Envejecer Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

envejecer means "to grow old" 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. Envejecer means "to grow old" or "to age" — people age, wine ages, a building ages. It is used for growing old gracefully (envejecer bien) and for things ageing badly (el vino envejece mal). Like crecer and nacer, it is a -zc- verb: the yo form is envejezco, while all the other persons keep the plain stem envejec- (envejeces, envejece, envejecemos, envejecéis, envejecen). That single irregular form is the whole difficulty of envejecer in the present tense. Its opposite is rejuvenecer, to rejuvenate, and its noun is la vejez, old age. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by meaning, 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 envejecer; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the envejecer present tense page.

envejecer in everyday use: examples with translations

People ageing

  1. Nosotros envejecemos cada día. — "We grow older every day."
  2. Mi abuelo envejece muy bien. — "My grandfather ages very well."
  3. Mi abuelo envejeció rodeado de familia. — "My grandfather grew old surrounded by family."
  4. Yo envejecía sin darme cuenta. — "I used to grow old without realising it."

Wine and food ageing

  1. El vino envejece en barrica. — "The wine ages in the barrel."
  2. El queso envejece en la cueva. — "The cheese ages in the cave."
  3. El vino envejecerá mejor con los años. — "The wine will age better with the years."
  4. El edificio ha ha envejecido mucho. — "The building has aged a lot."

Ageing well

  1. Yo envejezco con dignidad. — "I grow old with dignity."
  2. Tú envejeces muy bien. — "You age very well."
  3. Yo envejecería mejor en el campo. — "I would age better in the countryside."
  4. Nosotros envejecemos juntos. — "We grow old together."

envejecer in conversation

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

Two old friends meet after years apart.

  • Ana: Nosotros envejecemos cada día. — "We grow older every day."
  • Bea: Mi abuelo envejece muy bien. — "My grandfather ages very well."
  • Ana: Yo envejezco con dignidad. — "I grow old with dignity."
  • Bea: Mi abuelo envejeció rodeado de familia. — "My grandfather grew old surrounded by family."

At a winery, talking about ageing wine.

  • Bodeguero: El vino envejece en barrica. — "The wine ages in the barrel."
  • Visitante: El queso envejece en la cueva. — "The cheese ages in the cave."
  • Bodeguero: ¿Tú envejeces muy bien? — "Do you age very well?"
  • Visitante: El vino envejecerá mejor con los años. — "The wine will age better with the years."

Common mistakes with envejecer

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

✗ *Yo envejezo sin miedo (using -zo instead of -zco).

✓ Correct: Yo envejezco sin miedo.

Envejecer is a -zc- verb: the yo form is envejezco, not envejezo. The zc appears only in yo.

✗ *Tú envejezces muy bien (spreading the zc to tú).

✓ Correct: Tú envejeces muy bien.

Only yo takes the zc. Tú is envejeces, él is envejece, ellos are envejecen.

✗ *Nosotros envejezcemos juntos.

✓ Correct: Nosotros envejecemos juntos.

Nosotros is envejecemos, with no z. The zc never appears in nosotros or vosotros.

✗ *Ellos envejezcen en paz.

✓ Correct: Ellos envejecen en paz.

Ellos is envejecen. Keep the zc strictly for yo.

Quiz: envejecer in use

Ten questions on envejecer — 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: Nosotros ______ cada día. — "We grow older every day."

  • a) envejecimos
  • b) envejeces
  • c) envejezco
  • d) envejecemos

2. Complete the sentence: Mi abuelo ______ rodeado de familia. — "My grandfather grew old surrounded by family."

  • a) envejecí
  • b) envejece
  • c) envejeciste
  • d) envejeció

3. Complete the sentence: El queso ______ en la cueva. — "The cheese ages in the cave."

  • a) envejeces
  • b) envejece
  • c) envejeció
  • d) envejezco

4. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ con dignidad. — "I grow old with dignity."

  • a) envejece
  • b) envejecí
  • c) envejezco
  • d) envejeces

5. Which is the correct present tense form of envejecer for yo?

  • a) envejeces
  • b) envejecemos
  • c) envejece
  • d) envejezco

6. Which is the correct present tense form of envejecer for tú?

  • a) envejezco
  • b) envejeces
  • c) envejece
  • d) envejecemos

7. Which is the correct present tense form of envejecer for ellos/ellas/Uds.?

  • a) envejecen
  • b) envejeces
  • c) envejezco
  • d) envejece

8. Which sentence uses envejecer correctly?

  • a) Nosotros envejece juntos.
  • b) Nosotros envejecimos juntos.
  • c) Nosotros envejecemos juntos.
  • d) Nosotros envejecíamos juntos.

9. What is the past participle of envejecer?

  • a) envejeciendo
  • b) envejecido
  • c) envejeció
  • d) envejezco

10. What does envejecer mean in English?

  • a) to go
  • b) to grow
  • c) to have
  • d) to grow old

Answer key

  1. d) envejecemos — The sentence needs the nosotros/as form in the present: envejecemos.

  2. d) envejeció — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite: envejeció.

  3. b) envejece — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the present: envejece.

  4. c) envejezco — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: envejezco.

  5. d) envejezco — The present tense form for yo is envejezco.

  6. b) envejeces — The present tense form for tú is envejeces.

  7. a) envejecen — The present tense form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is envejecen.

  8. c) Nosotros envejecemos juntos. — Nosotros envejecemos juntos. is correct. The other sentences use the wrong person, the wrong tense, or the wrong pattern for this verb.

  9. b) envejecido — The past participle is envejecido. You need it for every perfect tense with haber: he envejecido, has envejecido, ha envejecido.

  10. d) to grow old — envejecer means "to grow old".

Frequently asked questions

How do I use envejecer in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as envejecer bien and envejecer con dignidad. 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 envejecer and crecer?

envejecer means "to grow old", while crecer means "to grow". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use envejecer when you mean "to grow old" and crecer when you mean "to grow".

Which tense do I need most with envejecer?

The present tense, for habits, routines and general facts — that is where you will use envejecer 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 envejecer formal or informal?

envejecer 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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