Anochecer Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of anochecer — "to get dark, nightfall" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for anochecer with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Anochecer means to get dark or nightfall, and it describes night falling over a city or a valley, usually in the third person: anochece a las nueve, anocheció antes de llegar. It is a -cer spelling-change verb, and it is the opposite of amanecer. To see it in a real sentence: Él anochece a las nueve en verano. — "He/she gets dark at nine in summer." Work through the table below, then the formation notes, the usage rules and the contrast with the preterite, and test yourself at the end.

Present tense conjugation table: anochecer

Every person of anochecer in the present tense. The gerund is anocheciendo and the past participle is anochecido.

Present indicative

Person Form
yo anochezco
tú anocheces
él/ella/Ud. anochece
nosotros/as anochecemos
vosotros/as anochecéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. anochecen

How the present indicative of anochecer is formed

The present indicative of anochecer is built from the stem anochec- plus the present endings for -er verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -er ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.

Person Ending Form
yo -o anochezco
tú -es anocheces
él/ella/Ud. -e anochece
nosotros/as -emos anochecemos
vosotros/as -éis anochecéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. -en anochecen

anochecer is a spelling-change verb: c becomes zc before o and a. That is why the written form changes in some persons — the sound stays the same, and only the spelling adapts. In this tense, watch the first-person form anochezco in particular.

The gerund of anochecer is anocheciendo and the past participle is anochecido. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.

When to use the present tense of anochecer

The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and anochecer appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.

Habits and routines

The present tense describes things you do regularly. If you do it every day, every week or every morning, the present is the tense to use. For anochecer, this use looks like this: "Yo anochezco a las nueve en verano." — "I get dark at nine in summer." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

General facts

The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. It is the tense for definitions and permanent situations. For anochecer, this use looks like this: "Él anochece muy pronto en diciembre." — "He/she gets dark very early in December." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

What is happening now

The present tense also covers what is happening at this moment, especially with verbs that describe an action in progress. For anochecer, this use looks like this: "Nosotros anochecemos sobre la ciudad en silencio." — "We get dark over the city in silence." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

Timetables and schedules

The present tense is used for fixed plans and timetables, such as trains, classes and opening times, even when they refer to the future. For anochecer, this use looks like this: "Ellos anochecen antes de llegar a casa." — "They get dark before getting home." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

Instructions and requests

The present tense appears in instructions and polite requests, where it sounds softer than a direct command. For anochecer, this use looks like this: "Tú anocheces a las nueve en verano." — "You get dark at nine in summer." Notice how the present form carries the time meaning on its own, without any extra word for the tense.

The present tense vs the preterite

Learners often mix up the present and the preterite with anochecer. The rule is simple: the present is for habits, facts and what is happening now, while the preterite is for one finished action in the past. The three pairs below show the same idea in both tenses, so you can feel the difference.

Pair 1: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Yo anochezco a las nueve en verano." — "I get dark at nine in summer."
  • Preterite: "Yo anochecí a las nueve en verano." — "I got dark at nine in summer." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Pair 2: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Él anochece muy pronto en diciembre." — "He/she gets dark very early in December."
  • Preterite: "Él anocheció muy pronto en diciembre." — "He/she got dark very early in December." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Pair 3: present vs preterite

  • Present: "Nosotros anochecemos sobre la ciudad en silencio." — "We get dark over the city in silence."
  • Preterite: "Nosotros anochecimos sobre la ciudad en silencio." — "We got dark over the city in silence." The first sentence uses the present because it describes a habit or a present fact; the second uses the preterite because it describes a finished action. The verb is the same — only the tense changes the meaning.

Example sentences in the present tense

Eight natural sentences with anochecer in the present tense only. Each one uses a form from the table above.

  1. Yo anochezco a las nueve en verano. — I get dark at nine in summer.
  2. Tú anocheces muy pronto en diciembre. — You get dark very early in December.
  3. Él anochece sobre la ciudad en silencio. — He/she gets dark over the city in silence.
  4. Nosotros anochecemos antes de llegar a casa. — We get dark before getting home.
  5. Vosotros anochecéis a las nueve en verano. — You all get dark at nine in summer.
  6. Ellos anochecen muy pronto en diciembre. — They get dark very early in December.
  7. Yo anochezco sobre la ciudad en silencio. — I get dark over the city in silence.
  8. Él anochece antes de llegar a casa. — He/she gets dark before getting home.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo anocheco muy pronto en diciembre. — Right: Yo anochezco muy pronto en diciembre. — In the present, the correct first-person form is anochezco, not anocheco. anochecer is a spelling-change verb: c becomes zc before o and a, so the written form changes to keep the same sound. The regular-looking form is wrong.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo anochezco sobre la ciudad en silencio. — Right: Ayer, yo anochecí sobre la ciudad en silencio. — Ayer means yesterday, so it needs the preterite (anochecí), not the present (anochezco). The present is for now, not for yesterday.
  3. Wrong: Yo anochece a las nueve en verano. — Right: Yo anochezco a las nueve en verano. — The person matters: anochece is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is anochezco.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy anochecido muy pronto en diciembre. — Right: Yo he anochecido muy pronto en diciembre. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he anochecido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

Quiz: test yourself

Eight questions on the present tense of anochecer. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a las nueve en verano. (present tense) A. anochezco B. anocheces C. anochece D. anochecemos

  2. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ muy pronto en diciembre. (present tense) A. anocheces B. anochezco C. anochece D. anochecemos

  3. Complete the sentence: Él ___ sobre la ciudad en silencio. (present tense) A. anochece B. anochezco C. anocheces D. anochecemos

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ antes de llegar a casa. (present tense) A. anochecemos B. anochezco C. anocheces D. anochece

  5. Complete the sentence: Vosotros ___ a las nueve en verano. (present tense) A. anochecéis B. anochezco C. anocheces D. anochece

  6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ___ muy pronto en diciembre. (present tense) A. anochecen B. anochezco C. anocheces D. anochece

  7. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ sobre la ciudad en silencio. (present tense) A. anochezco B. anocheces C. anochece D. anochecemos

  8. Complete the sentence: Él ___ antes de llegar a casa. (present tense) A. anochece B. anochezco C. anocheces D. anochecemos

Answer key

  1. anochezco — The yo present form of anochecer is anochezco. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  2. anocheces — The tu present form of anochecer is anocheces. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  3. anochece — The el present form of anochecer is anochece. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  4. anochecemos — The nosotros present form of anochecer is anochecemos. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  5. anochecéis — The vosotros present form of anochecer is anochecéis. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  6. anochecen — The ellos present form of anochecer is anochecen. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  7. anochezco — The yo present form of anochecer is anochezco. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.
  8. anochece — The el present form of anochecer is anochece. The other options are the other persons of the same tense.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present tense of anochecer?

Use the present tense of anochecer for habits, facts and what is happening now. For example: Yo anochezco a las nueve en verano. — "I get dark at nine in summer." The usage rules above give five situations with examples.

How is the present tense of anochecer formed?

Take the stem anochec- and add the present endings for -er verbs. The full table is at the top of this page. Remember the spelling change: c becomes zc before o and a.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of anochecer?

The present describes a habit or a present fact, while the preterite describes a finished action. Compare Yo anochezco muy pronto en diciembre. with Yo anochecí muy pronto en diciembre. — the verb is the same, but the time meaning changes.

How do I practise the present tense of anochecer?

Drill the six forms in the table above until you can say them without looking, then use the anochecer examples and quiz page for more sentences, and test yourself with the Anochecer conjugation page for the full picture across all tenses.

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