The preterite of caer is used to express when someone or something fell at a specific moment in the past. For example, when you want to say “I fell while skating yesterday” – “Caí mientras patinaba ayer.”
This is an e to y stem-changing verb in the preterite tense. The stem change occurs only in the third person singular and plural forms (cayó, cayeron), while other forms follow regular patterns.
Conjugations
Conjugations of Caer (to fall) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Yo | caí |
| Tú | caíste |
| Él / Ella / Usted | cayó |
| Nosotros / Nosotras | caímos |
| Vosotros / Vosotras | caísteis |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | cayeron |
Boost Your Memorization with Audio!
We’ve included audio recordings of the the conjugations of Caer (to fall) in the Preterite (Past) Tense to help you learn faster.
Pro Tip: Play the audio on a loop as you study the chart. This repetition will solidify the correct conjugations in your memory.
Usage of Caer in the Preterite (Past) Tense
The Preterite of caer expresses completed instances of falling.
To fall (physical): Describes specific instances of falling, for example Se cayó de la bicicleta (They fell from the bicycle), or Cayó mucha lluvia ayer (A lot of rain fell yesterday).
To drop/decline: Used for decreases or failures, for example Las ventas cayeron el mes pasado (Sales fell last month).
Examples
Examples of Caer in the Preterite (Past) Tense
Me caí de la bicicleta ayer. (I fell from the bicycle yesterday.)
La lluvia cayó toda la noche. (The rain fell all night.)
¿Te caíste en el hielo? (Did you fall on the ice?)
Las hojas cayeron del árbol. (The leaves fell from the tree.)
Se cayó el jarrón y se rompió. (The vase fell and broke.)
Nos caímos en el barro. (We fell in the mud.)
La nieve cayó suavemente. (The snow fell softly.)
¿Dónde te caíste? (Where did you fall?)
Se cayeron todos los libros del estante. (All the books fell from the shelf.)
Me caí por las escaleras. (I fell down the stairs.)
El sol cayó tras las montañas. (The sun fell behind the mountains.)
Se cayó dormido en el sofá. (He fell asleep on the couch.)
Cayeron en la trampa fácilmente. (They fell into the trap easily.)
La moneda cayó al suelo. (The coin fell to the floor.)
Me caí mal ese día. (I felt sick that day.)
Conjugations with English Translations
Conjugations of Caer (to fall) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Yo caí | I fell |
| Tú caíste | You fell |
| Él / Ella / Usted cayó | He / She / You (formal) fell |
| Nosotros / Nosotras caímos | We fell |
| Vosotros / Vosotras caísteis | You all fell |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes cayeron | They / You all (formal) fell |
This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American Spanish, click here
Synonyms
The Preterite tense is also known as the Simple Past, Past Simple, Definite Past, Absolute Past, or Past Tense Indicative in English, and as Pretérito Perfecto Simple, Pretérito Indefinido, Pretérito Simple, Pasado Simple, or Pretérito de Indicativo in Spanish.