Ir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

ir — to go — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Ir means to go, and it is the verb behind the near future: ir a + infinitive (voy a estudiar). Its present (voy, vas, va) comes from Latin vadere and its preterite (fui, fuiste, fue) is shared with ser, so only the context tells them apart. It takes a for destinations: voy a Madrid. On this page you will find ir in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself.

Example sentences with ir

In the present tense

  • “Yo voy a la escuela cada día.” — “I go to school every day.”
  • “Ella va al gimnasio por la tarde.” — “She goes to the gym in the afternoon.”
  • “Nosotros vamos de vacaciones en julio.” — “We go on holiday in July.”
  • “Ellos van al cine los viernes.” — “They go to the cinema on Fridays.”
  • “¿Tú vas a la fiesta esta noche?” — “Are you going to the party tonight?”
  • “Vosotros vais a comprar el pan.” — “You are going to buy the bread.”

In the preterite

  • “Ayer yo fui al mercado.” — “Yesterday I went to the market.”
  • “Ella fue a visitar a su abuela.” — “She went to visit her grandmother.”
  • “Nosotros fuimos a la playa el fin de semana.” — “We went to the beach at the weekend.”
  • “Ellos fueron al concierto anoche.” — “They went to the concert last night.”
  • “¿Tú fuiste a clase ayer?” — “Did you go to class yesterday?”
  • “El tren fue con retraso.” — “The train was delayed.”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect — the four tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “De niño, yo iba a la escuela en Madrid.” — “As a child, I used to go to school in Madrid.”
  • “Mañana, yo iré a la escuela en Madrid.” — “Tomorrow, I will go to school in Madrid.”
  • “Si pudiera, yo iría a la escuela en Madrid.” — “If I could, I would go to school in Madrid.”
  • “Yo he ido a la escuela en Madrid.” — “I have gone to school in Madrid.”

Ir in context

Cada día, yo voy a la escuela en Madrid. Mi amigo también va a la escuela en Madrid cuando tiene tiempo. Después, yo voy a la escuela de nuevo por la tarde. Es una parte normal de mi rutina, y por eso el presente de ir es la primera forma que conviene aprender.

Ayer, yo fui a la escuela en Madrid. Mi amigo fue a la escuela en Madrid también, y por la noche yo fui a la escuela otra vez. Fue un día normal, pero es justo en días así cuando el pretérito de ir aparece una y otra vez: una acción terminada, un momento concreto, y la historia sigue.

Common mistakes with ir

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo voy a la escuela — learners drop the a: voy la escuela.

Right: Yo voy a la escuela.

Ir takes a before a destination: voy a la escuela, never voy la escuela.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Ayer yo fui profesor — confusing ir and ser.

Right: Ayer yo voy al mercado.

Fui is both ir and ser in the preterite; with a destination (al mercado) it can only be ir.

Mistake 3

Wrong: Treating ir as a regular verb.

Right: Learn the irregular forms: present voy, preterite fui.

ir is irregular — its present and preterite do not follow the regular endings, so they have to be memorised as a set.

Quiz: ir in everyday use

Ten questions on ir across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of ir in the present tense?

  • A) voy
  • B) vas
  • C) va
  • D) vamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is voy.

2. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of ir in the present tense?

  • A) voy
  • B) vas
  • C) vamos
  • D) va

Answer: D — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is va.

3. What is the yo form of ir in the preterite?

  • A) fue
  • B) fuimos
  • C) fui
  • D) fuiste

Answer: C — The yo form in the preterite is fui.

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of ir in the preterite?

  • A) fue
  • B) fueron
  • C) fui
  • D) fuiste

Answer: B — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the preterite is fueron.

5. What is the yo form of ir in the imperfect?

  • A) iba
  • B) ibas
  • C) iba
  • D) íbamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the imperfect is iba.

6. What is the tú form of ir in the future?

  • A) iré
  • B) irá
  • C) iremos
  • D) irás

Answer: D — The tú form in the future is irás.

7. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of ir in the conditional?

  • A) irías
  • B) iríamos
  • C) iría
  • D) iría

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the conditional is iría.

8. What is the nosotros/as form of ir in the present perfect?

  • A) ha ido
  • B) hemos ido
  • C) he ido
  • D) has ido

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present perfect is hemos ido.

9. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ a la escuela cada día.” (I go to school every day.)

  • A) voy
  • B) vas
  • C) va
  • D) vamos

Answer: A — The sentence needs voy.

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo voy a la escuela.
  • B) Yo voy a la escuela — learners drop the a: voy la escuela.

Answer: A — Ir takes a before a destination: voy a la escuela, never voy la escuela.

Frequently asked questions

What does ir mean?

ir means “to go” in English. Ir means to go, and it is the verb behind the near future: ir a + infinitive (voy a estudiar). Its present (voy, vas, va) comes from Latin vadere and its preterite (fui, fuiste, fue) is shared with ser, so only the context tells them apart. It takes a for destinations: voy a Madrid.

Is ir regular?

No. ir is an irregular -ir verb (irregular in present, preterite, imperfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative). It is irregular in present, preterite, imperfect, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative, and those forms have to be learnt as a set rather than built by rule. The full conjugation page shows every tense.

When do I use ir in the past — preterite or imperfect?

Use the preterite — fui, fuiste, fue — for a finished action at a specific moment, and the imperfect — iba, ibas, iba — for what was happening, what used to happen, or the background. The same rule applies to ir as to every Spanish verb; the tense changes the meaning, not the verb.

How can I practise ir?

Start with the examples above, say them aloud, then take the quiz on this page. For more practice, use the Spanish Verb Quiz and the Ir Conjugator, and read the full conjugation page for ir to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo voy…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo fui…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo iré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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