Espiar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

espiar means "to spy on" 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. Espiar means to spy on someone: espiar a su vecino por la ventana. It takes a person as its object and often adds por or desde for how the spying happens. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by use, 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 espiar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the espiar present tense page.

espiar in everyday use: examples with translations

Everyday present uses

How the verb sounds in the present, the future and in hypotheticals — the forms you will use most often.

  1. Yo espío a su vecino por la ventana — "I spy on his neighbour through the window"
  2. Mi amigo espía a su rival en el trabajo — "My friend spies on his rival at work"
  3. Mañana, tú espiarás al enemigo desde la colina — "Tomorrow, you will spy on the enemy from the hill"
  4. Yo espiaría a su hermano en el jardín si pudiera — "I would spy on his brother in the garden if I could"

Talking about the past

The same verb in the past: one finished action, a habit, something that has just happened, and something that had already happened.

  1. Ayer, yo espié a su vecino por la ventana — "Yesterday, I spied on his neighbour through the window"
  2. Antes, nosotros espiábamos a su rival en el trabajo — "Before, we used to spy on his rival at work"
  3. Él ha espiado al enemigo desde la colina — "He has spied on the enemy from the hill"
  4. Yo ya había espiado a su hermano en el jardín antes de salir — "I already had spied on his brother in the garden before leaving"

Wishes, conditions and commands

The verb after espero que, in si clauses, as a command — and in the conditional perfect, for what would have happened.

  1. Espero que él espíe a su vecino por la ventana — "I hope he spies on his neighbour through the window"
  2. Si yo espiara a su rival en el trabajo, todo cambiaría — "If I spied on his rival at work, everything would change"
  3. Espía al enemigo desde la colina. — "Spy on the enemy from the hill."
  4. Yo habría espiado a su hermano en el jardín con más tiempo — "I would have spied on his brother in the garden with more time"

espiar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use espiar 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 it.

  • Lucía: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Lucía: Yo espío a su vecino por la ventana — "I spy on his neighbour through the window"
  • Marcos: Él espía a su rival en el trabajo — "He spies on his rival at work"
  • Lucía: Ayer, yo espié al enemigo desde la colina — "Yesterday, I spied on the enemy from the hill"
  • Marcos: Mañana, tú espiarás a su hermano en el jardín — "Tomorrow, you will spy on his brother in the garden"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: Espía las conversaciones de sus hijos. — "Spy on his children's conversations."
  • Lucía: Él ha espiado a su vecino por la ventana — "He has spied on his neighbour through the window"
  • Marcos: Espero que él espíe a su rival en el trabajo — "I hope he spies on his rival at work"
  • Lucía: Antes, yo espiaba al enemigo desde la colina — "Before, I used to spy on the enemy from the hill"

Common mistakes with espiar

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

✗ *Espero que él espía a su hermano en el jardín

✓ Correct: Espero que él espíe a su hermano en el jardín

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él espíe a su hermano en el jardín — not the indicative Espero que él espía a su hermano en el jardín.

✗ *Ayer, yo espío las conversaciones de sus hijos

✓ Correct: Ayer, yo espié las conversaciones de sus hijos

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo espié las conversaciones de sus hijos.

✗ *De niño, yo espié a su vecino por la ventana todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, yo espiaba a su vecino por la ventana todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo espiaba a su vecino por la ventana todos los días.

✗ *Yo espío enemigo desde la colina.

✓ Correct: Yo espío al enemigo desde la colina.

espiar takes al before this complement: Yo espío al enemigo desde la colina. Dropping the preposition is a common learner error.

✗ *Vosotros espiais a su rival en el trabajo.

✓ Correct: Vosotros espiáis a su rival en el trabajo.

The vosotros present form carries a written accent: espiáis, not espiais.

Quiz: espiar in use

Ten questions on espiar — 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: Yo ______ a su vecino por la ventana — "I spy on his neighbour through the window" (present) A. espío B. espías C. espía D. espiamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ a su rival en el trabajo — "Yesterday, I spied on his rival at work" (preterite) A. espió B. espiamos C. espié D. espiaste

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ______ al enemigo desde la colina — "Before, we used to spy on the enemy from the hill" (imperfect) A. espiabais B. espiábamos C. espiaba D. espiabas

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ______ a su hermano en el jardín — "Tomorrow, you will spy on his brother in the garden" (future) A. espiaré B. espiará C. espiaremos D. espiarás

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ las conversaciones de sus hijos — "I would spy on his children's conversations" (conditional) A. espiarías B. espiaríamos C. espiaríais D. espiaría

  6. Complete the sentence: Él ______ a su vecino por la ventana — "He has spied on his neighbour through the window" (present perfect) A. hemos espiado B. ha espiado C. he espiado D. has espiado

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ a su rival en el trabajo — "I hope he spies on his rival at work" (present subjunctive) A. espíe B. espíes C. espiemos D. espiéis

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ al enemigo desde la colina. — "Spy on the enemy from the hill." (affirmative imperative) A. espiad B. espía C. espíe D. espiemos

  9. Which is the gerund of espiar, used with estar for the progressive? A. espío B. espié C. espiando D. espiado

  10. What does espiar mean in English? A. to spy on B. to watch C. to enjoy D. to cross

Answer key

  1. espío — The present form for yo is espío.
  2. espié — The preterite form for yo is espié.
  3. espiábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is espiábamos.
  4. espiarás — The future form for tú is espiarás.
  5. espiaría — The conditional form for yo is espiaría.
  6. ha espiado — The present perfect form for él/ella/Ud. is ha espiado.
  7. espíe — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is espíe.
  8. espía — The affirmative imperative form is espía.
  9. espiando — The gerund of espiar is espiando: estoy espiando. The participle espiado is used with haber instead.
  10. to spy on — espiar means to spy on.

Frequently asked questions

What does espiar mean in English?

espiar means to spy on. For example: Yo espío a su vecino por la ventana — "I spy on his neighbour through the window". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with espiar?

espiar takes a before this kind of complement, as in the examples above. Keep the preposition with the verb — dropping it is one of the most common learner errors with espiar.

Is espiar regular?

Yes. espiar is a regular -ar verb, so once you know the endings for its class you can conjugate it in every tense.

How do I practise espiar?

Start with the present tense table on the full conjugation page, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure, and come back to the sentences above until you can say them without looking.

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