caer Present Conjugation
caer — to fall
Caer is irregular only in the 'yo' form (caigo), while the rest follow normal -er patterns.
caer Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present for things that fall habitually (like leaves in autumn) or to express how someone 'strikes' you (me cae bien).
Notes on caer in the Present
The 'yo' form adds a 'g' (caigo). This is a common pattern for verbs ending in a vowel + er/ir.
Example Sentences
Siempre me caigo en el hielo.
I always fall on the ice.
yo
Esa chica me cae muy bien.
I really like that girl (she strikes me well).
él/ella/usted
Las hojas caen en otoño.
The leaves fall in autumn.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Saying 'yo cao'.
Correct: yo caigo
Why: Caer belongs to the 'g-verb' group in the first person present indicative.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: caí
Caer is irregular in the preterite, featuring a 'y' in the third-person forms (cayó, cayeron) and accents on all other endings.
Imperfect
yo: caía
Caer is regular in the imperfect: caía, caías, caía, caíamos, caíais, caían.
Future
yo: caeré
Caer is regular in the future tense: caeré, caerás, caerá, caeremos, caeréis, caerán.
Conditional
yo: caería
The conditional of caer is regular: caería, caerías, caería, caeríamos, caeríais, caerían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: caiga
The present subjunctive of caer is based on the irregular 'yo' form: caiga, caigas, caiga, etc.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cayera
The imperfect subjunctive uses the 'y' from the preterite: cayera, cayeras, cayera, etc.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: cae
The imperative uses 'cae' for tú and 'caiga' for formal/plural commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no caigas
The negative imperative of caer always uses the present subjunctive forms.