Let’s get back on the horse: Conjugation of the verb Caer
Of all the verbs, there is one that teaches us a lot: the verb Caer. Today we are going to learn how to conjugate and use this verb in Spanish. Caer is a verb that can be complex to understand if you are just starting out with the language. It can be translated as “to fall”, but things get a little tricky if we go deeper. Enough introductions, let’s get down to business!
Is it Caer or Caerse?
There is a confusion between the verb Caer and the verb Caerse and although today we will not cover all the uses of the verb Caer, we will talk about the most common ones so that you never fall into this mistake. Remember that the verb Caerse is used to talk about loss (usually accidental) of balance (usually accidental) or support, and is almost always used with people. On the other hand, the verb Caer is used if.
- Something/someone falls due to an external cause (to fall), for example: La casa se cayó cuando el terremoto ocurrió – The house fell down when the earthquake happened.
- You understand something (to realize), as in: Caí en cuenta de lo que me decías muy tarde – I realized what you were telling me too late.
- You want to talk about compatibility with someone or something (to get along, to be ok, to like), such as: Mi profesora de español me cae muy bien – I really like my Spanish teacher.
Verbals of Caer
Caer, like all verbs, has three types of verbals: infinitive, gerund and participle. These words, unlike the verb, cannot be conjugated, since they cease to be a verb. Identifying whether you are in front of a verbal or not is simple, you just have to see if there is another verb that has been conjugated, and you are probably in front of one.
| Verbal | Common use | Example | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | caer (to fall / falling) | Non conjugated / Noun | Levantarse es lo más importante al caer | Getting up is the most important thing when falling |
| Gerund | cayendo (falling) | Adverb | Está cayendo mucha nieve | A lot of snow is falling |
| Participle | caído (down) | Adjective | El sistema está caído, lo siento | The system is down, sorry |
Caer, caigo, cayó
A stem-changing verb is characterized by changes in its stem (raíz) when conjugated. Another name for this type of verb? Irregular verb. Caer irregularity is manifested in the last vowel of the verb. Or, to make it clearer for you, the verb goes from having an “E” at the end, to having an “I” (or sometimes a “Y”). Now that you know that, let’s move on to the conjugations!
Caer Conjugation: Indicative Mood
Most of the things we say are things that we believe to be true or that we categorize as facts. That’s why the indicative mood in Spanish is the most commonly used and usually the first one you learn. It has two forms, the simple form (just the verb) and the compound form (when the auxiliary verb Haber is used).
Simple Tenses of the Indicative Mood
| Subject | Present | Preterite | Imperfect | Conditional | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (fall) | (fell) | (fell) | (would fall) | (will fall) | |
| yo | caigo | caí | caía | caería | caeré |
| tú | caes | caíste | caías | caerías | caerás |
| él/ella/ usted | cae | cayó | caía | caería | caerá |
| nosotros | caemos | caímos | caíamos | caeríamos | caeremos |
| ellos/ellas/ ustedes | caen | cayeron | caían | caerían | caerán |
Examples
- Yo le caía bien a tu mama hasta que empezamos a salir – Your mom liked me until we started dating.
- Ustedes también caerían si una ola de ese tamaño les golpea – You too would fall if a wave of that size hits you.
Compound Tenses of the Indicative Mood
| Subject | Present Perfect | Preterite Perfect | Past Perfect (Pluperfect) | Conditional Perfect | Future Perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (have/has fallen) | (had fallen) | (had fallen) | (would have fallen) | (will have fallen) | |
| yo | he caído | hube caído | había caído | habría caído | habré caído |
| tú | has caído | hubiste caído | habías caído | habrías caído | habrás caído |
| él/ella/usted | ha caído | hubo caído | había caído | habría caído | habrá caído |
| nosotros | hemos caído | hubimos caído | habíamos caído | habríamos caído | habremos caído |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han caído | hubieron caído | habían caído | habrían caído | habrán caído |
Caer Conjugation: Subjunctive Mood
You could say that the subjunctive mood is the opposite of the indicative mood, since it does not deal with things that are (or we believe) real, but with things that are not actually happening, but that we want or think will happen, i.e. wishes or assumptions.
Simple Tenses of the Subjunctive Mood
| Subject | Present | Imperfect | Imperfect 2 | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | caiga | cayera | cayese | cayere |
| tú | caigas | cayeras | cayeses | cayeres |
| él/ella/usted | caiga | cayera | cayese | cayere |
| nosotros | caigamos | cayéramos | cayésemos | cayéremos |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | caigan | cayeran | cayesen | cayeren |
Examples
- No dejes que caigan en esa trampa – Don’t let them fall into that trap.
- Era más probable que cayésemos, no teníamos buen agarre – We were likely to fall, we didn’t have a good grip.
Compound Tenses of the Subjunctive Mood
| Subject | Present Perfect | Past Perfect (Pluperfect) | Past Perfect 2 (Pluperfect 2) | Future Perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | haya caído | hubiera caído | hubiese caído | hubiere caído |
| tú | hayas caído | hubieras caído | hubieses caído | hubieres caído |
| él/ella/usted | haya caído | hubiera caído | hubiese caído | hubiere caído |
| nosotros | hayamos caído | hubiéramos caído | hubiésemos caído | hubiéremos caído |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan caído | hubieran caído | hubiesen caído | hubieren caído2 |
Caer Conjugation: Imperative Mood
Let’s look at the conjugations of the mood with which we express ourselves when giving advice, an order, as well as with which we give instructions or make a request. Pros? Fewer people to learn, only one verb tense. Cons? None!
Imperative Mood’s Conjugations
| Subject | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| (fall/let’s fall) | (don’t fall/let’s not fall) | |
| tú | cae | no caigas |
| nosotros | caigamos | no caigamos |
| ustedes | caigan | no caigan |
Example:
- ¡No caigas en eso! Es un error – Don’t fall for it! It is a mistake.
Caer – Quiz/Worksheet
Learning without practicing is like dropping a valuable object just before you get to the place where you were supposed to deliver it, so let’s put into practice what you have learned today.
1. La última vez que comí allí, me _______ mal la comida. – The last time I ate there, the food made me sick.
2. ¿ _______ en la tentación de ver la serie sin mí? – Did you fall into the temptation of watching the series without me?
3. Las acciones han _______ desde que renunció el CEO – The stock has fallen since the CEO resigned.
4. _______ en suponer cosas no está bien – Falling for the assumptions is not right.
5. Ojalá _______ la lluvia, el calor está horrible – I wish the rain would come, the heat is horrible.
Answers
1. cayó
2. caíste
3. caído
4. caer
5. cayera
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