Fallecer Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish
fallecer means "to die, to pass away" in English, and this page shows it in everyday use: real example sentences in several tenses, two short dialogues, the mistakes learners actually make, and a quiz to test yourself. You will see fallecer with the city hospital, home with his family, eighty years old and a long illness — the situations where Spanish speakers really use it. A good first sentence to learn is: Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad. — "I die in the city hospital." Read the examples aloud, notice which tense each one uses, and then try the dialogues and the quiz.
fallecer in everyday sentences
Twelve sentences with fallecer, grouped by situation. Each one shows the verb in a different tense or person, with its English translation and a note on when to use that form.
Everyday use
- Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad. — "I die in the city hospital." The present tense fits a habit here.
- Ayer, yo fallecí en su casa con su familia. — "Yesterday, I died at home with his family." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, yo fallecía a los ochenta años. — "In the past, I used to die at eighty years old." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, nosotros falleceremos tras una larga enfermedad. — "Tomorrow, we will die after a long illness." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Si pudieras, tú fallecerías en el hospital de la ciudad. — "If you could, you would die in the city hospital." The conditional fits something that would happen.
- Yo he fallecido en su casa con su familia. — "I have died at home with his family." The present perfect fits an action with present relevance.
More situations
- Normalmente, él fallece a los ochenta años. — "Normally, he/she dies at eighty years old." The present tense fits a general truth here.
- Ayer, él falleció tras una larga enfermedad. — "Yesterday, he/she died after a long illness." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, nosotros fallecíamos en el hospital de la ciudad. — "In the past, we used to die in the city hospital." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, yo falleceré en su casa con su familia. — "Tomorrow, I will die at home with his family." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Espero que él fallezca a los ochenta años. — "I hope that he/she dies at eighty years old." The present subjunctive follows espero que.
- ¡Fallece tras una larga enfermedad! — "Die after a long illness!" The imperative fits a direct order or request.
The verb in context
Two short dialogues using fallecer naturally. Notice how the verb changes person and tense as the conversation moves, and how the complements stay the same kind of situation: the city hospital, home with his family, eighty years old and a long illness.
Dialogue 1: talking about the city hospital
María: ¿Tú falleces en el hospital de la ciudad? — "Do you die in the city hospital?" Carlos: Sí, yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad. — "I die in the city hospital." María: ¿Y ayer? — "And yesterday?" Carlos: Ayer, yo fallecí en su casa con su familia. — "Yesterday, I died at home with his family." María: Mañana, nosotros falleceremos a los ochenta años. — "Tomorrow, we will die at eighty years old." Carlos: Si pudiera, yo fallecería tras una larga enfermedad. — "If I could, I would die after a long illness." María: Antes, yo fallecía en su casa con su familia. — "In the past, I used to die at home with his family." Carlos: Yo he fallecido en el hospital de la ciudad. — "I have died in the city hospital." María: ¡Fallece a los ochenta años! — "Die at eighty years old!"
In this dialogue fallecer appears in the present, the preterite, the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect. That is the point: one verb, many tenses, and the complement tells you which situation you are in. Try the same dialogue with your own complements.
Dialogue 2: talking about eighty years old
María: Él fallece a los ochenta años. — "he/she dies at eighty years old." Carlos: ¿De verdad? ¿Él fallece a los ochenta años todos los días? — "Really? Does he/she dies at eighty years old every day?" María: Sí, y ellos fallecen tras una larga enfermedad. — "they die after a long illness." Carlos: Ayer, ellos fallecieron a los ochenta años. — "Yesterday, they died at eighty years old." María: Espero que él fallezca tras una larga enfermedad. — "I hope that he/she dies after a long illness." Carlos: Mañana, él fallecerá a los ochenta años. — "Tomorrow, he/she will die at eighty years old." María: Antes, nosotros fallecíamos tras una larga enfermedad. — "In the past, we used to die after a long illness." Carlos: Nosotros fallecemos en el hospital de la ciudad también. — "we die in the city hospital too."
This dialogue shows fallecer in the third person and in the plural, which is where learners most often hesitate. Read it aloud with a partner, swapping the names and the complements for your own life, and the forms will start to feel automatic.
Common mistakes with fallecer
The errors learners actually make with fallecer in everyday use, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why it is wrong.
Mistake 1: Adding a reflexive pronoun that does not belong
- Wrong: Yo me fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad.
- Right: Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad.
- Why: fallecer is not reflexive, so there is no pronoun to add: Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad. is the correct sentence.
Mistake 2: Using the infinitive as a conjugated form
- Wrong: Yo fallecer en el hospital de la ciudad.
- Right: Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad.
- Why: The infinitive fallecer is the dictionary form, not a conjugated form. In a sentence with yo you need the present-tense form fallezco.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo fallezco en su casa con su familia.
- Right: Ayer, yo fallecí en su casa con su familia.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo fallecí en su casa con su familia. — "Yesterday, I died at home with his family."
Mistake 4: Mixing up the gerund and the participle
- Wrong: Estoy fallecido a los ochenta años.
- Right: Estoy falleciendo a los ochenta años.
- Why: After estar you need the gerund falleciendo for the progressive. The participle fallecido goes with haber in the perfect tenses (he fallecido), never after estar.
Mistake 5: Using the él form for nosotros
- Wrong: Nosotros fallece en el hospital de la ciudad.
- Right: Nosotros fallecemos en el hospital de la ciudad.
- Why: The person and the ending must match: nosotros takes fallecemos, while fallece belongs to él and ella.
Quiz: fallecer in use
Test yourself with ten questions on fallecer. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of fallecer in the present tense?
- (a) fallece
- (b) fallecemos
- (c) fallezco
- (d) falleces
Answer: (c) fallezco. The yo form is fallezco.
2. What is the tú form of fallecer in the present tense?
- (a) fallecemos
- (b) falleces
- (c) fallezco
- (d) fallece
Answer: (b) falleces. The tú form is falleces.
3. What is the él/ella form of fallecer in the present tense?
- (a) fallece
- (b) fallezco
- (c) falleces
- (d) fallecemos
Answer: (a) fallece. The él/ella form is fallece.
4. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ en el hospital de la ciudad.
- (a) falleces
- (b) fallece
- (c) fallecemos
- (d) fallezco
Answer: (d) fallezco. The sentence needs the yo form fallezco.
5. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ___ en su casa con su familia.
- (a) falleció
- (b) fallecimos
- (c) fallecí
- (d) falleciste
Answer: (c) fallecí. Ayer needs the preterite, and the yo form is fallecí.
6. Complete the sentence: Antes, yo ___ a los ochenta años.
- (a) fallecíais
- (b) fallecía
- (c) fallecías
- (d) fallecíamos
Answer: (b) fallecía. Antes needs the imperfect, and the yo form is fallecía.
7. Complete the sentence: Mañana, yo ___ tras una larga enfermedad.
- (a) falleceré
- (b) fallecerás
- (c) fallecerá
- (d) falleceremos
Answer: (a) falleceré. Mañana needs the future, and the yo form is falleceré.
8. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ en el hospital de la ciudad.
- (a) he fallecido
- (b) has fallecido
- (c) ha fallecido
- (d) hemos fallecido
Answer: (a) he fallecido. The present perfect uses haber plus the participle: he fallecido.
9. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ a los ochenta años.
- (a) fallezcamos
- (b) fallecáis
- (c) fallezca
- (d) fallezcas
Answer: (c) fallezca. After espero que Spanish needs the subjunctive, and the él form is fallezca.
10. What does fallecer mean in English?
- (a) to frequent
- (b) to light up, to illuminate
- (c) to die, to pass away
- (d) to fracture (a bone)
Answer: (c) to die, to pass away. fallecer means "to die, to pass away" in English.
Frequently asked questions about fallecer
What does fallecer mean?
fallecer means "to die, to pass away" in English. Use it when you talk about the city hospital, home with his family, eighty years old and a long illness — for example: Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad. — "I die in the city hospital."
Is there a reflexive form of fallecer?
No. fallecer is not reflexive, so it is used without a pronoun: Yo fallezco en el hospital de la ciudad. — "I die in the city hospital."
What is the most common mistake with fallecer?
The spelling change. Watch the spelling: the c becomes zc before o and a, so the yo form is fallezco and the subjunctive forms start with zc, for example fallezca. Practise the yo form and the subjunctive forms until they feel automatic, and check them against the table on the conjugation page.
How can I practise fallecer?
Take the quiz above, then make your own sentences: change the person in each example, change the complement to something from your own life, and say the sentence aloud. The verb quiz and the verb translator on this site give you more practice with the same forms.