Calmarse Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of calmarse — "to calm down" 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 calmarse 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. Calmarse means "to calm down" — after anger, after fear, after bad news. It is the reflexive partner of calmar (to calm someone down): la música me calma (the music calms me) versus me calmo con música (I calm down with music). It is also used for the sea calming down (el mar se calma) and for pain easing (el dolor se calma). It is a regular -ar verb: me calmo, te calmas, se calma, nos calmamos, os calmáis, se calman. The phrase cálmate (calm down) is the imperative form, and no te calmes is its negative. To see it in a real sentence: Yo me calmo después de discutir. — "I calm down after arguing.".
Present tense conjugation table: calmarse
Every person of calmarse in the present tense. The gerund is calmándose and the past participle is calmado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | me calmo |
| tú | te calmas |
| él/ella/Ud. | se calma |
| nosotros/as | nos calmamos |
| vosotros/as | os calmáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | se calman |
How the present indicative of calmarse is formed
The present indicative of calmarse is built from the stem calm- plus the present indicative endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar 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 | me calmo |
| tú | -as | te calmas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | se calma |
| nosotros/as | -amos | nos calmamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | os calmáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | se calman |
calmarse is a reflexive verb, so every form carries a reflexive pronoun in front of it: me, te, se, nos, os, se. The verb itself is a regular -ar verb built on the stem calm-, so the only extra work is matching the pronoun to the person — me calmo for yo, te calmas for tú, se calma for él/ella, nos calmamos for nosotros, os calmáis for vosotros and se calman for ellos/ellas. The pronoun always goes before the conjugated verb in the present tense. The gerund is calmándose, with the pronoun attached to the end, and the past participle is calmado.
The gerund of calmarse is calmándose and the past participle is calmado. 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 calmarse
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and calmarse 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.
Calming down after anger
The present describes calming that happens now, after an argument.
"Yo me calmo después de discutir." — "I calm down after arguing."
Calming down with music
Calmarse con + noun names what helps you calm down.
"Tú te calmas con música." — "You calm down with music."
The sea calming down
Calmarse describes the sea or the weather settling.
"El mar se calma por la tarde." — "The sea calms down in the afternoon."
Pain easing
El dolor se calma is the standard phrase for pain easing.
"El dolor se calma con la medicina." — "The pain eases with the medicine."
Calming down slowly
The present states a general habit of calming slowly.
"Nosotros nos calmamos poco a poco." — "We calm down little by little."
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: Yo me calmo respirando hondo. — "I calm down by breathing deeply."
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Yo me calmé respirando hondo. — the same idea, placed in the preterite.
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add "used to" in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: Tú te calmas con un paseo. — "You calm down with a walk."
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Tú te calmabas con un paseo. — the same idea, placed in the imperfect.
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: Ella se calma hablando con su amiga. — "She calms down by talking to her friend."
- Future — what will happen: Ella se calmará hablando con su amiga. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: calmarse in the present tense
Seven sentences that show calmarse in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo me calmo respirando hondo. — "I calm down by breathing deeply."
- Tú te calmas con un paseo. — "You calm down with a walk."
- Ella se calma hablando con su amiga. — "She calms down by talking to her friend."
- Nosotros nos calmamos en el parque. — "We calm down in the park."
- Vosotros os calmáis con té. — "You calm down with tea."
- Ellos se calman después del partido. — "They calm down after the match."
- El bebé se calma con su madre. — "The baby calms down with his mother."
Common mistakes with calmarse in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with calmarse in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo calmo después de discutir (dropping the pronoun).
✓ Correct: Yo me calmo después de discutir.
Calmarse is reflexive: me calmo. Yo calmo means "I calm (someone else) down".
✗ *Tú calmas con música (missing te).
✓ Correct: Tú te calmas con música.
The pronoun is obligatory: te calmas, not calmas.
✗ *Nosotros calmamos poco a poco (missing nos).
✓ Correct: Nosotros nos calmamos poco a poco.
Again, the pronoun is part of the verb: nos calmamos.
✗ *Vosotros calmáis con té (missing os).
✓ Correct: Vosotros os calmáis con té.
Vosotros needs os: os calmáis. And calmáis carries the written accent on the á.
Quiz: calmarse in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of calmarse. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
1. Which is the correct present tense form of calmarse for tú?
- a) me calmo
- b) te calmas
- c) se calman
- d) se calma
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ respirando hondo. — "I calm down by breathing deeply."
- a) se calman
- b) me calmo
- c) te calmas
- d) me calmé
3. Complete the sentence: Tú ______ con música. — "You calm down with music."
- a) te calmaste
- b) nos calmamos
- c) se calma
- d) te calmas
4. Which is the correct present tense form of calmarse for nosotros?
- a) nos calmamos
- b) te calmas
- c) se calman
- d) me calmo
5. Which sentence uses calmarse correctly in the present tense?
- a) Ella se calmó hablando con su amiga.
- b) Ella te calmas hablando con su amiga.
- c) Ella se calma hablando con su amiga.
6. Which is the correct present tense form of calmarse for yo, including the reflexive pronoun?
- a) me calmo
- b) calmo
- c) se calma
- d) te calmas
7. Complete the sentence: El dolor ______ con la medicina. — "The pain eases with the medicine."
- a) se calman
- b) se calmó
- c) se calma
- d) me calmo
8. What is the gerund of calmarse?
- a) calmamos
- b) calmándose
- c) calmandose
- d) calmado
Answer key
b) te calmas — The tú form is te calmas. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; me calmo is yo, se calma is él/ella and se calman is ellos/ellas.
b) me calmo — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: me calmo. The other options are the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) te calmas — The subject is tú, so the present form is te calmas.
a) nos calmamos — Nosotros takes nos calmamos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ar verbs is -amos, attached to the stem calm-.
c) Ella se calma hablando con su amiga. — Ella se calma hablando con su amiga. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
a) me calmo — Reflexive verbs need the pronoun: me calmo. Without me the verb means something else, and the other options belong to different persons.
c) se calma — The subject is él/ella/Ud., so the present form is se calma.
b) calmándose — The gerund is calmándose. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle calmado.
Frequently asked questions
Is calmarse regular in the present tense?
The verb itself is regular — it is a normal -ar verb — but it is reflexive, so every form carries a pronoun: me calmo, te calmas, se calma, nos calmamos, os calmáis and se calman. The pronoun is part of the verb, not an optional extra.
What is the gerund and the past participle of calmarse?
The gerund is calmándose and the past participle is calmado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I to calm down" in Spanish?
Say me calmo. For example: Yo me calmo respirando hondo. — "I calm down by breathing deeply.".
What is the difference between calmarse and enojarse?
calmarse means "to calm down", while enojarse means "to get angry". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use calmarse when you mean "to calm down" and enojarse when you mean "to get angry". The full conjugation of enojarse is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of calmarse — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- calmarse examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.