Introduction

cosechar means “to harvest”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. It is the verb for expressing “to harvest” in everyday Spanish — in conversation, at work, and at home. This page shows cosechar 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 form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo cosecho las manzanas por la mañana.” — “I harvest the apples.”

cosechar in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how cosechar 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 {verb} in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Yo cosecho las manzanas cada día.” — “I harvest the apples.”
  2. “Tú cosechas las manzanas cada día.” — “you harvest the apples.”
  3. “Él cosecha las manzanas siempre.” — “He harvests the apples.”
  4. “Nosotros cosechamos las manzanas todos los días.” — “We harvest the apples.”

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show {verb} in the past, so you can talk about what already happened. 5. “Yo coseché las manzanas ayer.” — “I harvested the apples.” (preterite) 6. “Él cosechó las manzanas ayer.” — “He harvested the apples.” (preterite) 7. “Yo cosechaba las manzanas cuando era joven.” — “I used to harvest the apples.” (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 {verb} stays the same. 8. “Nosotros cosecharemos las manzanas mañana.” — “We will harvest the apples.” (future) 9. “Tú has cosechado las manzanas hoy.” — “you have harvested the apples.” (present-perfect) 10. “Espero que yo coseche las manzanas.” — “I hope that I harvest the apples.” (present-subjunctive)

More everyday uses

Two more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action. 11. “Vosotros cosecháis las manzanas cada semana.” — “You harvest the apples.” 12. “Ellos cosechan las manzanas normalmente.” — “They harvest the apples.”

cosechar 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 cosechar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

Dialogue on the phone

Lucía: “¿Tú cosechas las manzanas?” — Do you harvest the apples?

Pedro: “Sí, yo cosecho las manzanas cada día. Es parte de mi rutina.” — Yes, I harvest the apples every day. It is part of my routine.

Lucía: “¿Y ayer? ¿También cosechas las manzanas?” — And yesterday? Did you harvest the apples too?

Pedro: “Sí, ayer yo coseché las manzanas. Mañana nosotros cosecharemos las manzanas otra vez.” — Yes, yesterday I harvested the apples. Tomorrow we will harvest the apples again.

A short paragraph

Él cosecha las manzanas cada día — that one sentence already tells you a lot about how cosechar works in real Spanish: who does it, when, and with what. Around it you can build a whole paragraph: what happened yesterday, what is happening now, and what will happen tomorrow, all with the same verb. When you write your own paragraph, start with the present — yo cosecho las manzanas — then add one past sentence and one future sentence, and you have practised three tenses with one verb. That is the fastest way to make cosechar yours: use it in a story, not only in a table.

Common mistakes

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is coseché, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — coseche — is a spelling error, and in speech the stress lands in the wrong place. Preterite yo forms that end in a vowel carry that accent, so check it every time you write the preterite of cosechar.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For cosechar, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: cosechamos. Only the context tells you which tense is meant, so pay attention to the time words around it — cada día points to the present, ayer points to the preterite. Do not invent a different form for one of the tenses.

Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses

Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he cosechado las manzanas. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy cosechado is not the present perfect of cosechar — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing cosechar with cuidarse

cosechar and cuidarse look similar, and learners mix them up. They are different verbs with different meanings, so check which one the sentence needs before you conjugate. If you can substitute the English meaning of cosechar — harvest — the sentence needs cosechar; if it needs the meaning of cuidarse, use that verb instead.

Using the indicative after "espero que"

After espero que (I hope that), Spanish needs the subjunctive: Espero que yo coseche las manzanas. Using the indicative — Espero que yo cosecho — is one of the most frequent learner errors with cosechar. Whenever the main clause expresses a wish, doubt or emotion, switch to the subjunctive.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the best answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the yo form of cosechar in the present?

  • A. cosechas
  • B. cosecha
  • C. cosechamos
  • D. cosecho

2. What is the tu form of cosechar in the preterite?

  • A. cosechamos
  • B. cosechaste
  • C. coseché
  • D. cosechó

3. What is the el form of cosechar in the imperfect?

  • A. cosechabas
  • B. cosechábamos
  • C. cosechabais
  • D. cosechaba

4. What is the nosotros form of cosechar in the future?

  • A. cosechará
  • B. cosecharemos
  • C. cosecharé
  • D. cosecharás

5. What is the vosotros form of cosechar in the present perfect?

  • A. he cosechado
  • B. has cosechado
  • C. ha cosechado
  • D. habéis cosechado

6. What is the ellos form of cosechar in the present subjunctive?

  • A. coseche
  • B. cosechen
  • C. coseche
  • D. coseches

7. What is the yo form of cosechar in the preterite?

  • A. cosechaste
  • B. cosechó
  • C. cosechamos
  • D. coseché

8. What is the tu form of cosechar in the imperfect?

  • A. cosechábamos
  • B. cosechabas
  • C. cosechaba
  • D. cosechaba

9. What is the el form of cosechar in the future?

  • A. cosecharé
  • B. cosecharás
  • C. cosecharemos
  • D. cosechará

10. What is the nosotros form of cosechar in the conditional?

  • A. cosecharía
  • B. cosecharíamos
  • C. cosecharía
  • D. cosecharías

Answer key

  1. cosecho — The present table gives yo = cosecho.
  2. cosechaste — The preterite table gives tu = cosechaste.
  3. cosechaba — The imperfect table gives el = cosechaba.
  4. cosecharemos — The future table gives nosotros = cosecharemos.
  5. habéis cosechado — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis cosechado.
  6. cosechen — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = cosechen.
  7. coseché — The preterite table gives yo = coseché.
  8. cosechabas — The imperfect table gives tu = cosechabas.
  9. cosechará — The future table gives el = cosechará.
  10. cosecharíamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = cosecharíamos.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use cosechar in a sentence?

Put the subject first, then the conjugated form, then the rest: “Yo cosecho las manzanas.” — “I harvest the apples.” Change the form for the person and the tense, but keep the sentence pattern the same.

What is the most useful form of cosechar to learn first?

Learn the present yo form cosecho first, then the preterite yo form coseché and the participle cosechado. With those three you can talk about the present, the past and the perfect tenses. Add the gerund cosechando next, and you can describe actions in progress too.

Is cosechar reflexive?

No — cosechar is not reflexive. It takes a direct object, not a reflexive pronoun: yo cosecho las manzanas. Do not add me or se to it unless the sentence genuinely needs a pronoun for another reason.

Where can I see the full conjugation of cosechar?

On the main conjugation page for cosechar, which has every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, plus notes, examples and a quiz. The present-tense page covers one tense in depth if that is what you need right now.

Related links