Animarse Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

animarse means “to cheer up, to feel like” 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. Animarse means to cheer up or to feel like, and it is reflexive: you cheer up after bad news, you feel like going out, you pluck up the courage to do something. It takes a before an infinitive for feeling like doing something, as in animarse a salir. 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 animarse; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the animarse present tense page.

animarse in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

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

  1. Yo me animo con la buena noticia. — I cheer up with the good news.
  2. Él/Ella se anima a salir con amigos. — He cheers up to go out with friends.
  3. Nosotros/as nos animamos a estudiar español. — We cheer up to study Spanish.
  4. Ellos/as se animan cuando llega el verano. — They cheer up when summer arrives.

In the past

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

  1. Ayer, Yo me animé a estudiar español. — Yesterday, I cheered up to study Spanish.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as nos animábamos cuando llega el verano. — Before, We used to cheer up when summer arrives.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella se animó con la buena noticia. — Yesterday, He cheered up with the good news.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as se animaban a salir con amigos. — As children, They used to cheer up to go out with friends.

Plans, hopes and wishes

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

  1. Mañana, Tú te animarás con la buena noticia. — Tomorrow, You will cheer up with the good news.
  2. Yo me animaría a salir con amigos. — I would cheer up to go out with friends.
  3. Espero que él se anime a estudiar español. — I hope he cheers up to study Spanish.
  4. Él/Ella se ha animado cuando llega el verano. — He has cheered up when summer arrives.

animarse in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú te animas con la buena noticia mañana? — Are you going to cheer up with the good news tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo me animo con la buena noticia todos los días. — Yes, I cheer up with the good news every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana te animarás a salir con amigos? — And tomorrow, will you cheer up to go out with friends? Luis: Claro, mañana me animaré a salir con amigos sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will cheer up to go out with friends without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo me animaré a estudiar español también. — Perfect. I will cheer up to study Spanish too. Luis: Entonces quedamos mañana. ¡Hasta luego! — Then see you tomorrow. Bye!

Yesterday

Ana: ¿Qué hiciste ayer? — What did you do yesterday? Luis: Ayer me animé a estudiar español. — Yesterday, I cheered up to study Spanish. Ana: ¿Y antes te animabas cuando llega el verano? — And before, did you use to cheer up when summer arrives? Luis: Sí, antes me animaba cuando llega el verano todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to cheer up when summer arrives every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos se animaron con la buena noticia? — And did your brothers cheered up with the good news? Luis: Sí, ellos se animaron con la buena noticia por la tarde. — Yes, they cheered up with the good news in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo animo con la buena noticia. — Right: Yo me animo con la buena noticia. — Animarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Treating animarse and alegrarse as identical in every context. — Right: Animarse means to cheer up, to feel like, while alegrarse means to be glad about something. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: animarse fits sentences such as Me animo con la buena noticia, while alegrarse belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy animado a salir con amigos. — Right: Yo he animado a salir con amigos. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he animado, has animado, ha animado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo animé a estudiar español todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo animaba a estudiar español todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (animaba), not the preterite. The preterite (animé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ cuando llega el verano. (present tense) A. se animan B. me animo C. te animas D. se anima

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ con la buena noticia. (preterite tense) A. me animé B. te animaste C. se animó D. nos animamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ a salir con amigos. (imperfect tense) A. se animaba B. nos animábamos C. te animabas D. me animaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ a estudiar español. (future tense) A. nos animaremos B. se animará C. me animaré D. te animarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ cuando llega el verano. (conditional tense) A. nos animaríamos B. me animaría C. te animarías D. se animaría

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ con la buena noticia. (present-perfect tense) A. te has animado B. se ha animado C. nos hemos animado D. me he animado

  7. What does animarse mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to cheer up, to feel like D. to be glad about something

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo me animé a estudiar español. B. Yo animo con la buena noticia. C. Yo me animo con la buena noticia. D. Él/Ella se anima a salir con amigos.

  9. Which is the gerund of animarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. animando B. animado C. animo D. animé

  10. Which is the past participle of animarse, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. animando B. animo C. animé D. animado

Answer key

  1. se animan — The correct form here is se animan.
  2. nos animamos — The correct form here is nos animamos.
  3. te animabas — The correct form here is te animabas.
  4. se animará — The correct form here is se animará.
  5. nos animaríamos — The correct form here is nos animaríamos.
  6. me he animado — The correct form here is me he animado.
  7. to cheer up, to feel like — Animarse means to cheer up, to feel like. Alegrarse means to be glad about something, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo animo con la buena noticia. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo me animo con la buena noticia.. Animarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  9. animando — The gerund of animarse is animando: estoy animando.
  10. animado — The past participle of animarse is animado: he animado, has animado, ha animado.

Frequently asked questions

What does animarse mean?

Animarse means to cheer up, to feel like. Animarse means to cheer up or to feel like, and it is reflexive: you cheer up after bad news, you feel like going out, you pluck up the courage to do something. It takes a before an infinitive for feeling like doing something, as in animarse a salir.

When do people use animarse most?

People use animarse most in everyday situations such as Yo me animo con la buena noticia. and Ayer, Yo me animé a estudiar español.. 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 animarse and alegrarse?

Animarse means to cheer up, to feel like, while alegrarse means to be glad about 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 animarse?

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

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