7.1: Vos
- Page ID
- 209751
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While much of the Spanish-speaking world uses "tú" to address someone informally, another option exists in much of the Americas: the "vos" form. As shown in the map below, in some countries, such as Argentina, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, & Uruguay, "vos" is the more common or the only way to address someone. In others, such as Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, & Venezuela, both "vos" and "tú" may be used.
It is important to note that the "vos" form can vary in conjugation across countries and regions; the remainder of this page will describe this form as it exists in normative Rioplatense (Argentina) Spanish. For more information, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voseo
Vos vs tú
In nearly all verb tenses, "vos" and "tú" share the same conjugation; the exceptions to this are the present indicative, affirmative commands, and some pronouns.
Indicativo
Presente
To form the present indicative, drop the -r from the infinitive and add an -s, which creates the need for a written accent on the final vowel (pensar → pensás; poner → ponés; decir → decís). There are three irregular verbs: haber (has), ir (vas), and ser (sos).
Pretérito
In Rioplatense (Argentina) Spanish, the most common practice is for vos to follow the same preterite conjugations as "tú", including all irregulars: hablar → hablaste; beber → bebiste; vivir → viviste; ser → fuiste; poner → pusiste; etc.
In some regions, the form may also have an added "s" on the end: hablastes, bebistes, vivistes, etc. There may be some stigma associated with this form.
Imperfecto
In Rioplatense (Argentina) Spanish, vos follows the same imperfect conjugations as "tú", including all irregulars: hablar → hablabas; beber → bebías; vivir → vivías; ir → ibas; ser → eras; ver → veías; etc.
Mandatos
Recall that for informal commands such as "vos", the command form is different depending on whether the command is affirmative (i.e. telling someone "yes, do this") or negative (i.e. telling them "no, don't do this").
Affirmative vos commands, used only in parts of America for informal situations, simply drop the -r from the infinitive, which creates the need for a written accent (poner → poné). There is only one irregular: for ir affirmative commands, use either the tú form (ve), or switch to andar (andá).
Negative vos commands, like all other negative commands, use the present subjunctive.
Mandatos & pronombres
When attaching a single pronoun to the end of affirmative vos commands, the accent mark gets removed. It reappears if two pronouns are added together:
- Comé la manzana. >> Comela.
- Decí la verdad. >> Decime la verdad. >> Decímela.
The table below summarizes both the affirmative and negative forms of vos commands.
Formas de los mandatos |
||
| affirmative | negative | |
| vos |
-á, -é, -í hablá, comé, viví, traé, jugá, oí |
present subjunctive*: no hables, no comas, no vivas, no traigas, no juegues, no oigas |
| *Remember, the vos form can vary across regions. This text uses the vos form following normative Rioplatense (Argentina) Spanish, in which vos has the same present subjunctive form as tú. For more information, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voseo#Subjunctive | ||
This section incorporates some information from 52. El modo imperativo / Commands by Enrique Yepes, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA
Subjuntivo
Presente del subjuntivo
In Rioplatense (Argentina) Spanish, the most common practice is for vos to follow the same present subjunctive conjugations as "tú", including all irregulars: hablar → hables; beber → bebas; vivir → vivas; dormir → duermas; poner → pongas; etc.
While other forms do exist in the region as well, there may be some stigma associated with their use. For more information, see https://en.wikiGpedia.org/wiki/Voseo#Subjunctive
Pronombres
| Subject Pronoun | Vos | Ejemplo: Vos querés comer. |
| Direct / Indirect Object / Reflexive Pronoun | Te |
Ejemplo: Te quiero (a vos). Ejemplo: ¿Querés el regalo? Te lo doy. Ejemplo: Te lavás la cara cada noche. |
| After a preposition | Vos |
Ejemplo: Te quiero a vos y por eso quiero estar con vos. |