Escribir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

escribir — to write — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Escribir means to write: escribir una carta, escribir en español. It is regular in every tense — its only irregularity is the participle escrito. Escribir a is to write to someone; escribir sobre is to write about a topic. On this page you will find escribir in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself.

Example sentences with escribir

In the present tense

  • “Yo escribo un diario cada noche.” — “I write a diary every night.”
  • “Ella escribe cartas a su abuela.” — “She writes letters to her grandmother.”
  • “Nosotros escribimos un informe cada mes.” — “We write a report every month.”
  • “Ellos escriben en el periódico local.” — “They write for the local newspaper.”
  • “¿Tú escribes con bolígrafo o con ordenador?” — “Do you write with a pen or a computer?”
  • “Vosotros escribís demasiado rápido.” — “You write too fast.”

In the preterite

  • “Ayer yo escribí una carta al director.” — “Yesterday I wrote a letter to the director.”
  • “Ella escribió un poema precioso.” — “She wrote a beautiful poem.”
  • “Nosotros escribimos el informe en dos horas.” — “We wrote the report in two hours.”
  • “Ellos escribieron un libro sobre la guerra.” — “They wrote a book about the war.”
  • “¿Tú escribiste el mensaje anoche?” — “Did you write the message last night?”
  • “El autor escribió su primera novela en 1990.” — “The author wrote his first novel in 1990.”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect — the four tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “De niño, yo escribía una carta cada noche.” — “As a child, I used to write a letter every night.”
  • “Mañana, yo escribiré una carta cada noche.” — “Tomorrow, I will write a letter every night.”
  • “Si pudiera, yo escribiría una carta cada noche.” — “If I could, I would write a letter every night.”
  • “Yo he escrito una carta cada noche.” — “I have written a letter every night.”

Escribir in context

Cada día, yo escribo una carta cada noche. Mi amigo también escribe una carta cada noche cuando tiene tiempo. Después, yo escribo una carta de nuevo por la tarde. Es una parte normal de mi rutina, y por eso el presente de escribir es la primera forma que conviene aprender.

Ayer, yo escribí una carta cada noche. Mi amigo escribió una carta cada noche también, y por la noche yo escribí una carta otra vez. Fue un día normal, pero es justo en días así cuando el pretérito de escribir aparece una y otra vez: una acción terminada, un momento concreto, y la historia sigue.

Common mistakes with escribir

Mistake 1

Wrong: He escribido una carta — wrong participle.

Right: He escrito una carta.

The participle is escrito, not escribido.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Escribir a una carta — wrong preposition.

Right: Yo escribo una carta.

You write a letter (escribir una carta); you write to a person (escribir a María).

Mistake 3

Wrong: Treating escribir as a regular verb.

Right: Learn the irregular forms: present escribo, preterite escribí.

escribir is irregular — its present and preterite do not follow the regular endings, so they have to be memorised as a set.

Quiz: escribir in everyday use

Ten questions on escribir across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of escribir in the present tense?

  • A) escribo
  • B) escribes
  • C) escribe
  • D) escribimos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is escribo.

2. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of escribir in the present tense?

  • A) escribo
  • B) escribes
  • C) escribimos
  • D) escribe

Answer: D — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is escribe.

3. What is the yo form of escribir in the preterite?

  • A) escribió
  • B) escribimos
  • C) escribí
  • D) escribiste

Answer: C — The yo form in the preterite is escribí.

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of escribir in the preterite?

  • A) escribió
  • B) escribieron
  • C) escribí
  • D) escribiste

Answer: B — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the preterite is escribieron.

5. What is the yo form of escribir in the imperfect?

  • A) escribía
  • B) escribías
  • C) escribía
  • D) escribíamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the imperfect is escribía.

6. What is the tú form of escribir in the future?

  • A) escribiré
  • B) escribirá
  • C) escribiremos
  • D) escribirás

Answer: D — The tú form in the future is escribirás.

7. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of escribir in the conditional?

  • A) escribirías
  • B) escribiríamos
  • C) escribiría
  • D) escribiría

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the conditional is escribiría.

8. What is the nosotros/as form of escribir in the present perfect?

  • A) ha escrito
  • B) hemos escrito
  • C) he escrito
  • D) has escrito

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present perfect is hemos escrito.

9. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ un diario cada noche.” (I write a diary every night.)

  • A) escribo
  • B) escribes
  • C) escribe
  • D) escribimos

Answer: A — The sentence needs escribo.

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) He escrito una carta.
  • B) He escribido una carta — wrong participle.

Answer: A — The participle is escrito, not escribido.

Frequently asked questions

What does escribir mean?

escribir means “to write” in English. Escribir means to write: escribir una carta, escribir en español. It is regular in every tense — its only irregularity is the participle escrito. Escribir a is to write to someone; escribir sobre is to write about a topic.

Is escribir regular?

No. escribir is an irregular -ir verb (irregular in past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect). It is irregular in past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, and those forms have to be learnt as a set rather than built by rule. The full conjugation page shows every tense.

When do I use escribir in the past — preterite or imperfect?

Use the preterite — escribí, escribiste, escribió — for a finished action at a specific moment, and the imperfect — escribía, escribías, escribía — for what was happening, what used to happen, or the background. The same rule applies to escribir as to every Spanish verb; the tense changes the meaning, not the verb.

How can I practise escribir?

Start with the examples above, say them aloud, then take the quiz on this page. For more practice, use the Spanish Verb Quiz and the Escribir Conjugator, and read the full conjugation page for escribir to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo escribo…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo escribí…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo escribiré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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