How to Use Voseo in Spanish (Examples Included)
You already know that Spanish has two ways of saying “you”: tú and usted. But tú isn’t the only informal “you” in some regions of Latin America. These places also use vos .
Voseo is the use of vos. And in this post, I’ll show you where the voseo is used, how it works and where to practice it.
Contents
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Where Is Voseo Used?
There are only three countries where the voseo is used almost exclusively: Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina. In these countries, you’ll always be addressed as vos instead of tú.
Here are some where it’s used in specific areas or in certain situations:
- Chile, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and eastern Bolivia. In these areas, vos is often used but so is tú.
- Costa Rica and Nicaragua. You’ll hear the voseo in urban areas here, but usted is the go-to form elsewhere.
- Some areas of Colombia. Mostly the Paisa region in the northwest.
- Small regions of Ecuador, Peru, Cuba and Mexico. If you aren’t sure, it’s best to stick to tú until you hear a native speaker do otherwise.
- The Zulia state in Venezuela and the Azuero Peninsula of Panama. Here, you may hear a unique phenomenon where native speakers use the pronoun vos but with vosotros conjugations.
Now, how necessary is it that you learn the voseo if you’re going to any of these regions?
First, you’ll be understood everywhere using tú. But a few reasons you should learn voseo include:
- Impressing native speakers and integrating into the region’s culture
- Knowing when and when not to use vos in certain areas
- Vos has a few of its own irregular verbs
- Outside of Chile, voseo conjugations are only used in the present tense, affirmative command form and sometimes the present subjunctive. So it doesn’t take long to learn.
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How to Conjugate the Voseo in the Present Tense
The present tense is the most common form of the voseo. As usual, we’ll start by dividing our verbs into -ar, -er and -ir verbs.
| Type of verb | Present tense vos verb ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -ar | -ás | vos hablás
(You talk) vos andás (You walk) |
| -er | -és | vos comprendés
(You understand) vos sabés (You know) |
| -ir | -ís | vos escribís
(You write) vos vivís (You live) |
Now that we’ve covered regular verb endings, we can move on to the irregular forms. The good news is there are only three:
- Ser
- Ir
- Haber
Ser becomes sos in the voseo form. But the other two keep the same conjugations as in the tú form:
| Verb | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Ser | Sos |
| Ir | Vas |
| Haber | Has |
Keep in mind that this lack of irregularity applies to stem-changing verbs as well. For example:
tú dices (you say) → vos decís
tú puedes (you can) → vos podés
Here are some of the most common Spanish verbs conjugated in the present tense vos form:
| Verb | Present tense vos conjugation |
|---|---|
| Hablar (To speak/talk) | hablás (You speak) |
| Jugar (To play) | jugás (You play) |
| Estar (To be) | estás (You are) |
| Trabajar (To work) | trabajás (You work) |
| Pensar (To think) | pensás (You think) |
| Hacer (To do/make) | hacés (You do/make) |
| Poder (To be able to) | podés (You can/are able to) |
| Poner (To put) | ponés (You put) |
| Comer (To eat) | comés (You eat) |
| Ir (To go) | vas (You go)* |
| Sentir (To feel) | sentís (You feel) |
| Pedir (To ask for) | pedís (You ask for) |
| Decir (To say) | decís (You say) |
| Salir (To leave/go out) | salís (You leave/go out) |
How Do Pronouns Work with the Voseo?
Vos is used in any context where you would normally use tú.
Vos is also used after prepositions, so para ti (for you) and sin ti (without you) become para vos and sin vos .
This is also true for contigo (with you), which becomes con vos .
Object and reflexive pronouns remain the same as they are in the tuteo, as do possessive pronouns.
Let’s take a look at a few examples:
Vos comés. — You eat.
Lo hicimos para vos. — We did it for you.
Estoy con vos. — I’m with you.
Affirmative Commands in the Voseo
Affirmative command forms (also known as the affirmative imperative mood) are nearly identical to the present tense. All verb endings are the same, except without the -s at the very end: -ás becomes á, -és becomes -é and -ís becomes -í:
| Type of verb | Affirmative command vos verb ending | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| -ar | -á | Hablá con él.
— Talk to him. |
| -er | -é | Comé un poco más. — Eat a little more. |
| -ir | -í | ¡Vení acá! — Come here! |
There are no irregular command forms in the voseo. The closest thing to an exception is the verb ir (to go), which simply has no voseo equivalent. Luckily, in just about all contexts where you would otherwise use ir, andar works just fine.
Here’s a list of commonly used affirmative commands with vos.
| Affirmative command | English translation |
|---|---|
| ¡Salí!
| Leave! |
| Andá al banco. | Go to the bank. |
| ¡Decime! | Tell me! |
| Mandanos algo. | Send us something. |
| Leé el libro. | Read the book. |
| Conseguí mis cosas. | Get my things. |
| ¡Corré! | Run! |
| Llamame más tarde. | Call me later. |
| Escuchá. | Listen. |
| ¡Aprendé más! | Learn more! |
Present Subjunctive in the Voseo
In Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, the present subjunctive conjugations in the voseo are almost always the same as the conjugations for tú. Just say vos instead of tú.
But in some other regions, you may encounter a different, non-standard form of the present subjunctive in the voseo. The general guidelines for these conjugations are below so you can recognize them, but be aware that they’re highly regional and considered incorrect by the Real Academia Española (Royal Spanish Academy)—you may raise some eyebrows if you try to use them in other areas.
The conjugation follows a relatively simple process:
- Take the subjunctive of the verb in the tuteo
- Add an accent to the last syllable
- In the case of stem-changing verbs, there’ll be a “half” stem change (the stem change is eliminated completely for -ar and -er verbs, but -ir verbs take a special form)
Here’s an example with the verb ir:
Tuteo: Espero que vayas. (I hope you go.)
Voseo: Espero que vayás. (I hope you go.)
Here are some more vos conjugations of common verbs in the present subjunctive:
| Verb | Present subjunctive tú conjugation | Present subjunctive vos conjugation |
|---|---|---|
| Hablar (To speak/talk) | hables | hablés |
| Jugar (To play) | juegues | jugués |
| Estar (To be) | estés | estés |
| Trabajar (To work) | trabajes | trabajés |
| Pensar (To think) | pienses | pensés |
| Hacer (To do/make) | hagas | hagás |
| Poder (To be able to) | puedas | podás |
| Poner (To put) | pongas | pongás |
| Ser (To be) | seas | seás |
| Comer (To eat) | comas | comás * |
| Ir (To go) | vayas | vayás |
| Sentir (To feel) | sientas | sintás |
| Pedir (To ask for) | pidas | pidás |
| Decir (To say) | digas | digás |
| Salir (To leave/go out) | salgas | salgás |
*This conjugation is also sometimes written without an accent in the vos present subjunctive form (depending on the country or region).
Where to Practice the Voseo
Though the voseo may seem a bit complicated, it gets infinitely easier with practice. To help you out as you get accustomed to the rules above, here are a few resources you can use to master it.
- Spotify: Plenty of music exists from artists who use the voseo. You can usually find some songs on the Argentinian, Paraguayan or Uruguayan Top 40, but we made a playlist with some of our favorites to spare you the trouble. Songs are sorted by genre, so click around until you find something you like.
- Netflix: There are some great Argentinian shows that heavily feature the voseo, such as “El marginal” (“Marginal”). “Narcos” also demonstrates how vos is used heavily in the Paisa region of Colombia.
- YouTube: Many voseo-using countries don’t have a very heavy media presence, so YouTube is a great way to overcome that. Germán Rodezel is a popular Costa Rican YouTuber and Desoxigenados is a popular Paraguayan channel.
Voseo Quiz
Fill in the blanks with the correct conjugation of the verb in voseo form. Then, check your answers at the bottom.
1. Vos _____ (hablar) con sus amigos todos los días.
(You talk to your friends every day.)
2. ¿Por qué no _____ (venir) a la fiesta esta noche?
(Why don’t you come to the party tonight?)
3. Ellos dicen que vos _____ (ser) muy divertido.
(They say that you are really fun.)
4. Espero que vos _____ (poder) ayudarme con esto.
(I hope you can help me with this.)
5. ¿Vos _____ (tener) planes para el fin de semana?
(Do you have plans for the weekend?)
6. Tengo un regalo para _____.
(I have a gift for you.)
7. ¡Andrés, _____ (venir) para acá!
(Andrés, come over here!)
8. Si vos _____ (saber) la respuesta, decímela.
(If you know the answer, tell me.)
9. ¿Cuándo _____ (ir) a visitarme?
(When are you going to visit me?)
10. Espero que la _____ (pasar) bien.
(I hope you have a good time.)
Answers:
1. Hablás
2. Venís
3. Sos
4. Puedas/Podás
5. Tenés
6. Vos
7. Vení
8. Sabés
9. Vas
10. Pases/Pasés
The voseo is an incredibly important part of Spanish in many countries that teachers neglect more often than not. Learning it goes a long way toward gaining the respect of Spanish speakers from regions where it’s used, and it’s a great way to distinguish yourself from other learners.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
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