Evacuar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

evacuar means "to evacuate" 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. Evacuar means to evacuate a place or people: evacuar el edificio, evacuar a los heridos. It takes the place or the people as its object. 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 evacuar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the evacuar present tense page.

evacuar 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 evacúo el edificio por el incendio — "I evacuate the building because of the fire"
  2. Mi amigo evacúa la zona antes de la tormenta — "My friend evacuates the area before the storm"
  3. Mañana, tú evacuarás a los heridos en ambulancia — "Tomorrow, you will evacuate the injured by ambulance"
  4. Yo evacuaría el colegio en un simulacro si pudiera — "I would evacuate the school in a drill 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 evacué el edificio por el incendio — "Yesterday, I evacuated the building because of the fire"
  2. Antes, nosotros evacuábamos la zona antes de la tormenta — "Before, we used to evacuate the area before the storm"
  3. Él ha evacuado a los heridos en ambulancia — "He has evacuated the injured by ambulance"
  4. Yo ya había evacuado el colegio en un simulacro antes de salir — "I already had evacuated the school in a drill 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 evacúe el edificio por el incendio — "I hope he evacuates the building because of the fire"
  2. Si yo evacuara la zona antes de la tormenta, todo cambiaría — "If I evacuated the area before the storm, everything would change"
  3. Evacúa a los heridos en ambulancia. — "Evacuate the injured by ambulance."
  4. Yo habría evacuado el colegio en un simulacro con más tiempo — "I would have evacuated the school in a drill with more time"

evacuar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use evacuar 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 evacúo el edificio por el incendio — "I evacuate the building because of the fire"
  • Marcos: Él evacúa la zona antes de la tormenta — "He evacuates the area before the storm"
  • Lucía: Ayer, yo evacué a los heridos en ambulancia — "Yesterday, I evacuated the injured by ambulance"
  • Marcos: Mañana, tú evacuarás el colegio en un simulacro — "Tomorrow, you will evacuate the school in a drill"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: Evacúa el barrio por la inundación. — "Evacuate the neighbourhood because of the flood."
  • Lucía: Él ha evacuado el edificio por el incendio — "He has evacuated the building because of the fire"
  • Marcos: Espero que él evacúe la zona antes de la tormenta — "I hope he evacuates the area before the storm"
  • Lucía: Antes, yo evacuaba a los heridos en ambulancia — "Before, I used to evacuate the injured by ambulance"

Common mistakes with evacuar

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

✗ *Espero que él evacúa el colegio en un simulacro

✓ Correct: Espero que él evacúe el colegio en un simulacro

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él evacúe el colegio en un simulacro — not the indicative Espero que él evacúa el colegio en un simulacro.

✗ *Ayer, yo evacúo el barrio por la inundación

✓ Correct: Ayer, yo evacué el barrio por la inundación

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo evacué el barrio por la inundación.

✗ *De niño, yo evacué el edificio por el incendio todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, yo evacuaba el edificio por el incendio todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo evacuaba el edificio por el incendio todos los días.

✗ *Yo evacúo los heridos en ambulancia.

✓ Correct: Yo evacúo a los heridos en ambulancia.

evacuar takes a before this complement: Yo evacúo a los heridos en ambulancia. Dropping the preposition is a common learner error.

✗ *Vosotros evacuais la zona antes de la tormenta.

✓ Correct: Vosotros evacuáis la zona antes de la tormenta.

The vosotros present form carries a written accent: evacuáis, not evacuais.

Quiz: evacuar in use

Ten questions on evacuar — 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 ______ el edificio por el incendio — "I evacuate the building because of the fire" (present) A. evacuamos B. evacúo C. evacúas D. evacúa

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ la zona antes de la tormenta — "Yesterday, I evacuated the area before the storm" (preterite) A. evacuaste B. evacuó C. evacuamos D. evacué

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ______ a los heridos en ambulancia — "Before, we used to evacuate the injured by ambulance" (imperfect) A. evacuábamos B. evacuaba C. evacuabas D. evacuabais

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ______ el colegio en un simulacro — "Tomorrow, you will evacuate the school in a drill" (future) A. evacuarás B. evacuaré C. evacuará D. evacuaremos

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ el barrio por la inundación — "I would evacuate the neighbourhood because of the flood" (conditional) A. evacuaría B. evacuarías C. evacuaríamos D. evacuaríais

  6. Complete the sentence: Él ______ el edificio por el incendio — "He has evacuated the building because of the fire" (present perfect) A. he evacuado B. has evacuado C. hemos evacuado D. ha evacuado

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ la zona antes de la tormenta — "I hope he evacuates the area before the storm" (present subjunctive) A. evacuéis B. evacúe C. evacúes D. evacuemos

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ a los heridos en ambulancia. — "Evacuate the injured by ambulance." (affirmative imperative) A. evacúa B. evacúe C. evacuemos D. evacuad

  9. Which is the gerund of evacuar, used with estar for the progressive? A. evacuado B. evacúo C. evacué D. evacuando

  10. What does evacuar mean in English? A. to draw B. to evacuate C. to enjoy D. to cross

Answer key

  1. evacúo — The present form for yo is evacúo.
  2. evacué — The preterite form for yo is evacué.
  3. evacuábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is evacuábamos.
  4. evacuarás — The future form for tú is evacuarás.
  5. evacuaría — The conditional form for yo is evacuaría.
  6. ha evacuado — The present perfect form for él/ella/Ud. is ha evacuado.
  7. evacúe — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is evacúe.
  8. evacúa — The affirmative imperative form is evacúa.
  9. evacuando — The gerund of evacuar is evacuando: estoy evacuando. The participle evacuado is used with haber instead.
  10. to evacuate — evacuar means to evacuate.

Frequently asked questions

What does evacuar mean in English?

evacuar means to evacuate. For example: Yo evacúo el edificio por el incendio — "I evacuate the building because of the fire". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with evacuar?

evacuar takes its complement directly, with no preposition, as in the examples above. Adding an extra preposition is a common learner error.

Is evacuar regular?

Yes. evacuar 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 evacuar?

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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