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2nd Conjugation Verbs

Latin has this nifty way of categorizing things.  Verbs that share the same stem are considered in the same family or conjugation.  What we know so far is that verbs of the 1st conjugation have infinitives that end in -are.  The stem vowel (or the vowel that ends the stem) is -a-.  Think of all the verbs that we know like that

amo, amare

porto, portare

laudo, laudare

Once you remove the -re to find the present stem, all these words end in -a.  A second conjugation verb is only slightly different.  The infinitive ends in --ere and the stem vowel is a long -e-.  This is important because 3rd conjugation verbs end with a short -ere.  Don't get caught here.  All this really means is that this family has a stem of -e-.  Nothing else is particularly different about a 2nd conjugation verb.  The tenses are formed the same way, and you don't translate them any differently.  Let's see how one looks when we conjugate it.

Let's take the verb maneo, manere, mansi = to remain, stay

1. Find the infinitive (Remember, it ends with -re) [manere].
2. Remove the -re (Now you have the present stem) [mane].
3. Add the endings for the tense you need (Present here).

The endings are the same.  To form the future and imperfect, all you have to do is add the same endings as you do for the other verbs.  To see how to conjugate a verb in future or imperfect or perfect click on the appropriate link.