Comprometerse Examples, Sentences and Quiz

Comprometerse means “to get engaged, to commit”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Comprometerse means to get engaged or to commit, and it covers getting engaged to marry, committing to a project and committing yourself to a promise. It is always used with a or con, as in comprometerse a ayudar or comprometerse con el proyecto, and it is fully regular. This page shows comprometerse in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make most often, and it finishes with a ten-question quiz so you can test yourself. Every sentence below comes with its English translation, and every form is the correct present-tense form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” — I commit to his girlfriend on the beach.

Comprometerse in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how comprometerse is used. Read each one out loud, then read the translation. If a sentence feels useful, copy it into your own notebook with one small change — a different time, a different person, a different place — and you have a new sentence of your own.

In the present: everyday use

These sentences use comprometerse in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” — I commit to his girlfriend on the beach.

  2. “¿Tú te comprometes a terminar el proyecto?” — Do you commit to finish the project?

  3. “Se compromete con el equipo de trabajo.” — He/she commits to the work team.

  4. “Nos comprometemos a ayudar a su familia.” — We commit to help his family.

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show comprometerse in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.

  1. “Ayer, yo me comprometí con su novia en la playa.” — Yesterday, I committed to his girlfriend on the beach. (preterite)

  2. “Él se comprometía a terminar el proyecto todos los días.” — He used to commit to finish the project every day. (imperfect)

Plans and things already done

These sentences look forward, or look back at something already finished. Notice how the verb form changes while the meaning of comprometerse stays the same.

  1. “Nosotros nos comprometeremos con el equipo de trabajo mañana.” — We will commit to the work team tomorrow. (future)

  2. “¿Te has comprometido a ayudar a su familia?” — Have you committed to help his family? (present perfect)

More everyday uses

Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.

  1. “Os comprometéis con su novia en la playa.” — You commit to his girlfriend on the beach.

  2. “Se comprometen a terminar el proyecto.” — They commit to finish the project.

  3. “Me comprometo con el equipo de trabajo.” — I commit to the work team.

  4. “Se compromete a ayudar a su familia.” — He/she commits to help his family.

Comprometerse in context

Single sentences teach you the forms. Dialogues teach you when to use them. Read the short conversation below, then the paragraph that follows, and notice how comprometerse appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

A short dialogue

  • Lucía: “¿Tú te comprometes con su novia en la playa?” — Do you commit to his girlfriend on the beach?

  • Carlos: “Sí, yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” — Yes, I commit to his girlfriend on the beach.

  • Lucía: “Nosotros nos comprometemos a terminar el proyecto.” — We commit to finish the project.

  • Carlos: “Y ellos se comprometen con el equipo de trabajo.” — And they commit to the work team.

  • Lucía: “Vosotros os comprometéis a ayudar a su familia.” — You commit to help his family.

  • Carlos: “Sí, y él se compromete a terminar el proyecto.” — Yes, and he commits to finish the project.

A short paragraph

Lucía se compromete con su novia en la playa, y Carlos se compromete a terminar el proyecto. Nosotros nos comprometemos con el equipo de trabajo, y ellos se comprometen a ayudar a su familia. Yo me comprometo con el equipo de trabajo, y mi padre se compromete a ayudar a su familia. Comprometerse is part of everyday life, because to get engaged, to commit is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.

Common mistakes with comprometerse

These are the errors learners actually make with comprometerse. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Yo comprometo con su novia en la playa.” Right: “Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” Why: Comprometerse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.

  • Wrong: “Ayer yo comprometo a terminar el proyecto.” Right: “Ayer yo comprometí a terminar el proyecto.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: comprometo is happening now, while comprometí is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.

  • Wrong: “Treating comprometerse and casarse as identical in every context.” Right: “Comprometerse means to get engaged, to commit, while casarse means to get married.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: comprometerse fits sentences such as Me comprometo con su novia en la playa, while casarse belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

  • Wrong: “Yo soy comprometido a terminar el proyecto.” Right: “Yo he comprometido a terminar el proyecto.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he comprometido, has comprometido, ha comprometido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

  • Wrong: “De niño, yo comprometí con el equipo de trabajo todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo comprometía con el equipo de trabajo todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (comprometía), not the preterite. The preterite (comprometí) is for one finished action.

Quiz: comprometerse in use

Ten questions on comprometerse in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.

1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ con su novia en la playa.” (To his girlfriend on the beach.)

  • (a) os comprometéis
  • (b) me comprometo
  • (c) te comprometes

Answer: os comprometéis — The vosotros/as form of comprometerse in the present is os comprometéis.

2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ a terminar el proyecto.” (To finish the project.)

  • (a) me comprometo
  • (b) te comprometes
  • (c) se comprometen

Answer: se comprometen — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of comprometerse in the present is se comprometen.

3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ con su novia en la playa.” (To his girlfriend on the beach.)

  • (a) se comprometió
  • (b) me comprometí
  • (c) te comprometiste

Answer: me comprometí — The yo form of comprometerse in the preterite is me comprometí.

4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ a terminar el proyecto.” (To finish the project.)

  • (a) se comprometía
  • (b) me comprometía
  • (c) te comprometías

Answer: se comprometía — The él/ella/Ud. form of comprometerse in the imperfect is se comprometía.

5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ con el equipo de trabajo.” (To the work team.)

  • (a) me comprometeré
  • (b) te comprometerás
  • (c) nos comprometeremos

Answer: nos comprometeremos — The nosotros/as form of comprometerse in the future is nos comprometeremos.

6. What does comprometerse mean in English?

  • (a) to become sad
  • (b) to get engaged, to commit
  • (c) to get married

Answer: to get engaged, to commit — Comprometerse means “to get engaged, to commit”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • (a) Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.
  • (b) Ellos compromete con su novia en la playa.
  • (c) Yo me comprometo a terminar el proyecto ayer.

Answer: Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa. — “Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.

8. How do you say “I commit to his girlfriend on the beach.” in Spanish?

  • (a) Yo se comprometen con su novia en la playa.
  • (b) Yo me comprometí con su novia en la playa.
  • (c) Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.

Answer: Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa. — “Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” is the correct translation. The second option uses the wrong person's form, and the third uses the preterite.

9. What is the nosotros form of comprometerse in the present tense?

  • (a) te comprometes
  • (b) nos comprometemos
  • (c) me comprometo

Answer: nos comprometemos — The nosotros form is nos comprometemos.

10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?

  • (a) Ayer, yo me comprometí con su novia en la playa.
  • (b) Nosotros nos comprometeremos con su novia en la playa mañana.
  • (c) Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.

Answer: Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa. — “Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say 'I get engaged' in Spanish?

Say 'Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo me comprometo con su novia en la playa todos los días'.

How do you say 'I get engaged' in the past?

For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo me comprometí a terminar el proyecto'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo me comprometía a terminar el proyecto todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo me he comprometido a terminar el proyecto'.

What is the difference between comprometerse and casarse?

Comprometerse means to get engaged, to commit, while casarse means to get married. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use comprometerse when you mean to get engaged, to commit, as in Me comprometo con su novia en la playa.

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