Acosar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

acosar means “to harass, to pursue” 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. Acosar means to harass or to pursue, to bother someone repeatedly or to chase someone without rest. It is used for bullying, for the press following a celebrity and for animals chasing prey, and it is fully regular. 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 acosar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the acosar present tense page.

acosar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present tense

  1. Yo acoso a su víctima con mensajes. — “I harass his victim with messages.”
  2. Él acosa al famoso en la calle. — “He harasses the celebrity in the street.”
  3. Nosotros acosamos a los vecinos con ruido. — “We harass the neighbours with noise.”
  4. Ellos acosan al rival sin darle descanso. — “They harass the rival without giving him a rest.”

In the past

  1. Ayer, yo acosé al famoso en la calle. — “Yesterday, I harassed the celebrity in the street.”
  2. Antes, nosotros acosábamos a los vecinos con ruido. — “Before, we used to harass the neighbours with noise.”
  3. Él acosó al rival sin darle descanso. — “He harassed the rival without giving him a rest.”
  4. Yo ya había acosado a su víctima con mensajes antes de salir. — “I had already harassed his victim with messages before leaving.”

Plans, hopes and possibilities

  1. Mañana, tú acosarás a su víctima con mensajes. — “Tomorrow, you will harass his victim with messages.”
  2. Yo acosaría al famoso en la calle si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would harass the celebrity in the street if I had more time.”
  3. Él ha acosado a los vecinos con ruido. — “He has harassed the neighbours with noise.”
  4. Espero que él acose al rival sin darle descanso. — “I hope he harasses the rival without giving him a rest.”

acosar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use acosar 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 acoso a su víctima con mensajes. — “I harass his victim with messages.”
  • Bea: Él acosa al famoso en la calle. — “He harasses the celebrity in the street.”
  • Ana: Ayer, yo acosé al famoso en la calle. — “Yesterday, I harassed the celebrity in the street.”
  • Bea: Mañana, tú acosarás a su víctima con mensajes. — “Tomorrow, you will harass his victim with messages.”

At home, talking about tomorrow.

  • Luis: Nosotros acosamos a los vecinos con ruido. — “We harass the neighbours with noise.”
  • Marta: Antes, nosotros acosábamos a los vecinos con ruido. — “Before, we used to harass the neighbours with noise.”
  • Luis: Yo acosaría al famoso en la calle si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would harass the celebrity in the street if I had more time.”
  • Marta: Espero que él acose al rival sin darle descanso. — “I hope he harasses the rival without giving him a rest.”

A short scene with acosar

A short scene shows how acosar works across the day. In the morning: Acoso a su víctima con mensajes. In the afternoon: Acosa al famoso en la calle. Yesterday it was different: Ayer, acosé a los vecinos con ruido. And tomorrow: Mañana, acosaré al rival sin darle descanso. Four small moments, four tenses, one verb — that is how acosar 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 acosar

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

✗ Yo acosa a su víctima con mensajes.

✓ Correct: Yo acoso a su víctima con mensajes.

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

✗ Ayer yo acoso al famoso en la calle.

✓ Correct: Ayer yo acosé al famoso en la calle.

The present and the preterite are different tenses: acoso is happening now, while acosé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.

✗ Treating acosar and perseguir as identical in every context.

✓ Correct: Acosar means to harass, to pursue, while perseguir means to chase or pursue.

They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: acosar fits sentences such as Acoso a su víctima con mensajes, while perseguir belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

✗ Yo soy acosado al famoso en la calle.

✓ Correct: Yo he acosado al famoso en la calle.

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

✗ De niño, yo acosé a los vecinos con ruido todos los días.

✓ Correct: De niño, yo acosaba a los vecinos con ruido todos los días.

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

Quiz: acosar in use

Ten questions on acosar — 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 ______ al famoso en la calle. — “He/she harasses the celebrity in the street.”

  • a) acosa
  • b) acoso
  • c) acosas
  • d) acosamos

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ a los vecinos con ruido. — “Yesterday, I harassed the neighbours with noise.”

  • a) acosaste
  • b) acosó
  • c) acosaron
  • d) acosé

3. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ al rival sin darle descanso cuando eran jóvenes. — “They used to harass the rival without giving him a rest when they were young.”

  • a) acosabas
  • b) acosábamos
  • c) acosaban
  • d) acosaba

4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, nosotros ______ a su víctima con mensajes. — “Tomorrow, we will harass his victim with messages.”

  • a) acosarán
  • b) acosaremos
  • c) acosaré
  • d) acosarás

5. Complete the sentence: Él ______ al famoso en la calle si pudiera. — “He would harass the celebrity in the street if he could.”

  • a) acosaría
  • b) acosarías
  • c) acosaríamos
  • d) acoso

6. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ a los vecinos con ruido. — “I have harassed the neighbours with noise.”

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

7. Complete the sentence: Espero que tú ______ al rival sin darle descanso. — “I hope you harass the rival without giving him a rest.”

  • a) acosemos
  • b) acoso
  • c) acoses
  • d) acose

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

  • a) acosé
  • b) acosado
  • c) acosando
  • d) acoso

9. What does acosar mean in English?

  • a) to harass, to pursue
  • b) to chase or pursue
  • c) to mint, to coin
  • d) to go into, to venture into

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • a) Él acosa al famoso en la calle.
  • b) Él acoso al famoso en la calle.
  • c) Nosotros acosa a los vecinos con ruido.
  • d) Yo acosa a su víctima con mensajes.

Answer key

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  9. a) to harass, to pursue — acosar means to harass, to pursue. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

  10. a) Él acosa al famoso en la calle. — Él acosa al famoso en la calle. 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 acosar in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as Acoso a su víctima con mensajes and Acosa al famoso en la calle. 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 acosar and perseguir?

Acosar means “to harass, to pursue”, while perseguir means “to chase or pursue”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use acosar when you mean “to harass, to pursue” and perseguir when you mean “to chase or pursue”.

Which tense do I need most with acosar?

The present tense, for habits, routines and general facts — that is where you will use acosar 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 acosar formal or informal?

Acosar 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.

Related links