Enfriar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of enfriar — "to cool" 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 enfriar 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. Enfriar means to cool something down: enfriar la bebida, enfriar la sopa. It is also used figuratively: enfriar la relación means for a relationship to cool. With se it means to catch a cold: enfriarse. To see it in a real sentence: Yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera — "I cool the drink in the fridge".
Present tense conjugation table: enfriar
Every person of enfriar in the present tense. The gerund is enfriando and the past participle is enfriado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | enfrío |
| tú | enfrías |
| él/ella/Ud. | enfría |
| nosotros/as | enfriamos |
| vosotros/as | enfriáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | enfrían |
How the present of enfriar is formed
The present of enfriar is built from the stem enfri- plus the present 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 | enfrío |
| tú | -as | enfrías |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | enfría |
| nosotros/as | -amos | enfriamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | enfriáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | enfrían |
The gerund of enfriar is enfriando and the past participle is enfriado. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of enfriar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and enfriar 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 describes things that happen regularly, as a habit or routine.
"Cada día, yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera" — "Every day, I cool the drink in the fridge"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo enfría la sopa con un poco de agua" — "My friend cools the soup with a little water"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo enfrío el motor con aire" — "Right now, I cool the engine with air"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros enfriamos el ambiente de la sala" — "Tomorrow, we cool the atmosphere in the room"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos enfrían la relación entre ambos" — "They cool the relationship between them"
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: {'pre_es': 'Cada día, ', 'pre_en': 'Every day, '}yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera — "I cool the drink in the fridge"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo enfrié la bebida en la nevera — "I cooled the drink in the fridge"
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 enfrías la sopa con un poco de agua — "You cool the soup with a little water"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú enfriabas la sopa con un poco de agua — "You used to cool the soup with a little water"
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: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él enfría el motor con aire — "He cools the engine with air"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él enfriará el motor con aire — "He will cool the engine with air"
Examples: enfriar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show enfriar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera — "I cool the drink in the fridge"
- Tú enfrías la sopa con un poco de agua — "You cool the soup with a little water"
- Él enfría el motor con aire — "He cools the engine with air"
- Nosotros enfriamos el ambiente de la sala — "We cool the atmosphere in the room"
- Vosotros enfriáis la relación entre ambos — "You cool the relationship between them"
- Ellos enfrían la bebida en la nevera — "They cool the drink in the fridge"
- Yo enfrío la sopa con un poco de agua — "I cool the soup with a little water"
Common mistakes with enfriar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with enfriar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo enfrío en la bebida en la nevera.
✓ Correct: Yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera.
enfriar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera.
✗ *Tú enfría la sopa con un poco de agua.
✓ Correct: Tú enfrías la sopa con un poco de agua.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes enfrías, él takes enfría.
✗ *Cada día, yo enfrié el motor con aire
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo enfrío el motor con aire
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros enfriais el ambiente de la sala.
✓ Correct: Vosotros enfriáis el ambiente de la sala.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: enfriáis, not enfriais.
Quiz: enfriar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of enfriar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of enfriar for tú? A. enfriamos B. enfrías C. enfrío D. enfría
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la bebida en la nevera — "I cool the drink in the fridge" (present) A. enfría B. enfriamos C. enfrío D. enfrías
Complete the sentence: Él ______ la sopa con un poco de agua — "He cools the soup with a little water" (present) A. enfría B. enfrío C. enfrías D. enfriamos
Which is the correct present form of enfriar for nosotros? A. enfriamos B. enfrías C. enfría D. enfrían
Which sentence uses enfriar correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo enfriaba el motor con aire B. Mi amigo enfriamos el motor con aire C. Mi amigo enfría el motor con aire D. Mi amigo enfrías el motor con aire
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ el ambiente de la sala — "You cool the atmosphere in the room" (present) A. enfrío B. enfrías C. enfría D. enfriáis
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ la relación entre ambos — "They cool the relationship between them" (present) A. enfrían B. enfrío C. enfrías D. enfría
What is the gerund of enfriar? A. enfriado B. enfrío C. enfrié D. enfriando
Answer key
- enfrías — The tú form in the present is enfrías.
- enfrío — The present form for yo is enfrío.
- enfría — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is enfría.
- enfriamos — The nosotros form in the present is enfriamos.
- Mi amigo enfría el motor con aire — Mi amigo enfría el motor con aire is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- enfriáis — The present form for vosotros/as is enfriáis.
- enfrían — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is enfrían.
- enfriando — The gerund is enfriando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle enfriado.
Frequently asked questions
Is enfriar regular in the present tense?
Yes — in the present tense enfriar follows the regular endings for -ar verbs, as the table above shows.
What is the gerund and the past participle of enfriar?
The gerund is enfriando and the past participle is enfriado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I cool" in the present tense?
Say enfrío. For example: Yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera — "I cool the drink in the fridge".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of enfriar?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo enfrío la bebida en la nevera — "I cool the drink in the fridge". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo enfrié la bebida en la nevera — "Yesterday, I cooled the drink in the fridge". Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once.
Related links
- Full conjugation of enfriar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- enfriar 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.