Aguardar Examples, Sentences and Quiz
Aguardar means “to wait for”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Aguardar means to wait for something, and it is a slightly formal synonym of esperar, used for waiting for a train, a letter, a reply or a person. It takes a direct object, with no preposition, and it is fully regular. This page shows aguardar 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 aguardo el tren en la estación.” — I wait for the train at the station.
Aguardar in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how aguardar 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 aguardar in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Aguardo el tren en la estación.” — I wait for the train at the station.
“¿Tú aguardas la respuesta del jefe?” — Do you wait for the boss's reply?
“Aguarda a su amigo en la puerta.” — He/she waits for his friend at the door.
“Aguardamos el momento adecuado.” — We wait for the right moment.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show aguardar in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo aguardé el tren en la estación.” — Yesterday, I waited for the train at the station. (preterite)
“Él aguardaba la respuesta del jefe todos los días.” — He used to wait for the boss's reply every day. (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 aguardar stays the same.
“Nosotros aguardaremos a su amigo en la puerta mañana.” — We will wait for his friend at the door tomorrow. (future)
“¿Tú has aguardado el momento adecuado?” — Have you waited for the right moment? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Aguardáis el tren en la estación.” — You wait for the train at the station.
“Aguardan la respuesta del jefe.” — They wait for the boss's reply.
“Aguardo a su amigo en la puerta.” — I wait for his friend at the door.
“Aguarda el momento adecuado.” — He/she waits for the right moment.
Aguardar 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 aguardar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Lucía: “¿Tú aguardas el tren en la estación?” — Do you wait for the train at the station?
Carlos: “Sí, yo aguardo el tren en la estación.” — Yes, I wait for the train at the station.
Lucía: “Nosotros aguardamos la respuesta del jefe.” — We wait for the boss's reply.
Carlos: “Y ellos aguardan a su amigo en la puerta.” — And they wait for his friend at the door.
Lucía: “Vosotros aguardáis el momento adecuado.” — You wait for the right moment.
Carlos: “Sí, y él aguarda la respuesta del jefe.” — Yes, and he waits for the boss's reply.
A short paragraph
Lucía aguarda el tren en la estación, y Carlos aguarda la respuesta del jefe. Nosotros aguardamos a su amigo en la puerta, y ellos aguardan el momento adecuado. Yo aguardo a su amigo en la puerta, y mi padre aguarda el momento adecuado. Aguardar is part of everyday life, because to wait for is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.
Common mistakes with aguardar
These are the errors learners actually make with aguardar. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo aguarda el tren en la estación.” Right: “Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.” Why: The person matters: aguarda is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is aguardo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Ayer yo aguardo la respuesta del jefe.” Right: “Ayer yo aguardé la respuesta del jefe.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: aguardo is happening now, while aguardé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating aguardar and esperar as identical in every context.” Right: “Aguardar means to wait for, while esperar means to wait.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: aguardar fits sentences such as Aguardo el tren en la estación, while esperar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy aguardado la respuesta del jefe.” Right: “Yo he aguardado la respuesta del jefe.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he aguardado, has aguardado, ha aguardado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo aguardé a su amigo en la puerta todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo aguardaba a su amigo en la puerta todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (aguardaba), not the preterite. The preterite (aguardé) is for one finished action.
Quiz: aguardar in use
Ten questions on aguardar in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ el tren en la estación.” (The train at the station.)
- (a) aguardáis
- (b) aguardo
- (c) aguardas
Answer: aguardáis — The vosotros/as form of aguardar in the present is aguardáis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ la respuesta del jefe.” (The boss's reply.)
- (a) aguardo
- (b) aguardas
- (c) aguardan
Answer: aguardan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of aguardar in the present is aguardan.
3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ el tren en la estación.” (The train at the station.)
- (a) aguardó
- (b) aguardé
- (c) aguardaste
Answer: aguardé — The yo form of aguardar in the preterite is aguardé.
4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ la respuesta del jefe.” (The boss's reply.)
- (a) aguardaba
- (b) aguardabas
- (c) aguardábamos
Answer: aguardaba — The él/ella/Ud. form of aguardar in the imperfect is aguardaba.
5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ a su amigo en la puerta.” (His friend at the door.)
- (a) aguardaré
- (b) aguardarás
- (c) aguardaremos
Answer: aguardaremos — The nosotros/as form of aguardar in the future is aguardaremos.
6. What does aguardar mean in English?
- (a) to haggle
- (b) to wait for
- (c) to wait
Answer: to wait for — Aguardar means “to wait for”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.
- (b) Ellos aguarda el tren en la estación.
- (c) Yo aguardo la respuesta del jefe ayer.
Answer: Yo aguardo el tren en la estación. — “Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I wait for the train at the station.” in Spanish?
- (a) Yo aguardan el tren en la estación.
- (b) Yo aguardé el tren en la estación.
- (c) Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.
Answer: Yo aguardo el tren en la estación. — “Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.” is the correct translation. The second option uses the wrong person's form, and the third uses the preterite.
9. What is the nosotros form of aguardar in the present tense?
- (a) aguardas
- (b) aguardamos
- (c) aguardo
Answer: aguardamos — The nosotros form is aguardamos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Ayer, yo aguardé el tren en la estación.
- (b) Nosotros aguardaremos el tren en la estación mañana.
- (c) Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.
Answer: Yo aguardo el tren en la estación. — “Yo aguardo el tren en la estación.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I wait for' in Spanish?
Say 'Yo aguardo el tren en la estación'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo aguardo el tren en la estación todos los días'.
How do you say 'I wait for' in the past?
For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo aguardé la respuesta del jefe'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo aguardaba la respuesta del jefe todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo he aguardado la respuesta del jefe'.
What is the difference between aguardar and esperar?
Aguardar means to wait for, while esperar means to wait. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use aguardar when you mean to wait for, as in Aguardo el tren en la estación.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of aguardar — every tense of aguardar in one place.
- Aguardar 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 aguardar and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of aguardar until they are automatic.