soler Present Conjugation
soler — to usually do
The present tense of soler is a stem-changer (o > ue) used to describe habits: suelo, sueles, suele, solemos, soléis, suelen.
soler Present Forms
When to Use the Present
Use the present tense to talk about things you generally or usually do in your current life. It is almost always followed by an infinitive (e.g., 'suelo correr').
Notes on soler in the Present
Soler is a radical-changing verb where the 'o' becomes 'ue' in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Example Sentences
Suelo desayunar café con tostadas.
I usually have coffee and toast for breakfast.
yo
¿A qué hora sueles acostarte?
What time do you usually go to bed?
tú
Solemos ir a la montaña los fines de semana.
We usually go to the mountains on weekends.
nosotros
Ellos suelen llegar tarde a las reuniones.
They usually arrive late to meetings.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'soler' alone without an infinitive.
Correct: Always follow it with an infinitive, like 'Suelo leer' instead of just 'Suelo'.
Why: Soler is a helper verb that describes the frequency of another action.
Mistake: Saying 'suelo de' + infinitive.
Correct: Suelo comer.
Why: Unlike 'tratar de' or 'acabar de', soler connects directly to the infinitive.
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Related Tenses
Preterite
yo: solí
The preterite of soler (solí, soliste...) is rare because 'usually' conflicts with the preterite's specific timeframe.
Imperfect
yo: solía
The imperfect of soler is regular (solía, solías...) and is the most common way to describe past habits.
Future
yo: soleré
The future of soler (soleré, solerás...) is regular and describes habits you expect to form.
Conditional
yo: solería
The conditional of soler (solería, solerías...) is regular and describes hypothetical habits.
Present Subjunctive
yo: suela
The present subjunctive of soler (suela, suelas...) maintains the o > ue stem change.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: soliera
The imperfect subjunctive of soler (soliera, solieras...) is regular and used for past or hypothetical habits.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: suele
The imperative of soler (suele, soled...) is grammatically possible but almost never used in real life.
Negative Imperative
yo: no suelas
The negative imperative of soler (no suelas, no suela...) uses the present subjunctive forms.