coger Present Conjugation
coger — to take
Coger is irregular in the 'yo' form (cojo) but regular for all other persons.
coger Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense for current habits, like taking the train daily, or for picking something up right now.
Notes on coger in the Present
The verb undergoes a 'g' to 'j' spelling change in the 'yo' form (cojo) to maintain the harsh 'h' sound before the letter 'o'. All other forms use 'g'.
Example Sentences
Yo siempre cojo el metro para ir al trabajo.
I always take the subway to go to work.
yo
Él coge su mochila y sale de casa.
He grabs his backpack and leaves the house.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros cogemos sitio en la primera fila.
We are taking seats in the first row.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Writing 'cogo' for the first person.
Correct: The correct form is 'cojo'.
Why: In Spanish, 'go' is pronounced like 'go' in 'gold'. To keep the 'h' sound of 'coger', the 'g' must change to 'j' before an 'o'.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: cogí
The preterite of coger is regular: cogí, cogiste, cogió, cogimos, cogisteis, cogieron.
Imperfect
yo: cogía
The imperfect of coger is regular: cogía, cogías, cogía, cogíamos, cogíais, cogían.
Future
yo: cogeré
The future tense of coger is regular: cogeré, cogerás, cogerá, cogeremos, cogeréis, cogerán.
Conditional
yo: cogería
The conditional of coger is regular: cogería, cogerías, cogería, cogeríamos, cogeríais, cogerían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: coja
The present subjunctive of coger uses 'j' in all forms: coja, cojas, coja, cojamos, cojáis, cojan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cogiera
The imperfect subjunctive of coger is regular based on the preterite: cogiera, cogieras, cogiera, cogiéramos, cogierais, cogieran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: coge
The imperative of coger uses 'g' for 'tú' (coge) and 'j' for 'usted' (coja).
Negative Imperative
yo: no cojas
The negative imperative of coger always uses 'j': no cojas, no coja, no cojamos, no cojáis, no cojan.