Alargar Examples, Sentences and Quiz in Spanish

alargar means to lengthen, to extend, and it is a verb you will meet in everyday Spanish again and again. Alargar means to lengthen or to extend, and it covers lengthening a dress, extending a meeting until six, holding out a hand to greet and extending a project deadline. It is a spelling-change verb: the g becomes gu before e. This page puts alargar to work: twelve example sentences in different tenses and persons, grouped by use, then two short dialogues where the verb appears naturally, then the common mistakes to avoid, and finally a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Every Spanish form on this page comes from the verified conjugation tables for alargar, and the full tables are on the alargar conjugation page if you need to check a form.

Example sentences

Everyday uses

  1. Yo alargo el vestido para la fiesta. — I lengthen the dress for the party.
  2. Él alarga la reunión hasta las seis. — He/she lengthens the meeting until six.
  3. Ayer, yo alargué la mano para saludar. — Yesterday, I lengthened my hand to greet.
  4. Antes, nosotros alargábamos el plazo del proyecto. — Before, we used to lengthen the project deadline.

In other tenses

  1. Mañana, tú alargarás el vestido para la fiesta. — Tomorrow, you will lengthen the dress for the party.
  2. Yo alargaría la reunión hasta las seis. — I would lengthen the meeting until six.
  3. Él ha alargado la mano para saludar. — He/she has lengthened my hand to greet.
  4. Espero que él alargue el plazo del proyecto. — I hope he/she lengthens the project deadline.

With other people

  1. Nosotros alargamos el vestido para la fiesta. — We lengthen the dress for the party.
  2. Vosotros alargáis la reunión hasta las seis. — You all lengthen the meeting until six.
  3. Antes, ellos alargaban la mano para saludar. — Before, they used to lengthen my hand to greet.
  4. Mañana, él alargará el plazo del proyecto. — Tomorrow, he/she will lengthen the project deadline.

Alargar in context

Two short dialogues that use alargar the way people really use it. Read them aloud — the verb forms will stick much faster in a conversation than in a table.

Dialogue 1: today and yesterday

  • Ana: "Hola, ¿qué tal?" — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Luis: "Hoy alargo el vestido para la fiesta." — "Today I lengthen the dress for the party."
  • Ana: "¿Y ayer?" — "And yesterday?"
  • Luis: "Ayer, alargué la mano para saludar." — "Yesterday I lengthened my hand to greet."
  • Ana: "¿Y mañana, tú alargarás la reunión hasta las seis?" — "And tomorrow, will you will lengthen the meeting until six?"
  • Luis: "Sí, claro. Y tú también." — "Yes, of course. And you too."

Dialogue 2: making plans

  • Marta: "Mañana, nosotros alargamos el plazo del proyecto." — "Tomorrow we lengthen the project deadline."
  • Carlos: "Perfecto. Yo alargaría la reunión hasta las seis si tuviera más tiempo." — "Perfect. I would would lengthen the meeting until six if I had more time."
  • Marta: "Espero que él alargue el vestido para la fiesta." — "I hope he lengthens the dress for the party."
  • Carlos: "Seguro que sí. Él ya ha alargado la mano para saludar." — "Surely. He has already has lengthened my hand to greet."
  • Marta: "Vale, nos vemos mañana." — "OK, see you tomorrow."

Notice how the same verb changes with the tense: the present for the plan, the conditional for the wish, the subjunctive after espero que, and the present perfect for what has already happened. That is the whole point of learning a verb across its tenses, not just in one form.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo alarga el vestido para la fiesta. — Right: Yo alargo el vestido para la fiesta. — The person matters: alarga is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is alargo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Yo alargé la reunión hasta las seis. — Right: Yo alargué la reunión hasta las seis. — In the preterite, the correct first-person form is alargué, not alargé. alargar is a spelling-change verb: g becomes gu before e, so the written form changes to keep the same sound. The regular-looking form is wrong.
  3. Wrong: Treating alargar and extender as identical in every context. — Right: Alargar means to lengthen, to extend, while extender means to extend, the close synonym. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: alargar fits sentences such as Alargo el vestido para la fiesta, while extender belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy alargado la reunión hasta las seis. — Right: Yo he alargado la reunión hasta las seis. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he alargado, has alargado, ha alargado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo alargué la mano para saludar todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo alargaba la mano para saludar todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (alargaba), not the preterite. The preterite (alargué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on alargar: four on the forms, three on the meaning, and three on spotting the correct sentence. Check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ el vestido para la fiesta. (present tense) A. alargo B. alargas C. alarga D. alargamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ___ la reunión hasta las seis. (preterite tense) A. alargué B. alargaste C. alargamos D. alargó

  3. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ la mano para saludar. (future tense) A. alargará B. alargaremos C. alargarás D. alargaré

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ el plazo del proyecto. (imperfect tense) A. alargabais B. alargábamos C. alargaba D. alargabas

  5. What does "Yo alargo el vestido para la fiesta." mean in English? A. I lengthen the dress for the party. B. I lengthen the meeting until six. C. I lengthen my hand to greet. D. I lengthen the project deadline.

  6. What does "Él alargó la reunión hasta las seis." mean in English? A. He/she lengthened the dress for the party. B. He/she lengthened my hand to greet. C. He/she lengthened the project deadline. D. He/she lengthened the meeting until six.

  7. What does "Nosotros alargaremos la mano para saludar." mean in English? A. We will lengthen the meeting until six. B. We will lengthen the project deadline. C. We will lengthen my hand to greet. D. We will lengthen the dress for the party.

  8. Which sentence is correct? A. Yo alargan la reunión hasta las seis. B. Yo alarga la reunión hasta las seis. C. Yo alargo la reunión hasta las seis.

  9. Which sentence is correct? A. Él alargué la mano para saludar. B. Él alargó la mano para saludar. C. Él alargaron la mano para saludar.

  10. Which sentence is correct? A. Espero que yo alargue el plazo del proyecto. B. Yo alarge el plazo del proyecto. C. Yo alargue el plazo del proyecto.

Answer key

  1. alargo — The yo present form of alargar is alargo.
  2. alargó — The el preterite form of alargar is alargó.
  3. alargarás — The tu future form of alargar is alargarás.
  4. alargábamos — The nosotros imperfect form of alargar is alargábamos.
  5. I lengthen the dress for the party. — The Spanish sentence uses the present form alargo, so the English is "I lengthen the dress for the party." The other options use a different object or situation.
  6. He/she lengthened the meeting until six. — The Spanish sentence uses the preterite form alargó, so the English is "He/she lengthened the meeting until six." The other options use a different object or situation.
  7. We will lengthen my hand to greet. — The Spanish sentence uses the future form alargaremos, so the English is "We will lengthen my hand to greet." The other options use a different object or situation.
  8. Yo alargo la reunión hasta las seis. — The correct sentence is "Yo alargo la reunión hasta las seis." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  9. Él alargó la mano para saludar. — The correct sentence is "Él alargó la mano para saludar." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  10. Espero que yo alargue el plazo del proyecto. — The correct sentence is "Espero que yo alargue el plazo del proyecto." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.

Frequently asked questions

What does alargar mean, and when do I use it?

Alargar means to lengthen, to extend. Alargar means to lengthen or to extend, and it covers lengthening a dress, extending a meeting until six, holding out a hand to greet and extending a project deadline. It is a spelling-change verb: the g becomes gu before e. A good first sentence to remember is Yo alargo el vestido para la fiesta. — "I lengthen the dress for the party."

What is the difference between alargar and extender?

Alargar means to lengthen, to extend, while extender means to extend, the close synonym. They appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use alargar when you mean to lengthen, to extend, as in Yo alargo la reunión hasta las seis., and use extender for to extend, the close synonym.

How do I say "I lengthen" in the past?

For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo alargué la reunión hasta las seis.. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo alargaba la mano para saludar.. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he alargado la reunión hasta las seis..

How do I practise alargar?

Start with the alargar conjugation page for the full tables, then the alargar in the present tense page for the tense in focus, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure. Spelling change: g becomes gu before e, so the preterite is alargué and the subjunctive is alargue.

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