: The imperative for tú of recordar is recuerda. Use recuerda to tell someone to remember.

Example 4 – Asking if someone remembers

Pregunta: ¿Recuerdas mi número?

Respuesta: Sí, lo recuerdo.

Tip: When referring to a remembered object, use direct object pronouns: lo recuerdo, la recuerdo.

Imperative and simple commands for beginners

Commands are practical for giving reminders or starting actions.

Start commands

Tú empieza ahora.

Usted empiece ahora.

Tip: For a polite request use the usted imperative empiece.

Advance/progress commands

Tú avanza un poco cada día.

Usted avance un poco cada día.

Tip: Avanza is less common as a direct command in casual speech; you might say sigue avanzando or sigue mejorando.

Remember commands

Tú recuerda traer las llaves.

Usted recuerde traer las llaves.

Tip: For negative commands use no recuerdes (tú) or no recuerde (usted).

Useful vocabulary and short lists

Words and short phrases that often appear with these verbs.

Time words: ahora, mañana, más tarde, a las ocho

Progress words: poco a poco, mejorar, continuar, seguir

Reminders and memory: recuerdo, cita, tarea, contraseña

Starter words: comenzar, iniciar, abrir

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

Mistake 1: Forgetting stem change in the present tense

Incorrect: yo empiezo → sometimes learners write yo empez o. Remember it is yo empiezo and tú empiezas.

Mistake 2: Using recordar instead of acordarse

Note: Both mean to remember, but recordar often takes a direct object: recuerdo tu número. Acordarse is reflexive: me acuerdo de tu número. Beginners can use either but watch the structure: me acuerdo de + thing.

Mistake 3: Wrong imperative forms

Incorrect: no recuerda. Correct negative tú command: no recuerdes. Learn affirmative and negative imperative differences early.

Practice exercises for beginners

Fill-in-the-blank practice. Say the correct form aloud and write it down.

1. La película _____ a las seis. (empezar)

2. Nosotros _____ en este proyecto. (avanzar)

3. ¿Tú _____ dónde dejamos las llaves? (recordar)

Answers at the end: empieza, avanzamos, recuerdas.

Short speaking drill

Make three sentences using yo + the verbs in present tense. Example: Yo empiezo la tarea a las siete. Yo avanzo con mis ejercicios. Yo recuerdo la contraseña.

Quick cultural and usage notes for Latin American Spanish

These verbs are used similarly throughout Latin America. You will hear regional accents and some vocabulary differences, but the verbs and their conjugations are standard. For polite requests, you can use por favor with imperatives: Por favor, recuérdame mañana.

Mini reference cheat sheet

Present tense quick forms

yo empiezo / tú empiezas / él empieza / nosotros empezamos / ellos empiezan

yo avanzo / tú avanzas / él avanza / nosotros avanzamos / ellos avanzan

yo recuerdo / tú recuerdas / él recuerda / nosotros recordamos / ellos recuerdan

Common imperatives

Empieza / Empiece / No empieces

Avanza / Avance / No avances

Recuerda / Recuerde / No recuerdes

How to build more sentences — quick templates

Template for starting something

Voy a empezar + noun or a + infinitive. Example: Voy a empezar el curso. Voy a empezar a estudiar.

Template for describing progress

Estamos avanzando + en + project. Example: Estamos avanzando en la tarea.

Template for remembering or reminding

Por favor, recuerda + noun. Example: Por favor, recuerda el pasaporte.

Additional beginner tips (practical and specific)

Use flashcards that separate stem changes: put yo empiezo on one side and yo empez o (wrong) on another to test yourself.

Listen for these verbs in simple audio lessons and pause to repeat full sentences, not single words.

Practice imperatives in daily life: leave yourself voice notes using recuerda or empieza to build habit memory.

Conclusion

Mastering empezar, avanzar, and recordar gives beginners practical tools to talk about starting activities, showing progress, and remembering or reminding. Keep short drills, use the imperative forms in real context, and practice the stem changes aloud. These three verbs will appear in schedules, messages, and conversations every day.