Torcer Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of torcer — "to twist" 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 torcer 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. Torcer means to twist: torcer el tobillo is to twist your ankle, and torcer el alambre is to bend wire. It is also used for twisting expressions and words: torcer el gesto. To see it in a real sentence: Yo tuerzo el tobillo en el partido — "I twist his ankle in the match".
Present tense conjugation table: torcer
Every person of torcer in the present tense. The gerund is torciendo and the past participle is torcido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | tuerzo |
| tú | tuerces |
| él/ella/Ud. | tuerce |
| nosotros/as | torcemos |
| vosotros/as | torcéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | tuercen |
How the present of torcer is formed
The present of torcer is built from the stem torc- plus the present endings for -er verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -er 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 | tuerzo |
| tú | -es | tuerces |
| él/ella/Ud. | -e | tuerce |
| nosotros/as | -emos | torcemos |
| vosotros/as | -éis | torcéis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -en | tuercen |
The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: tuerzo, tuerces, tuerce and tuercen — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: torcemos, torcéis.
The gerund of torcer is torciendo and the past participle is torcido. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of torcer
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and torcer 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 tuerzo el tobillo en el partido" — "Every day, I twist his ankle in the match"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo tuerce la muñeca al caer" — "My friend twists his wrist when he fell"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo tuerzo el alambre con unas tenazas" — "Right now, I twist the wire with pliers"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros torcemos el gesto con ironía" — "Tomorrow, we twist his expression ironically"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos tuercen la toalla para escurrirla" — "They twist the towel to wring it out"
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 tuerzo el tobillo en el partido — "I twist his ankle in the match"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo torcí el tobillo en el partido — "I twisted his ankle in the match"
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 tuerces la muñeca al caer — "You twist his wrist when he fell"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú torcías la muñeca al caer — "You used to twist his wrist when he fell"
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 tuerce el alambre con unas tenazas — "He twists the wire with pliers"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él torcerá el alambre con unas tenazas — "He will twist the wire with pliers"
Examples: torcer in the present tense
Seven sentences that show torcer in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo tuerzo el tobillo en el partido — "I twist his ankle in the match"
- Tú tuerces la muñeca al caer — "You twist his wrist when he fell"
- Él tuerce el alambre con unas tenazas — "He twists the wire with pliers"
- Nosotros torcemos el gesto con ironía — "We twist his expression ironically"
- Vosotros torcéis la toalla para escurrirla — "You twist the towel to wring it out"
- Ellos tuercen el tobillo en el partido — "They twist his ankle in the match"
- Yo tuerzo la muñeca al caer — "I twist his wrist when he fell"
Common mistakes with torcer in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with torcer in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo torco el tobillo en el partido.
✓ Correct: Yo tuerzo el tobillo en el partido.
torcer is a stem-changing verb (o → ue): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is tuerzo, not torco.
✗ *Tú tuerce la muñeca al caer.
✓ Correct: Tú tuerces la muñeca al caer.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes tuerces, él takes tuerce.
✗ *Cada día, yo torcí el alambre con unas tenazas
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo tuerzo el alambre con unas tenazas
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros torceis el gesto con ironía.
✓ Correct: Vosotros torcéis el gesto con ironía.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: torcéis, not torceis.
Quiz: torcer in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of torcer. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of torcer for tú? A. torcemos B. tuerces C. tuerzo D. tuerce
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el tobillo en el partido — "I twist his ankle in the match" (present) A. tuerce B. torcemos C. tuerzo D. tuerces
Complete the sentence: Él ______ la muñeca al caer — "He twists his wrist when he fell" (present) A. tuerzo B. tuerces C. torcemos D. tuerce
Which is the correct present form of torcer for nosotros? A. torcemos B. tuerces C. tuerce D. tuercen
Which sentence uses torcer correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo torcía el alambre con unas tenazas B. Mi amigo torcemos el alambre con unas tenazas C. Mi amigo tuerce el alambre con unas tenazas D. Mi amigo tuerces el alambre con unas tenazas
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ el gesto con ironía — "You twist his expression ironically" (present) A. tuerce B. torcéis C. tuerzo D. tuerces
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ la toalla para escurrirla — "They twist the towel to wring it out" (present) A. tuerces B. tuerce C. tuercen D. tuerzo
What is the gerund of torcer? A. torcido B. tuerzo C. torcí D. torciendo
Answer key
- tuerces — The tú form in the present is tuerces.
- tuerzo — The present form for yo is tuerzo.
- tuerce — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is tuerce.
- torcemos — The nosotros form in the present is torcemos.
- Mi amigo tuerce el alambre con unas tenazas — Mi amigo tuerce el alambre con unas tenazas is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- torcéis — The present form for vosotros/as is torcéis.
- tuercen — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is tuercen.
- torciendo — The gerund is torciendo. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle torcido.
Frequently asked questions
Is torcer regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: tuerzo, tuerces, tuerce and tuercen — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: torcemos, torcéis. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of torcer?
The gerund is torciendo and the past participle is torcido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I twist" in the present tense?
Say tuerzo. For example: Yo tuerzo el tobillo en el partido — "I twist his ankle in the match".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of torcer?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo tuerzo el tobillo en el partido — "I twist his ankle in the match". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo torcí el tobillo en el partido — "Yesterday, I twisted his ankle in the match". 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 torcer — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- torcer 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.