Apartarse Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish
apartarse means "to move away" in English, and this page shows it in everyday use: real example sentences in several tenses, two short dialogues, the mistakes learners actually make, and a quiz to test yourself. You will see apartarse with the car's path, the window because of the cold, the group during break and his friend after the fight — the situations where Spanish speakers really use it. A good first sentence to learn is: Cada día, yo me aparto del camino del coche. — "Every day, I move away from the car's path." Read the examples aloud, notice which tense each one uses, and then try the dialogues and the quiz.
apartarse in everyday sentences
Twelve sentences with apartarse, grouped by situation. Each one shows the verb in a different tense or person, with its English translation and a note on when to use that form.
Everyday use
- Cada día, yo me aparto del camino del coche. — "Every day, I move away from the car's path." The present tense fits a habit here.
- Ayer, yo me aparté de la ventana por el frío. — "Yesterday, I moved away from the window because of the cold." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, yo me apartaba del grupo durante el recreo. — "In the past, I used to move away from the group during break." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, nosotros nos apartaremos de su amigo tras la pelea. — "Tomorrow, we will move away from his friend after the fight." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Si pudieras, tú te apartarías del camino del coche. — "If you could, you would move away from the car's path." The conditional fits something that would happen.
- Yo me he apartado de la ventana por el frío. — "I have moved away from the window because of the cold." The present perfect fits an action with present relevance.
More situations
- Normalmente, él se aparta del grupo durante el recreo. — "Normally, he/she moves away from the group during break." The present tense fits a general truth here.
- Ayer, él se apartó de su amigo tras la pelea. — "Yesterday, he/she moved away from his friend after the fight." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, nosotros nos apartábamos del camino del coche. — "In the past, we used to move away from the car's path." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, yo me apartaré de la ventana por el frío. — "Tomorrow, I will move away from the window because of the cold." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Espero que él se aparte del grupo durante el recreo. — "I hope that he/she moves away from the group during break." The present subjunctive follows espero que.
- ¡No te apartes de su amigo tras la pelea! — "Do not move away from his friend after the fight!" The imperative fits a direct order or request.
The verb in context
Two short dialogues using apartarse naturally. Notice how the verb changes person and tense as the conversation moves, and how the complements stay the same kind of situation: the car's path, the window because of the cold, the group during break and his friend after the fight.
Dialogue 1: talking about the car's path
Ana: ¿Tú te apartas del camino del coche? — "Do you move away from the car's path?" Luis: Sí, yo me aparto del camino del coche. — "I move away from the car's path." Ana: ¿Y ayer? — "And yesterday?" Luis: Ayer, yo me aparté de la ventana por el frío. — "Yesterday, I moved away from the window because of the cold." Ana: Mañana, nosotros nos apartaremos del grupo durante el recreo. — "Tomorrow, we will move away from the group during break." Luis: Si pudiera, yo me apartaría de su amigo tras la pelea. — "If I could, I would move away from his friend after the fight." Ana: Antes, yo me apartaba de la ventana por el frío. — "In the past, I used to move away from the window because of the cold." Luis: Yo me he apartado del camino del coche. — "I have moved away from the car's path." Ana: ¡No te apartes del grupo durante el recreo! — "Do not move away from the group during break!"
In this dialogue apartarse appears in the present, the preterite, the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect. That is the point: one verb, many tenses, and the complement tells you which situation you are in. Try the same dialogue with your own complements.
Dialogue 2: talking about the group during break
Ana: Él se aparta del grupo durante el recreo. — "he/she moves away from the group during break." Luis: ¿De verdad? ¿Él se aparta del grupo durante el recreo todos los días? — "Really? Does he/she moves away from the group during break every day?" Ana: Sí, y ellos se apartan de su amigo tras la pelea. — "they move away from his friend after the fight." Luis: Ayer, ellos se apartaron del grupo durante el recreo. — "Yesterday, they moved away from the group during break." Ana: Espero que él se aparte de su amigo tras la pelea. — "I hope that he/she moves away from his friend after the fight." Luis: Mañana, él se apartará del grupo durante el recreo. — "Tomorrow, he/she will move away from the group during break." Ana: Antes, nosotros nos apartábamos de su amigo tras la pelea. — "In the past, we used to move away from his friend after the fight." Luis: Nosotros nos apartamos del camino del coche también. — "we move away from the car's path too."
This dialogue shows apartarse in the third person and in the plural, which is where learners most often hesitate. Read it aloud with a partner, swapping the names and the complements for your own life, and the forms will start to feel automatic.
Common mistakes with apartarse
The errors learners actually make with apartarse in everyday use, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why it is wrong.
Mistake 1: Forgetting the reflexive pronoun
- Wrong: Yo aparto del camino del coche.
- Right: Yo me aparto del camino del coche.
- Why: apartarse is reflexive, so the pronoun is part of the verb: Yo me aparto del camino del coche.. Without me the sentence is incomplete.
Mistake 2: Using the infinitive as a conjugated form
- Wrong: Yo apartarse del camino del coche.
- Right: Yo me aparto del camino del coche.
- Why: The infinitive apartarse is the dictionary form, not a conjugated form. In a sentence with yo you need the present-tense form aparto.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo me aparto de la ventana por el frío.
- Right: Ayer, yo me aparté de la ventana por el frío.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo me aparté de la ventana por el frío. — "Yesterday, I moved away from the window because of the cold."
Mistake 4: Mixing up the gerund and the participle
- Wrong: Me estoy apartado del grupo durante el recreo.
- Right: Me estoy apartando del grupo durante el recreo.
- Why: After estar you need the gerund apartando for the progressive. The participle apartado goes with haber in the perfect tenses (me he apartado), never after estar.
Mistake 5: Using the él form for nosotros
- Wrong: Nosotros nos aparta del camino del coche.
- Right: Nosotros nos apartamos del camino del coche.
- Why: The person and the ending must match: nosotros takes apartamos, while aparta belongs to él and ella.
Quiz: apartarse in use
Test yourself with ten questions on apartarse. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of apartarse in the present tense?
- (a) apartas
- (b) aparta
- (c) apartamos
- (d) aparto
Answer: (d) aparto. The yo form is aparto.
2. What is the tú form of apartarse in the present tense?
- (a) aparta
- (b) apartamos
- (c) apartas
- (d) aparto
Answer: (c) apartas. The tú form is apartas.
3. What is the él/ella form of apartarse in the present tense?
- (a) apartamos
- (b) aparta
- (c) aparto
- (d) apartas
Answer: (b) aparta. The él/ella form is aparta.
4. Complete the sentence: Cada día, yo ___ del camino del coche.
- (a) aparto
- (b) apartas
- (c) aparta
- (d) apartamos
Answer: (a) aparto. The sentence needs the yo form aparto.
5. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ___ de la ventana por el frío.
- (a) apartaste
- (b) apartó
- (c) apartamos
- (d) aparté
Answer: (d) aparté. Ayer needs the preterite, and the yo form is aparté.
6. Complete the sentence: Antes, yo ___ del grupo durante el recreo.
- (a) apartábamos
- (b) apartabais
- (c) apartaba
- (d) apartabas
Answer: (c) apartaba. Antes needs the imperfect, and the yo form is apartaba.
7. Complete the sentence: Mañana, yo ___ de su amigo tras la pelea.
- (a) apartaremos
- (b) apartaré
- (c) apartarás
- (d) apartará
Answer: (b) apartaré. Mañana needs the future, and the yo form is apartaré.
8. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ del camino del coche.
- (a) nos hemos apartado
- (b) me he apartado
- (c) te has apartado
- (d) se ha apartado
Answer: (b) me he apartado. The present perfect uses haber plus the participle: me he apartado.
9. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ del grupo durante el recreo.
- (a) apartes
- (b) apartemos
- (c) apartéis
- (d) aparte
Answer: (d) aparte. After espero que Spanish needs the subjunctive, and the él form is aparte.
10. What does apartarse mean in English?
- (a) to specialise
- (b) to specialise in
- (c) to stabilise
- (d) to move away
Answer: (d) to move away. apartarse means "to move away" in English.
Frequently asked questions about apartarse
What does apartarse mean?
apartarse means "to move away" in English. Use it when you talk about the car's path, the window because of the cold, the group during break and his friend after the fight — for example: Cada día, yo me aparto del camino del coche. — "Every day, I move away from the car's path."
Is apartarse reflexive?
Yes. apartarse is reflexive, so it always travels with a pronoun: me, te, se, nos, os, se. Cada día, yo me aparto del camino del coche. — "Every day, I move away from the car's path." If you drop the pronoun, the sentence is incomplete.
What is the most common mistake with apartarse?
Forgetting the reflexive pronoun. Learners write the bare form — for example, Yo aparto del camino del coche — when the verb needs its pronoun: Cada día, yo me aparto del camino del coche. — "Every day, I move away from the car's path." Keep the pronoun with the verb and the mistake disappears.
How can I practise apartarse?
Take the quiz above, then make your own sentences: change the person in each example, change the complement to something from your own life, and say the sentence aloud. The verb quiz and the verb translator on this site give you more practice with the same forms.