Desviar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

desviar means "to divert" in English, and this page shows you how it actually sounds in everyday Spanish — not just the conjugation table, but the verb in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make with it. Desviar means to divert something from its course: desviar el tráfico, desviar la atención, desviar los fondos. It is used for traffic, rivers, attention and money. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by use, two short dialogues, the most common mistakes with corrections, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. If you want the full tables first, start with the full conjugation of desviar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the desviar present tense page.

desviar in everyday use: examples with translations

Everyday present uses

How the verb sounds in the present, the future and in hypotheticals — the forms you will use most often.

  1. Yo desvío el tráfico por otra calle — "I divert the traffic down another street"
  2. Mi amigo desvía el río con un canal — "My friend diverts the river with a canal"
  3. Mañana, tú desviarás la atención de sus alumnos — "Tomorrow, you will divert his pupils' attention"
  4. Yo desviaría la mirada hacia la ventana si pudiera — "I would divert his gaze towards the window if I could"

Talking about the past

The same verb in the past: one finished action, a habit, something that has just happened, and something that had already happened.

  1. Ayer, yo desvié el tráfico por otra calle — "Yesterday, I diverted the traffic down another street"
  2. Antes, nosotros desviábamos el río con un canal — "Before, we used to divert the river with a canal"
  3. Él ha desviado la atención de sus alumnos — "He has diverted his pupils' attention"
  4. Yo ya había desviado la mirada hacia la ventana antes de salir — "I already had diverted his gaze towards the window before leaving"

Wishes, conditions and commands

The verb after espero que, in si clauses, as a command — and in the conditional perfect, for what would have happened.

  1. Espero que él desvíe el tráfico por otra calle — "I hope he diverts the traffic down another street"
  2. Si yo desviara el río con un canal, todo cambiaría — "If I diverted the river with a canal, everything would change"
  3. Desvía la atención de sus alumnos. — "Divert his pupils' attention."
  4. Yo habría desviado la mirada hacia la ventana con más tiempo — "I would have diverted his gaze towards the window with more time"

desviar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use desviar the way people really speak it. Notice how the verb changes with the person, and how the same verb fits different situations.

Two friends talk about it.

  • Lucía: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Lucía: Yo desvío el tráfico por otra calle — "I divert the traffic down another street"
  • Marcos: Él desvía el río con un canal — "He diverts the river with a canal"
  • Lucía: Ayer, yo desvié la atención de sus alumnos — "Yesterday, I diverted his pupils' attention"
  • Marcos: Mañana, tú desviarás la mirada hacia la ventana — "Tomorrow, you will divert his gaze towards the window"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: Desvía los fondos a otro proyecto. — "Divert the funds to another project."
  • Lucía: Él ha desviado el tráfico por otra calle — "He has diverted the traffic down another street"
  • Marcos: Espero que él desvíe el río con un canal — "I hope he diverts the river with a canal"
  • Lucía: Antes, yo desviaba la atención de sus alumnos — "Before, I used to divert his pupils' attention"

Common mistakes with desviar

The errors learners actually make with desviar, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.

✗ *Espero que él desvía la mirada hacia la ventana

✓ Correct: Espero que él desvíe la mirada hacia la ventana

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él desvíe la mirada hacia la ventana — not the indicative Espero que él desvía la mirada hacia la ventana.

✗ *Ayer, yo desvío los fondos a otro proyecto

✓ Correct: Ayer, yo desvié los fondos a otro proyecto

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo desvié los fondos a otro proyecto.

✗ *De niño, yo desvié el tráfico por otra calle todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, yo desviaba el tráfico por otra calle todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo desviaba el tráfico por otra calle todos los días.

✗ *Yo desvío en la atención de sus alumnos.

✓ Correct: Yo desvío la atención de sus alumnos.

desviar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo desvío la atención de sus alumnos.

✗ *Vosotros desviais el río con un canal.

✓ Correct: Vosotros desviáis el río con un canal.

The vosotros present form carries a written accent: desviáis, not desviais.

Quiz: desviar in use

Ten questions on desviar — its forms, its tenses and its everyday use. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below, where every answer is explained.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el tráfico por otra calle — "I divert the traffic down another street" (present) A. desvías B. desvía C. desviamos D. desvío

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ el río con un canal — "Yesterday, I diverted the river with a canal" (preterite) A. desviaste B. desvió C. desviamos D. desvié

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ______ la atención de sus alumnos — "Before, we used to divert his pupils' attention" (imperfect) A. desviaba B. desviabas C. desviabais D. desviábamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ______ la mirada hacia la ventana — "Tomorrow, you will divert his gaze towards the window" (future) A. desviaremos B. desviarás C. desviaré D. desviará

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ los fondos a otro proyecto — "I would divert the funds to another project" (conditional) A. desviaríais B. desviaría C. desviarías D. desviaríamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el tráfico por otra calle — "He has diverted the traffic down another street" (present perfect) A. ha desviado B. he desviado C. has desviado D. hemos desviado

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ el río con un canal — "I hope he diverts the river with a canal" (present subjunctive) A. desviemos B. desviéis C. desvíe D. desvíes

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ la atención de sus alumnos. — "Divert his pupils' attention." (affirmative imperative) A. desvíe B. desviemos C. desviad D. desvía

  9. Which is the gerund of desviar, used with estar for the progressive? A. desviando B. desviado C. desvío D. desvié

  10. What does desviar mean in English? A. to enjoy B. to cross C. to divert D. to distract

Answer key

  1. desvío — The present form for yo is desvío.
  2. desvié — The preterite form for yo is desvié.
  3. desviábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is desviábamos.
  4. desviarás — The future form for tú is desviarás.
  5. desviaría — The conditional form for yo is desviaría.
  6. ha desviado — The present perfect form for él/ella/Ud. is ha desviado.
  7. desvíe — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is desvíe.
  8. desvía — The affirmative imperative form is desvía.
  9. desviando — The gerund of desviar is desviando: estoy desviando. The participle desviado is used with haber instead.
  10. to divert — desviar means to divert.

Frequently asked questions

What does desviar mean in English?

desviar means to divert. For example: Yo desvío el tráfico por otra calle — "I divert the traffic down another street". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with desviar?

desviar takes its complement directly, with no preposition, as in the examples above. Adding an extra preposition is a common learner error.

Is desviar regular?

Yes. desviar is a regular -ar verb, so once you know the endings for its class you can conjugate it in every tense.

How do I practise desviar?

Start with the present tense table on the full conjugation page, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure, and come back to the sentences above until you can say them without looking.

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