Acoger Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

acoger means “to welcome, to host” in English, and this page shows you how it actually sounds in everyday Spanish — not just the conjugation table, but the verb in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make with it. Acoger means to welcome or to host, to receive someone warmly into your home, your city or your organisation. It is used for guests, refugees and new students, and it is a spelling-change verb: g becomes j before o and a. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by tense, two short dialogues, the most common mistakes with corrections, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. If you want the full tables first, start with the full conjugation of acoger; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the acoger present tense page.

acoger in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present tense

  1. Yo acojo a los invitados en su casa. — “I welcome the guests in my house.”
  2. Él acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad. — “He welcomes the refugees in the city.”
  3. Nosotros acogemos al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “We welcome the new student in class.”
  4. Ellos acogen al viajero con los brazos abiertos. — “They welcome the traveller with open arms.”

In the past

  1. Ayer, yo acogí a los refugiados en la ciudad. — “Yesterday, I welcomed the refugees in the city.”
  2. Antes, nosotros acogíamos al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “Before, we used to welcome the new student in class.”
  3. Él acogió al viajero con los brazos abiertos. — “He welcomed the traveller with open arms.”
  4. Yo ya había acogido a los invitados en su casa antes de salir. — “I had already welcomed the guests in my house before leaving.”

Plans, hopes and possibilities

  1. Mañana, tú acogerás a los invitados en su casa. — “Tomorrow, you will welcome the guests in my house.”
  2. Yo acogería a los refugiados en la ciudad si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would welcome the refugees in the city if I had more time.”
  3. Él ha acogido al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “He has welcomed the new student in class.”
  4. Espero que él acoja al viajero con los brazos abiertos. — “I hope he welcomes the traveller with open arms.”

acoger in conversation

Two short dialogues that use acoger the way people really speak it. Notice how the verb changes with the person, and how the same verb fits different situations.

Two friends talk about their day.

  • Ana: Yo acojo a los invitados en su casa. — “I welcome the guests in my house.”
  • Bea: Él acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad. — “He welcomes the refugees in the city.”
  • Ana: Ayer, yo acogí a los refugiados en la ciudad. — “Yesterday, I welcomed the refugees in the city.”
  • Bea: Mañana, tú acogerás a los invitados en su casa. — “Tomorrow, you will welcome the guests in my house.”

At home, talking about tomorrow.

  • Luis: Nosotros acogemos al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “We welcome the new student in class.”
  • Marta: Antes, nosotros acogíamos al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “Before, we used to welcome the new student in class.”
  • Luis: Yo acogería a los refugiados en la ciudad si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would welcome the refugees in the city if I had more time.”
  • Marta: Espero que él acoja al viajero con los brazos abiertos. — “I hope he welcomes the traveller with open arms.”

A short scene with acoger

A short scene shows how acoger works across the day. In the morning: Acojo a los invitados en su casa. In the afternoon: Acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad. Yesterday it was different: Ayer, acogí al estudiante nuevo en clase. And tomorrow: Mañana, acogeré al viajero con los brazos abiertos. Four small moments, four tenses, one verb — that is how acoger sounds in real life. Try changing the person in each sentence: say it about yourself, about a friend, and about your family, and the forms will start to feel automatic.

Common mistakes with acoger

The errors learners actually make with acoger, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.

✗ Yo acoge a los invitados en su casa.

✓ Correct: Yo acojo a los invitados en su casa.

The person matters: acoge is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is acojo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.

✗ Espero que yo acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad.

✓ Correct: Espero que yo acoja a los refugiados en la ciudad.

Spelling change: g becomes j before e, so the present subjunctive is acoja, never acoge.

✗ Treating acoger and recibir as identical in every context.

✓ Correct: Acoger means to welcome, to host, while recibir means to receive.

They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: acoger fits sentences such as Acojo a los invitados en su casa, while recibir belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

✗ Yo soy acogido a los refugiados en la ciudad.

✓ Correct: Yo he acogido a los refugiados en la ciudad.

Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he acogido, has acogido, ha acogido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

✗ De niño, yo acogí al estudiante nuevo en clase todos los días.

✓ Correct: De niño, yo acogía al estudiante nuevo en clase todos los días.

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (acogía), not the preterite. The preterite (acogí) is for one finished action.

Quiz: acoger in use

Ten questions on acoger — its forms, its tenses and its everyday use. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below, where every answer is explained.

1. Complete the sentence: Él ______ a los refugiados en la ciudad. — “He/she welcomes the refugees in the city.”

  • a) acoge
  • b) acojo
  • c) acoges
  • d) acogemos

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “Yesterday, I welcomed the new student in class.”

  • a) acogiste
  • b) acogió
  • c) acogieron
  • d) acogí

3. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ al viajero con los brazos abiertos cuando eran jóvenes. — “They used to welcome the traveller with open arms when they were young.”

  • a) acogías
  • b) acogíamos
  • c) acogían
  • d) acogía

4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, nosotros ______ a los invitados en su casa. — “Tomorrow, we will welcome the guests in my house.”

  • a) acogerán
  • b) acogeremos
  • c) acogeré
  • d) acogerás

5. Complete the sentence: Él ______ a los refugiados en la ciudad si pudiera. — “He would welcome the refugees in the city if he could.”

  • a) acogería
  • b) acogerías
  • c) acogeríamos
  • d) acojo

6. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ al estudiante nuevo en clase. — “I have welcomed the new student in class.”

  • a) has acogido
  • b) ha acogido
  • c) han acogido
  • d) he acogido

7. Complete the sentence: Espero que tú ______ al viajero con los brazos abiertos. — “I hope you welcome the traveller with open arms.”

  • a) acojamos
  • b) acojo
  • c) acojas
  • d) acoja

8. Which is the past participle of acoger, used with haber in the perfect tenses?

  • a) acogí
  • b) acogido
  • c) acogiendo
  • d) acojo

9. What does acoger mean in English?

  • a) to welcome, to host
  • b) to receive
  • c) to take refuge, to avail oneself of
  • d) to attack, to undertake

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • a) Él acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad.
  • b) Él acojo a los refugiados en la ciudad.
  • c) Nosotros acoge al estudiante nuevo en clase.
  • d) Yo acoge a los invitados en su casa.

Answer key

  1. a) acoge — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: acoge.

  2. d) acogí — The sentence needs the yo form in the preterite: acogí, for one finished action yesterday.

  3. c) acogían — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas form in the imperfect: acogían, for a repeated past habit.

  4. b) acogeremos — The sentence needs the nosotros form in the future: acogeremos.

  5. a) acogería — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the conditional: acogería.

  6. d) he acogido — The sentence needs the yo form in the present perfect: he acogido, haber + acogido.

  7. c) acojas — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the tú present subjunctive is acojas.

  8. b) acogido — The past participle is acogido: he acogido, has acogido, ha acogido. The gerund acogiendo is used with estar instead.

  9. a) to welcome, to host — acoger means to welcome, to host. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

  10. a) Él acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad. — Él acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences mix up the person and the form.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use acoger in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as Acojo a los invitados en su casa and Acoge a los refugiados en la ciudad. Use the present tense for habits and general facts, and the preterite for things that happened once. Say the sentences aloud until the forms feel automatic, then swap in your own details: your own town, your own family, your own routine.

What is the difference between acoger and recibir?

Acoger means “to welcome, to host”, while recibir means “to receive”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use acoger when you mean “to welcome, to host” and recibir when you mean “to receive”.

Which tense do I need most with acoger?

The present tense, for habits, routines and general facts — that is where you will use acoger most. The preterite comes next, for things that happened once and ended. The examples on this page use both, plus the imperfect, the future and the present perfect, so you can see the verb across the tenses you actually need.

Is acoger formal or informal?

Acoger is neutral — it is used in both formal and informal Spanish, at home, at work and at school. There is no special formal version of it; the same forms work in a conversation with a friend and in a letter to a company. What changes is the situation, not the verb.

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