Economizar Examples, Sentences & Quiz

Introduction

economizar means to save, to economise, and it is one of those verbs that shows up everywhere once you start listening for it. It is a spelling-changing -ar verb verb, and this page puts it to work: real example sentences in several tenses, grouped by use, two short passages that show the verb in context, the mistakes learners make with it, a ten-question quiz and answers to common questions. If you only learn one sentence, make it «Yo economizo todos los días» — I save every day. The rest of this page builds out from there, tense by tense, so you can use economizar the way native speakers do — in the present for habits, in the past for finished events, and in the subjunctive after wishes and doubts.

Economizar in real example sentences

In the present: everyday use

The present is where economizar lives most of the time — routines, facts and what is happening now:

  1. Yo economizo todos los días. — I save every day.
  2. Tú economizas en el trabajo. — You save at work.
  3. Él economiza con mi familia. — He saves with my family.
  4. Nosotros economizamos por la mañana. — We save in the morning.

Talking about the past

In the past, choose the preterite for a finished event and the imperfect for a habit or background:

  1. Ayer yo economicé por la tarde. — Yesterday I saved in the afternoon.
  2. Antes, yo economizaba todos los días. — In the past, I used to save every day.
  3. La semana pasada él economizó dos veces. — Last week He saved twice.

Plans and things already done

The future, the conditional and the present perfect round out the picture — plans, hypotheticals and recent events:

  1. Mañana yo economizaré sin falta. — Tomorrow I will save without fail.
  2. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo economizaría ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would save right now.
  3. Hoy yo he economizado dos veces. — Today I have saved twice.

More everyday uses

The subjunctive, the imperative and the progressive cover wishes, commands and actions in progress:

  1. Espero que tú economices pronto. — I hope You save soon.
  2. ¡economiza, por favor! — Save, please!
  3. Ahora mismo yo estoy economizando. — Right now I am saving.

Economizar in context

A short dialogue

Ana: «Yo economizo en el trabajo.» — I save at work. Luis: «¡Qué bien! Yo economizo con mi familia.» — I save with my family. Ana: «Mañana yo economizaré sin falta.» — Tomorrow I will save without fail. Luis: «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo economizaría ahora mismo.» — If I had more time, I would save right now. Ana: «Hoy yo he economizado dos veces.» — Today I have saved twice.

A short paragraph

Ayer yo economicé por la tarde. Antes, yo economizaba todos los días. Hoy yo he economizado dos veces. Mañana yo economizaré sin falta.

Yesterday I saved in the afternoon. In the past, I used to save every day. Today I have saved twice. Tomorrow I will save without fail.

Common mistakes with economizar

1. Missing the spelling change in the preterite

Wrong: Yo economizé.

Right: Yo economicé.

The spelling changes so the pronunciation stays the same: the yo form in the preterite is economicé, not economizé. The endings are regular — only the spelling of the stem-final letter adjusts before e and i.

2. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo economizaba.

Right: Ayer yo economicé.

Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, economicé. The imperfect economizaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.

3. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

Wrong: Espero que tú economizas.

Right: Espero que tú economices.

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: economices, not the indicative economizas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.

4. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No economiza.

Right: No economices.

Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no economices. The affirmative economiza can never follow no.

5. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo economizar todos los días.

Right: Yo economizo todos los días.

The infinitive economizar names the action; it never works as the main verb of a sentence. Conjugate it for the person: yo economizo.

Quiz: economizar in use

Test yourself on economizar in use. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of economizar in the present indicative?

- (a) economizas
- (b) economiza
- (c) economizamos
- (d) economizo

2. What is the nosotros/as form of economizar in the preterite?

- (a) economizaste
- (b) economizamos
- (c) economizó
- (d) economicé

3. What is the vosotros/as form of economizar in the future?

- (a) economizará
- (b) economizarás
- (c) economizaré
- (d) economizaréis

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of economizar in the present perfect?

- (a) has economizado
- (b) ha economizado
- (c) he economizado
- (d) han economizado

5. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of economizar in the imperfect?

- (a) economizaba
- (b) economizabas
- (c) economizábamos
- (d) economizaba

6. What is the gerund of economizar?

- (a) economizar
- (b) economizado
- (c) economizo
- (d) economizando

7. What is the past participle of economizar?

- (a) economicé
- (b) economizando
- (c) economizado
- (d) economizar

8. Which sentence uses economizar correctly?

- (a) *Yo economizar todos los días.*
- (b) *Yo economizas todos los días.*
- (c) *Yo economiza todos los días.*
- (d) *Yo economizo todos los días.* — I save every day.

9. Which sentence uses economizar correctly?

- (a) *Ayer yo economizaba por la tarde.*
- (b) *Ayer yo economizo por la tarde.*
- (c) *Ayer yo economicé por la tarde.* — Yesterday I saved in the afternoon.
- (d) *Ayer yo economizar por la tarde.*

10. What does economizar mean?

- (a) to last
- (b) to donate
- (c) to save, to economise
- (d) to edit

Answer key

1. (b) — In the present indicative, the él/ella/Ud. form of economizar is economiza. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (b) — In the preterite, the nosotros/as form of economizar is economizamos. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (d) — In the future, the vosotros/as form of economizar is economizaréis. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (d) — In the present perfect, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of economizar is han economizado. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (a) — In the imperfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of economizar is economizaba. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (d) — The gerund of economizar is economizando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy economizando». 7. (c) — The past participle of economizar is economizado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he economizado». 8. (d) — Only this sentence pairs the right person with the right form of economizar; the others mix a person with another person's form, or use the infinitive instead of a conjugated form. 9. (c) — Only this sentence pairs the right person with the right form of economizar; the others mix a person with another person's form, or use the infinitive instead of a conjugated form. 10. (c) — economizar means «to save, to economise».

Frequently asked questions

How do you say 'I save' in Spanish?

Say «Yo economizo todos los días». That is the present-tense yo form, and it is the sentence you will use most with this verb.

How do you say 'I saved' about yesterday?

Say «Ayer yo economicé por la tarde». The preterite is the tense for a finished event: yesterday, last week, last night.

Is economizar reflexive?

No — economizar is not reflexive. It conjugates without a pronoun: yo economizo, tú economizas, él economiza. If you see a -se form of a similar verb, that is a different verb with its own meaning.

Which tense do learners find hardest with economizar?

Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (economicé) for a single finished event and the imperfect (economizaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.

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