Chocar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

chocar means “to crash, to collide” 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. Chocar means to crash or to collide, and it is used for cars crashing into walls, trees and each other, and for people bumping into doors and each other. It also means to clash in opinions, as in chocar con alguien, to clash with someone. 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 chocar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the chocar present tense page.

chocar in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present

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

  1. Yo choco contra la pared. — I crash into the wall.
  2. Él/Ella choca con la puerta al entrar. — He crashes into the door on the way in.
  3. Nosotros/as chocamos con otro coche en el cruce. — We crash with another car at the crossroads.
  4. Ellos/as chocan contra el árbol. — They crash into the tree.

In the past

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

  1. Ayer, Yo choqué con otro coche en el cruce. — Yesterday, I crashed with another car at the crossroads.
  2. Antes, Nosotros/as chocábamos contra el árbol. — Before, We used to crash into the tree.
  3. Ayer, Él/Ella chocó contra la pared. — Yesterday, He crashed into the wall.
  4. De niños, Ellos/as chocaban con la puerta al entrar. — As children, They used to crash into the door on the way in.

Plans, hopes and wishes

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

  1. Mañana, Tú chocarás contra la pared. — Tomorrow, You will crash into the wall.
  2. Yo chocaría con la puerta al entrar. — I would crash into the door on the way in.
  3. Espero que él choque con otro coche en el cruce. — I hope he crashes with another car at the crossroads.
  4. Él/Ella ha chocado contra el árbol. — He has crashed into the tree.

chocar in context: two short dialogues

Making plans

Ana: ¿Tú chocas contra la pared mañana? — Are you going to crash into the wall tomorrow? Luis: Sí, yo choco contra la pared todos los días. — Yes, I crash into the wall every day. Ana: ¿Y mañana chocarás con la puerta al entrar? — And tomorrow, will you crash into the door on the way in? Luis: Claro, mañana chocaré con la puerta al entrar sin falta. — Of course, tomorrow I will crash into the door on the way in without fail. Ana: Perfecto. Yo chocaré con otro coche en el cruce también. — Perfect. I will crash with another car at the crossroads too. Luis: Entonces quedamos mañana. ¡Hasta luego! — Then see you tomorrow. Bye!

Yesterday

Ana: ¿Qué hiciste ayer? — What did you do yesterday? Luis: Ayer choqué con otro coche en el cruce. — Yesterday, I crashed with another car at the crossroads. Ana: ¿Y antes chocabas contra el árbol? — And before, did you use to crash into the tree? Luis: Sí, antes chocaba contra el árbol todos los días. — Yes, before, I used to crash into the tree every day. Ana: ¿Y tus hermanos chocaron contra la pared? — And did your brothers crashed into the wall? Luis: Sí, ellos chocaron contra la pared por la tarde. — Yes, they crashed into the wall in the afternoon.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo choca contra la pared. — Right: Yo choco contra la pared. — The person matters: choca is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is choco. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Ayer, yo chocé con otro coche en el cruce. — Right: Ayer, yo choqué con otro coche en el cruce. — Spelling change: c becomes qu before e, so the preterite is choqué, never chocé.
  3. Wrong: Treating chocar and colisionar as identical in every context. — Right: Chocar means to crash, to collide, while colisionar means to collide, the formal synonym. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: chocar fits sentences such as Choco contra la pared, while colisionar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy chocado con la puerta al entrar. — Right: Yo he chocado con la puerta al entrar. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he chocado, has chocado, ha chocado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo choqué con otro coche en el cruce todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo chocaba con otro coche en el cruce todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (chocaba), not the preterite. The preterite (choqué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

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

  1. Complete the sentence: Ellos/as ___ contra el árbol. (present tense) A. chocan B. choco C. chocas D. choca

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, Nosotros/as ___ contra la pared. (preterite tense) A. choqué B. chocaste C. chocó D. chocamos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, Tú ___ con la puerta al entrar. (imperfect tense) A. chocábamos B. chocabais C. chocabas D. chocaba

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, Él/Ella ___ con otro coche en el cruce. (future tense) A. chocaremos B. chocará C. chocaré D. chocarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Nosotros/as ___ contra el árbol. (conditional tense) A. chocaríamos B. chocaría C. chocarías D. chocaríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Hoy, Yo ___ contra la pared. (present-perfect tense) A. has chocado B. ha chocado C. hemos chocado D. he chocado

  7. What does chocar mean in English? A. to disturb B. to address as tú C. to crash, to collide D. to collide, the formal synonym

  8. Which of these sentences is WRONG? A. Ayer, Yo choqué con otro coche en el cruce. B. Yo choca contra la pared. C. Yo choco contra la pared. D. Él/Ella choca con la puerta al entrar.

  9. Which is the gerund of chocar, used with estar for the progressive? A. chocando B. chocado C. choco D. choqué

  10. Which is the past participle of chocar, used with haber in the perfect tenses? A. chocando B. choco C. choqué D. chocado

Answer key

  1. chocan — The correct form here is chocan.
  2. chocamos — The correct form here is chocamos.
  3. chocabas — The correct form here is chocabas.
  4. chocará — The correct form here is chocará.
  5. chocaríamos — The correct form here is chocaríamos.
  6. he chocado — The correct form here is he chocado.
  7. to crash, to collide — Chocar means to crash, to collide. Colisionar means to collide, the formal synonym, which is a different verb.
  8. Yo choca contra la pared. — The first sentence is wrong: the correct form is Yo choco contra la pared.. The person matters: choca is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is choco. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  9. chocando — The gerund of chocar is chocando: estoy chocando.
  10. chocado — The past participle of chocar is chocado: he chocado, has chocado, ha chocado.

Frequently asked questions

What does chocar mean?

Chocar means to crash, to collide. Chocar means to crash or to collide, and it is used for cars crashing into walls, trees and each other, and for people bumping into doors and each other. It also means to clash in opinions, as in chocar con alguien, to clash with someone.

When do people use chocar most?

People use chocar most in everyday situations such as Yo choco contra la pared. and Ayer, Yo choqué con otro coche en el cruce.. 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 chocar and colisionar?

Chocar means to crash, to collide, while colisionar means to collide, the formal synonym. 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 chocar?

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

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