Afilar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

afilar means “to sharpen” 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. Afilar means to sharpen, to make a knife, a pencil or a tool sharp again. It is a household and workshop verb, fully regular, and it is used with the tool and often with con. 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 afilar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the afilar present tense page.

afilar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present tense

  1. Yo afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “I sharpen the knife before cooking.”
  2. Él afila el lápiz para dibujar. — “He sharpens the pencil for drawing.”
  3. Nosotros afilamos la navaja con una piedra. — “We sharpen the razor with a stone.”
  4. Ellos afilan las tijeras del taller. — “They sharpen the workshop scissors.”

In the past

  1. Ayer, yo afilé el lápiz para dibujar. — “Yesterday, I sharpened the pencil for drawing.”
  2. Antes, nosotros afilábamos la navaja con una piedra. — “Before, we used to sharpen the razor with a stone.”
  3. Él afiló las tijeras del taller. — “He sharpened the workshop scissors.”
  4. Yo ya había afilado el cuchillo antes de cocinar antes de salir. — “I had already sharpened the knife before cooking before leaving.”

Plans, hopes and possibilities

  1. Mañana, tú afilarás el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “Tomorrow, you will sharpen the knife before cooking.”
  2. Yo afilaría el lápiz para dibujar si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would sharpen the pencil for drawing if I had more time.”
  3. Él ha afilado la navaja con una piedra. — “He has sharpened the razor with a stone.”
  4. Espero que él afile las tijeras del taller. — “I hope he sharpens the workshop scissors.”

afilar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use afilar 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 afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “I sharpen the knife before cooking.”
  • Bea: Él afila el lápiz para dibujar. — “He sharpens the pencil for drawing.”
  • Ana: Ayer, yo afilé el lápiz para dibujar. — “Yesterday, I sharpened the pencil for drawing.”
  • Bea: Mañana, tú afilarás el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “Tomorrow, you will sharpen the knife before cooking.”

At home, talking about tomorrow.

  • Luis: Nosotros afilamos la navaja con una piedra. — “We sharpen the razor with a stone.”
  • Marta: Antes, nosotros afilábamos la navaja con una piedra. — “Before, we used to sharpen the razor with a stone.”
  • Luis: Yo afilaría el lápiz para dibujar si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would sharpen the pencil for drawing if I had more time.”
  • Marta: Espero que él afile las tijeras del taller. — “I hope he sharpens the workshop scissors.”

A short scene with afilar

A short scene shows how afilar works across the day. In the morning: Afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar. In the afternoon: Afila el lápiz para dibujar. Yesterday it was different: Ayer, afilé la navaja con una piedra. And tomorrow: Mañana, afilaré las tijeras del taller. Four small moments, four tenses, one verb — that is how afilar 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 afilar

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

✗ Yo afila el cuchillo antes de cocinar.

✓ Correct: Yo afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar.

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

✗ Ayer yo afilo el lápiz para dibujar.

✓ Correct: Ayer yo afilé el lápiz para dibujar.

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

✗ Treating afilar and cortar as identical in every context.

✓ Correct: Afilar means to sharpen, while cortar means to cut.

They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: afilar fits sentences such as Afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar, while cortar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

✗ Yo soy afilado el lápiz para dibujar.

✓ Correct: Yo he afilado el lápiz para dibujar.

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

✗ De niño, yo afilé la navaja con una piedra todos los días.

✓ Correct: De niño, yo afilaba la navaja con una piedra todos los días.

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

Quiz: afilar in use

Ten questions on afilar — 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 lápiz para dibujar. — “He/she sharpens the pencil for drawing.”

  • a) afila
  • b) afilo
  • c) afilas
  • d) afilamos

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ la navaja con una piedra. — “Yesterday, I sharpened the razor with a stone.”

  • a) afilaste
  • b) afiló
  • c) afilaron
  • d) afilé

3. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ las tijeras del taller cuando eran jóvenes. — “They used to sharpen the workshop scissors when they were young.”

  • a) afilabas
  • b) afilábamos
  • c) afilaban
  • d) afilaba

4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, nosotros ______ el cuchillo antes de cocinar. — “Tomorrow, we will sharpen the knife before cooking.”

  • a) afilarán
  • b) afilaremos
  • c) afilaré
  • d) afilarás

5. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el lápiz para dibujar si pudiera. — “He would sharpen the pencil for drawing if he could.”

  • a) afilaría
  • b) afilarías
  • c) afilaríamos
  • d) afilo

6. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la navaja con una piedra. — “I have sharpened the razor with a stone.”

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

7. Complete the sentence: Espero que tú ______ las tijeras del taller. — “I hope you sharpen the workshop scissors.”

  • a) afilemos
  • b) afilo
  • c) afiles
  • d) afile

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

  • a) afilé
  • b) afilado
  • c) afilando
  • d) afilo

9. What does afilar mean in English?

  • a) to sharpen
  • b) to cut
  • c) to face, to confront
  • d) to crouch, to lower

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • a) Él afila el lápiz para dibujar.
  • b) Él afilo el lápiz para dibujar.
  • c) Nosotros afila la navaja con una piedra.
  • d) Yo afila el cuchillo antes de cocinar.

Answer key

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  9. a) to sharpen — afilar means to sharpen. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

  10. a) Él afila el lápiz para dibujar. — Él afila el lápiz para dibujar. 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 afilar in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as Afilo el cuchillo antes de cocinar and Afila el lápiz para dibujar. 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 afilar and cortar?

Afilar means “to sharpen”, while cortar means “to cut”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use afilar when you mean “to sharpen” and cortar when you mean “to cut”.

Which tense do I need most with afilar?

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

Afilar 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