fallar Present Conjugation
fallar — to fail
The present tense of fallar (fallo, fallas, falla, fallamos, falláis, fallan) describes current or habitual failures.
fallar Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense of 'fallar' to talk about failures that happen regularly, are currently happening, or are general truths. It can describe a tendency to fail or a failure occurring right now.
Notes on fallar in the Present
Fallar is regular in the present tense.
Example Sentences
A veces, yo fallo al intentar hacer malabares.
Sometimes, I fail when trying to juggle.
yo
¿Por qué tú siempre fallas en las matemáticas?
Why do you always fail at math?
tú
El sistema a veces falla cuando hay mucha carga.
The system sometimes fails when there's a heavy load.
él/ella/usted
Ellos fallan en su comunicación constantemente.
They fail in their communication constantly.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the present subjunctive instead of the present indicative.
Correct: Use 'Yo fallo' (indicative) for current facts, not 'Yo falle'.
Why: The indicative mood is used for statements of fact, while the subjunctive is for doubt, wishes, etc.
Mistake: Confusing 'fallamos' (present) with 'fallamos' (preterite).
Correct: Context usually clarifies whether 'fallamos' refers to a habitual action (present) or a completed one (preterite).
Why: The nosotros form is identical in both present and preterite tenses for regular -ar verbs.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: fallé
The preterite of fallar is regular: fallé, fallaste, falló, fallamos, fallasteis, fallaron, for completed past actions.
Imperfect
yo: fallaba
The imperfect of fallar (fallaba, fallabas, fallaba, fallábamos, fallabais, fallaban) describes ongoing or habitual past failures.
Future
yo: fallaré
The future tense of fallar (fallaré, fallarás, fallará, fallaremos, fallaréis, fallarán) indicates actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: fallaría
The conditional of fallar (fallaría, fallarías, fallaría, fallaríamos, fallaríais, fallarían) expresses 'would' fail or polite possibilities.
Present Subjunctive
yo: falle
Use the present subjunctive of fallar (falle, falles, falle, fallemos, falléis, fallen) for wishes, doubts, and emotions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: fallara
The imperfect subjunctive (fallara, fallaras, fallara, falláramos, fallarais, fallaran) is for past hypotheticals, wishes, or doubts.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: falla
Use the imperative of fallar for direct commands: falla (tú), falle (usted), fallad (vosotros), fallen (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no falles
Negative commands use 'no' + present subjunctive: no falles (tú), no falle (usted), no falléis (vosotros), no fallen (ustedes).