Agrupar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

agrupar means “to group” 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. Agrupar means to group, and it is used for putting things or people into groups: you group students by level, books by topic, chairs in a circle, data into categories. It is a regular -ar verb, common in school, work and research. 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 agrupar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the agrupar present tense page.

agrupar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

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

  1. Yo agrupo a los alumnos por niveles. — I group the students by level.
  2. Él/Ella agrupa los libros por temas. — He groups the books by topic.
  3. Nosotros/as agrupamos las sillas en círculo. — We group the chairs in a circle.
  4. Ellos/as agrupan los datos en categorías. — They group the data into categories.

In the past

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

  1. Ayer, Yo agrupé las sillas en círculo. — Yesterday, I grouped the chairs in a circle.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as agrupábamos los datos en categorías. — Before, We used to group the data into categories.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella agrupó a los alumnos por niveles. — Yesterday, He grouped the students by level.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as agrupaban los libros por temas. — As children, They used to group the books by topic.

Plans, hopes and wishes

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

  1. Mañana, Tú agruparás a los alumnos por niveles. — Tomorrow, You will group the students by level.
  2. Yo agruparía los libros por temas. — I would group the books by topic.
  3. Espero que él agrupe las sillas en círculo. — I hope he groups the chairs in a circle.
  4. Él/Ella ha agrupado los datos en categorías. — He has grouped the data into categories.

agrupar in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú agrupas a los alumnos por niveles mañana? — Are you going to group the students by level tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo agrupo a los alumnos por niveles todos los días. — Yes, I group the students by level every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana agruparás los libros por temas? — And tomorrow, will you group the books by topic? Luis: Claro, mañana agruparé los libros por temas sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will group the books by topic without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo agruparé las sillas en círculo también. — Perfect. I will group the chairs in a circle too. Luis: Entonces quedamos mañana. ¡Hasta luego! — Then see you tomorrow. Bye!

Yesterday

Ana: ¿Qué hiciste ayer? — What did you do yesterday? Luis: Ayer agrupé las sillas en círculo. — Yesterday, I grouped the chairs in a circle. Ana: ¿Y antes agrupabas los datos en categorías? — And before, did you use to group the data into categories? Luis: Sí, antes agrupaba los datos en categorías todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to group the data into categories every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos agruparon a los alumnos por niveles? — And did your brothers grouped the students by level? Luis: Sí, ellos agruparon a los alumnos por niveles por la tarde. — Yes, they grouped the students by level in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo agrupa a los alumnos por niveles. — Right: Yo agrupo a los alumnos por niveles. — The person matters: agrupa is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is agrupo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Treating agrupar and reunir as identical in every context. — Right: Agrupar means to group, while reunir means to gather people or things together. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: agrupar fits sentences such as Agrupo a los alumnos por niveles, while reunir belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy agrupado los libros por temas. — Right: Yo he agrupado los libros por temas. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he agrupado, has agrupado, ha agrupado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo agrupé las sillas en círculo todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo agrupaba las sillas en círculo todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (agrupaba), not the preterite. The preterite (agrupé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ los datos en categorías. (present tense) A. agrupan B. agrupo C. agrupas D. agrupa

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ a los alumnos por niveles. (preterite tense) A. agrupé B. agrupaste C. agrupó D. agrupamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ los libros por temas. (imperfect tense) A. agrupábamos B. agrupabais C. agrupabas D. agrupaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ las sillas en círculo. (future tense) A. agruparemos B. agrupará C. agruparé D. agruparás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ los datos en categorías. (conditional tense) A. agruparíamos B. agruparía C. agruparías D. agruparíais

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ a los alumnos por niveles. (present-perfect tense) A. has agrupado B. ha agrupado C. hemos agrupado D. he agrupado

  7. What does agrupar mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to group D. to gather people or things together

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo agrupé las sillas en círculo. B. Yo agrupa a los alumnos por niveles. C. Yo agrupo a los alumnos por niveles. D. Él/Ella agrupa los libros por temas.

  9. Which is the gerund of agrupar, used with estar for the progressive? A. agrupando B. agrupado C. agrupo D. agrupé

  10. Which is the past participle of agrupar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. agrupando B. agrupo C. agrupé D. agrupado

Answer key

  1. agrupan — The correct form here is agrupan.
  2. agrupamos — The correct form here is agrupamos.
  3. agrupabas — The correct form here is agrupabas.
  4. agrupará — The correct form here is agrupará.
  5. agruparíamos — The correct form here is agruparíamos.
  6. he agrupado — The correct form here is he agrupado.
  7. to group — Agrupar means to group. Reunir means to gather people or things together, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo agrupa a los alumnos por niveles. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo agrupo a los alumnos por niveles.. The person matters: agrupa is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is agrupo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  9. agrupando — The gerund of agrupar is agrupando: estoy agrupando.
  10. agrupado — The past participle of agrupar is agrupado: he agrupado, has agrupado, ha agrupado.

Frequently asked questions

What does agrupar mean?

Agrupar means to group. Agrupar means to group, and it is used for putting things or people into groups: you group students by level, books by topic, chairs in a circle, data into categories. It is a regular -ar verb, common in school, work and research.

When do people use agrupar most?

People use agrupar most in everyday situations such as Yo agrupo a los alumnos por niveles. and Ayer, Yo agrupé las sillas en círculo.. 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 agrupar and reunir?

Agrupar means to group, while reunir means to gather people or things together. 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 agrupar?

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

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