Averiguar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

averiguar means “to find out” 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. Averiguar means to find out, and it is the verb of investigation: you find out the truth, the time of a train, who called, where someone lives. It takes que or a question word for the thing found out, as in averiguar quién llamó, and it is common in detective stories and in everyday curiosity. 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 averiguar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the averiguar present tense page.

averiguar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

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

  1. Yo averiguo la verdad del asunto. — I find out the truth of the matter.
  2. Él/Ella averigua la hora del tren. — He finds out the time of the train.
  3. Nosotros/as averiguamos quién llamó ayer. — We find out who called yesterday.
  4. Ellos/as averiguan dónde vive ahora. — They find out where he lives now.

In the past

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

  1. Ayer, Yo averigüé quién llamó ayer. — Yesterday, I found out who called yesterday.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as averiguábamos dónde vive ahora. — Before, We used to find out where he lives now.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella averiguó la verdad del asunto. — Yesterday, He found out the truth of the matter.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as averiguaban la hora del tren. — As children, They used to find out the time of the train.

Plans, hopes and wishes

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

  1. Mañana, Tú averiguarás la verdad del asunto. — Tomorrow, You will find out the truth of the matter.
  2. Yo averiguaría la hora del tren. — I would find out the time of the train.
  3. Espero que él averigüe quién llamó ayer. — I hope he finds out who called yesterday.
  4. Él/Ella ha averiguado dónde vive ahora. — He has found out where he lives now.

averiguar in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú averiguas la verdad del asunto mañana? — Are you going to find out the truth of the matter tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo averiguo la verdad del asunto todos los días. — Yes, I find out the truth of the matter every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana averiguarás la hora del tren? — And tomorrow, will you find out the time of the train? Luis: Claro, mañana averiguaré la hora del tren sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will find out the time of the train without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo averiguaré quién llamó ayer también. — Perfect. I will find out who called yesterday too. Luis: Entonces quedamos mañana. ¡Hasta luego! — Then see you tomorrow. Bye!

Yesterday

Ana: ¿Qué hiciste ayer? — What did you do yesterday? Luis: Ayer averigüé quién llamó ayer. — Yesterday, I found out who called yesterday. Ana: ¿Y antes averiguabas dónde vive ahora? — And before, did you use to find out where he lives now? Luis: Sí, antes averiguaba dónde vive ahora todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to find out where he lives now every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos averiguaron la verdad del asunto? — And did your brothers found out the truth of the matter? Luis: Sí, ellos averiguaron la verdad del asunto por la tarde. — Yes, they found out the truth of the matter in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo averigua la verdad del asunto. — Right: Yo averiguo la verdad del asunto. — The person matters: averigua is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is averiguo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Treating averiguar and descubrir as identical in every context. — Right: Averiguar means to find out, while descubrir means to discover something. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: averiguar fits sentences such as Averiguo la verdad del asunto, while descubrir belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy averiguado la hora del tren. — Right: Yo he averiguado la hora del tren. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he averiguado, has averiguado, ha averiguado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo averigüé quién llamó ayer todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo averiguaba quién llamó ayer todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (averiguaba), not the preterite. The preterite (averigüé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ dónde vive ahora. (present tense) A. averiguan B. averiguo C. averiguas D. averigua

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ la verdad del asunto. (preterite tense) A. averigüé B. averiguaste C. averiguó D. averiguamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ la hora del tren. (imperfect tense) A. averiguábamos B. averiguabais C. averiguabas D. averiguaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ quién llamó ayer. (future tense) A. averiguaremos B. averiguará C. averiguaré D. averiguarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ dónde vive ahora. (conditional tense) A. averiguaríamos B. averiguaría C. averiguarías D. averiguaríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ la verdad del asunto. (present-perfect tense) A. has averiguado B. ha averiguado C. hemos averiguado D. he averiguado

  7. What does averiguar mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to find out D. to discover something

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo averigüé quién llamó ayer. B. Yo averigua la verdad del asunto. C. Yo averiguo la verdad del asunto. D. Él/Ella averigua la hora del tren.

  9. Which is the gerund of averiguar, used with estar for the progressive? A. averiguando B. averiguado C. averiguo D. averigüé

  10. Which is the past participle of averiguar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. averiguando B. averiguo C. averigüé D. averiguado

Answer key

  1. averiguan — The correct form here is averiguan.
  2. averiguamos — The correct form here is averiguamos.
  3. averiguabas — The correct form here is averiguabas.
  4. averiguará — The correct form here is averiguará.
  5. averiguaríamos — The correct form here is averiguaríamos.
  6. he averiguado — The correct form here is he averiguado.
  7. to find out — Averiguar means to find out. Descubrir means to discover something, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo averigua la verdad del asunto. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo averiguo la verdad del asunto.. The person matters: averigua is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is averiguo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  9. averiguando — The gerund of averiguar is averiguando: estoy averiguando.
  10. averiguado — The past participle of averiguar is averiguado: he averiguado, has averiguado, ha averiguado.

Frequently asked questions

What does averiguar mean?

Averiguar means to find out. Averiguar means to find out, and it is the verb of investigation: you find out the truth, the time of a train, who called, where someone lives. It takes que or a question word for the thing found out, as in averiguar quién llamó, and it is common in detective stories and in everyday curiosity.

When do people use averiguar most?

People use averiguar most in everyday situations such as Yo averiguo la verdad del asunto. and Ayer, Yo averigüé quién llamó ayer.. 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 averiguar and descubrir?

Averiguar means to find out, while descubrir means to discover 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 averiguar?

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

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