Ocurrir Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The present tense of ocurrir — to happen — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. Ocurrir means to happen and to occur: ¿qué ocurre?, ocurrió un accidente. It is regular and mostly used in the third person, in news and formal language. It is more formal than pasar, and it never takes a person as the subject in the sense of something happening to them — for that Spanish uses pasarle a alguien. This page gives you the complete present tense table for ocurrir, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “¿Qué ocurre?” — “What is happening?”.

Present tense conjugation of ocurrir

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for ocurrir. Ocurrir is a regular -ir verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.

Present tense indicative — ocurrir

Person Form
yo ocurro
tú ocurres
él/ella/Ud. ocurre
nosotros/as ocurrimos
vosotros/as ocurrís
ellos/ellas/Uds. ocurren

The gerund of ocurrir is ocurriendo and the past participle is ocurrido. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for the progressive with estar.

How the present tense of ocurrir is formed

For a regular -ir verb, the present tense is built on the stem ocurr- (the infinitive ocurrir without its -ir ending) plus the present tense endings: yo → ocurro, tú → ocurres, él/ella/Ud. → ocurre, nosotros/as → ocurrimos, vosotros/as → ocurrís, ellos/ellas/Uds. → ocurren. So ocurrir gives ocurro, ocurres, ocurre, ocurrimos, ocurrís and ocurren. There is nothing irregular to memorise for this verb in this tense — the endings do all the work, and the stress falls where the endings put it.

A note on spelling: the written accents in this tense are part of the form, not decoration. In the present tense, ocurrís carries an accent, and leaving it out changes the pronunciation and, in writing, marks the form as wrong. Copy the forms from the table above exactly, accents included.

When to use the present tense of ocurrir

1. Habits and routines

Use the present for things you do regularly. For example, with ocurrir: “¿Qué ocurre?” — “What is happening?”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

2. General truths and facts

Use the present for things that are always true. For example, with ocurrir: “Estas cosas ocurren sin avisar.” — “These things happen without warning”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

3. What is happening right now

Use the present for actions in progress at this moment. For example, with ocurrir: “Un accidente ocurre cada día en la carretera.” — “An accident happens on the road every day”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

4. Scheduled plans and the near future

Use the present for fixed plans, especially with a time expression. For example, with ocurrir: “¿Te ocurre a menudo?” — “Does it happen to you often?”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Present vs future: ocurrir now, ocurrir later

The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.

  • Present tense tense: “Hoy ocurre en la oficina.” — “Today it happens in the office.”

  • Future: “Mañana ocurrirá en la oficina.” — “Tomorrow it will happen in the office.”

  • Present tense tense: “Ahora ocurre en la oficina.” — “Right now it happens in the office.”

  • Future: “La semana que viene ocurrirá en la oficina.” — “Next week it will happen in the office.”

  • Present tense tense: “Siempre ocurre en la oficina.” — “It always happens in the office.”

  • Future: “El año que viene ocurrirá en la oficina.” — “Next year it will happen in the office.”

Example sentences: ocurrir in the present tense

Six sentences using only the present tense of ocurrir, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “¿Qué ocurre?” — “What is happening?”
  • “Estas cosas ocurren sin avisar.” — “These things happen without warning.”
  • “Un accidente ocurre cada día en la carretera.” — “An accident happens on the road every day.”
  • “¿Te ocurre a menudo?” — “Does it happen to you often?”
  • “Nos ocurre a todos alguna vez.” — “It happens to all of us sometime.”
  • “El problema ocurre en el sistema.” — “The problem occurs in the system.”

Common mistakes with ocurrir in the present tense

Mistake 1

Wrong: Me ocurre una idea — wrong use of the subject.

Right: Se me ocurre una idea.

Ideas occur with se me ocurre: se me ocurrió una idea, not me ocurre una idea.

Mistake 2

Wrong: ¿Qué ocurre? — learners use pasar for everything.

Right: ¿Qué ocurre?

¿Qué ocurre? is the formal what is happening; ¿qué pasa? is the everyday version.

Quiz: ocurrir in the present tense

Eight questions on the present tense of ocurrir. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of ocurrir in the present tense?

  • A) ocurro
  • B) ocurres
  • C) ocurre
  • D) ocurrimos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is ocurro.

2. What is the tú form of ocurrir in the present tense?

  • A) ocurro
  • B) ocurre
  • C) ocurrimos
  • D) ocurres

Answer: D — The tú form in the present tense is ocurres.

3. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of ocurrir in the present tense?

  • A) ocurres
  • B) ocurrimos
  • C) ocurre
  • D) ocurro

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is ocurre.

4. What is the nosotros/as form of ocurrir in the present tense?

  • A) ocurre
  • B) ocurrimos
  • C) ocurro
  • D) ocurres

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present tense is ocurrimos.

5. Fill in the blank: “¿Qué ___?” (What is happening?)

  • A) ocurre
  • B) ocurro
  • C) ocurres
  • D) ocurrimos

Answer: A — The sentence needs ocurre.

6. Fill in the blank: “Estas cosas ___n sin avisar.” (These things happen without warning.)

  • A) ocurro
  • B) ocurres
  • C) ocurrimos
  • D) ocurre

Answer: D — The sentence needs ocurre.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Me ocurre una idea — wrong use of the subject.
  • B) Se me ocurre una idea.

Answer: B — Ideas occur with se me ocurre: se me ocurrió una idea, not me ocurre una idea.

8. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) ¿Qué ocurre?
  • B) ¿Qué ocurre? — learners use pasar for everything.

Answer: A — ¿Qué ocurre? is the formal what is happening; ¿qué pasa? is the everyday version.

Frequently asked questions

Is ocurrir regular in the present tense?

Yes. ocurrir is a regular -ir verb and its present tense follows the standard endings, so once you know the stem ocurr- you can build all six forms. The only thing to watch is the spelling of the endings themselves, including the accents.

What is the yo form of ocurrir in the present tense?

It is ocurro. The yo form is the one learners use most and the one that most often breaks the pattern — for ocurrir it is the form to learn first, before the rest of the table.

When do I use the present tense of ocurrir instead of the preterite?

Use the present when the action is a habit, a fact, or happening now, and the preterite when it is a finished action in the past. If you can add “yesterday” to the sentence and it still makes sense, you almost certainly need the preterite, not the present.

How can I remember the present tense forms of ocurrir?

Say the six forms aloud in order — ocurro, ocurres, ocurre, ocurrimos, ocurrís, ocurren — three times a day for a week, always in a sentence, never as a bare list. Then use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test yourself, and the full conjugation page for ocurrir to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say what happens every day: “Ocurre…”. Second, say what happened yesterday: “Ayer ocurrió…”. Third, say what will happen tomorrow: “Mañana ocurrirá…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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