The three conjugations in the present, with the most useful irregulars. You met these at A1; make sure they are automatic before we add the past tenses.
| Pronoun | parlar (1st) | perdre (2nd) | dormir (3rd) |
|---|---|---|---|
| jo | parlo | perdo | dormo |
| tu | parles | perds | dorms |
| ell/ella | parla | perd | dorm |
| nosaltres | parlem | perdem | dormim |
| vosaltres | parleu | perdeu | dormiu |
| ells/elles | parlen | perden | dormen |
Many 3rd-conjugation verbs are incoatius and add -eix-: servir → serveixo /səɾˈbɛʃu/ I serve.
| Catalan | IPA (jo-form) | English |
|---|---|---|
| ser — soc, ets, és, som, sou, són | /ˈsɔk/ | to be (essence) |
| estar — estic, estàs, està, estem, esteu, estan | /əsˈtik/ | to be (state/place) |
| tenir — tinc, tens, té, tenim, teniu, tenen | /ˈtiŋ/ | to have |
| fer — faig, fas, fa, fem, feu, fan | /ˈfatʃ/ | to do/make |
| anar — vaig, vas, va, anem, aneu, van | /ˈbatʃ/ | to go |
| haver — he, has, ha, hem, heu, han | /ˈe/ | to have (auxiliary) |
Use ser for identity, origin, profession and permanent traits (Soc de Lleida I'm from Lleida); use estar for location, temporary states and how you feel (Estic cansat I'm tired). The auxiliary haver builds the perfet you'll learn in Unit 3.
| Catalan | IPA | English |
|---|---|---|
| i / o | /i/ /o/ | and / or |
| però | /pəˈɾɔ/ | but |
| perquè | /pəɾˈkɛ/ | because |
| també / tampoc | /təmˈbe/ /təmˈpɔk/ | also / neither |
| doncs | /ˈdoŋs/ | so, then |
| llavors / aleshores | /ʎəˈβɔs/ /ələˈzɔɾəs/ | then, at that point |
| primer / després / finalment | /pɾiˈme/ /dəsˈpɾes/ /finəlˈmen/ | first / after / finally |
| per exemple | /pəɾ əɡˈzemplə/ | for example |
| és a dir | /ˌez ə ˈði/ | that is, i.e. |
Es retroben — Catching up
— Hola, Marc! Quant de temps! Com estàs? Hi, Marc! Long time! How are you?
— Molt bé, gràcies. Ara treballo en una llibreria i també estudio català. Very well, thanks. Now I work in a bookshop and I'm also studying Catalan.
— Ah, doncs parles molt bé! I on vius ara? Ah, so you speak really well! And where do you live now?
— Visc a Girona, però soc de Reus. I tu, què fas? I live in Girona, but I'm from Reus. And you, what do you do?
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