The following group of -ir verbs undergo the same spelling change in the preterite. The o in the stem, that is, the front part of the infinitive which precedes the ending –ir, changes into u in the third person singular and the third person plural of the preterite. In all the other persons, the stem remains unchanged.
Pay careful attention to their conjugations. Notice the parts that change in the stem (in red), the parts that stay regular in the stem (in blue), and the endings common to –ir verbs in the preterite (in black).
Also, notice the stressed vowel “í” in the first person singular, and the stressed vowel “ó” in third person singular.
Spelling change: o —> u
Andrés durmió todo el día.
Andrés slept all day.
Anoche Quique no durmió nada.
Last night Quique didn’t sleep a wink.
Dormirse always means to fall asleep.
No se durmieron hasta las cuatro de la madrugada.
They didn’t fell asleep until four in the morning.
Los niños se durmieron enseguida.
The kids fell asleep right away.
Note: Dormir and dormirse cannot be used interchangeably.
El famoso actor murió/se murió anoche en el hospital.
The famous actor died last night at the hospital.
El escritor murió/se murió de repente a los noventa y tres años.
The writer died suddenly at age 93.
Diez personas murieron en un accidente de tráfico.
Ten people died/ were killed in a car accident.
El conductor murió en el acto.
He driver died/was killed instantly.
Morir por + [something]
Murieron por sus creencias.
They died for their beliefs.
Morir + [participle]
--Morir ahogado
Él capitan del barco murió ahogado.
The captain of the ship drowned.
--Morir asesinado
Los insurgentes murieron asesinados.
The rebels were murdered.
--Su madre murió arruinada.
Her mother died penniless.
Morir + de + [algo]
--morir de hambre/de frío
El escalador murió de hambre/de frío.
The climber died of hunger/starved to death/freezed to death.
--morir de viejo/de muerte natural
Mi abuela murió de vieja/de muerte natural.
My grandmother died of old age/of natural causes.
--morir + de + [una enfermedad]
Mi padre murió de cáncer/de un infarto.
My father died from cancer/from a heart attack.
a) Morirse + por + [infinitive]
Me muero por verte.
I’m dying/I can’t wait to see you.
Morirse + por + [algo]
Me muero por un helado.
I’m dying for an icecream.
Morirse + por + [alguien]
Me muero por esa chica.
I am mad about that girl.
Pay careful attention to their conjugations. Notice the parts that change in the stem (in red), the parts that stay regular in the stem (in blue), and the endings common to –ir verbs in the preterite (in black).
Also, notice the stressed vowel “í” in the first person singular, and the stressed vowel “ó” in third person singular.
Spelling change: o —> u
| Dormir(se) | Morir(se) | |||
| me | dormí | morí | ||
| te | dormiste | moriste | ||
| se | durmió | murió | ||
| nos | dormimos | morimos | ||
| os | dormisteis | moristeis | ||
| se | durmieron | murieron |
DORMIR vs DORMIRSE
Dormir always means to sleep.Andrés durmió todo el día.
Andrés slept all day.
Anoche Quique no durmió nada.
Last night Quique didn’t sleep a wink.
Dormirse always means to fall asleep.
No se durmieron hasta las cuatro de la madrugada.
They didn’t fell asleep until four in the morning.
Los niños se durmieron enseguida.
The kids fell asleep right away.
Note: Dormir and dormirse cannot be used interchangeably.
MORIR vs MORIRSE
Morir and morirse can be used interchangeably in the following examples:El famoso actor murió/se murió anoche en el hospital.
The famous actor died last night at the hospital.
El escritor murió/se murió de repente a los noventa y tres años.
The writer died suddenly at age 93.
MORIR
Morir is always used in the following contexts:Diez personas murieron en un accidente de tráfico.
Ten people died/ were killed in a car accident.
El conductor murió en el acto.
He driver died/was killed instantly.
Morir por + [something]
Murieron por sus creencias.
They died for their beliefs.
Morir + [participle]
--Morir ahogado
Él capitan del barco murió ahogado.
The captain of the ship drowned.
--Morir asesinado
Los insurgentes murieron asesinados.
The rebels were murdered.
--Su madre murió arruinada.
Her mother died penniless.
Morir + de + [algo]
--morir de hambre/de frío
El escalador murió de hambre/de frío.
The climber died of hunger/starved to death/freezed to death.
--morir de viejo/de muerte natural
Mi abuela murió de vieja/de muerte natural.
My grandmother died of old age/of natural causes.
--morir + de + [una enfermedad]
Mi padre murió de cáncer/de un infarto.
My father died from cancer/from a heart attack.
MORIRSE
Morirse is always used in the following contexts.a) Morirse + por + [infinitive]
Me muero por verte.
I’m dying/I can’t wait to see you.
Morirse + por + [algo]
Me muero por un helado.
I’m dying for an icecream.
Morirse + por + [alguien]
Me muero por esa chica.
I am mad about that girl.