How to Say "falling" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “falling” is “cayendo” — use 'cayendo' when referring to the physical act of something or someone moving downwards, or when describing weather phenomena like rain or snow.
cayendo
kah-YEN-dohkaˈʝen.do
Examples
Mira el cielo, la lluvia ya está cayendo.
Look at the sky, the rain is already falling.
Ten cuidado, el niño estuvo cayendo por las escaleras.
Be careful, the child was falling down the stairs.
Forming Progressive Tenses
Use 'cayendo' after a form of 'estar' (to be) to show an action happening right now: 'El libro está cayendo' (The book is falling).
The Irregular 'Y'
When the root of a verb ends in a vowel (like c-a-er), the 'i' of the -iendo ending changes to a 'y' (cayendo). This makes the pronunciation smoother.
Using the wrong gerund form
Mistake: “The rock is falling: *La roca está caíndo* (using -iendo incorrectly).”
Correction: The correct form is *La roca está cayendo*. Remember the vowel change to 'y' after 'a'.
descendiente
des-en-DYEN-tehdesenˈdjente
Examples
Siguieron un camino descendiente hacia el valle.
They followed a descending path toward the valley.
La gráfica muestra una tendencia descendiente en las ventas.
The graph shows a downward trend in sales.
No gender change
Since this adjective ends in -e, it describes both masculine and feminine objects without changing its spelling.
Common Mix-up
Mistake: “Using 'descendiente' for 'descending' in everyday speech.”
Correction: While correct, most natives say 'descendente' for objects or numbers moving down. Use 'descendiente' primarily for people.
Physical Falling vs. Downward Trends
Related Translations
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