Acaparar Present Tense in Spanish
acaparar means "to hoard, to monopolise" in English, and the present tense is the form you use when you talk about what happens regularly, what is generally true, and what is happening now. This page gives you the full present-tense table for acaparar, explains how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it, contrasts it with the closest tense, and finishes with examples, the mistakes learners actually make, a quiz and answers to the most common questions. A natural example is: Cada día, yo acaparo toda la comida del mercado. — "Every day, I hoard all the food in the market." Once you can say that sentence confidently, try changing the person and the complement using the table below.
The present tense of acaparar: full table
Every person of acaparar in the present tense. The gerund is acaparando and the past participle is acaparado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | acaparo |
| tú | acaparas |
| él/ella/Ud. | acapara |
| nosotros/as | acaparamos |
| vosotros/as | acaparáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | acaparan |
The gerund of acaparar is acaparando and the past participle is acaparado. The gerund is used for the progressive (estoy acaparando), and the participle is used with haber in all perfect tenses (he acaparado).
How the present tense of acaparar is formed
The present tense of acaparar is built from the stem acapar- plus the regular -ar endings: -o, -as, -a, -amos, -áis, -an. Take the infinitive, remove the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person: yo acaparo, tú acaparas, él acapara, nosotros acaparamos, vosotros acaparáis and ellos acaparan. Once you know the pattern for one regular -ar verb, you can apply it to hundreds of others.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | acaparo |
| tú | -as | acaparas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | acapara |
| nosotros/as | -amos | acaparamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | acaparáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | acaparan |
acaparar is completely regular in the present tense: the stem never changes and every ending is the standard -ar ending. The only thing to watch is the accent on the vosotros form acaparáis.
Two more forms belong with this tense. The gerund is acaparando, used for the progressive with estar: estoy acaparando. The past participle is acaparado, used with haber in all perfect tenses: he acaparado. Both forms appear constantly, so they are worth memorising on their own.
When to use the present tense with acaparar
1. Routines and habits
The present tense describes what happens regularly. For example: Cada día, yo acaparo toda la comida del mercado. — "Every day, I hoard all the food in the market." The complement in this sentence is about all the food in the market, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear acaparar in the present tense.
2. Things happening now
The present tense describes what is happening at this moment. For example: Ahora, tú acaparas la atención en la fiesta. — "Now, you hoard the attention at the party." The complement in this sentence is about the attention at the party, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear acaparar in the present tense.
3. General truths
The present tense states facts that are generally true, not tied to one moment. For example: Normalmente, él acapara los libros de la biblioteca. — "Normally, he/she hoards the library books." The complement in this sentence is about the library books, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear acaparar in the present tense.
4. Plans and the near future
The present tense is also used for plans that are already fixed, especially with a time expression. Spanish speakers often say the present where English would use a future: the plan is so certain that it feels like a fact. For example: Mañana, nosotros acaparamos el mercado de la fruta. — "Tomorrow, we hoard the fruit market." The complement in this sentence is about the fruit market, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear acaparar in the present tense.
5. Frequent actions
With words such as siempre, a menudo and todos los días, the present tense shows how often something happens. For example: Siempre, ellos acaparan toda la comida del mercado. — "Always, they hoard all the food in the market." The complement in this sentence is about all the food in the market, which is exactly the kind of situation where you will hear acaparar in the present tense.
Present vs preterite: acaparar
The closest tense to the present is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the present describes habits, routines and general truths, while the preterite describes one action that started and finished in the past. The three pairs below show the difference with acaparar.
Pair 1
- Present (habit): Cada día, yo acaparo toda la comida del mercado. — "Every day, I hoard all the food in the market."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, yo acaparé toda la comida del mercado. — "Yesterday, I hoarded all the food in the market."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 2
- Present (habit): Cada día, tú acaparas la atención en la fiesta. — "Every day, you hoard the attention at the party."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, tú acaparaste la atención en la fiesta. — "Yesterday, you hoarded the attention at the party."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Pair 3
- Present (habit): Cada día, él acapara los libros de la biblioteca. — "Every day, he/she hoards the library books."
- Preterite (one finished action): Ayer, él acaparó los libros de la biblioteca. — "Yesterday, he/she hoarded the library books."
The first sentence describes something that happens regularly. The second describes something that happened once, yesterday, and is now finished. If you can add cada día, use the present; if you can add ayer, use the preterite.
Examples: acaparar in the present tense
These eight sentences show acaparar in the present tense with a different person each time. Read them aloud, then try changing the person and the complement to make your own versions.
- Yo acaparo toda la comida del mercado. — "I hoard all the food in the market."
- Tú acaparas la atención en la fiesta. — "you hoard the attention at the party."
- Él acapara los libros de la biblioteca. — "he/she hoards the library books."
- Nosotros acaparamos el mercado de la fruta. — "we hoard the fruit market."
- Vosotros acaparáis toda la comida del mercado. — "you (plural) hoard all the food in the market."
- Ellos acaparan la atención en la fiesta. — "they hoard the attention at the party."
- Yo acaparo los libros de la biblioteca. — "I hoard the library books."
- Tú acaparas el mercado de la fruta. — "you hoard the fruit market."
Common mistakes with acaparar in the present tense
Mistake 1: Dropping the accent on the vosotros form
- Wrong: Vosotros acaparais toda la comida del mercado.
- Right: Vosotros acaparáis toda la comida del mercado.
- Why: The vosotros form acaparáis carries a written accent. Without it the word is misspelled.
Mistake 2: Adding a reflexive pronoun that does not belong
- Wrong: Yo me acaparo toda la comida del mercado.
- Right: Yo acaparo toda la comida del mercado.
- Why: acaparar is not reflexive, so there is no pronoun to add. The extra pronoun changes the meaning of the sentence.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo acaparo la atención en la fiesta.
- Right: Ayer, yo acaparé la atención en la fiesta.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo acaparé la atención en la fiesta. — "Yesterday, I hoarded the attention at the party." The present tense is for habits and routines, not for yesterday.
Mistake 4: Using the present tense for a past habit
- Wrong: Antes, yo acaparo los libros de la biblioteca.
- Right: Antes, yo acaparaba los libros de la biblioteca.
- Why: Antes means before, in the past, so a past habit needs the imperfect: Antes, yo acaparaba los libros de la biblioteca. — "In the past, I used to hoard the library books." The present tense describes what happens now, not what used to happen.
Mistake 5: Using the él form for nosotros
- Wrong: Nosotros acapara toda la comida del mercado.
- Right: Nosotros acaparamos toda la comida del mercado.
- Why: The person and the ending must match: nosotros takes acaparamos, while acapara belongs to él and ella. Check the person first, then choose the form.
Quiz: the present tense of acaparar
Test yourself with eight questions on the present tense of acaparar. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of acaparar in the present tense?
- (a) acaparo
- (b) acaparas
- (c) acapara
- (d) acaparamos
Answer: (a) acaparo. The yo form is acaparo. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
2. What is the tú form of acaparar in the present tense?
- (a) acaparo
- (b) acapara
- (c) acaparamos
- (d) acaparas
Answer: (d) acaparas. The tú form is acaparas. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
3. What is the él/ella form of acaparar in the present tense?
- (a) acaparas
- (b) acaparamos
- (c) acapara
- (d) acaparo
Answer: (c) acapara. The él/ella form is acapara. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
4. What is the nosotros form of acaparar in the present tense?
- (a) acapara
- (b) acaparamos
- (c) acaparo
- (d) acaparas
Answer: (b) acaparamos. The nosotros form is acaparamos. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
5. What is the ellos/ellas form of acaparar in the present tense?
- (a) acaparan
- (b) acaparo
- (c) acaparas
- (d) acapara
Answer: (a) acaparan. The ellos/ellas form is acaparan. The other options are other persons, so check the person before you answer.
6. Complete the sentence: Cada día, yo ___ toda la comida del mercado.
- (a) acaparas
- (b) acapara
- (c) acaparamos
- (d) acaparo
Answer: (d) acaparo. The sentence needs the yo form acaparo (Every day, I hoard all the food in the market.)
7. What is the gerund of acaparar?
- (a) acaparado
- (b) acaparo
- (c) acaparar
- (d) acaparando
Answer: (d) acaparando. The gerund is acaparando, used for the progressive: estoy acaparando.
8. Which sentence describes a habit, something you do regularly?
- (a) Ayer, yo acaparé la atención en la fiesta.
- (b) Mañana, yo acapararé la atención en la fiesta.
- (c) Cada día, yo acaparo la atención en la fiesta.
- (d) Antes, yo acaparaba la atención en la fiesta.
Answer: (c) Cada día, yo acaparo la atención en la fiesta.. Cada día, yo acaparo la atención en la fiesta. (Every day, I hoard the attention at the party.) describes a habit, so it uses the present tense. Ayer, yo acaparé la atención en la fiesta. is a single completed action, and Mañana, yo acapararé la atención en la fiesta. is in the future.
Frequently asked questions about the present tense of acaparar
Is acaparar regular in the present tense?
Yes. acaparar is a regular -ar verb: acaparo, acaparas, acapara, acaparamos. There are no spelling changes and no stem changes in the present tense, so the endings do all the work.
How do you say 'hoard' in a sentence?
Use the present tense with a complement: Cada día, yo acaparo toda la comida del mercado. — "Every day, I hoard all the food in the market." Change the person using the table above, and change the complement to talk about your own life.
When do I use the present tense instead of the preterite with acaparar?
Use the present for habits and routines: Cada día, yo acaparo la atención en la fiesta. — "Every day, I hoard the attention at the party." Use the preterite for one finished action: Ayer, yo acaparé la atención en la fiesta. — "Yesterday, I hoarded the attention at the party." If the action happens regularly, choose the present; if it happened once and is finished, choose the preterite.
Can I use the present tense for the future with acaparar?
Yes, when the plan is already fixed. Mañana, nosotros acaparamos el mercado de la fruta. — "Tomorrow, we hoard the fruit market." Spanish often uses the present for a plan that feels certain, where English would use the future. Add a time word such as mañana so the listener knows you mean the future.