Complacerse Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish
complacerse means "to be pleased" 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 complacerse with his son's gift, helping other people, his mother's visit and the afternoon music — the situations where Spanish speakers really use it. A good first sentence to learn is: Cada día, yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo. — "Every day, I be pleased in his son's gift." Read the examples aloud, notice which tense each one uses, and then try the dialogues and the quiz.
complacerse in everyday sentences
Twelve sentences with complacerse, 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 complazco con el regalo de su hijo. — "Every day, I be pleased in his son's gift." The present tense fits a habit here.
- Ayer, yo me complací en ayudar a los demás. — "Yesterday, I was pleased in helping other people." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, yo me complacía con la visita de su madre. — "In the past, I used to be pleased in his mother's visit." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, nosotros nos complaceremos en la música de la tarde. — "Tomorrow, we will be pleased in the afternoon music." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Si pudieras, tú te complacerías con el regalo de su hijo. — "If you could, you would be pleased in his son's gift." The conditional fits something that would happen.
- Yo me he complacido en ayudar a los demás. — "I have been pleased in helping other people." The present perfect fits an action with present relevance.
More situations
- Normalmente, él se complace con la visita de su madre. — "Normally, he/she is pleased in his mother's visit." The present tense fits a general truth here.
- Ayer, él se complació en la música de la tarde. — "Yesterday, he/she was pleased in the afternoon music." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, nosotros nos complacíamos con el regalo de su hijo. — "In the past, we used to be pleased in his son's gift." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, yo me complaceré en ayudar a los demás. — "Tomorrow, I will be pleased in helping other people." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Espero que él se complazca con la visita de su madre. — "I hope that he/she is pleased in his mother's visit." The present subjunctive follows espero que.
- ¡No te complazcas en la música de la tarde! — "Do not be pleased in the afternoon music!" The imperative fits a direct order or request.
The verb in context
Two short dialogues using complacerse naturally. Notice how the verb changes person and tense as the conversation moves, and how the complements stay the same kind of situation: his son's gift, helping other people, his mother's visit and the afternoon music.
Dialogue 1: talking about his son's gift
María: ¿Tú te complaces con el regalo de su hijo? — "Do you be pleased in his son's gift?" Carlos: Sí, yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo. — "I be pleased in his son's gift." María: ¿Y ayer? — "And yesterday?" Carlos: Ayer, yo me complací en ayudar a los demás. — "Yesterday, I was pleased in helping other people." María: Mañana, nosotros nos complaceremos con la visita de su madre. — "Tomorrow, we will be pleased in his mother's visit." Carlos: Si pudiera, yo me complacería en la música de la tarde. — "If I could, I would be pleased in the afternoon music." María: Antes, yo me complacía en ayudar a los demás. — "In the past, I used to be pleased in helping other people." Carlos: Yo me he complacido con el regalo de su hijo. — "I have been pleased in his son's gift." María: ¡No te complazcas con la visita de su madre! — "Do not be pleased in his mother's visit!"
In this dialogue complacerse 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 mother's visit
María: Él se complace con la visita de su madre. — "he/she is pleased in his mother's visit." Carlos: ¿De verdad? ¿Él se complace con la visita de su madre todos los días? — "Really? Does he/she is pleased in his mother's visit every day?" María: Sí, y ellos se complacen en la música de la tarde. — "they be pleased in the afternoon music." Carlos: Ayer, ellos se complacieron con la visita de su madre. — "Yesterday, they was pleased in his mother's visit." María: Espero que él se complazca en la música de la tarde. — "I hope that he/she is pleased in the afternoon music." Carlos: Mañana, él se complacerá con la visita de su madre. — "Tomorrow, he/she will be pleased in his mother's visit." María: Antes, nosotros nos complacíamos en la música de la tarde. — "In the past, we used to be pleased in the afternoon music." Carlos: Nosotros nos complacemos con el regalo de su hijo también. — "we be pleased in his son's gift too."
This dialogue shows complacerse 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 complacerse
The errors learners actually make with complacerse in everyday use, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why it is wrong.
Mistake 1: Forgetting the reflexive pronoun
- Wrong: Yo complazco con el regalo de su hijo.
- Right: Yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo.
- Why: complacerse is reflexive, so the pronoun is part of the verb: Yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo.. Without me the sentence is incomplete.
Mistake 2: Using the infinitive as a conjugated form
- Wrong: Yo complacerse con el regalo de su hijo.
- Right: Yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo.
- Why: The infinitive complacerse is the dictionary form, not a conjugated form. In a sentence with yo you need the present-tense form complazco.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo me complazco en ayudar a los demás.
- Right: Ayer, yo me complací en ayudar a los demás.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo me complací en ayudar a los demás. — "Yesterday, I was pleased in helping other people."
Mistake 4: Mixing up the gerund and the participle
- Wrong: Me estoy complacido con la visita de su madre.
- Right: Me estoy complaciendo con la visita de su madre.
- Why: After estar you need the gerund complaciendo for the progressive. The participle complacido goes with haber in the perfect tenses (me he complacido), never after estar.
Mistake 5: Using the él form for nosotros
- Wrong: Nosotros nos complace con el regalo de su hijo.
- Right: Nosotros nos complacemos con el regalo de su hijo.
- Why: The person and the ending must match: nosotros takes complacemos, while complace belongs to él and ella.
Quiz: complacerse in use
Test yourself with ten questions on complacerse. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of complacerse in the present tense?
- (a) complace
- (b) complacemos
- (c) complazco
- (d) complaces
Answer: (c) complazco. The yo form is complazco.
2. What is the tú form of complacerse in the present tense?
- (a) complacemos
- (b) complaces
- (c) complazco
- (d) complace
Answer: (b) complaces. The tú form is complaces.
3. What is the él/ella form of complacerse in the present tense?
- (a) complace
- (b) complazco
- (c) complaces
- (d) complacemos
Answer: (a) complace. The él/ella form is complace.
4. Complete the sentence: Cada día, yo ___ con el regalo de su hijo.
- (a) complaces
- (b) complace
- (c) complacemos
- (d) complazco
Answer: (d) complazco. The sentence needs the yo form complazco.
5. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ___ en ayudar a los demás.
- (a) complació
- (b) complacimos
- (c) complací
- (d) complaciste
Answer: (c) complací. Ayer needs the preterite, and the yo form is complací.
6. Complete the sentence: Antes, yo ___ con la visita de su madre.
- (a) complacíais
- (b) complacía
- (c) complacías
- (d) complacíamos
Answer: (b) complacía. Antes needs the imperfect, and the yo form is complacía.
7. Complete the sentence: Mañana, yo ___ en la música de la tarde.
- (a) complaceré
- (b) complacerás
- (c) complacerá
- (d) complaceremos
Answer: (a) complaceré. Mañana needs the future, and the yo form is complaceré.
8. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ con el regalo de su hijo.
- (a) me he complacido
- (b) te has complacido
- (c) se ha complacido
- (d) nos hemos complacido
Answer: (a) me he complacido. The present perfect uses haber plus the participle: me he complacido.
9. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ con la visita de su madre.
- (a) complazcamos
- (b) complacáis
- (c) complazca
- (d) complazcas
Answer: (c) complazca. After espero que Spanish needs the subjunctive, and the él form is complazca.
10. What does complacerse mean in English?
- (a) to visualise
- (b) to build, to erect
- (c) to be pleased
- (d) to value, to appreciate
Answer: (c) to be pleased. complacerse means "to be pleased" in English.
Frequently asked questions about complacerse
What does complacerse mean?
complacerse means "to be pleased" in English. Use it when you talk about his son's gift, helping other people, his mother's visit and the afternoon music — for example: Cada día, yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo. — "Every day, I be pleased in his son's gift."
Is complacerse reflexive?
Yes. complacerse is reflexive, so it always travels with a pronoun: me, te, se, nos, os, se. Cada día, yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo. — "Every day, I be pleased in his son's gift." If you drop the pronoun, the sentence is incomplete.
What is the most common mistake with complacerse?
Forgetting the reflexive pronoun. Learners write the bare form — for example, Yo complazco con el regalo de su hijo — when the verb needs its pronoun: Cada día, yo me complazco con el regalo de su hijo. — "Every day, I be pleased in his son's gift." Keep the pronoun with the verb and the mistake disappears.
How can I practise complacerse?
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.