Compadecerse Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish
compadecerse means "to feel sorry for" 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 compadecerse with his sick brother, the homeless children, his sad friend and the lonely old people — the situations where Spanish speakers really use it. A good first sentence to learn is: Cada día, yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo. — "Every day, I feel sorry for of his sick brother." Read the examples aloud, notice which tense each one uses, and then try the dialogues and the quiz.
compadecerse in everyday sentences
Twelve sentences with compadecerse, 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 compadezco de su hermano enfermo. — "Every day, I feel sorry for of his sick brother." The present tense fits a habit here.
- Ayer, yo me compadecí de los niños sin hogar. — "Yesterday, I feeled sorry for of the homeless children." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, yo me compadecía de su amiga triste. — "In the past, I used to feel sorry for of his sad friend." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, nosotros nos compadeceremos de los ancianos solos. — "Tomorrow, we will feel sorry for of the lonely old people." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Si pudieras, tú te compadecerías de su hermano enfermo. — "If you could, you would feel sorry for of his sick brother." The conditional fits something that would happen.
- Yo me he compadecido de los niños sin hogar. — "I have feeled sorry for of the homeless children." The present perfect fits an action with present relevance.
More situations
- Normalmente, él se compadece de su amiga triste. — "Normally, he/she feels sorry for of his sad friend." The present tense fits a general truth here.
- Ayer, él se compadeció de los ancianos solos. — "Yesterday, he/she feeled sorry for of the lonely old people." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, nosotros nos compadecíamos de su hermano enfermo. — "In the past, we used to feel sorry for of his sick brother." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, yo me compadeceré de los niños sin hogar. — "Tomorrow, I will feel sorry for of the homeless children." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Espero que él se compadezca de su amiga triste. — "I hope that he/she feels sorry for of his sad friend." The present subjunctive follows espero que.
- ¡No te compadezcas de los ancianos solos! — "Do not feel sorry for of the lonely old people!" The imperative fits a direct order or request.
The verb in context
Two short dialogues using compadecerse naturally. Notice how the verb changes person and tense as the conversation moves, and how the complements stay the same kind of situation: his sick brother, the homeless children, his sad friend and the lonely old people.
Dialogue 1: talking about his sick brother
Sofía: ¿Tú te compadeces de su hermano enfermo? — "Do you feel sorry for of his sick brother?" Diego: Sí, yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo. — "I feel sorry for of his sick brother." Sofía: ¿Y ayer? — "And yesterday?" Diego: Ayer, yo me compadecí de los niños sin hogar. — "Yesterday, I feeled sorry for of the homeless children." Sofía: Mañana, nosotros nos compadeceremos de su amiga triste. — "Tomorrow, we will feel sorry for of his sad friend." Diego: Si pudiera, yo me compadecería de los ancianos solos. — "If I could, I would feel sorry for of the lonely old people." Sofía: Antes, yo me compadecía de los niños sin hogar. — "In the past, I used to feel sorry for of the homeless children." Diego: Yo me he compadecido de su hermano enfermo. — "I have feeled sorry for of his sick brother." Sofía: ¡No te compadezcas de su amiga triste! — "Do not feel sorry for of his sad friend!"
In this dialogue compadecerse 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 his sad friend
Sofía: Él se compadece de su amiga triste. — "he/she feels sorry for of his sad friend." Diego: ¿De verdad? ¿Él se compadece de su amiga triste todos los días? — "Really? Does he/she feels sorry for of his sad friend every day?" Sofía: Sí, y ellos se compadecen de los ancianos solos. — "they feel sorry for of the lonely old people." Diego: Ayer, ellos se compadecieron de su amiga triste. — "Yesterday, they feeled sorry for of his sad friend." Sofía: Espero que él se compadezca de los ancianos solos. — "I hope that he/she feels sorry for of the lonely old people." Diego: Mañana, él se compadecerá de su amiga triste. — "Tomorrow, he/she will feel sorry for of his sad friend." Sofía: Antes, nosotros nos compadecíamos de los ancianos solos. — "In the past, we used to feel sorry for of the lonely old people." Diego: Nosotros nos compadecemos de su hermano enfermo también. — "we feel sorry for of his sick brother too."
This dialogue shows compadecerse 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 compadecerse
The errors learners actually make with compadecerse in everyday use, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why it is wrong.
Mistake 1: Forgetting the reflexive pronoun
- Wrong: Yo compadezco de su hermano enfermo.
- Right: Yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo.
- Why: compadecerse is reflexive, so the pronoun is part of the verb: Yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo.. Without me the sentence is incomplete.
Mistake 2: Using the infinitive as a conjugated form
- Wrong: Yo compadecerse de su hermano enfermo.
- Right: Yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo.
- Why: The infinitive compadecerse is the dictionary form, not a conjugated form. In a sentence with yo you need the present-tense form compadezco.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo me compadezco de los niños sin hogar.
- Right: Ayer, yo me compadecí de los niños sin hogar.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo me compadecí de los niños sin hogar. — "Yesterday, I feeled sorry for of the homeless children."
Mistake 4: Mixing up the gerund and the participle
- Wrong: Me estoy compadecido de su amiga triste.
- Right: Me estoy compadeciendo de su amiga triste.
- Why: After estar you need the gerund compadeciendo for the progressive. The participle compadecido goes with haber in the perfect tenses (me he compadecido), never after estar.
Mistake 5: Confusing compadecerse with compadecer
- Wrong: Yo compadezco de su hermano enfermo.
- Right: Yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo.
- Why: compadecerse (to feel sorry for) and compadecer are partners, not the same verb. Use the reflexive pronoun when the action comes back to the subject.
Quiz: compadecerse in use
Test yourself with ten questions on compadecerse. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of compadecerse in the present tense?
- (a) compadezco
- (b) compadeces
- (c) compadece
- (d) compadecemos
Answer: (a) compadezco. The yo form is compadezco.
2. What is the tú form of compadecerse in the present tense?
- (a) compadezco
- (b) compadece
- (c) compadecemos
- (d) compadeces
Answer: (d) compadeces. The tú form is compadeces.
3. What is the él/ella form of compadecerse in the present tense?
- (a) compadeces
- (b) compadecemos
- (c) compadece
- (d) compadezco
Answer: (c) compadece. The él/ella form is compadece.
4. Complete the sentence: Cada día, yo ___ de su hermano enfermo.
- (a) compadecemos
- (b) compadezco
- (c) compadeces
- (d) compadece
Answer: (b) compadezco. The sentence needs the yo form compadezco.
5. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ___ de los niños sin hogar.
- (a) compadecí
- (b) compadeciste
- (c) compadeció
- (d) compadecimos
Answer: (a) compadecí. Ayer needs the preterite, and the yo form is compadecí.
6. Complete the sentence: Antes, yo ___ de su amiga triste.
- (a) compadecías
- (b) compadecíamos
- (c) compadecíais
- (d) compadecía
Answer: (d) compadecía. Antes needs the imperfect, and the yo form is compadecía.
7. Complete the sentence: Mañana, yo ___ de los ancianos solos.
- (a) compadecerá
- (b) compadeceremos
- (c) compadeceré
- (d) compadecerás
Answer: (c) compadeceré. Mañana needs the future, and the yo form is compadeceré.
8. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ de su hermano enfermo.
- (a) se ha compadecido
- (b) nos hemos compadecido
- (c) me he compadecido
- (d) te has compadecido
Answer: (c) me he compadecido. The present perfect uses haber plus the participle: me he compadecido.
9. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ de su amiga triste.
- (a) compadezca
- (b) compadezcas
- (c) compadezcamos
- (d) compadecáis
Answer: (a) compadezca. After espero que Spanish needs the subjunctive, and the él form is compadezca.
10. What does compadecerse mean in English?
- (a) to feel sorry for
- (b) to sign up
- (c) to move away
- (d) to become passionate about
Answer: (a) to feel sorry for. compadecerse means "to feel sorry for" in English.
Frequently asked questions about compadecerse
What does compadecerse mean?
compadecerse means "to feel sorry for" in English. Use it when you talk about his sick brother, the homeless children, his sad friend and the lonely old people — for example: Cada día, yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo. — "Every day, I feel sorry for of his sick brother."
Is compadecerse reflexive?
Yes. compadecerse is reflexive, so it always travels with a pronoun: me, te, se, nos, os, se. Cada día, yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo. — "Every day, I feel sorry for of his sick brother." If you drop the pronoun, the sentence is incomplete.
What is the most common mistake with compadecerse?
Forgetting the reflexive pronoun. Learners write the bare form — for example, Yo compadezco de su hermano enfermo — when the verb needs its pronoun: Cada día, yo me compadezco de su hermano enfermo. — "Every day, I feel sorry for of his sick brother." Keep the pronoun with the verb and the mistake disappears.
How can I practise compadecerse?
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.