Tallar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of tallar — “to carve” 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 tallar 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. Tallar means to carve, to cut wood or stone into a shape. It is used for sculptors, woodworkers and traditional crafts, and it is a fully regular verb. To see it in a real sentence: Tallo la madera con un cuchillo. — “I carve the wood with a knife.” Learn the six forms in the table below, and the present tense of tallar will be ready for everyday conversation.
Present tense conjugation table: tallar
Every person of tallar in the present tense. The gerund is tallando and the past participle is tallado.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | tallo |
| tú | tallas |
| él/ella/Ud. | talla |
| nosotros/as | tallamos |
| vosotros/as | talláis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | tallan |
How the present indicative of tallar is formed
The present indicative of tallar is built from the stem plus the present indicative 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 | tallo |
| tú | -as | tallas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | talla |
| nosotros/as | -amos | tallamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | talláis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | tallan |
Tallar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the table above is completely regular. The stem is tall- and the endings are the normal -ar endings, so once you know the pattern you can produce every form on this page.
The gerund of tallar is tallando and the past participle is tallado. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present tense of tallar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and tallar 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.
Routines and habits
Use the present for things you do regularly, every day or every week. The present is the tense of routine, and tallar fits naturally into daily life.
“Yo tallo la madera con un cuchillo todos los días.” — “I carve the wood with a knife every day.”
General facts
Use the present for facts that are true in general, not just today. When you state how something is, the present is the tense to use.
“Él talla una figura en piedra.” — “He/she carves a figure in stone.”
What is happening right now
Use the present for what is happening at this moment. Spanish often uses the simple present where English uses the progressive, so tallo can mean both “I carve” and “I am carveing”.
“Ahora mismo, yo tallo el tronco del árbol caído.” — “Right now, I carve the trunk of the fallen tree.”
Fixed plans in the near future
Use the present for a plan that is already fixed, such as something arranged for tomorrow. Spanish uses the present for near-future plans much more freely than English does.
“Mañana, yo tallo el jamón en lonchas finas.” — “Tomorrow, I will carve the ham in thin slices.”
Questions and negatives
Use the present to ask about habits and to say what does not happen. The question and the negative use exactly the same forms as the statement.
“¿Tú tallas la madera con un cuchillo?” — “Do you carve the wood with a knife?”
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: Talla una figura en piedra. — “He/she carves a figure in stone.”
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Talló una figura en piedra. — the same idea, placed in the preterite.
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: Tallan el tronco del árbol caído. — “They carve the trunk of the fallen tree.”
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Tallaban el tronco del árbol caído. — the same idea, placed in the imperfect.
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: Tallas el jamón en lonchas finas. — “You carve the ham in thin slices.”
- Future — what will happen: Tallarás el jamón en lonchas finas. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: tallar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show tallar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo tallo la madera con un cuchillo. — “I carve the wood with a knife.”
- Tú tallas una figura en piedra. — “You carve a figure in stone.”
- Él talla el tronco del árbol caído. — “He carves the trunk of the fallen tree.”
- Nosotros tallamos el jamón en lonchas finas. — “We carve the ham in thin slices.”
- Vosotros talláis la madera con un cuchillo. — “You (plural) carve the wood with a knife.”
- Ellos tallan una figura en piedra. — “They carve a figure in stone.”
- ¿Tú tallas el tronco del árbol caído? — “Do you carve the trunk of the fallen tree?”
Common mistakes with tallar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with tallar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ Yo tallar la madera con un cuchillo. (using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form).
✓ Correct: Yo tallo la madera con un cuchillo.
The infinitive is not a conjugated form. With yo, the present tense of tallar is tallo, not the infinitive tallar.
✗ Vosotros tallais la madera con un cuchillo. (forgetting the accent on the vosotros form).
✓ Correct: Vosotros talláis la madera con un cuchillo.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: talláis, not tallais. The accent marks the stressed vowel, and leaving it out is a spelling mistake.
✗ Ayer, yo tallo una figura en piedra. (using the present for a finished past action).
✓ Correct: Ayer, yo tallé una figura en piedra.
The present and the preterite are different tenses: tallo is happening now, while tallé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
✗ Treating tallar and esculpir as identical in every context. (confusing tallar with esculpir).
✓ Correct: Tallar means to carve, while esculpir means to sculpt.
They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: tallar fits sentences such as Tallo la madera con un cuchillo, while esculpir belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Quiz: tallar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of tallar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
1. Which is the correct present tense form of tallar for tú?
- a) tallas
- b) tallo
- c) talla
- d) tallan
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la madera con un cuchillo. — “I carve the wood with a knife.”
- a) talla
- b) tallamos
- c) tallas
- d) tallo
3. Complete the sentence: Él ______ una figura en piedra. — “He/she carves a figure in stone.” (present tense)
- a) tallaba
- b) tallará
- c) talla
- d) talló
4. Which is the correct present tense form of tallar for nosotros?
- a) tallan
- b) tallamos
- c) tallo
- d) talla
5. Which sentence uses tallar correctly in the present tense?
- a) Él talló una figura en piedra.
- b) Él talla una figura en piedra.
- c) Él tallará una figura en piedra.
- d) Ellos talla una figura en piedra.
6. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ el tronco del árbol caído. — “They carve the trunk of the fallen tree.”
- a) tallo
- b) talla
- c) tallamos
- d) tallan
7. Complete the question: ¿Tú ______ el jamón en lonchas finas? — “Do you carve the ham in thin slices?”
- a) talla
- b) tallarás
- c) tallas
- d) tallo
8. What is the gerund of tallar?
- a) tallé
- b) tallando
- c) tallado
- d) tallo
Answer key
a) tallas — The tú form is tallas. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; tallo is yo, talla is él/ella and tallan is ellos/ellas.
d) tallo — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: tallo. The other options are the wrong person.
c) talla — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: talla. The other options are the preterite, the imperfect and the future.
b) tallamos — Nosotros takes tallamos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ar verbs is -amos, attached to the stem.
b) Él talla una figura en piedra. — Él talla una figura en piedra. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) tallan — The subject is ellos/ellas/Uds., so the present form is tallan.
c) tallas — The question needs the tú form in the present: tallas.
b) tallando — The gerund is tallando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle tallado.
Frequently asked questions
Is tallar regular in the present tense?
Yes. Tallar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense, so the forms follow the standard endings: tallo, tallas, talla, tallamos, talláis and tallan.
What is the gerund and the past participle of tallar?
The gerund is tallando and the past participle is tallado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say “I carve” in Spanish?
Say tallo. For example: Tallo la madera con un cuchillo. — “I carve the wood with a knife.”
What is the difference between tallar and esculpir?
Tallar means “to carve”, while esculpir means “to sculpt”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use tallar when you mean “to carve” and esculpir when you mean “to sculpt”. The full conjugation of tallar is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of tallar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- tallar 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.
- Decorar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with tallar.
- Modelar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with tallar.
- Forjar conjugation — another -ar verb to compare with tallar.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise this verb in the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — test yourself on Spanish verbs.