Tropezar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of tropezar — "to trip, to stumble" 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 tropezar 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. Tropezar always takes con before the obstacle: tropezar con una piedra. It is also used figuratively for running into a problem: tropezar con un problema. To see it in a real sentence: Yo tropiezo con una piedra en el camino — "I trip on a stone on the path".
Present tense conjugation table: tropezar
Every person of tropezar in the present tense. The gerund is tropezando and the past participle is tropezado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | tropiezo |
| tú | tropiezas |
| él/ella/Ud. | tropieza |
| nosotros/as | tropezamos |
| vosotros/as | tropezáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | tropiezan |
How the present of tropezar is formed
The present of tropezar is built from the stem tropez- plus the present 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 | tropiezo |
| tú | -as | tropiezas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | tropieza |
| nosotros/as | -amos | tropezamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | tropezáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | tropiezan |
The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: tropiezo, tropiezas, tropieza and tropiezan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: tropezamos, tropezáis. The z of the stem becomes c before e: the preterite yo form is tropecé and the present subjunctive yo form is tropiece.
The gerund of tropezar is tropezando and the past participle is tropezado. Both are the forms you need with estar and haber respectively.
When to use the present tense of tropezar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and tropezar 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 tropiezo con una piedra en el camino" — "Every day, I trip on a stone on the path"
General truths
The present states facts that are always true, not just true today.
"Mi amigo tropieza con el bordillo de la acera" — "My friend trips on the kerb"
What is happening now
The present describes an action in progress right now.
"Ahora, yo tropiezo con sus propios pies" — "Right now, I trip over his own feet"
Near-future plans
Spanish often uses the present for a plan that is already fixed.
"Mañana, nosotros tropezamos con la alfombra del salón" — "Tomorrow, we trip on the living-room rug"
Timetables and scheduled events
The present is the tense for timetables, programmes and things that happen on a schedule.
"Ellos tropiezan con una raíz en el bosque" — "They trip on a root in the forest"
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 tropiezo con una piedra en el camino — "I trip on a stone on the path"
- Preterite — one finished occasion: {'pre_es': 'Ayer, ', 'pre_en': 'Yesterday, '}yo tropecé con una piedra en el camino — "I triped on a stone on the path"
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 tropiezas con el bordillo de la acera — "You trip on the kerb"
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: {}tú tropezabas con el bordillo de la acera — "You used to trip on the kerb"
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 tropieza con sus propios pies — "He trips over his own feet"
- Future — what will happen: {'subj_es': 'Mi amigo', 'subj_en': 'My friend'}él tropezará con sus propios pies — "He will trip over his own feet"
Examples: tropezar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show tropezar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo tropiezo con una piedra en el camino — "I trip on a stone on the path"
- Tú tropiezas con el bordillo de la acera — "You trip on the kerb"
- Él tropieza con sus propios pies — "He trips over his own feet"
- Nosotros tropezamos con la alfombra del salón — "We trip on the living-room rug"
- Vosotros tropezáis con una raíz en el bosque — "You trip on a root in the forest"
- Ellos tropiezan con una piedra en el camino — "They trip on a stone on the path"
- Yo tropiezo con el bordillo de la acera — "I trip on the kerb"
Common mistakes with tropezar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with tropezar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo tropezo con una piedra en el camino.
✓ Correct: Yo tropiezo con una piedra en el camino.
tropezar is a stem-changing verb (e → ie): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is tropiezo, not tropezo.
✗ *Tú tropieza con el bordillo de la acera.
✓ Correct: Tú tropiezas con el bordillo de la acera.
The tú form and the él form are different: tú takes tropiezas, él takes tropieza.
✗ *Cada día, yo tropecé con sus propios pies
✓ Correct: Cada día, yo tropiezo con sus propios pies
Cada día describes a habit, so it needs the present, not the preterite.
✗ *Vosotros tropezais con la alfombra del salón.
✓ Correct: Vosotros tropezáis con la alfombra del salón.
The vosotros present form carries a written accent: tropezáis, not tropezais.
Quiz: tropezar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of tropezar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
Which is the correct present form of tropezar for tú? A. tropezamos B. tropiezas C. tropiezo D. tropieza
Complete the sentence: Yo ______ con una piedra en el camino — "I trip on a stone on the path" (present) A. tropezamos B. tropiezo C. tropiezas D. tropieza
Complete the sentence: Él ______ con el bordillo de la acera — "He trips on the kerb" (present) A. tropiezo B. tropiezas C. tropezamos D. tropieza
Which is the correct present form of tropezar for nosotros? A. tropezamos B. tropiezas C. tropieza D. tropiezan
Which sentence uses tropezar correctly in the present? A. Mi amigo tropezaba con sus propios pies B. Mi amigo tropezamos con sus propios pies C. Mi amigo tropieza con sus propios pies D. Mi amigo tropiezas con sus propios pies
Complete the sentence: Vosotros ______ con la alfombra del salón — "You trip on the living-room rug" (present) A. tropiezas B. tropieza C. tropezáis D. tropiezo
Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ con una raíz en el bosque — "They trip on a root in the forest" (present) A. tropieza B. tropiezan C. tropiezo D. tropiezas
What is the gerund of tropezar? A. tropezado B. tropiezo C. tropecé D. tropezando
Answer key
- tropiezas — The tú form in the present is tropiezas.
- tropiezo — The present form for yo is tropiezo.
- tropieza — The present form for él/ella/Ud. is tropieza.
- tropezamos — The nosotros form in the present is tropezamos.
- Mi amigo tropieza con sus propios pies — Mi amigo tropieza con sus propios pies is correct: the verb agrees with its subject and the tense is the present.
- tropezáis — The present form for vosotros/as is tropezáis.
- tropiezan — The present form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is tropiezan.
- tropezando — The gerund is tropezando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive, and it is not the past participle tropezado.
Frequently asked questions
Is tropezar regular in the present tense?
No — in the present the stem changes: The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: tropiezo, tropiezas, tropieza and tropiezan — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: tropezamos, tropezáis. The nosotros and vosotros forms keep the plain stem.
What is the gerund and the past participle of tropezar?
The gerund is tropezando and the past participle is tropezado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I trip" in the present tense?
Say tropiezo. For example: Yo tropiezo con una piedra en el camino — "I trip on a stone on the path".
What is the difference between the present and the preterite of tropezar?
The present describes a habit or what happens now: Yo tropiezo con una piedra en el camino — "I trip on a stone on the path". The preterite reports one finished occasion: Ayer, yo tropecé con una piedra en el camino — "Yesterday, I triped on a stone on the path". 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 tropezar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- tropezar 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.