Afectar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

afectar means “to affect” 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. Afectar means to affect, and it is used for anything that changes or touches something else: a drought affects the harvest, a decision affects a family, a disease affects the lungs. It takes a direct object, and it is one of the most frequent verbs in news, science and work language. 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 afectar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the afectar present tense page.

afectar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

Four sentences with afectar in the present tense, for habits, facts and things happening right now.

  1. Yo afecto la salud de los niños. — I affect the children's health.
  2. Él/Ella afecta el precio del pan. — He affects the price of bread.
  3. Nosotros/as afectamos la vida de la familia. — We affect the family's life.
  4. Ellos/as afectan el resultado del partido. — They affect the result of the match.

In the past

Four sentences with afectar in the past: the preterite for finished actions and the imperfect for habits and background.

  1. Ayer, Yo afecté la vida de la familia. — Yesterday, I affected the family's life.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as afectábamos el resultado del partido. — Before, We used to affect the result of the match.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella afectó la salud de los niños. — Yesterday, He affected the children's health.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as afectaban el precio del pan. — As children, They used to affect the price of bread.

Plans, hopes and wishes

Four sentences with afectar in the future, the conditional, the subjunctive and the present perfect — for plans, hypotheticals and things that have just happened.

  1. Mañana, Tú afectarás la salud de los niños. — Tomorrow, You will affect the children's health.
  2. Yo afectaría el precio del pan. — I would affect the price of bread.
  3. Espero que él afecte la vida de la familia. — I hope he affects the family's life.
  4. Él/Ella ha afectado el resultado del partido. — He has affected the result of the match.

afectar in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú afectas la salud de los niños mañana? — Are you going to affect the children's health tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo afecto la salud de los niños todos los días. — Yes, I affect the children's health every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana afectarás el precio del pan? — And tomorrow, will you affect the price of bread? Luis: Claro, mañana afectaré el precio del pan sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will affect the price of bread without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo afectaré la vida de la familia también. — Perfect. I will affect the family's life too. Luis: Entonces quedamos mañana. ¡Hasta luego! — Then see you tomorrow. Bye!

Yesterday

Ana: ¿Qué hiciste ayer? — What did you do yesterday? Luis: Ayer afecté la vida de la familia. — Yesterday, I affected the family's life. Ana: ¿Y antes afectabas el resultado del partido? — And before, did you use to affect the result of the match? Luis: Sí, antes afectaba el resultado del partido todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to affect the result of the match every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos afectaron la salud de los niños? — And did your brothers affected the children's health? Luis: Sí, ellos afectaron la salud de los niños por la tarde. — Yes, they affected the children's health in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo afecta la salud de los niños. — Right: Yo afecto la salud de los niños. — The person matters: afecta is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is afecto. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Treating afectar and influir as identical in every context. — Right: Afectar means to affect, while influir means to influence something. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: afectar fits sentences such as Afecto la salud de los niños, while influir belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy afectado el precio del pan. — Right: Yo he afectado el precio del pan. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he afectado, has afectado, ha afectado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo afecté la vida de la familia todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo afectaba la vida de la familia todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (afectaba), not the preterite. The preterite (afecté) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on afectar in use. Choose the right answer, then check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ el resultado del partido. (present tense) A. afectan B. afecto C. afectas D. afecta

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ la salud de los niños. (preterite tense) A. afecté B. afectaste C. afectó D. afectamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ el precio del pan. (imperfect tense) A. afectábamos B. afectabais C. afectabas D. afectaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ la vida de la familia. (future tense) A. afectaremos B. afectará C. afectaré D. afectarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ el resultado del partido. (conditional tense) A. afectaríamos B. afectaría C. afectarías D. afectaríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ la salud de los niños. (present-perfect tense) A. has afectado B. ha afectado C. hemos afectado D. he afectado

  7. What does afectar mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to affect D. to influence something

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo afecté la vida de la familia. B. Yo afecta la salud de los niños. C. Yo afecto la salud de los niños. D. Él/Ella afecta el precio del pan.

  9. Which is the gerund of afectar, used with estar for the progressive? A. afectando B. afectado C. afecto D. afecté

  10. Which is the past participle of afectar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. afectando B. afecto C. afecté D. afectado

Answer key

  1. afectan — The correct form here is afectan.
  2. afectamos — The correct form here is afectamos.
  3. afectabas — The correct form here is afectabas.
  4. afectará — The correct form here is afectará.
  5. afectaríamos — The correct form here is afectaríamos.
  6. he afectado — The correct form here is he afectado.
  7. to affect — Afectar means to affect. Influir means to influence something, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo afecta la salud de los niños. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo afecto la salud de los niños.. The person matters: afecta is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is afecto. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  9. afectando — The gerund of afectar is afectando: estoy afectando.
  10. afectado — The past participle of afectar is afectado: he afectado, has afectado, ha afectado.

Frequently asked questions

What does afectar mean?

Afectar means to affect. Afectar means to affect, and it is used for anything that changes or touches something else: a drought affects the harvest, a decision affects a family, a disease affects the lungs. It takes a direct object, and it is one of the most frequent verbs in news, science and work language.

When do people use afectar most?

People use afectar most in everyday situations such as Yo afecto la salud de los niños. and Ayer, Yo afecté la vida de la familia.. Learn the present tense first, then the preterite and the imperfect, since those are the forms you will hear most often.

What is the difference between afectar and influir?

Afectar means to affect, while influir means to influence something. They appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable — check the meaning you want before you choose.

How can I remember the forms of afectar?

Practise the present tense table first, then add the preterite and the imperfect. Use the full conjugation of afectar as your reference, the afectar present tense page for one tense in depth, and the Spanish Verb Quiz to test yourself.

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