{"id":6634,"date":"2019-11-20T10:00:38","date_gmt":"2019-11-20T18:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mydailyspanish.com\/?p=6634"},"modified":"2022-08-23T23:12:29","modified_gmt":"2022-08-24T07:12:29","slug":"spanish-transitive-intransitive-verbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mydailyspanish.com\/spanish-transitive-intransitive-verbs\/","title":{"rendered":"Spanish Transitive vs Intransitive Verbs: An Easy Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

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There are several verb types in Spanish, and in this article, we\u2019re looking at Spanish transitive<\/strong> and intransitive<\/strong> verbs!<\/p>\n

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Most native English speakers don\u2019t have much trouble with them, because the transitivity is very similar in Spanish and English, even if you don\u2019t realize it! Read on to find out what this actually means\u2026<\/p>\n

\"Transitive<\/span><\/p>\n

What is a Spanish transitive verb?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A transitive verb is a verb that needs a direct object to complete it. <\/strong>For example, \u2018to have\u2019 is a transitive verb. You\u2019d be confused if someone approached you in the street and said, \u201cExcuse me, I have.\u201d<\/p>\n

You\u2019d be waiting for them to finish their sentence by saying what<\/strong> they had: \u201cExcuse me, I have a crush on you.\u201d \u201cExcuse me, I have a question about how to get to the station.\u201d \u201cExcuse me, I have a hat just like yours!\u201d Clearly, these would all call for very different responses!<\/p>\n

In dictionaries, transitive verbs are often identified by abbreviations such as \u2018VT\u2019 and \u2018vtr\u2019 written next to them.<\/p>\n

A neat test for identifying transitive verbs is to ask \u201cwhat?\u201d or \u201cwho?\u201d If the verb doesn\u2019t make sense without answering one of these questions, then it\u2019s probably transitive!<\/p>\n

For example, in the first example below, imagine your friend has some news for you:<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve found.\u201d\/\u201cI\u2019ve met.\u201d<\/em> (Your friend has just used a transitive verb without a direct object.)<\/p>\n

\u201cWHAT<\/strong> have you found?!\u201d \u201cWHO<\/strong> have you met?!\u201d<\/em> (We can\u2019t really understand and respond until we have that vital piece of info.)<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve found A GIRLFRIEND<\/strong>!\u201d\/\u201cI\u2019ve met A GREAT GIRL<\/strong>!\u201d<\/em> (The direct object is the girlfriend<\/strong>\/great girl<\/strong>.)<\/p>\n

\u201cWow, where did you guys meet? Tell me all about her!\u201d <\/em>(Now we can respond appropriately!)<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the girlfriend example, along with lots of other Spanish transitive verbs. The bits in bold are the direct objects. Try saying the sentences without them, and they won\u2019t make much sense!<\/p>\n\n<\/thead>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
encontrar: He encontrado <\/em>una novia<\/strong><\/em>.<\/em><\/td>\nto find\/to meet: I\u2019ve found a girlfriend<\/strong>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
admirar: Admiro mucho a <\/em>mi t\u00eda<\/strong><\/em> porque es una mujer muy valiente.<\/em><\/td>\nto admire: I really admire my aunt<\/strong> because she\u2019s a very brave woman.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
adquirir: \u00a1Por fin, he adquirido <\/em>un m\u00f3vil nuevo<\/strong><\/em>!<\/em><\/td>\nto acquire: Finally, I\u2019ve got a new phone<\/strong>!<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
decorar: \u00bfDecoramos<\/em> el \u00e1rbol de Navidad<\/strong><\/em>?<\/em><\/td>\nto decorate: Shall we decorate the Christmas tree<\/strong>?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
encender: No veo nada. Enciende <\/em>la luz<\/strong><\/em>, por favor.<\/em><\/td>\nto turn on: I can\u2019t see anything. Switch on the light<\/strong>, please.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
entra\u00f1ar: La cirug\u00eda entra\u00f1a <\/em>muchos riesgos<\/strong><\/em>.<\/em><\/td>\nto entail: The surgery entails a lot of risks<\/strong>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
preparar: Todav\u00eda no he preparado <\/em>los materiales <\/strong><\/em>para la clase.<\/em><\/td>\nto prepare: I still haven\u2019t prepared the materials<\/strong> for the class.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
proponer: Voy a proponerle <\/em>una idea<\/strong><\/em> al jefe.<\/em><\/td>\nto propose: I\u2019m going to propose an idea<\/strong> to the boss.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
quitar: Tendr\u00e1s que llevar otro vestido. No puedo quitar <\/em>la mancha<\/strong><\/em>.<\/em><\/td>\nto remove: You\u2019ll have to wear a different dress. I can\u2019t remove the stain<\/strong>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
revocar: Revocaron <\/em>mi licencia para conducir<\/strong><\/em>.<\/em><\/td>\nto revoke: They revoked my driver\u2019s license<\/strong>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tener: Tengo <\/em>dos coches <\/strong><\/em>pero uno de ellos est\u00e1 roto.<\/em><\/td>\nto have: I have two cars <\/strong>but one of them is broken.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

What is an intransitive verb in Spanish?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

As you can probably guess, an intransitive verb is the opposite of a transitive one, i.e. it doesn\u2019t need (and can\u2019t take) a direct object. In fact, intransitive verbs can even stand alone as one-word sentences, without the need to ask \u201cwho?\u201d or \u201cwhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

In fact, intransitive verbs can even stand alone as one-word sentences, without the need to ask \u201cwho?\u201d or \u201cwhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

Dictionaries sometimes mark intransitive verbs with \u2018VI,\u2019 \u2018vi,\u2019 or \u2018int.\u2019<\/p>\n

Have a look at these examples, and notice that they make sense with no need for direct objects.<\/p>\n\n<\/thead>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
brillar: Las lucecitas brillan.<\/em><\/td>\nto shine: The fairy lights shine\/sparkle.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
doler: A veces el amor duele profundamente.<\/em><\/td>\nto be painful: Sometimes love hurts deeply.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
estornudar: Las flores me hacen estornudar.<\/em><\/td>\nto sneeze: Flowers make me sneeze.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
existir: En aquella \u00e9poca, no exist\u00eda la electricidad.<\/em><\/td>\nto exist: In those days, electricity didn\u2019t exist.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
gotear: El grifo est\u00e1 goteando.<\/em><\/td>\nto drip\/leak: The faucet is leaking.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ir: Si vas a la fiesta, yo tambi\u00e9n voy.<\/em><\/td>\nto go: if you go to the party, I\u2019ll go, too.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ladrar: El perro ladr\u00f3 en cuanto vio el cartero.<\/em><\/td>\nto bark: The dog barked as soon as he saw the mailman.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
nevar: \u00a1Mira! \u00a1Nieva!<\/em><\/td>\nto snow: Look! It\u2019s snowing!<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
maullar: El gatito maulla.<\/em><\/td>\nto meow: The kitten meows.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
morir: El hombre muri\u00f3 ayer.<\/em><\/td>\nto die: The man died yesterday.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
nacer: El beb\u00e9 naci\u00f3 hace dos semanas.<\/em><\/td>\nto be born: The baby was born two weeks ago.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
naufragar: El buque naufrag\u00f3 durante la tormenta.<\/em><\/td>\nto sink\/to be shipwrecked: The ship was shipwrecked during the storm.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
salir: Hijo m\u00edo, no saldr\u00e1s as\u00ed vestido.<\/em><\/td>\nto leave: Son, you\u2019re not leaving the house dressed like that.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sonre\u00edr: Al ver a su novia al altar, el novio sonri\u00f3.<\/em><\/td>\nto smile: Upon seeing his bride at the altar, the groom smiled.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
venir: Vine para ganar.<\/em><\/td>\nto come: I came to win.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
viajar: Me gustar\u00eda viajar a m\u00e1s pa\u00edses.<\/em><\/td>\nto travel: I\u2019d like to travel to more countries.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Lots of Spanish verbs can be either transitive or intransitive depending on the context!<\/h2>\n

Some verbs can actually be used as both transitive and intransitive verbs depending on their context. You may occasionally see this in dictionaries marked as \u2018vti.\u2019 <\/p>\n

Seeing them side by side can really help illustrate how this whole transitivity thing works! We\u2019ve underlined the verbs and put the direct objects in bold.<\/p>\n\n<\/thead>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Transitive<\/strong><\/td>\nIntransitive<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
amar: Alicia <\/em>ama<\/em><\/u> profundamente a <\/em>Ver\u00f3nica<\/strong><\/em>. <\/em>\u2014 Alicia loves Ver\u00f3nica deeply.<\/td>\nAlicia <\/em>ama<\/em><\/u> profundamente. \u2014 <\/em>Alicia loves deeply<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
bailar: Ma\u00f1ana <\/em>bailar\u00e1n<\/em><\/u> <\/em>un vals<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 Tomorrow they\u2019ll dance a waltz.<\/td>\nMa\u00f1ana <\/em>bailar\u00e1n<\/em><\/u>. \u2014 <\/em>Tomorrow they\u2019ll dance.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
cantar: Maca est\u00e1 <\/em>cantando<\/em><\/u> <\/em>su canci\u00f3n preferida<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 <\/em>Maca is singing her favorite song.<\/td>\nMaca est\u00e1 <\/em>cantando.<\/em><\/u> <\/em>\u2014 Maca is singing.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
comer: <\/em>Com\u00ed<\/em><\/u> <\/em>dos manzanas<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 <\/em>I ate two apples.<\/td>\nCom\u00ed<\/em><\/u>. \u2014 I ate.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
hablar: <\/em>Hablas<\/em><\/u> bien <\/em>el espa\u00f1ol<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 <\/em>You speak Spanish well.<\/td>\nHablemos<\/em><\/u> bajo para que no nos oigan. \u2014<\/em> Let\u2019s speak quietly so they don\u2019t hear us.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
leer: En el autob\u00fas, <\/em>leo<\/em><\/u> <\/em>mi libro<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 <\/em>On the bus, I read my book.<\/td>\nEn el autob\u00fas,<\/em> leo<\/em><\/u>. \u2014 <\/em>On the bus, I read.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
llorar: No hagas caso a Emilia. Est\u00e1 <\/em>llorando<\/em><\/u> <\/em>l\u00e1grimas de cocodrilo<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 <\/em>Don\u2019t pay attention to Emilia. She\u2019s crying crocodile tears.<\/td>\nMira, Emilia est\u00e1 <\/em>llorando<\/em><\/u>. \u00a1Pobrecita! \u2014 <\/em>Look, Emilia is crying. Poor thing!<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
pescar: Vamos a <\/em>pescar<\/em><\/u> <\/em>salm\u00f3n<\/strong><\/em>. \u2014 <\/em>We\u2019re going fishing for salmon.<\/td>\nVamos a <\/em>pescar<\/em><\/u>. \u2014 <\/em>We\u2019re going fishing.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
rimar: Oye, \u00bfexisten palabras que no <\/em>rimen<\/em><\/u> con <\/em>ninguna otra<\/strong><\/em>? \u2014 <\/em>Hey, are there any words that don\u2019t rhyme with anything?<\/td>\nEste poema no <\/em>rima<\/em><\/u>. \u2014 <\/em>This poem doesn\u2019t rhyme.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sonar: Tengo que ir a la iglesia para <\/em>sonar<\/em><\/u> <\/em>la campana<\/strong><\/em>.<\/em><\/td>\nLa campana <\/em>suena<\/em><\/u> al mediod\u00eda. \u2014 <\/em>The bell rings at midday.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Some verbs are neither!<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Some verb types don\u2019t come under this transitive\/intransitive categorization, for example:<\/p>\n