Introduction

descubrir means “to discover”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. It is the verb for expressing “to discover” in everyday Spanish — in conversation, at work, and at home. This page shows descubrir 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 descubro un lugar nuevo por la mañana.” — “I discover a new place.”

descubrir in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how descubrir 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 descubro un lugar nuevo cada día.” — “I discover a new place.”
  2. “Tú descubres un lugar nuevo cada día.” — “you discover a new place.”
  3. “Él descubre un lugar nuevo siempre.” — “He discovers a new place.”
  4. “Nosotros descubrimos un lugar nuevo todos los días.” — “We discover a new place.”

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 descubrí un lugar nuevo ayer.” — “I discovered a new place.” (preterite) 6. “Él descubrió un lugar nuevo ayer.” — “He discovered a new place.” (preterite) 7. “Yo descubría un lugar nuevo cuando era joven.” — “I used to discover a new place.” (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 descubriremos un lugar nuevo mañana.” — “We will discover a new place.” (future) 9. “Tú has descubierto un lugar nuevo hoy.” — “you have discovered a new place.” (present-perfect) 10. “Espero que yo descubra un lugar nuevo.” — “I hope that I discover a new place.” (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 descubrís un lugar nuevo cada semana.” — “You discover a new place.” 12. “Ellos descubren un lugar nuevo normalmente.” — “They discover a new place.”

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

Dialogue at home in the evening

Ana: “¿Tú descubres un lugar nuevo?” — Do you discover a new place?

Luis: “Sí, yo descubro un lugar nuevo cada día. Es parte de mi rutina.” — Yes, I discover a new place every day. It is part of my routine.

Ana: “¿Y ayer? ¿También descubres un lugar nuevo?” — And yesterday? Did you discover a new place too?

Luis: “Sí, ayer yo descubrí un lugar nuevo. Mañana nosotros descubriremos un lugar nuevo otra vez.” — Yes, yesterday I discovered a new place. Tomorrow we will discover a new place again.

A short paragraph

Él descubre un lugar nuevo cada día — that one sentence already tells you a lot about how descubrir 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 descubro un lugar nuevo — 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 descubrir yours: use it in a story, not only in a table.

Common mistakes

Guessing the past participle

A common error is writing descubrido as the past participle of descubrir. The correct participle is descubierto. That matters in every perfect tense: it is he descubierto, había descubierto, habré descubierto. Memorise the participle on its own and the perfect tenses take care of themselves.

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is descubrí, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — descubri — 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 descubrir.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For descubrir, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: descubrimos. 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 descubierto un lugar nuevo. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy descubierto is not the present perfect of descubrir — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing descubrir with desarrollar

descubrir and desarrollar 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 descubrir — discover — the sentence needs descubrir; if it needs the meaning of desarrollar, use that verb instead.

Quiz

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

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

  • A. descubres
  • B. descubre
  • C. descubrimos
  • D. descubro

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

  • A. descubrimos
  • B. descubriste
  • C. descubrí
  • D. descubrió

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

  • A. descubrías
  • B. descubríamos
  • C. descubríais
  • D. descubría

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

  • A. descubrirá
  • B. descubriremos
  • C. descubriré
  • D. descubrirás

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

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

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

  • A. descubra
  • B. descubran
  • C. descubra
  • D. descubras

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

  • A. descubriste
  • B. descubrió
  • C. descubrimos
  • D. descubrí

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

  • A. descubríamos
  • B. descubrías
  • C. descubría
  • D. descubría

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

  • A. descubriré
  • B. descubrirás
  • C. descubriremos
  • D. descubrirá

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

  • A. descubriría
  • B. descubriríamos
  • C. descubriría
  • D. descubrirías

Answer key

  1. descubro — The present table gives yo = descubro.
  2. descubriste — The preterite table gives tu = descubriste.
  3. descubría — The imperfect table gives el = descubría.
  4. descubriremos — The future table gives nosotros = descubriremos.
  5. habéis descubierto — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis descubierto.
  6. descubran — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = descubran.
  7. descubrí — The preterite table gives yo = descubrí.
  8. descubrías — The imperfect table gives tu = descubrías.
  9. descubrirá — The future table gives el = descubrirá.
  10. descubriríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = descubriríamos.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use descubrir in a sentence?

Put the subject first, then the conjugated form, then the rest: “Yo descubro un lugar nuevo.” — “I discover a new place.” Change the form for the person and the tense, but keep the sentence pattern the same.

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

Learn the present yo form descubro first, then the preterite yo form descubrí and the participle descubierto. With those three you can talk about the present, the past and the perfect tenses. Add the gerund descubriendo next, and you can describe actions in progress too.

Is descubrir reflexive?

No — descubrir is not reflexive. It takes a direct object, not a reflexive pronoun: yo descubro un lugar nuevo. 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 descubrir?

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

Related links