Fracasar Conjugation in Spanish

Learning to conjugate fracasar — «to fail» — opens up a whole set of sentences you will use every day. It is a regular -ar verb verb, and this page covers it completely: thirteen tenses, the gerund fracasando and the past participle fracasado, example sentences in every tense, the common mistakes and a quiz with an answer key. A good first sentence to learn is «Yo fracaso todos los días» — I fail every day. Once you can say that, the rest of the table falls into place person by person.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: fracasar
  • English: to fail
  • Verb type: regular -ar verb
  • Ending: -ar
  • Gerund: fracasando
  • Past participle: fracasado
  • Auxiliary verb: haber (all perfect tenses are formed with haber + fracasado)

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

Full conjugation tables

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

Gerund: fracasando · Past participle: fracasado

Present Indicative

Person Form
yo fracaso
tú fracasas
él/ella/Ud. fracasa
nosotros/as fracasamos
vosotros/as fracasáis
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasan

Use the present of fracasar for things that happen regularly and for things that are true in general. The yo form fracaso is the anchor of the table: the other persons follow the regular -ar endings from it. When you talk about yourself right now, this is the form you need.

Preterite

Person Form
yo fracasé
tú fracasaste
él/ella/Ud. fracasó
nosotros/as fracasamos
vosotros/as fracasasteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasaron

Use the preterite of fracasar for a single finished event: something that happened once and is over. The yo form is fracasé. If you can put a finished time expression with it — ayer, la semana pasada, anoche — the preterite is usually right.

Imperfect

Person Form
yo fracasaba
tú fracasabas
él/ella/Ud. fracasaba
nosotros/as fracasábamos
vosotros/as fracasabais
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasaban

Use the imperfect of fracasar for what used to happen and for what was going on when something else happened. The yo form is fracasaba. If the action has no clear beginning or end in the story, the imperfect is the right choice.

Future

Person Form
yo fracasaré
tú fracasarás
él/ella/Ud. fracasará
nosotros/as fracasaremos
vosotros/as fracasaréis
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasarán

Use the future of fracasar for plans, promises and predictions. The yo form is fracasaré, built on the infinitive plus the future endings. For a firm plan, the future sounds more formal than ir a + infinitive; for a casual plan, either works.

Conditional

Person Form
yo fracasaría
tú fracasarías
él/ella/Ud. fracasaría
nosotros/as fracasaríamos
vosotros/as fracasaríais
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasarían

Use the conditional of fracasar for hypothetical situations and for softening requests. The yo form is fracasaría. It appears after si-clauses with the imperfect subjunctive and on its own for polite suggestions.

Present Perfect

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

Use the present perfect of fracasar for recent events with present relevance. The yo form is he fracasado — haber in the present plus fracasado. Time expressions like hoy, esta semana and últimamente are its natural partners.

Pluperfect

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

Use the pluperfect of fracasar when you need two layers of past: one event already finished before another past event began. The yo form is había fracasado. It is the tense of «had already done».

Future Perfect

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

Use the future perfect of fracasar to say that something will be finished by a future moment. The yo form is habré fracasado. It pairs naturally with deadlines: para mañana, para el viernes, para entonces.

Conditional Perfect

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

Use the conditional perfect of fracasar for the past that did not happen: what would have been done with more time or a different choice. The yo form is habría fracasado. It follows si-clauses with the pluperfect subjunctive.

Present Subjunctive

Person Form
yo fracase
tú fracases
él/ella/Ud. fracase
nosotros/as fracasemos
vosotros/as fracaséis
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasen

Use the present subjunctive of fracasar when the main clause expresses a wish, a doubt, an emotion or an impersonal judgement. The yo form is fracase. After espero que, ojalá que and no creo que, the subjunctive is required, not optional.

Imperfect Subjunctive (-ra forms)

Person Form
yo fracasara
tú fracasaras
él/ella/Ud. fracasara
nosotros/as fracasáramos
vosotros/as fracasarais
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasaran

Use the imperfect subjunctive of fracasar after past-tense wishes and doubts, and in si-clauses that set up a hypothetical present. The yo form is fracasara. It is built on the third-person plural preterite stem, which is why it looks different from the present subjunctive.

Imperative — Affirmative

Person Form
tú fracasa
él/ella/Ud. fracase
nosotros/as fracasemos
vosotros/as fracasad
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasen

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

Use the affirmative imperative of fracasar to tell someone to do something: instructions, invitations and requests. The tú form is fracasa. For a polite command, use the usted form fracase instead of the tú form.

Imperative — Negative

Person Form
tú fracases
él/ella/Ud. fracase
nosotros/as fracasemos
vosotros/as fracaséis
ellos/ellas/Uds. fracasen

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

Use the negative imperative of fracasar to forbid or to warn: «¡No fracases!». The tú form is fracases, taken from the present subjunctive. The word no always comes first, and the form never changes for emphasis.

Example sentences

  1. Yo fracaso todos los días. — I fail every day.
  2. Ayer yo fracasé por la tarde. — Yesterday I failed in the afternoon.
  3. Antes, yo fracasaba todos los días. — In the past, I used to fail every day.
  4. Mañana yo fracasaré sin falta. — Tomorrow I will fail without fail.
  5. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo fracasaría ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would fail right now.
  6. Hoy yo he fracasado dos veces. — Today I have failed twice.
  7. Espero que tú fracases pronto. — I hope You fail soon.
  8. Si yo fracasara, todo sería distinto. — If I failed, everything would be different.
  9. Ahora mismo yo estoy fracasando. — Right now I am failing.
  10. ¡fracasa, por favor! — Fail, please!

Common mistakes

1. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo fracasaba.

Right: Ayer yo fracasé.

Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, fracasé. The imperfect fracasaba 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 fracasas.

Right: Espero que tú fracases.

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

3. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No fracasa.

Right: No fracases.

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

4. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo fracasar todos los días.

Right: Yo fracaso todos los días.

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

5. Confusing the gerund with the past participle

Wrong: He fracasando.

Right: He fracasado.

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

Quiz

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

1. What is the vosotros/as form of fracasar in the present indicative?

- (a) fracasáis
- (b) fracasas
- (c) fracasa
- (d) fracaso

2. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of fracasar in the preterite?

- (a) fracasaron
- (b) fracasaste
- (c) fracasó
- (d) fracasé

3. What is the yo form of fracasar in the imperfect?

- (a) fracasabas
- (b) fracasábamos
- (c) fracasaba
- (d) fracasaba

4. What is the tú form of fracasar in the future?

- (a) fracasará
- (b) fracasarás
- (c) fracasaremos
- (d) fracasaré

5. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of fracasar in the conditional?

- (a) fracasaría
- (b) fracasaríamos
- (c) fracasarías
- (d) fracasaría

6. What is the nosotros/as form of fracasar in the present perfect?

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

7. What is the vosotros/as form of fracasar in the present subjunctive?

- (a) fracase
- (b) fracase
- (c) fracases
- (d) fracaséis

8. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of fracasar in the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms)?

- (a) fracasara
- (b) fracasaran
- (c) fracasara
- (d) fracasaras

9. What is the gerund of fracasar?

- (a) fracasar
- (b) fracasado
- (c) fracaso
- (d) fracasando

10. What is the past participle of fracasar?

- (a) fracasando
- (b) fracasado
- (c) fracasé
- (d) fracasar

Answer key

1. (a) — In the present indicative, the vosotros/as form of fracasar is fracasáis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (a) — In the preterite, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of fracasar is fracasaron. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (c) — In the imperfect, the yo form of fracasar is fracasaba. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (b) — In the future, the tú form of fracasar is fracasarás. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (a) — In the conditional, the él/ella/Ud. form of fracasar is fracasaría. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (d) — In the present perfect, the nosotros/as form of fracasar is hemos fracasado. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 7. (d) — In the present subjunctive, the vosotros/as form of fracasar is fracaséis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 8. (b) — In the imperfect subjunctive (-ra forms), the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of fracasar is fracasaran. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 9. (d) — The gerund of fracasar is fracasando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy fracasando». 10. (b) — The past participle of fracasar is fracasado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he fracasado».

Frequently asked questions

Is fracasar regular or irregular?

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

What are the gerund and past participle of fracasar?

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

How do I say «I fail» in Spanish?

Say «Yo fracaso 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 fracasar?

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

When do I use the subjunctive with fracasar?

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

How do I use fracasar in the present perfect?

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

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