Spanish 3

Absolutely — here’s an in-depth study guide organized exactly around the 12 sections of your test. I’ll focus on what you need to know, rules, endings, irregulars, examples, and common traps.

🇪🇸 Spanish Exam — In-Depth Study Guide

I–II. 📚 Vocabulario — Lessons 1–4

You should review all vocabulary from Lessons 1–4, but prioritize Lessons 3–4 because those are specifically identified for the vocabulary sections.

How to study vocabulary

Don’t just memorize the English translation. Know:

• Spanish → English

• English → Spanish

• Gender: el/la

• Plural forms

• How the word is used in a sentence

• Related verbs/adjectives/nouns

For example:

la decisión = the decision
decidir = to decide

Knowing related words makes it much easier to recognize vocabulary in context.

Watch for context clues

If you see:

Fabio tiene muchas dudas y no sabe qué ______ tomar.

You should recognize that decisión makes sense.

Don’t choose a word simply because you recognize it. Ask:

“Does this word actually make sense in the sentence?”

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III. ⏰ El Pretérito

The preterite is used primarily for actions that happened and were completed in the past.

Regular -AR verbs

Example: hablar

Regular -ER/-IR verbs

Example: comer

The -IR endings are the same:

vivir → viví, viviste, vivió, vivimos, vivisteis, vivieron

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When do you use the preterite?

1. A completed action

Ayer estudié español.

I studied Spanish yesterday.

2. A specific number of times

Fui al cine tres veces.

I went to the movies three times.

3. A sequence of completed events

Llegué, comí y me dormí.

I arrived, ate, and fell asleep.

4. An action with a definite beginning/end

La película empezó a las ocho.

The movie started at eight.

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🚨 Important Preterite Irregulars

These are VERY worth memorizing.

Tener → tuv-

tuve
tuviste
tuvo
tuvimos
tuvisteis
tuvieron

Estar → estuv-

estuve
estuviste
estuvo…

Poder → pud-

pude
pudiste
pudo…

Poner → pus-

puse
pusiste
puso…

Saber → sup-

supe
supiste
supo…

Venir → vin-

vine
viniste
vino…

Querer → quis-

quise
quisiste
quiso…

Hacer → hic-

hice
hiciste
hizo

⚠ hizo, NOT hico

Decir → dij-

dije
dijiste
dijo
dijimos
dijisteis
dijeron

Notice:

dijeron, NOT dijieron

Traer → traj-

traje
trajiste
trajo
trajimos
trajisteis
trajeron

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⭐ Ser and Ir

These have the exact same preterite forms.

Context tells you whether it means was/were or went.

Yo fui estudiante.
I was a student.

Yo fui al colegio.
I went to school.

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IV. 🕰 Pretérito vs. Imperfecto

This is one of the most important concepts on the exam.

Think:

PRETERITE

What happened?

IMPERFECT

What was going on / what used to happen?

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Preterite

Use it for:

• Completed actions

• Specific events

• A sequence of events

• A sudden/change event

• An action with a definite endpoint

Example:

Ayer llovió.

It rained yesterday.

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Imperfect

Use it for:

1. Habitual/repeated actions

Cuando era niña, jugaba mucho.

When I was a child, I used to play a lot.

2. Actions in progress

Yo estudiaba cuando él llamó.

I was studying when he called.

3. Descriptions/background

La casa era grande.

The house was big.

4. Time

Eran las ocho.

It was eight o’clock.

5. Age

Tenía quince años.

I was fifteen years old.

6. Weather

Hacía frío.

It was cold.

7. Physical/emotional states

Estaba cansada.

I was tired.

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Imperfect Endings

-AR

hablar

• yo hablaba

• tú hablabas

• él hablaba

• nosotros hablábamos

• vosotros hablabais

• ellos hablaban

-ER/-IR

comer

• comía

• comías

• comía

• comíamos

• comíais

• comían

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🚨 Three irregular imperfect verbs

Only memorize these three:

IR

iba, ibas, iba, íbamos, ibais, iban

SER

era, eras, era, éramos, erais, eran

VER

veía, veías, veía, veíamos, veíais, veían

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🔥 The “Interrupting Action” Rule

This appears constantly.

Usually:

Imperfect = action in progress
Preterite = action that interrupted it

Example:

Yo estudiaba cuando mi madre entró.

I was studying when my mother entered.

estudiaba = ongoing
entró = completed interruption

Another:

Nosotros comíamos cuando sonó el teléfono.

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V. 🔮 El Futuro

The future tense is actually easier than the preterite.

For regular verbs, keep the entire infinitive and add:

é, ás, á, emos, éis, án

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Hablar

hablaré
hablarás
hablará
hablaremos
hablaréis
hablarán

Comer

comeré
comerás
comerá
comeremos
comeréis
comerán

Vivir

viviré
vivirás
vivirá
viviremos
viviréis
vivirán

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🚨 Irregular Future Stems

The endings stay exactly the same.

Tener → tendr-

tendré

Venir → vendr-

vendré

Poner → pondr-

pondré

Salir → saldr-

saldré

Poder → podr-

podré

Saber → sabr-

sabré

Haber → habr-

habrá

Hacer → har-

haré

Decir → dir-

diré

Querer → querr-

querré

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VI. 🧩 Participio Pasado como Adjetivo

The past participle normally means something like:

broken, opened, closed, written, finished, etc.

Regular formation

-AR → -ado

hablar → hablado

-ER/-IR → -ido

comer → comido
vivir → vivido

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When it’s an adjective

It has to agree with the noun.

El libro está cerrado.

La puerta está cerrada.

Los libros están cerrados.

Las puertas están cerradas.

Think:

noun → participle must match

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Important Irregular Participles

Memorize these:

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VII. ✅ Presente Perfecto

The present perfect describes something that has happened/has been done.

Formula:

HABER + PARTICIPIO

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Haber

Examples:

Yo he estudiado.

I have studied.

Ella ha comido.

She has eaten.

Nosotros hemos terminado.

We have finished.

Ellos han escrito.

They have written.

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🚨 Important

Don’t conjugate the participle.

❌ Yo he estudié
❌ Ella ha comió

✅ Yo he estudiado
✅ Ella ha comido

Only haber changes.

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VIII. ⏪ Pluscuamperfecto

The pluperfect is essentially:

“had done”

Formula:

IMPERFECT HABER + PARTICIPLE

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Haber

había
habías
había
habíamos
habíais
habían

Examples:

Yo había estudiado.

I had studied.

Ella había terminado.

She had finished.

Nosotros habíamos comido.

We had eaten.

Ellos habían salido.

They had left.

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Present Perfect vs. Pluperfect

Present perfect

has/have done

He estudiado.

I have studied.

Pluperfect

had done

Había estudiado.

I had studied.

Think:

he → have
había → had

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IX. 🎯 Subjuntivo, Indicativo o Infinitivo

This is another major section.

First ask:

“Who is doing the action?”

If it’s the same person, you often use the infinitive.

Yo quiero estudiar.

I want to study.

If there are two different subjects, you often need que + conjugated verb.

Yo quiero que tú estudies.

I want you to study.

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Indicative

The indicative expresses something presented as a fact, certainty, belief, or known information.

Common triggers:

• creo que

• pienso que

• sé que

• es cierto que

• es verdad que

• estoy seguro/a de que

Example:

Creo que él tiene razón.

I think he is right.

Sé que ella estudia mucho.

I know she studies a lot.

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Subjunctive

The subjunctive is often used for:

Wishes

Quiero que tú vengas.

Emotions

Me alegra que estés aquí.

Doubt

Dudo que él sepa.

Recommendations

Recomiendo que tú estudies.

Necessity

Es necesario que ellos trabajen.

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🧠 WEIRDO

A useful way to remember common subjunctive categories is:

W — Wishes

Quiero que…

E — Emotions

Me alegra que…

I — Impersonal expressions

Es importante que…

R — Recommendations/requests

Recomiendo que…

D — Doubt/denial

Dudo que…

O — Ojalá

Ojalá que…

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🚨 Subjunctive Formation

Start with the yo form of the present tense, remove the -o, then add the opposite endings.

-AR

hablar → hablo → habl-

Add:

e, es, e, emos, éis, en

So:

hable
hables
hable
hablemos
habléis
hablen

-ER/-IR

Add:

a, as, a, amos, áis, an

Example:

comer → como → com-

coma
comas
coma
comamos
comáis
coman

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🚨 Common Subjunctive Irregulars

Ser

sea, seas, sea, seamos, seáis, sean

Ir

vaya, vayas, vaya, vayamos, vayáis, vayan

Estar

esté, estés, esté, estemos, estéis, estén

Saber

sepa, sepas, sepa, sepamos, sepáis, sepan

Dar

dé, des, dé, demos, deis, den

Haber

haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan

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X. 🧠 ¿Subjuntivo o Indicativo?

The biggest thing here is recognizing certainty vs. uncertainty.

Certainty → Indicative

Sé que él es inteligente.

Creo que ella tiene razón.

Doubt/uncertainty → Subjunctive

Dudo que él sea inteligente.

No creo que ella tenga razón.

Notice the difference:

Creo que → indicative
No creo que → subjunctive

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XI. 📖 Comprensión —

La decisión de Fabio

For the reading section, don’t try to translate every single word.

Instead:

Step 1

Read the questions first.

Step 2

Read the passage.

Step 3

Look for words connected to each question.

Step 4

Use surrounding sentences to figure out unfamiliar vocabulary.

Pay attention to:

• Who is Fabio?

• What decision does he have to make?

• What are his choices?

• What is he worried about?

• What does he want?

• What does he ultimately decide?

• Why does he make that decision?

If the question asks why, don’t just give a fact. Give the reason.

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XII. ✍ Ensayo

You need to be prepared to write 1–2 paragraphs.

The safest structure is:

Paragraph structure

1. Opening
Answer the prompt directly.

2. Reason #1
Explain your first point.

3. Example
Give a specific example.

4. Reason #2
Give another reason.

5. Conclusion
Wrap up your answer.

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🔥 Grammar You Should Be Able to Use in the Essay

Try to demonstrate several tenses.

Present

Yo pienso que…

Preterite

El año pasado, participé en…

Imperfect

Cuando era más joven, siempre…

Future

En el futuro, estudiaré…

Present perfect

He aprendido mucho…

Subjunctive

Es importante que los estudiantes tengan…

Using these correctly can make your writing much stronger.

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📝 MASTER CHEAT SHEET

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🚨 LAST-MINUTE PRIORITY LIST

If you don’t have time to study everything equally, focus in this order:

🔴 1. Preterite vs. imperfect

Be able to recognize why one is used.

🔴 2. Subjunctive

Memorize the triggers and formation.

🔴 3. Present perfect + pluperfect

These are formula-based, so they’re easy points if memorized.

🟠 4. Future

Memorize the endings + irregular stems.

🟠 5. Past participles

Especially the irregular ones.

🟡 6. Vocabulary

Review Lessons 3–4 heavily, then Lessons 1–2.

🟡 7. Reading

Practice finding evidence rather than translating everything.

🟡 8. Essay

Have a flexible structure ready and practice using multiple tenses.