The preterite of caerse is used to express a specific instance of falling in the past. For example, you might say “I fell on the ice yesterday,” describing a single, completed action of falling.

This is an irregular reflexive verb, which means you must use reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, etc.) with each conjugation. The verb follows an irregular pattern in the preterite tense.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Caerse (to fall) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The Preterite of caerse expresses completed actions of falling in the past.

To fall down: Physical falling, for example Me caí de la bicicleta (I fell off the bicycle).

To drop accidentally: Unintentional dropping, for example Se me cayó el teléfono (I accidentally dropped my phone).

To collapse: Structural falling, for example El edificio se cayó durante el terremoto (The building collapsed during the earthquake).

Examples

Examples of Caerse in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Me caí de la bicicleta. (I fell off the bicycle.)

El vaso se cayó y se rompió. (The glass fell and broke.)

¿Te caíste en el hielo? (Did you fall on the ice?)

Nos caímos durante la caminata. (We fell during the hike.)

Las hojas se cayeron de los árboles. (The leaves fell from the trees.)

Mi teléfono se cayó al agua. (My phone fell in the water.)

Me caí por las escaleras. (I fell down the stairs.)

El cuadro se cayó de la pared. (The painting fell off the wall.)

¿Por qué te caíste? (Why did you fall?)

Nos caímos en el lodo. (We fell in the mud.)

Los libros se cayeron del estante. (The books fell off the shelf.)

Me caí jugando fútbol. (I fell while playing soccer.)

La lluvia se cayó con fuerza. (The rain fell heavily.)

Te caíste dormido durante la película. (You fell asleep during the movie.)

Las estrellas se cayeron del cielo. (The stars fell from the sky.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Caerse (to fall) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian 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.