fortalecer Present Conjugation
fortalecer — to strengthen
Fortalecer is irregular in the 'yo' form (fortalezco), but regular for all other persons in the present tense.
fortalecer Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense to talk about current habits, exercises, or strategies that are strengthening something right now, like a relationship or a muscle.
Notes on fortalecer in the Present
This is a '-cer' verb preceded by a vowel, which means it undergoes a 'c' to 'zc' change only in the first person singular (yo).
Example Sentences
Yo fortalezco mis piernas corriendo cada mañana.
I strengthen my legs by running every morning.
yo
Esta dieta fortalece el sistema inmunológico.
This diet strengthens the immune system.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros fortalecemos nuestra amistad pasando tiempo juntos.
We strengthen our friendship by spending time together.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: yo fortalezco
Correct: yo fortalezco
Why: Learners often forget the 'z' and say 'fortaleco', which is incorrect for verbs ending in -ecer.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: fortalecí
Fortalecer is completely regular in the preterite: fortalecí, fortaleciste, fortaleció, fortalecimos, fortalecisteis, fortalecieron.
Imperfect
yo: fortalecía
The imperfect of fortalecer is regular: fortalecía, fortalecías, fortalecía, fortalecíamos, fortalecíais, fortalecían.
Future
yo: fortaleceré
The future of fortalecer is regular: just add -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án to the infinitive.
Conditional
yo: fortalecería
The conditional of fortalecer is regular: fortalecería, fortalecerías, fortalecería, fortaleceríamos, fortaleceríais, fortalecerían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: fortalezca
The present subjunctive of fortalecer uses the 'fortalezc-' stem for all persons.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: fortaleciera
The imperfect subjunctive of fortalecer is regular: fortaleciera, fortalecieras, fortaleciera, fortaleciéramos, fortalecierais, fortalecieran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: fortalece
The imperative of fortalecer uses 'fortalece' for 'tú' and 'fortalezc-' for formal commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no fortalezcas
All negative commands for fortalecer use the present subjunctive forms with 'no'.