Spanish grammar lessons › Level A2 › Verbs, Tenses & Conjugation

acabar de, volver a, soler, empezar a + infinitive

Acabo de llegar, volvió a llamar, suelo cenar, empecé a estudiar

Part of the free A2 Spanish course. Press the speaker next to an example to hear it.

A periphrasis is a verb plus an infinitive (the -ar/-er/-ir form) that work together as one idea. You already know ir a + infinitive (Ir and ir a + infinitive (plans)) and tener que + infinitive (Obligation: tener que, hay que). These four are just as common, and each needs its little word (de, a) in the right place.

Periphrasis	Meaning	Example
acabar de + inf.	to have just done	Acabo de llegar.
volver a + inf.	to do again	Volvió a llamar.
soler + inf.	to usually do	Suelo cenar tarde.
empezar a + inf.	to start doing	Empecé a correr.
dejar de + inf.	to stop doing	Dejó de fumar.

Acabar de: something has just happened

Use the present of acabar for "have just", and the imperfect for "had just".

Acabo de hablar con tu madre.I've just spoken to your mother.
Mis amigos acaban de llegar al aeropuerto.My friends have just arrived at the airport.

Acabar without de means "to finish": Acabé el libro = I finished the book.

Volver a: again

Volver a + infinitive is a very natural way to say "again" (adding otra vez also works).

Mi hermano volvió a perder las llaves.My brother lost his keys again.

Soler: usually

Soler is a stem-changer (o → ue): suelo, sueles, suele, solemos, soléis, suelen. In the imperfect, solía means "used to". It is not normally used in the preterite or the future.

Suelo desayunar en casa.I usually have breakfast at home.
¿Qué sueles hacer los domingos?What do you usually do on Sundays?
De joven, mi padre solía correr por el parque.When he was young, my father used to run in the park.

Empezar a and dejar de: starting and stopping

Empezar changes e → ie in the present (empiezo) and has empecé in the preterite (Preterite stem and spelling changes: pidió, durmió, busqué, leyó). Comenzar a means the same.

Empecé a estudiar español hace un año.I started studying Spanish a year ago.
De repente empezó a llover.Suddenly it started to rain.
Mi tía dejó de fumar en 2018.My aunt stopped smoking in 2018.

Pronouns

A pronoun can go before the whole group or on the end of the infinitive: Lo acabo de ver = Acabo de verlo. See Where pronouns go: before the verb, or attached.

Latin America

All of these are used everywhere. Where Spain says Acabo de comer, speakers in parts of Latin America (for example Argentina, Chile or Peru) also say Recién comí (I just ate).

Common mistakes

~~Acabo llegar~~ → Acabo de llegar. Don't drop de.
~~Empecé estudiar~~ → Empecé a estudiar. Don't drop a.
~~Suelo a ir~~ → Suelo ir. Soler takes no preposition.
~~Volví llamar~~ → Volví a llamar.
~~He justo comido~~ for "I've just eaten" → Acabo de comer.

Practice

No tengo hambre. _____ de comer.
I'm not hungry. I've just eaten.
Show the answer
acabo
El autobús acaba _____ salir.
The bus has just left.
Show the answer
de
Los sábados _____ levantarme tarde.
On Saturdays I usually get up late.
Options: suelo · solo · suelo a
Show the answer
suelo — Soler + infinitive with no preposition.
¿Vosotros _____ (soler) cenar tarde?
Do you (all) usually have dinner late?
Show the answer
soléis — In the vosotros form, soler does not change its stem: soléis.

In the app, this lesson is taught one idea at a time with the examples read aloud, followed by questions that explain the rule when you get one wrong. It then comes back for review on later days, until you've answered it correctly on three separate days.

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