Empeorarse Examples, Sentences and Quiz
Empeorarse means “to get worse”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Empeorarse means to get worse, and it is used for an illness getting worse, the weather turning bad or a situation deteriorating. It is the opposite of mejorarse, and it is fully regular. This page shows empeorarse 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 present-tense form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” — I get worse with the cold of the night.
Empeorarse in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how empeorarse 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 empeorarse in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” — I get worse with the cold of the night.
“¿Tú te empeoras en invierno sin calefacción?” — Do you get worse in winter without heating?
“Se empeora tras la lluvia de ayer.” — He/she gets worse after yesterday's rain.
“Nos empeoramos día a día sin tratamiento.” — We get worse day by day without treatment.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show empeorarse in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo me empeoré con el frío de la noche.” — Yesterday, I got worse with the cold of the night. (preterite)
“Él se empeoraba en invierno sin calefacción todos los días.” — He used to get worse in winter without heating every day. (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 empeorarse stays the same.
“Nosotros nos empeoraremos tras la lluvia de ayer mañana.” — We will get worse after yesterday's rain tomorrow. (future)
“¿Te has empeorado día a día sin tratamiento?” — Have you got worse day by day without treatment? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Os empeoráis con el frío de la noche.” — You get worse with the cold of the night.
“Se empeoran en invierno sin calefacción.” — They get worse in winter without heating.
“Me empeoro tras la lluvia de ayer.” — I get worse after yesterday's rain.
“Se empeora día a día sin tratamiento.” — He/she gets worse day by day without treatment.
Empeorarse 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 empeorarse appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Lucía: “¿Tú te empeoras con el frío de la noche?” — Do you get worse with the cold of the night?
Carlos: “Sí, yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” — Yes, I get worse with the cold of the night.
Lucía: “Nosotros nos empeoramos en invierno sin calefacción.” — We get worse in winter without heating.
Carlos: “Y ellos se empeoran tras la lluvia de ayer.” — And they get worse after yesterday's rain.
Lucía: “Vosotros os empeoráis día a día sin tratamiento.” — You get worse day by day without treatment.
Carlos: “Sí, y él se empeora en invierno sin calefacción.” — Yes, and he gets worse in winter without heating.
A short paragraph
Lucía se empeora con el frío de la noche, y Carlos se empeora en invierno sin calefacción. Nosotros nos empeoramos tras la lluvia de ayer, y ellos se empeoran día a día sin tratamiento. Yo me empeoro tras la lluvia de ayer, y mi padre se empeora día a día sin tratamiento. Empeorarse is part of everyday life, because to get worse is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.
Common mistakes with empeorarse
These are the errors learners actually make with empeorarse. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo empeoro con el frío de la noche.” Right: “Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” Why: Empeorarse is reflexive, so the pronoun me is required: without it the verb means something else, or nothing at all.
Wrong: “Ayer yo empeoro en invierno sin calefacción.” Right: “Ayer yo empeoré en invierno sin calefacción.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: empeoro is happening now, while empeoré is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating empeorarse and mejorarse as identical in every context.” Right: “Empeorarse means to get worse, while mejorarse means to get better.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: empeorarse fits sentences such as Me empeoro con el frío de la noche, while mejorarse belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy empeorado en invierno sin calefacción.” Right: “Yo he empeorado en invierno sin calefacción.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he empeorado, has empeorado, ha empeorado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo empeoré tras la lluvia de ayer todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo empeoraba tras la lluvia de ayer todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (empeoraba), not the preterite. The preterite (empeoré) is for one finished action.
Quiz: empeorarse in use
Ten questions on empeorarse in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ con el frío de la noche.” (With the cold of the night.)
- (a) os empeoráis
- (b) me empeoro
- (c) te empeoras
Answer: os empeoráis — The vosotros/as form of empeorarse in the present is os empeoráis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ en invierno sin calefacción.” (In winter without heating.)
- (a) me empeoro
- (b) te empeoras
- (c) se empeoran
Answer: se empeoran — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of empeorarse in the present is se empeoran.
3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ con el frío de la noche.” (With the cold of the night.)
- (a) se empeoró
- (b) me empeoré
- (c) te empeoraste
Answer: me empeoré — The yo form of empeorarse in the preterite is me empeoré.
4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ en invierno sin calefacción.” (In winter without heating.)
- (a) se empeoraba
- (b) me empeoraba
- (c) te empeorabas
Answer: se empeoraba — The él/ella/Ud. form of empeorarse in the imperfect is se empeoraba.
5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ tras la lluvia de ayer.” (After yesterday's rain.)
- (a) me empeoraré
- (b) te empeorarás
- (c) nos empeoraremos
Answer: nos empeoraremos — The nosotros/as form of empeorarse in the future is nos empeoraremos.
6. What does empeorarse mean in English?
- (a) to fall out of love
- (b) to get worse
- (c) to get better
Answer: to get worse — Empeorarse means “to get worse”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.
- (b) Ellos empeora con el frío de la noche.
- (c) Yo me empeoro en invierno sin calefacción ayer.
Answer: Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche. — “Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I get worse with the cold of the night.” in Spanish?
- (a) Yo se empeoran con el frío de la noche.
- (b) Yo me empeoré con el frío de la noche.
- (c) Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.
Answer: Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche. — “Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” is the correct translation. The second option uses the wrong person's form, and the third uses the preterite.
9. What is the nosotros form of empeorarse in the present tense?
- (a) te empeoras
- (b) nos empeoramos
- (c) me empeoro
Answer: nos empeoramos — The nosotros form is nos empeoramos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Ayer, yo me empeoré con el frío de la noche.
- (b) Nosotros nos empeoraremos con el frío de la noche mañana.
- (c) Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.
Answer: Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche. — “Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I get worse' in Spanish?
Say 'Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo me empeoro con el frío de la noche todos los días'.
How do you say 'I get worse' in the past?
For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo me empeoré en invierno sin calefacción'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo me empeoraba en invierno sin calefacción todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo me he empeorado en invierno sin calefacción'.
What is the difference between empeorarse and mejorarse?
Empeorarse means to get worse, while mejorarse means to get better. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use empeorarse when you mean to get worse, as in Me empeoro con el frío de la noche.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of empeorarse — every tense of empeorarse in one place.
- Empeorarse in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on empeorarse and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of empeorarse until they are automatic.