The verb poner (conjugation) has a lot of meanings: "to put", "to name", "to place", "to lay", etc. It is also used in the reflexive form ponerse which means "to put on", "to get", "to apply oneself". It is irregular. In the present tense, the ending er changes to go in the (yo) form (first person singular).
yo |
pongo |
(I put) |
tú |
pones |
(you put) |
Ud/él/ella |
pone |
(you/he/she puts) |
nosotros (as) |
ponemos |
(we have) |
vosotros (as) |
ponéis |
(you guys put) |
Uds/ellos/ellas |
ponen |
(you all/they put) |
¿Dónde lo pongo?
Where do I place it?
Tú pones los platos.
You place the dishes.
Él pone los cubiertos.
He puts the silverware.
Nosotras ponemos las botellas.
We (female) put the bottles.
Vosotras ponéis las flores.
You all (female) place the flowers.
Ellos ponen la comida.
They put the food (on the table).
The verbs shown below and other verbs derived from poner also follow the same pattern with the exception of the imperative tense.
componer (conjugation)
imponer (conjugation)
disponer (conjugation)
Expressing “To become”
Ponerse, hacerse, volverse, and convertirse en are some of the expressions that can mean “to become”. Ponerse is used only with adjectives, and expresses a change in a physical or mental state. Hacerse is used with both adjectives and nouns and implies that a personal effort is involved in the change. Volverse is used only with adjectives and implies a complete change. Convertirse en is used with nouns and means to be changed into something.
Ana se puso enojada/triste/cansada.
Ana got upset/sad/tired.
Ellos se hicieron ricos; se hicieron abogados.
They became rich; they became lawyers.
Don Quijote se volvió loco.
Don Quijote went crazy.
Nadie se convirtió en rana.
Nobody turned into a frog.