Echarse Conjugation in Spanish

The Spanish verb echarse means to lie down, and it is a verb you will use again and again once you know it. Echarse means to lie down, and it is the reflexive partner of echar: echarse una siesta, echarse en el sofá, echarse a dormir. It is fully regular as a verb, and the reflexive pronoun is what turns throwing into lying down. Like every Spanish verb, echarse changes its ending for each person and tense, and this page gives you the complete picture: every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, all from the verified conjugation tables. For example, in the present tense you say me echo una siesta después de comer, and in the preterite you say me eché a dormir temprano. Work through the tables below, read the notes for each tense, and then test yourself with the examples, the common mistakes and the quiz at the end of the page.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: echarse
  • English: to lie down
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb, reflexive
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: echando
  • Past participle: echado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + echado)
  • Reflexive pronouns: me, te, se, nos, os, se — one before every conjugated form, matching the person.

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for echarse, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Echarse is reflexive: me echo una siesta. Without the pronoun, echar means to throw.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for echarse. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem. For reflexive verbs, the pronoun column shows the reflexive pronoun that goes before each form.

Present indicative

Person Pronoun Form
yo me echo
tú te echas
él/ella/Ud. se echa
nosotros/as nos echamos
vosotros/as os echáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echan

Preterite

Person Pronoun Form
yo me eché
tú te echaste
él/ella/Ud. se echó
nosotros/as nos echamos
vosotros/as os echasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echaron

Imperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me echaba
tú te echabas
él/ella/Ud. se echaba
nosotros/as nos echábamos
vosotros/as os echabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echaban

Future

Person Pronoun Form
yo me echaré
tú te echarás
él/ella/Ud. se echará
nosotros/as nos echaremos
vosotros/as os echaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echarán

Conditional

Person Pronoun Form
yo me echaría
tú te echarías
él/ella/Ud. se echaría
nosotros/as nos echaríamos
vosotros/as os echaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echarían

Present perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me he echado
tú te has echado
él/ella/Ud. se ha echado
nosotros/as nos hemos echado
vosotros/as os habéis echado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se han echado

Pluperfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me había echado
tú te habías echado
él/ella/Ud. se había echado
nosotros/as nos habíamos echado
vosotros/as os habíais echado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habían echado

Future perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habré echado
tú te habrás echado
él/ella/Ud. se habrá echado
nosotros/as nos habremos echado
vosotros/as os habréis echado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrán echado

Conditional perfect

Person Pronoun Form
yo me habría echado
tú te habrías echado
él/ella/Ud. se habría echado
nosotros/as nos habríamos echado
vosotros/as os habríais echado
ellos/ellas/Uds. se habrían echado

Present subjunctive

Person Pronoun Form
yo me eche
tú te eches
él/ella/Ud. se eche
nosotros/as nos echemos
vosotros/as os echéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echen

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Person Pronoun Form
yo me echara
tú te echaras
él/ella/Ud. se echara
nosotros/as nos echáramos
vosotros/as os echarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echaran

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te echa
él/ella/Ud. se eche
nosotros/as nos echemos
vosotros/as os echad
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echen

Imperative (negative)

Person Pronoun Form
tú te eches
él/ella/Ud. se eche
nosotros/as nos echemos
vosotros/as os echéis
ellos/ellas/Uds. se echen

Gerund and past participle

Form Spanish Use
Gerund echando with estar for the progressive: estoy echando (or me estoy echando for this reflexive verb)
Past participle echado with haber for the perfect tenses: he echado

How to use each tense

Present indicative

Use the present for routines, general facts and what is happening right now. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the present looks like this in a real sentence: Me echo una siesta después de comer. Learn the present forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Preterite

Use the preterite for finished actions with a clear end, often with ayer, el año pasado or anoche. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the preterite looks like this in a real sentence: Ayer, me eché en el sofá a descansar. Learn the preterite forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect

Use the imperfect for background, habits and actions in progress in the past, often with de niño, antes or mientras. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the imperfect looks like this in a real sentence: De niño, me echaba a dormir temprano. Learn the imperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future

Use the future for plans, predictions and promises, often with mañana, el año que viene or pronto. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the future looks like this in a real sentence: Mañana, me echaré un rato en la cama. Learn the future forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional

Use the conditional for polite requests, hypotheticals and what would happen, often with si clauses. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the conditional looks like this in a real sentence: Me echaría una siesta después de comer si pudiera. Learn the conditional forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present perfect

Use the present perfect for recent actions and experiences, often with hoy, esta semana or ya. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the present perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Hoy, me he echado en el sofá a descansar. Learn the present perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Pluperfect

Use the pluperfect when one past action happened before another past action. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the pluperfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me había echado a dormir temprano antes de salir. Learn the pluperfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Future perfect

Use the future perfect for something that will already be finished by a future time. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the future perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Para mañana, me habré echado un rato en la cama. Learn the future perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Conditional perfect

Use the conditional perfect for what would have happened under different conditions. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the conditional perfect looks like this in a real sentence: Me habría echado una siesta después de comer con más tiempo. Learn the conditional perfect forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Present subjunctive

Use the present subjunctive after expressions of wish, doubt, emotion and hope, such as espero que or quiero que. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the present subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Espero que él se eche en el sofá a descansar. Learn the present subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperfect subjunctive (-ra)

Use the imperfect subjunctive after past wishes and in si clauses about the past, and note the -ra forms shown here; the -se forms use the same stem. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the imperfect subjunctive looks like this in a real sentence: Si él se echara a dormir temprano, todo cambiaría. Learn the imperfect subjunctive forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (affirmative)

Use the affirmative imperative for direct commands, instructions and invitations. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the affirmative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: Que se eche un rato en la cama. Learn the affirmative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Imperative (negative)

Use the negative imperative, always with no, to tell someone not to do something. For this verb the tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard endings for its verb class. For echarse, the negative imperative looks like this in a real sentence: No te eches una siesta después de comer. Learn the negative imperative forms in the table above alongside this example, and notice how the ending, not the stem, usually carries the meaning of the tense.

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with echarse, covering different tenses and persons. Each one uses a form from the tables above.

  1. Me echo una siesta después de comer. — I lie down for a nap after lunch.
  2. Se echa en el sofá a descansar. — He/she lies down on the sofa to rest.
  3. Ayer, me eché a dormir temprano. — Yesterday, I lay down to sleep early.
  4. Antes, nosotros nos echábamos un rato en la cama. — Before, we used to lie down in bed for a while.
  5. Mañana, tú te echarás una siesta después de comer. — Tomorrow, you will lie down for a nap after lunch.
  6. Yo me echaría en el sofá a descansar si tuviera más tiempo. — I would lie down on the sofa to rest if I had more time.
  7. Él se ha echado a dormir temprano. — He has lain down to sleep early.
  8. Espero que él se eche un rato en la cama. — I hope he lies down in bed for a while.
  9. Yo ya me había echado una siesta después de comer antes de salir. — I had already lain down for a nap after lunch before leaving.
  10. Ellos se echaban en el sofá a descansar cuando eran jóvenes. — They used to lie down on the sofa to rest when they were young.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo echo una siesta después de comer. — Right: Yo me echo una siesta después de comer. — Echarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Ayer yo echo en el sofá a descansar. — Right: Ayer yo eché en el sofá a descansar. — The present and the preterite are different tenses: echo is happening now, while eché is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
  3. Wrong: Treating echarse and acostarse as identical in every context. — Right: Echarse means to lie down, while acostarse means to go to bed for the night. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: echarse fits sentences such as Me echo una siesta después de comer, while acostarse belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy echado en el sofá a descansar. — Right: Yo he echado en el sofá a descansar. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he echado, has echado, ha echado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo eché a dormir temprano todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo echaba a dormir temprano todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (echaba), not the preterite. The preterite (eché) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on echarse. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ una siesta después de comer. (present tense) A. me echo B. te echas C. se echa D. nos echamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, él ___ en el sofá a descansar. (preterite) A. me eché B. te echaste C. se echaron D. se echó

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ___ a dormir temprano. (imperfect) A. te echabas B. se echaban C. nos echábamos D. me echaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ___ un rato en la cama. (future) A. nos echaremos B. te echarás C. me echaré D. se echará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ una siesta después de comer si pudiera. (conditional) A. me echaría B. te echarías C. se echaría D. se echarían

  6. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ en el sofá a descansar. (present subjunctive) A. me eche B. te eches C. nos echemos D. se eche

  7. Complete the sentence: Si yo ___ a dormir temprano, todo cambiaría. (imperfect subjunctive, -ra form) A. se echara B. nos echáramos C. me echara D. te echaras

  8. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ un rato en la cama. (present perfect) A. se han echado B. nos hemos echado C. me he echado D. te has echado

  9. Complete the command: No ___ una siesta después de comer. (negative imperative, tú) A. te eches B. se eche C. nos echemos D. os echéis

  10. Which is the gerund of echarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. echado B. echo C. eché D. echando

Answer key

  1. me echo — The first-person present of echarse is me echo. The other options are the tú, él/ella and nosotros forms.
  2. se echó — The third-person preterite of echarse is se echó, the form for a single finished action in the past.
  3. nos echábamos — The nosotros imperfect of echarse is nos echábamos, used here for a repeated past habit.
  4. te echarás — The second-person future of echarse is te echarás.
  5. me echaría — The first-person conditional of echarse is me echaría, the form for what would happen.
  6. se eche — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the third-person present subjunctive of echarse is se eche.
  7. me echara — The first-person imperfect subjunctive (-ra) of echarse is me echara.
  8. nos hemos echado — The nosotros present perfect of echarse is nos hemos echado: hemos + echado.
  9. te eches — The negative tú imperative uses the present subjunctive form with no before it: te eches.
  10. echando — The gerund of echarse is echando: estoy echando. The participle echado is used with haber instead.

Frequently asked questions

What does echarse mean in English?

Echarse means to lie down. It is used in everyday situations such as Me echo una siesta después de comer. The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

Is echarse a reflexive verb?

Yes. Echarse is reflexive, so it always takes a reflexive pronoun that matches the person: me, te, se, nos, os or se. For example, Me echo una siesta después de comer and él se echa en el sofá a descansar. If you leave the pronoun out, the verb changes meaning or stops making sense.

What is the difference between echarse and acostarse?

Echarse means to lie down, while acostarse means to go to bed for the night. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use echarse when you mean to lie down, as in Me echo una siesta después de comer, and use acostarse for to go to bed for the night. When in doubt, check the object of the sentence — it usually shows which verb fits.

How do I say “I lie down” in the past?

It depends on the kind of past. For one finished action, use the preterite: yo me eché en el sofá a descansar. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: yo me echaba a dormir temprano. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: yo me he echado en el sofá a descansar.

How do I practise echarse?

Start with the present tense table, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the echarse examples and quiz page for more sentences, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure.

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