Disimular Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

disimular means “to hide, to conceal” 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. Disimular means to hide or to conceal, to hide a feeling, a mistake or a fact so others do not notice it. It is used for emotions, errors and secrets, and it is fully regular. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by tense, 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 disimular; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the disimular present tense page.

disimular in everyday use: examples with translations

In the present tense

  1. Yo disimulo su nerviosismo en la entrevista. — “I hide his nervousness in the interview.”
  2. Él disimula la risa durante la clase. — “He hides laughter during the lesson.”
  3. Nosotros disimulamos el error ante el jefe. — “We hide the mistake before the boss.”
  4. Ellos disimulan su sorpresa al ver el regalo. — “They hide his surprise on seeing the present.”

In the past

  1. Ayer, yo disimulé la risa durante la clase. — “Yesterday, I hid laughter during the lesson.”
  2. Antes, nosotros disimulábamos el error ante el jefe. — “Before, we used to hide the mistake before the boss.”
  3. Él disimuló su sorpresa al ver el regalo. — “He hid his surprise on seeing the present.”
  4. Yo ya había disimulado su nerviosismo en la entrevista antes de salir. — “I had already hidden his nervousness in the interview before leaving.”

Plans, hopes and possibilities

  1. Mañana, tú disimularás su nerviosismo en la entrevista. — “Tomorrow, you will hide his nervousness in the interview.”
  2. Yo disimularía la risa durante la clase si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would hide laughter during the lesson if I had more time.”
  3. Él ha disimulado el error ante el jefe. — “He has hidden the mistake before the boss.”
  4. Espero que él disimule su sorpresa al ver el regalo. — “I hope he hides his surprise on seeing the present.”

disimular in conversation

Two short dialogues that use disimular 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 their day.

  • Ana: Yo disimulo su nerviosismo en la entrevista. — “I hide his nervousness in the interview.”
  • Bea: Él disimula la risa durante la clase. — “He hides laughter during the lesson.”
  • Ana: Ayer, yo disimulé la risa durante la clase. — “Yesterday, I hid laughter during the lesson.”
  • Bea: Mañana, tú disimularás su nerviosismo en la entrevista. — “Tomorrow, you will hide his nervousness in the interview.”

At home, talking about tomorrow.

  • Luis: Nosotros disimulamos el error ante el jefe. — “We hide the mistake before the boss.”
  • Marta: Antes, nosotros disimulábamos el error ante el jefe. — “Before, we used to hide the mistake before the boss.”
  • Luis: Yo disimularía la risa durante la clase si tuviera más tiempo. — “I would hide laughter during the lesson if I had more time.”
  • Marta: Espero que él disimule su sorpresa al ver el regalo. — “I hope he hides his surprise on seeing the present.”

A short scene with disimular

A short scene shows how disimular works across the day. In the morning: Disimulo su nerviosismo en la entrevista. In the afternoon: Disimula la risa durante la clase. Yesterday it was different: Ayer, disimulé el error ante el jefe. And tomorrow: Mañana, disimularé su sorpresa al ver el regalo. Four small moments, four tenses, one verb — that is how disimular sounds in real life. Try changing the person in each sentence: say it about yourself, about a friend, and about your family, and the forms will start to feel automatic.

Common mistakes with disimular

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

✗ Yo disimula su nerviosismo en la entrevista.

✓ Correct: Yo disimulo su nerviosismo en la entrevista.

The person matters: disimula is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is disimulo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.

✗ Ayer yo disimulo la risa durante la clase.

✓ Correct: Ayer yo disimulé la risa durante la clase.

The present and the preterite are different tenses: disimulo is happening now, while disimulé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.

✗ Treating disimular and ocultar as identical in every context.

✓ Correct: Disimular means to hide, to conceal, while ocultar means to hide something.

They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: disimular fits sentences such as Disimulo su nerviosismo en la entrevista, while ocultar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

✗ Yo soy disimulado la risa durante la clase.

✓ Correct: Yo he disimulado la risa durante la clase.

Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he disimulado, has disimulado, ha disimulado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

✗ De niño, yo disimulé el error ante el jefe todos los días.

✓ Correct: De niño, yo disimulaba el error ante el jefe todos los días.

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (disimulaba), not the preterite. The preterite (disimulé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: disimular in use

Ten questions on disimular — 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: Él ______ la risa durante la clase. — “He/she hides laughter during the lesson.”

  • a) disimula
  • b) disimulo
  • c) disimulas
  • d) disimulamos

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ el error ante el jefe. — “Yesterday, I hid the mistake before the boss.”

  • a) disimulaste
  • b) disimuló
  • c) disimularon
  • d) disimulé

3. Complete the sentence: Ellos ______ su sorpresa al ver el regalo cuando eran jóvenes. — “They used to hide his surprise on seeing the present when they were young.”

  • a) disimulabas
  • b) disimulábamos
  • c) disimulaban
  • d) disimulaba

4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, nosotros ______ su nerviosismo en la entrevista. — “Tomorrow, we will hide his nervousness in the interview.”

  • a) disimularán
  • b) disimularemos
  • c) disimularé
  • d) disimularás

5. Complete the sentence: Él ______ la risa durante la clase si pudiera. — “He would hide laughter during the lesson if he could.”

  • a) disimularía
  • b) disimularías
  • c) disimularíamos
  • d) disimulo

6. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el error ante el jefe. — “I have hidden the mistake before the boss.”

  • a) has disimulado
  • b) ha disimulado
  • c) han disimulado
  • d) he disimulado

7. Complete the sentence: Espero que tú ______ su sorpresa al ver el regalo. — “I hope you hide his surprise on seeing the present.”

  • a) disimulemos
  • b) disimulo
  • c) disimules
  • d) disimule

8. Which is the past participle of disimular, used with haber in the perfect tenses?

  • a) disimulé
  • b) disimulado
  • c) disimulando
  • d) disimulo

9. What does disimular mean in English?

  • a) to hide, to conceal
  • b) to hide something
  • c) to restart
  • d) to scan

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • a) Él disimula la risa durante la clase.
  • b) Él disimulo la risa durante la clase.
  • c) Nosotros disimula el error ante el jefe.
  • d) Yo disimula su nerviosismo en la entrevista.

Answer key

  1. a) disimula — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: disimula.

  2. d) disimulé — The sentence needs the yo form in the preterite: disimulé, for one finished action yesterday.

  3. c) disimulaban — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas form in the imperfect: disimulaban, for a repeated past habit.

  4. b) disimularemos — The sentence needs the nosotros form in the future: disimularemos.

  5. a) disimularía — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the conditional: disimularía.

  6. d) he disimulado — The sentence needs the yo form in the present perfect: he disimulado, haber + disimulado.

  7. c) disimules — After espero que, the subjunctive is required: the tú present subjunctive is disimules.

  8. b) disimulado — The past participle is disimulado: he disimulado, has disimulado, ha disimulado. The gerund disimulando is used with estar instead.

  9. a) to hide, to conceal — disimular means to hide, to conceal. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

  10. a) Él disimula la risa durante la clase. — Él disimula la risa durante la clase. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences mix up the person and the form.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use disimular in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as Disimulo su nerviosismo en la entrevista and Disimula la risa durante la clase. Use the present tense for habits and general facts, and the preterite for things that happened once. Say the sentences aloud until the forms feel automatic, then swap in your own details: your own town, your own family, your own routine.

What is the difference between disimular and ocultar?

Disimular means “to hide, to conceal”, while ocultar means “to hide something”. They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use disimular when you mean “to hide, to conceal” and ocultar when you mean “to hide something”.

Which tense do I need most with disimular?

The present tense, for habits, routines and general facts — that is where you will use disimular most. The preterite comes next, for things that happened once and ended. The examples on this page use both, plus the imperfect, the future and the present perfect, so you can see the verb across the tenses you actually need.

Is disimular formal or informal?

Disimular is neutral — it is used in both formal and informal Spanish, at home, at work and at school. There is no special formal version of it; the same forms work in a conversation with a friend and in a letter to a company. What changes is the situation, not the verb.

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