Administrar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

administrar means “to manage, to administer” 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. Administrar means to manage or to administer, to run a business, a house or a medicine dose. It is a fully regular verb used in work, government and health contexts. 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 administrar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the administrar present tense page.

administrar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present tense

  1. Yo administro la empresa con mucho cuidado. — “I manage the company very carefully.”
  2. Él administra el dinero de la familia. — “He manages the family's money.”
  3. Nosotros administramos el medicamento al enfermo. — “We manage the medicine to the patient.”
  4. Ellos administran el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso. — “They manage my time between work and rest.”

In the past

  1. Ayer, yo administré el dinero de la familia. — “Yesterday, I managed the family's money.”
  2. Antes, nosotros administrábamos el medicamento al enfermo. — “Before, we used to manage the medicine to the patient.”
  3. Él administró el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso. — “He managed my time between work and rest.”
  4. Yo ya había administrado la empresa con mucho cuidado antes de salir. — “I had already managed the company very carefully before leaving.”

Plans, hopes and possibilities

  1. Mañana, tú administrarás la empresa con mucho cuidado. — “Tomorrow, you will manage the company very carefully.”
  2. Yo administraría el dinero de la familia si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would manage the family's money if I had more time.”
  3. Él ha administrado el medicamento al enfermo. — “He has managed the medicine to the patient.”
  4. Espero que él administre el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso. — “I hope he manages my time between work and rest.”

administrar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use administrar 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 administro la empresa con mucho cuidado. — “I manage the company very carefully.”
  • Bea: Él administra el dinero de la familia. — “He manages the family's money.”
  • Ana: Ayer, yo administré el dinero de la familia. — “Yesterday, I managed the family's money.”
  • Bea: Mañana, tú administrarás la empresa con mucho cuidado. — “Tomorrow, you will manage the company very carefully.”

At home, talking about tomorrow.

  • Luis: Nosotros administramos el medicamento al enfermo. — “We manage the medicine to the patient.”
  • Marta: Antes, nosotros administrábamos el medicamento al enfermo. — “Before, we used to manage the medicine to the patient.”
  • Luis: Yo administraría el dinero de la familia si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would manage the family's money if I had more time.”
  • Marta: Espero que él administre el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso. — “I hope he manages my time between work and rest.”

A short scene with administrar

A short scene shows how administrar works across the day. In the morning: Administro la empresa con mucho cuidado. In the afternoon: Administra el dinero de la familia. Yesterday it was different: Ayer, administré el medicamento al enfermo. And tomorrow: Mañana, administraré el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso. Four small moments, four tenses, one verb — that is how administrar 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 administrar

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

✗ Yo administra la empresa con mucho cuidado.

✓ Correct: Yo administro la empresa con mucho cuidado.

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

✗ Ayer yo administro el dinero de la familia.

✓ Correct: Ayer yo administré el dinero de la familia.

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

✗ Treating administrar and gestionar as identical in every context.

✓ Correct: Administrar means to manage, to administer, while gestionar means to manage, as a process.

They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: administrar fits sentences such as Administro la empresa con mucho cuidado, while gestionar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

✗ Yo soy administrado el dinero de la familia.

✓ Correct: Yo he administrado el dinero de la familia.

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

✗ De niño, yo administré el medicamento al enfermo todos los días.

✓ Correct: De niño, yo administraba el medicamento al enfermo todos los días.

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

Quiz: administrar in use

Ten questions on administrar — 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 ______ el dinero de la familia. — “He/she manages the family's money.”

  • a) administra
  • b) administro
  • c) administras
  • d) administramos

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ el medicamento al enfermo. — “Yesterday, I managed the medicine to the patient.”

  • a) administraste
  • b) administró
  • c) administraron
  • d) administré

3. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso cuando eran jóvenes. — “They used to manage my time between work and rest when they were young.”

  • a) administrabas
  • b) administrábamos
  • c) administraban
  • d) administraba

4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, nosotros ______ la empresa con mucho cuidado. — “Tomorrow, we will manage the company very carefully.”

  • a) administrarán
  • b) administraremos
  • c) administraré
  • d) administrarás

5. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el dinero de la familia si pudiera. — “He would manage the family's money if he could.”

  • a) administraría
  • b) administrarías
  • c) administraríamos
  • d) administro

6. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el medicamento al enfermo. — “I have managed the medicine to the patient.”

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

7. Complete the sentence: Espero que tú ______ el tiempo entre el trabajo y el descanso. — “I hope you manage my time between work and rest.”

  • a) administremos
  • b) administro
  • c) administres
  • d) administre

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

  • a) administré
  • b) administrado
  • c) administrando
  • d) administro

9. What does administrar mean in English?

  • a) to manage, to administer
  • b) to manage, as a process
  • c) to adduce, to cite
  • d) to secure, to strengthen

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • a) Él administra el dinero de la familia.
  • b) Él administro el dinero de la familia.
  • c) Nosotros administra el medicamento al enfermo.
  • d) Yo administra la empresa con mucho cuidado.

Answer key

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  9. a) to manage, to administer — administrar means to manage, to administer. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

  10. a) Él administra el dinero de la familia. — Él administra el dinero de la familia. 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 administrar in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as Administro la empresa con mucho cuidado and Administra el dinero de la familia. 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 administrar and gestionar?

Administrar means “to manage, to administer”, while gestionar means “to manage, as a process”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use administrar when you mean “to manage, to administer” and gestionar when you mean “to manage, as a process”.

Which tense do I need most with administrar?

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

Administrar 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