Hey it’s Professor Dave, let’s conjugate some more verbs.
We learned about the verbs in the first conjugation, which are verbs that end in ARE, so let’s
learn about the verbs that end in ERE, also known as the second conjugation.
The endings are not that different from the first batch, but there are a few differences
to keep in mind.
Let’s start by conjugating the verb scrivere, which means to write.
Notice here that the word ends in E, rather than in A like the first conjugation.
So things are nearly the same except for a couple letters.
Next, remember how with the first conjugation, when the ending of a verb changed such that
the sound of a consonant changed, that we would add an H?
So io gioco, but tu giochi, with the H added so that the hard C sound can be maintained.
This applied to verbs ending in CARE and GARE.
In the second and third conjugations, we will not make any such compensation, we will simply
allow the word to be pronounced as it presents itself.
So for leggere, which means to read, we get:
So it’s a hard G sound when followed by the O, but a soft G sound when followed by
the I, as we remember from our discussion of phoenetics.
More examples of this are as follows.
Now that we know the rules, let’s go over some common verbs in the second conjugation.
We’ve already mentioned these four.
Now let’s use these verbs to build a few sentences.
How would we say: They sell the car.
How about this one: You guys spend too much money.
I think you’ve got the hang of it, so let’s check comprehension.