Fluctuar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

fluctuar means "to fluctuate" 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. Fluctuar means to fluctuate: prices, temperatures and currencies fluctúan. It is a formal verb, used in economics and weather reports, and its subject is usually a price or a level. 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 fluctuar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the fluctuar present tense page.

fluctuar 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. Los precios del petróleo fluctúan mucho en invierno — "Oil prices fluctuate a lot in winter"
  2. La temperatura durante el día fluctúa cada día — "The temperature during the day fluctuates every day"
  3. Mañana, el dólar en el mercado fluctuará con el mercado — "Tomorrow, the dollar on the market will fluctuate with the market"
  4. Las ventas en Navidad fluctuarían según la estación si pudiera — "Sales at Christmas would fluctuate with the season 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, los precios del petróleo fluctuaron mucho en invierno — "Yesterday, oil prices fluctuated a lot in winter"
  2. Antes, la temperatura durante el día fluctuaba cada día — "Before, the temperature during the day used to fluctuate every day"
  3. El dólar en el mercado ha fluctuado con el mercado — "The dollar on the market has fluctuated with the market"
  4. Las ventas en Navidad ya habían fluctuado según la estación antes de salir — "Sales at Christmas had already fluctuated with the season 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 los precios del petróleo fluctúen mucho en invierno — "I hope oil prices fluctuate a lot in winter"
  2. Si la temperatura durante el día fluctuara cada día, todo cambiaría — "If the temperature during the day fluctuated every day, everything would change"
  3. Mañana, el dólar en el mercado fluctuará con el mercado — "Tomorrow, the dollar on the market will fluctuate with the market"
  4. Las ventas en Navidad habrían fluctuado según la estación con más tiempo — "Sales at Christmas would have fluctuated with the season with more time"

fluctuar in conversation

Two short dialogues that use fluctuar 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: Los precios del petróleo fluctúan mucho en invierno — "Oil prices fluctuate a lot in winter"
  • Marcos: La temperatura durante el día fluctúa cada día — "The temperature during the day fluctuates every day"
  • Lucía: Ayer, el dólar en el mercado fluctuó con el mercado — "Yesterday, the dollar on the market fluctuated with the market"
  • Marcos: Mañana, las ventas en Navidad fluctuarán según la estación — "Tomorrow, sales at Christmas will fluctuate with the season"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: El nivel del río fluctuaría de un mes a otro si pudiera — "The river level would fluctuate from one month to the next if I could"
  • Lucía: Los precios del petróleo han fluctuado mucho en invierno — "Oil prices have fluctuated a lot in winter"
  • Marcos: Espero que la temperatura durante el día fluctúe cada día — "I hope the temperature during the day fluctuates every day"
  • Lucía: Antes, el dólar en el mercado fluctuaba con el mercado — "Before, the dollar on the market used to fluctuate with the market"

Common mistakes with fluctuar

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

✗ *Los precios del petróleo fluctúa mucho en invierno.

✓ Correct: Los precios del petróleo fluctúan mucho en invierno.

The verb agrees with its subject: los precios del petróleo is plural, so it is fluctúan, not fluctúa.

✗ *Espero que las ventas en Navidad fluctúan según la estación

✓ Correct: Espero que las ventas en Navidad fluctúen según la estación

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que las ventas en Navidad fluctúen según la estación — not the indicative Espero que las ventas en Navidad fluctúan según la estación.

✗ *Ayer, el nivel del río fluctúa de un mes a otro

✓ Correct: Ayer, el nivel del río fluctuó de un mes a otro

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, el nivel del río fluctuó de un mes a otro.

✗ *De niño, los precios del petróleo fluctuaron mucho en invierno todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, los precios del petróleo fluctuaban mucho en invierno todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, los precios del petróleo fluctuaban mucho en invierno todos los días.

✗ *Yo soy fluctuado los precios del petróleo.

✓ Correct: Yo he fluctuado los precios del petróleo.

Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: Yo he fluctuado los precios del petróleo. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

Quiz: fluctuar in use

Ten questions on fluctuar — 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: Los precios del petróleo ______ mucho en invierno — "Oil prices fluctuate a lot in winter" (present) A. fluctuó B. fluctúan C. fluctúa D. fluctuaron

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, la temperatura durante el día ______ cada día — "Yesterday, the temperature during the day fluctuated every day" (preterite) A. fluctuó B. fluctuaron C. fluctuaba D. fluctuaban

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, el dólar en el mercado ______ con el mercado — "Before, the dollar on the market used to fluctuate with the market" (imperfect) A. fluctuó B. fluctuaron C. fluctuaba D. fluctuaban

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, las ventas en Navidad ______ según la estación — "Tomorrow, sales at Christmas will fluctuate with the season" (future) A. fluctuaron B. fluctuó C. fluctuarán D. fluctuará

  5. Complete the sentence: El nivel del río ______ de un mes a otro — "The river level would fluctuate from one month to the next" (conditional) A. fluctuaría B. fluctuarían C. fluctuó D. fluctuaron

  6. Complete the sentence: Los precios del petróleo ______ mucho en invierno — "Oil prices have fluctuated a lot in winter" (present perfect) A. han fluctuado B. ha fluctuado C. fluctuaron D. fluctuó

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que la temperatura durante el día ______ cada día — "I hope the temperature during the day fluctuates every day" (present subjunctive) A. fluctúen B. fluctuó C. fluctuaron D. fluctúe

  8. Complete the sentence: Si el dólar en el mercado ______ con el mercado, todo cambiaría — "If the dollar on the market fluctuated with the market, everything would change" (imperfect subjunctive) A. fluctuó B. fluctuaron C. fluctuara D. fluctuaran

  9. Which is the gerund of fluctuar, used with estar for the progressive? A. fluctuando B. fluctuado C. fluctúo D. fluctué

  10. What does fluctuar mean in English? A. to enjoy B. to cross C. to fluctuate D. to fluctuate, to swing

Answer key

  1. fluctúan — The present form is fluctúan.
  2. fluctuó — The preterite form is fluctuó.
  3. fluctuaba — The imperfect form is fluctuaba.
  4. fluctuarán — The future form is fluctuarán.
  5. fluctuaría — The conditional form is fluctuaría.
  6. han fluctuado — The present perfect form is han fluctuado.
  7. fluctúe — The present subjunctive form is fluctúe.
  8. fluctuara — The imperfect subjunctive form is fluctuara.
  9. fluctuando — The gerund of fluctuar is fluctuando: estoy fluctuando. The participle fluctuado is used with haber instead.
  10. to fluctuate — fluctuar means to fluctuate.

Frequently asked questions

What does fluctuar mean in English?

fluctuar means to fluctuate. For example: Los precios del petróleo fluctúan mucho en invierno — "Oil prices fluctuate a lot in winter". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with fluctuar?

Fluctuar takes a subject that is a price, a level or a rate: los precios fluctúan, la temperatura fluctúa. There is no preposition to learn.

Is fluctuar regular?

Yes. fluctuar 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 fluctuar?

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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