Enfermar Conjugation in Spanish

enfermar means «to fall ill». It is a regular -ar verb verb, so the tables below show you exactly how it behaves in every tense. On this page you will find the full conjugation of enfermar in all thirteen tenses, notes on when to use each one, example sentences, the mistakes learners make most often, a ten-question quiz and answers to the questions students ask about this verb. For example: «Yo enfermo todos los días» — I fall ill every day.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: enfermar
  • English: to fall ill
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: enfermando
  • Past participle: enfermado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + enfermado)

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for enfermar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from the verified conjugation tables for enfermar. The imperfect subjunctive is shown in its -ra forms; the -se forms use the same stem.

Gerund: enfermando · Past participle: enfermado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo enfermo
tú enfermas
él/ella/Ud. enferma
nosotros/as enfermamos
vosotros/as enfermáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. enferman

The present is the tense you will use most with enfermar. It covers daily routines, permanent facts and actions in progress. Learn the yo form enfermo first, then the tú and él forms, which are the ones that change the stem in stem-changing verbs.

Preterite

Person Form
yo enfermé
tú enfermaste
él/ella/Ud. enfermó
nosotros/as enfermamos
vosotros/as enfermasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermaron

The preterite of enfermar reports what happened. «Ayer yo enfermé por la tarde» places the action firmly in finished time. It is the tense of stories and reports, not of background description.

Imperfect

Person Form
yo enfermaba
tú enfermabas
él/ella/Ud. enfermaba
nosotros/as enfermábamos
vosotros/as enfermabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermaban

The imperfect of enfermar paints the background of a past scene: repeated actions, states and descriptions. «Antes, yo enfermaba todos los días» is the pattern. Pair it with the preterite when one event interrupts another.

Future

Person Form
yo enfermaré
tú enfermarás
él/ella/Ud. enfermará
nosotros/as enfermaremos
vosotros/as enfermaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermarán

The future of enfermar looks forward: what will happen tomorrow, next week or next year. «Mañana yo enfermaré sin falta» is the pattern. Remember that the future can also express probability about the present in Spanish.

Conditional

Person Form
yo enfermaría
tú enfermarías
él/ella/Ud. enfermaría
nosotros/as enfermaríamos
vosotros/as enfermaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermarían

The conditional of enfermar is the tense of «would»: what you would do, what would happen, what you would like. «Si pudiera, yo enfermaría sin dudarlo» shows the pattern. It is built on the infinitive, just like the future.

Present Perfect

Person Form
yo he enfermado
tú has enfermado
él/ella/Ud. ha enfermado
nosotros/as hemos enfermado
vosotros/as habéis enfermado
ellos/ellas/Uds. han enfermado

The present perfect of enfermar says «have done»: the action is finished but its result still matters now. «Hoy yo he enfermado dos veces» is the pattern. Learn the participle enfermado well — every perfect tense depends on it.

Pluperfect

Person Form
yo había enfermado
tú habías enfermado
él/ella/Ud. había enfermado
nosotros/as habíamos enfermado
vosotros/as habíais enfermado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habían enfermado

The pluperfect of enfermar steps one event further back than the preterite. «Antes de salir, yo había enfermado» is the pattern: first this happened, then the story moved on. It is haber in the imperfect plus enfermado.

Future Perfect

Person Form
yo habré enfermado
tú habrás enfermado
él/ella/Ud. habrá enfermado
nosotros/as habremos enfermado
vosotros/as habréis enfermado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrán enfermado

The future perfect of enfermar combines the future of haber with enfermado. «Para el viernes, yo habré enfermado ya» is the pattern. Use it when the completion matters more than the action itself.

Conditional Perfect

Person Form
yo habría enfermado
tú habrías enfermado
él/ella/Ud. habría enfermado
nosotros/as habríamos enfermado
vosotros/as habríais enfermado
ellos/ellas/Uds. habrían enfermado

The conditional perfect of enfermar is the tense of «would have done». «Yo habría enfermado si hubiera podido» is the pattern. It is built from haber in the conditional plus enfermado.

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo enferme
tú enfermes
él/ella/Ud. enferme
nosotros/as enfermemos
vosotros/as enferméis
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermen

The present subjunctive of enfermar is the mood of what is wished, doubted or demanded rather than stated as fact. «Espero que tú enfermes» is the pattern. If the trigger is in the past, switch to the imperfect subjunctive instead.

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)

Person Form
yo enfermara
tú enfermaras
él/ella/Ud. enfermara
nosotros/as enfermáramos
vosotros/as enfermarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermaran

The imperfect subjunctive of enfermar handles the hypothetical past and the polite conditional. «Ojalá yo enfermara más a menudo» is the pattern. The -ra forms in the table are the standard ones; the -se forms use the same stem with -se endings.

Imperative — Affirmative

Person Form
tú enferma
él/ella/Ud. enferme
nosotros/as enfermemos
vosotros/as enfermad
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermen

There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.

The affirmative imperative of enfermar is for orders and instructions. «¡enferma, por favor!» is the pattern. Remember there is no yo form in the imperative, and the nosotros form doubles as a suggestion: «¡enfermemos!» means «let's do it».

Imperative — Negative

Person Form
tú enfermes
él/ella/Ud. enferme
nosotros/as enfermemos
vosotros/as enferméis
ellos/ellas/Uds. enfermen

There is no yo form in the imperative — you cannot command yourself.

The negative imperative of enfermar is built on the present subjunctive: «¡No enfermes!». Learn it as a set with the subjunctive table above, and never follow no with the affirmative command form.

Example sentences

  1. Yo enfermo todos los días. — I fall ill every day.
  2. Ayer yo enfermé por la tarde. — Yesterday I fell ill in the afternoon.
  3. Antes, yo enfermaba todos los días. — In the past, I used to fall ill every day.
  4. Mañana yo enfermaré sin falta. — Tomorrow I will fall ill without fail.
  5. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo enfermaría ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would fall ill right now.
  6. Hoy yo he enfermado dos veces. — Today I have fell ill twice.
  7. Espero que tú enfermes pronto. — I hope You fall ill soon.
  8. Si yo enfermara, todo sería distinto. — If I fell ill, everything would be different.
  9. Ahora mismo yo estoy enfermando. — Right now I am falling ill.
  10. ¡enferma, por favor! — Fall ill, please!

Common mistakes

1. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo enfermaba.

Right: Ayer yo enfermé.

Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, enfermé. The imperfect enfermaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.

2. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

Wrong: Espero que tú enfermas.

Right: Espero que tú enfermes.

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: enfermes, not the indicative enfermas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.

3. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No enferma.

Right: No enfermes.

Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no enfermes. The affirmative enferma can never follow no.

4. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo enfermar todos los días.

Right: Yo enfermo todos los días.

The infinitive enfermar names the action; it never works as the main verb of a sentence. Conjugate it for the person: yo enfermo.

5. Confusing the gerund with the past participle

Wrong: He enfermando.

Right: He enfermado.

The perfect tenses use haber plus the past participle: he enfermado. The gerund enfermando goes with estar for actions in progress («Estoy enfermando»), never with haber.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of enfermar in the present indicative?

- (a) enfermo
- (b) enfermas
- (c) enferma
- (d) enfermamos

2. What is the nosotros/as form of enfermar in the preterite?

- (a) enfermamos
- (b) enfermó
- (c) enfermaste
- (d) enfermé

3. What is the vosotros/as form of enfermar in the imperfect?

- (a) enfermabais
- (b) enfermaba
- (c) enfermabas
- (d) enfermaba

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of enfermar in the future?

- (a) enfermarán
- (b) enfermará
- (c) enfermarás
- (d) enfermaré

5. What is the yo form of enfermar in the conditional?

- (a) enfermarías
- (b) enfermaría
- (c) enfermaríamos
- (d) enfermaría

6. What is the tú form of enfermar in the present perfect?

- (a) he enfermado
- (b) hemos enfermado
- (c) has enfermado
- (d) ha enfermado

7. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of enfermar in the present subjunctive?

- (a) enferme
- (b) enfermemos
- (c) enfermes
- (d) enferme

8. What is the nosotros/as form of enfermar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)?

- (a) enfermara
- (b) enfermáramos
- (c) enfermaras
- (d) enfermara

9. What is the gerund of enfermar?

- (a) enfermar
- (b) enfermado
- (c) enfermando
- (d) enfermo

10. What is the past participle of enfermar?

- (a) enfermé
- (b) enfermado
- (c) enfermar
- (d) enfermando

Answer key

1. (c) — In the present indicative, the él/ella/Ud. form of enfermar is enferma. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (a) — In the preterite, the nosotros/as form of enfermar is enfermamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (a) — In the imperfect, the vosotros/as form of enfermar is enfermabais. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (a) — In the future, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of enfermar is enfermarán. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (b) — In the conditional, the yo form of enfermar is enfermaría. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (c) — In the present perfect, the tú form of enfermar is has enfermado. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 7. (a) — In the present subjunctive, the él/ella/Ud. form of enfermar is enferme. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 8. (b) — In the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms), the nosotros/as form of enfermar is enfermáramos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 9. (c) — The gerund of enfermar is enfermando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy enfermando». 10. (b) — The past participle of enfermar is enfermado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he enfermado».

Frequently asked questions

Is enfermar regular or irregular?

Yes — enfermar is a regular -ar verb. Learn the endings once and they work in every tense, with the stem enferm unchanged throughout.

What are the gerund and past participle of enfermar?

The gerund is enfermando and the past participle is enfermado. Use the gerund with estar for actions in progress («Estoy enfermando») and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses («he enfermado»).

How do I say «I fall ill» in Spanish?

Say «Yo enfermo todos los días». That is the yo form of the present tense, the form you need for talking about yourself right now.

What is the difference between the preterite and the imperfect of enfermar?

Use the preterite (enfermé) for a single finished event and the imperfect (enfermaba) for habits and background. «Ayer yo enfermé» reports something that happened and ended; «Antes, yo enfermaba» describes what used to happen.

When do I use the subjunctive with enfermar?

Use the subjunctive after wishes, doubts, emotions and impersonal expressions — for example «Espero que tú enfermes». The trigger sits in the main clause; once it is there, the subjunctive form is required, not a stylistic choice.

How do I use enfermar in the present perfect?

Put haber in the present before the past participle: «Hoy yo he enfermado». The participle enfermado never changes for person — only haber changes — so once you know the participle, the whole perfect tense follows.

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