How to Use the Spanish Verb "Dar"

The Spanish verb "dar" means "to give." "Dar " is an irregular verb, meaning it doesn't follow the regular pattern of an -ar verb. This article will show you how to conjugate the verb in the present and past tenses as they would be used when speaking spanish.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. The only thing that is irregular about the verb "dar" in the present tense is its conjugation into "I give". The pattern for a regular -ar verb would be to drop the -ar and simply add "o". However "do" is not a word in the spanish language. Instead the -ar is dropped, and "oy" is added. For example "I give"= "Yo doy". The following list of conjugations are used for the verb "dar" in the present tense:
   
   to give- dar
   I give- yo doy
   you give- tu das
   he/she gives- el/ella da
   we give- nosotros damos
   you all give- vosotros dais
   they give- ellos/ellas dan

2. To conjugate the spanish verb "dar" in the past tense, drop the -ar ending, and add the following endings according to the subject or your sentence:
   
   to give- dar
   I gave- yo di
   you gave- tu diste
   he/she gave- el/ella dio
   we gave- nosotros dimos
   they gave- ellos/ellas dieron

3. To say someone "had given" something, the verb "dar" is still used and conjugated in the form of "dado." The verb "had" is also used as a helping verb, which in spanish is "haber". Conjugate the following past perfect forms of "haber" as instructed below, and add the verb "dado" each time:
   
   had/have given- haber dado
   I had given- yo habia dado
   you had given- tu habias dado
   he/she had given- el/ella habia dado
   we had given- nosotros habiamos dado
   they had given- ellos/ellas habian dado

Tips & Warnings

• There is also a way to conjugate "had given" using a different conjugation of the verb "haber", but it is far less common, and rarely used. Check the resource website listed below to find a listing of that conjugation.