Charlar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

charlar means “to chat” 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. Charlar means to chat, and it is the everyday verb for informal conversation: you chat with friends in a café, on the phone every night, with a neighbour in the doorway, about football in a bar. It is a regular -ar verb and a classic verb of social life. 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 charlar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the charlar present tense page.

charlar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

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

  1. Yo charlo con mis amigos en el café. — I chat with my friends in the café.
  2. Él/Ella charla por teléfono cada noche. — He chats on the phone every night.
  3. Nosotros/as charlamos con la vecina en el portal. — We chat with the neighbour in the doorway.
  4. Ellos/as charlan de fútbol en el bar. — They chat about football in the bar.

In the past

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

  1. Ayer, Yo charlé con la vecina en el portal. — Yesterday, I chatted with the neighbour in the doorway.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as charlábamos de fútbol en el bar. — Before, We used to chat about football in the bar.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella charló con mis amigos en el café. — Yesterday, He chatted with my friends in the café.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as charlaban por teléfono cada noche. — As children, They used to chat on the phone every night.

Plans, hopes and wishes

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

  1. Mañana, Tú charlarás con mis amigos en el café. — Tomorrow, You will chat with my friends in the café.
  2. Yo charlaría por teléfono cada noche. — I would chat on the phone every night.
  3. Espero que él charle con la vecina en el portal. — I hope he chats with the neighbour in the doorway.
  4. Él/Ella ha charlado de fútbol en el bar. — He has chatted about football in the bar.

charlar in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú charlas con mis amigos en el café mañana? — Are you going to chat with my friends in the café tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo charlo con mis amigos en el café todos los días. — Yes, I chat with my friends in the café every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana charlarás por teléfono cada noche? — And tomorrow, will you chat on the phone every night? Luis: Claro, mañana charlaré por teléfono cada noche sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will chat on the phone every night without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo charlaré con la vecina en el portal también. — Perfect. I will chat with the neighbour in the doorway too. Luis: Entonces quedamos mañana. ¡Hasta luego! — Then see you tomorrow. Bye!

Yesterday

Ana: ¿Qué hiciste ayer? — What did you do yesterday? Luis: Ayer charlé con la vecina en el portal. — Yesterday, I chatted with the neighbour in the doorway. Ana: ¿Y antes charlabas de fútbol en el bar? — And before, did you use to chat about football in the bar? Luis: Sí, antes charlaba de fútbol en el bar todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to chat about football in the bar every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos charlaron con mis amigos en el café? — And did your brothers chatted with my friends in the café? Luis: Sí, ellos charlaron con mis amigos en el café por la tarde. — Yes, they chatted with my friends in the café in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo charla con mis amigos en el café. — Right: Yo charlo con mis amigos en el café. — The person matters: charla is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is charlo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Treating charlar and conversar as identical in every context. — Right: Charlar means to chat, while conversar means to have a conversation. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: charlar fits sentences such as Charlo con mis amigos en el café, while conversar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  3. Wrong: Yo soy charlado por teléfono cada noche. — Right: Yo he charlado por teléfono cada noche. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he charlado, has charlado, ha charlado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  4. Wrong: De niño, yo charlé con la vecina en el portal todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo charlaba con la vecina en el portal todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (charlaba), not the preterite. The preterite (charlé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ de fútbol en el bar. (present tense) A. charlan B. charlo C. charlas D. charla

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ con mis amigos en el café. (preterite tense) A. charlé B. charlaste C. charló D. charlamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ por teléfono cada noche. (imperfect tense) A. charlábamos B. charlabais C. charlabas D. charlaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ con la vecina en el portal. (future tense) A. charlaremos B. charlará C. charlaré D. charlarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ de fútbol en el bar. (conditional tense) A. charlaríamos B. charlaría C. charlarías D. charlaríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ con mis amigos en el café. (present-perfect tense) A. has charlado B. ha charlado C. hemos charlado D. he charlado

  7. What does charlar mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to chat D. to have a conversation

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo charlé con la vecina en el portal. B. Yo charla con mis amigos en el café. C. Yo charlo con mis amigos en el café. D. Él/Ella charla por teléfono cada noche.

  9. Which is the gerund of charlar, used with estar for the progressive? A. charlando B. charlado C. charlo D. charlé

  10. Which is the past participle of charlar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. charlando B. charlo C. charlé D. charlado

Answer key

  1. charlan — The correct form here is charlan.
  2. charlamos — The correct form here is charlamos.
  3. charlabas — The correct form here is charlabas.
  4. charlará — The correct form here is charlará.
  5. charlaríamos — The correct form here is charlaríamos.
  6. he charlado — The correct form here is he charlado.
  7. to chat — Charlar means to chat. Conversar means to have a conversation, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo charla con mis amigos en el café. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo charlo con mis amigos en el café.. The person matters: charla is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is charlo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  9. charlando — The gerund of charlar is charlando: estoy charlando.
  10. charlado — The past participle of charlar is charlado: he charlado, has charlado, ha charlado.

Frequently asked questions

What does charlar mean?

Charlar means to chat. Charlar means to chat, and it is the everyday verb for informal conversation: you chat with friends in a café, on the phone every night, with a neighbour in the doorway, about football in a bar. It is a regular -ar verb and a classic verb of social life.

When do people use charlar most?

People use charlar most in everyday situations such as Yo charlo con mis amigos en el café. and Ayer, Yo charlé con la vecina en el portal.. 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 charlar and conversar?

Charlar means to chat, while conversar means to have a conversation. 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 charlar?

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

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