callar Present Conjugation
callar — to be silent
The present tense of callar is regular: callo, callas, calla, callamos, calláis, callan.
callar Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense to describe a current state of silence or the habit of staying quiet in certain situations. It is often used when asking someone to be quiet or describing a personality trait.
Notes on callar in the Present
Callar is a completely regular -ar verb in the present tense; it follows the standard pattern without any stem changes.
Example Sentences
Yo siempre callo cuando el profesor habla.
I am always silent when the teacher speaks.
yo
Tú callas lo que sabes por miedo.
You keep quiet about what you know out of fear.
tú
Ellos callan la verdad para protegerte.
They keep the truth quiet to protect you.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'callo' when you mean 'cayo'.
Correct: Use 'callo' for silence; 'cayo' is a small island or a form of 'caer'.
Why: The double 'll' and 'y' are pronounced similarly in many regions, leading to spelling confusion.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: callé
The preterite of callar is regular: callé, callaste, calló, callamos, callasteis, callaron.
Imperfect
yo: callaba
The imperfect of callar is regular: callaba, callabas, callaba, callábamos, callabais, callaban.
Future
yo: callaré
The future of callar is regular: callaré, callarás, callará, callaremos, callaréis, callarán.
Conditional
yo: callaría
The conditional of callar is regular: callaría, callarías, callaría, callaríamos, callaríais, callarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: calle
The present subjunctive of callar is regular: calle, calles, calle, callemos, calléis, callen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: callara
The imperfect subjunctive of callar is regular: callara, callaras, callara, calláramos, callarais, callaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: calla
The imperative of callar uses calla (tú), callad (vosotros), and subjunctive forms for others.
Negative Imperative
yo: no calles
The negative imperative of callar uses 'no' plus the present subjunctive forms.