Apresurarse Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

apresurarse means “to hurry up” 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. Apresurarse means to hurry up, and it is the reflexive partner of apresurar: you hurry up to catch a train, to finish work, to get to class on time. It is an everyday verb of running late, and it is fully regular. 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 apresurarse; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the apresurarse present tense page.

apresurarse in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

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

  1. Yo me apresuro para coger el tren. — I hurry up to catch the train.
  2. Él/Ella se apresura a terminar el trabajo. — He hurries up to finish the work.
  3. Nosotros/as nos apresuramos a llegar a clase a tiempo. — We hurry up to get to class on time.
  4. Ellos/as se apresuran porque llegamos tarde. — They hurry up because we are late.

In the past

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

  1. Ayer, Yo me apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo. — Yesterday, I hurried up to get to class on time.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as nos apresurábamos porque llegamos tarde. — Before, We used to hurry up because we are late.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella se apresuró para coger el tren. — Yesterday, He hurried up to catch the train.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as se apresuraban a terminar el trabajo. — As children, They used to hurry up to finish the work.

Plans, hopes and wishes

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

  1. Mañana, Tú te apresurarás para coger el tren. — Tomorrow, You will hurry up to catch the train.
  2. Yo me apresuraría a terminar el trabajo. — I would hurry up to finish the work.
  3. Espero que él se apresure a llegar a clase a tiempo. — I hope he hurries up to get to class on time.
  4. Él/Ella se ha apresurado porque llegamos tarde. — He has hurried up because we are late.

apresurarse in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú te apresuras para coger el tren mañana? — Are you going to hurry up to catch the train tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo me apresuro para coger el tren todos los días. — Yes, I hurry up to catch the train every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana te apresurarás a terminar el trabajo? — And tomorrow, will you hurry up to finish the work? Luis: Claro, mañana me apresuraré a terminar el trabajo sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will hurry up to finish the work without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo me apresuraré a llegar a clase a tiempo también. — Perfect. I will hurry up to get to class on time 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 apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo. — Yesterday, I hurried up to get to class on time. Ana: ¿Y antes te apresurabas porque llegamos tarde? — And before, did you use to hurry up because we are late? Luis: Sí, antes me apresuraba porque llegamos tarde todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to hurry up because we are late every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos se apresuraron para coger el tren? — And did your brothers hurried up to catch the train? Luis: Sí, ellos se apresuraron para coger el tren por la tarde. — Yes, they hurried up to catch the train in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo apresuro para coger el tren. — Right: Yo me apresuro para coger el tren. — Apresurarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  2. Wrong: Treating apresurarse and darse prisa as identical in every context. — Right: Apresurarse means to hurry up, while darse prisa means to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: apresurarse fits sentences such as Me apresuro para coger el tren, while darse prisa belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy apresurado a terminar el trabajo. — Right: Yo he apresurado a terminar el trabajo. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he apresurado, has apresurado, ha apresurado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo apresuraba a llegar a clase a tiempo todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (apresuraba), not the preterite. The preterite (apresuré) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ porque llegamos tarde. (present tense) A. se apresuran B. me apresuro C. te apresuras D. se apresura

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ para coger el tren. (preterite tense) A. me apresuré B. te apresuraste C. se apresuró D. nos apresuramos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ a terminar el trabajo. (imperfect tense) A. se apresuraba B. nos apresurábamos C. te apresurabas D. me apresuraba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ a llegar a clase a tiempo. (future tense) A. nos apresuraremos B. se apresurará C. me apresuraré D. te apresurarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ porque llegamos tarde. (conditional tense) A. nos apresuraríamos B. me apresuraría C. te apresurarías D. se apresuraría

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ para coger el tren. (present-perfect tense) A. te has apresurado B. se ha apresurado C. nos hemos apresurado D. me he apresurado

  7. What does apresurarse mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to hurry up D. to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo me apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo. B. Yo apresuro para coger el tren. C. Yo me apresuro para coger el tren. D. Él/Ella se apresura a terminar el trabajo.

  9. Which is the gerund of apresurarse, used with estar for the progressive? A. apresurando B. apresurado C. apresuro D. apresuré

  10. Which is the past participle of apresurarse, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. apresurando B. apresuro C. apresuré D. apresurado

Answer key

  1. se apresuran — The correct form here is se apresuran.
  2. nos apresuramos — The correct form here is nos apresuramos.
  3. te apresurabas — The correct form here is te apresurabas.
  4. se apresurará — The correct form here is se apresurará.
  5. nos apresuraríamos — The correct form here is nos apresuraríamos.
  6. me he apresurado — The correct form here is me he apresurado.
  7. to hurry up — Apresurarse means to hurry up. Darse prisa means to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo apresuro para coger el tren. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo me apresuro para coger el tren.. Apresurarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
  9. apresurando — The gerund of apresurarse is apresurando: estoy apresurando.
  10. apresurado — The past participle of apresurarse is apresurado: he apresurado, has apresurado, ha apresurado.

Frequently asked questions

What does apresurarse mean?

Apresurarse means to hurry up. Apresurarse means to hurry up, and it is the reflexive partner of apresurar: you hurry up to catch a train, to finish work, to get to class on time. It is an everyday verb of running late, and it is fully regular.

When do people use apresurarse most?

People use apresurarse most in everyday situations such as Yo me apresuro para coger el tren. and Ayer, Yo me apresuré a llegar a clase a tiempo.. 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 apresurarse and darse prisa?

Apresurarse means to hurry up, while darse prisa means to hurry up, the idiomatic phrase. 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 apresurarse?

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

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