Introduction
Acostarse means “to go to bed”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Acostarse is the verb for going to bed at night. It is the counterpart of levantarse, and the two verbs frame the whole day. Acostarse temprano and acostarse tarde describe when you go to bed. They are the standard phrases for talking about your evening. This page shows acostarse in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make most often, and it finishes with a ten-question quiz so you can test yourself. Every sentence below comes with its English translation, and every form is the correct present-tense form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo me acuesto a las once.” — I go to bed at eleven.
Acostarse in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how acostarse is used. Read each one out loud, then read the translation. If a sentence feels useful, copy it into your own notebook with one small change — a different time, a different person, a different place — and you have a new sentence of your own.
In the present: everyday use
These sentences use acostarse in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Yo me acuesto a las once.” — I go to bed at eleven.
“¿Tú te acuestas temprano?” — Do you go to bed early?
“Mi hijo se acuesta tarde los viernes.” — My son goes to bed late on Fridays.
“Nosotros nos acostamos a las diez.” — We go to bed at ten.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show acostarse in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Anoche yo me acosté a las doce.” — Last night I went to bed at twelve. (preterite)
“Mi hijo se acostaba tarde cuando era joven.” — My son used to go to bed late when he was young. (imperfect)
Plans and things already done
These sentences look forward, or look back at something already finished. Notice how the verb form changes while the meaning of acostarse stays the same.
“Nosotros nos acostaremos a las diez mañana.” — We will go to bed at ten tomorrow. (future)
“¿Tú te has acostado ya?” — Have you gone to bed yet? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Vosotros os acostáis después de la película.” — You go to bed after the film.
“Ellos se acuestan pronto porque madrugan.” — They go to bed early because they get up early.
“Yo me acuesto un rato después de comer.” — I lie down for a while after lunch.
“El bebé se acuesta a las ocho.” — The baby goes to bed at eight.
Acostarse in context
Single sentences teach you the forms. Dialogues teach you when to use them. Read the short conversation below, then the paragraph that follows, and notice how acostarse appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Ana: “¿Tú te acuestas temprano?” — Do you go to bed early?
Luis: “Sí, yo me acuesto a las once.” — Yes, I go to bed at eleven.
Ana: “Nosotros nos acostamos a las diez.” — We go to bed at ten.
Luis: “Y ellos se acuestan pronto porque madrugan.” — And they go to bed early because they get up early.
Ana: “Vosotros os acostáis después de la película.” — You go to bed after the film.
Luis: “Sí, y el bebé se acuesta a las ocho.” — Yes, and the baby goes to bed at eight.
A short paragraph
Ana se acuesta a las once, y su hijo se acuesta tarde los viernes. Nosotros nos acostamos a las diez, y ellos se acuestan pronto porque madrugan. Yo me acuesto un rato después de comer, y el bebé se acuesta a las ocho. Acostarse closes every day in this house, because going to bed, going to bed late and lying down to rest are all part of the same verb.
Common mistakes with acostarse
These are the errors learners actually make with acostarse. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo acuesto a las once.” Right: “Yo me acuesto a las once.” Why: Without the pronoun, acuesto means I put someone else to bed: 'Acuesto a mi hijo'. With me, 'Yo me acuesto' means I go to bed myself. The pronoun changes the meaning completely.
Wrong: “Yo nos acostamos a las once.” Right: “Yo me acuesto a las once.” Why: The yo form is me acuesto, with the o → ue change, not nos acostamos. The change appears in yo, tú, él and ellos, while nosotros and vosotros keep the o.
Wrong: “Nosotros se acuestan a las diez.” Right: “Nosotros nos acostamos a las diez.” Why: Nosotros needs nos acostamos. The ellos form se acuestan belongs with ellos, and the pronoun must be nos, not se.
Wrong: “Ellos se acuesta pronto.” Right: “Ellos se acuestan pronto.” Why: Ellos needs se acuestan. The singular se acuesta belongs with él, ella or a singular noun such as el bebé.
Wrong: “Ellos me acuesto todos los días.” Right: “Ellos se acuestan todos los días.” Why: The verb must agree with its subject. Ellos needs the ellos form se acuestan, not the yo form me acuesto. This is the most common agreement slip in the present tense, and it happens because learners memorise the yo form first and then reuse it for every person.
Quiz: acostarse in use
Ten questions on acostarse in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ después de la película.” (You go to bed after the film.)
- (a) te acuestas
- (b) os acostáis
- (c) me acuesto
Answer: os acostáis — The vosotros/as form of acostarse in the present tense is os acostáis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ pronto porque madrugan.” (They go to bed early because they get up early.)
- (a) se acuestan
- (b) me acuesto
- (c) te acuestas
Answer: se acuestan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of acostarse in the present tense is se acuestan.
3. Complete the sentence (preterite): “Anoche yo ______ a las doce.” (Last night I went to bed at twelve.)
- (a) te acostaste
- (b) se acostó
- (c) me acosté
Answer: me acosté — In the preterite, the yo form of acostarse is me acosté.
4. Complete the sentence (imperfect): “Mi hijo ______ tarde cuando era joven.” (My son used to go to bed late when he was young.)
- (a) te acostabas
- (b) se acostaba
- (c) me acostaba
Answer: se acostaba — In the imperfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of acostarse is se acostaba.
5. Complete the sentence (future): “Nosotros ______ a las diez mañana.” (We will go to bed at ten tomorrow.)
- (a) nos acostaremos
- (b) me acostaré
- (c) te acostarás
Answer: nos acostaremos — In the future, the nosotros/as form of acostarse is nos acostaremos.
6. What does acostarse mean in English?
- (a) to finish, to end
- (b) to serve
- (c) to go to bed
Answer: to go to bed — Acostarse means “to go to bed”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo me acuesto a las once.
- (b) Yo acuesto a las once.
- (c) Yo nos acostamos a las once.
Answer: Yo me acuesto a las once. — “Yo me acuesto a las once.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I lie down for a while after lunch.” in Spanish?
- (a) Yo se acuestan un rato después de comer.
- (b) Yo me acuesto un rato después de comer.
- (c) El bebé se acuesta a las ocho.
Answer: Yo me acuesto un rato después de comer. — “Yo me acuesto un rato después de comer.” is the correct translation. The second option means something different, and the third uses the wrong person's form.
9. What is the nosotros form of acostarse in the present tense?
- (a) me acuesto
- (b) te acuestas
- (c) nos acostamos
Answer: nos acostamos — The nosotros form is nos acostamos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Anoche yo me acosté a las doce.
- (b) Nosotros nos acostaremos a las diez mañana.
- (c) Yo me acuesto a las once.
Answer: Yo me acuesto a las once. — “Yo me acuesto a las once.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I go to bed at eleven' in Spanish?
Say 'Me acuesto a las once'. The me is required, and the verb is acuesto with the o → ue change. Without me, the sentence means I put someone to bed.
How do you say 'to go to bed early' in Spanish?
Say 'acostarse temprano'. In the present: 'Ellos se acuestan pronto porque madrugan'. For late: 'Me acuesto tarde'.
What is the opposite of acostarse?
Levantarse, to get up. The two verbs frame the day: 'Me acuesto a las once y me levanto a las siete' means I go to bed at eleven and I get up at seven.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of acostarse — every tense of acostarse in one place.
- Acostarse in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on acostarse and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of acostarse until they are automatic.