Gastar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

gastar means "to spend (money)" 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. Gastar means "to spend" — money, time, energy. It is the natural opposite of ahorrar: gastas dinero en ropa, you spend money on clothes; gastas tiempo, you spend time; gastas energía, you spend energy. It is also used for using something up (gastar la batería, to run the battery down) and for wearing something out (gastar los zapatos). It is a fully regular -ar verb, and its present tense is the everyday language of shopping, budgets and daily life. 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 gastar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the gastar present tense page.

gastar in everyday use: examples with translations

Spending money

  1. Yo gasto mucho dinero en comida. — "I spend a lot of money on food."
  2. Nosotros gastamos poco en ropa. — "We spend little on clothes."
  3. Ayer yo gasté cincuenta euros en el mercado. — "Yesterday I spent fifty euros at the market."
  4. De joven, yo gastaba todo mi dinero en discos. — "When I was young, I used to spend all my money on records."

Spending time and energy

  1. Tú gastas demasiado tiempo en el móvil. — "You spend too much time on your phone."
  2. Ella gasta su tiempo en leer. — "She spends her time reading."
  3. Yo gastaré menos el mes que viene. — "I will spend less next month."
  4. Yo he gastado mucho esta semana. — "I have spent a lot this week."

Using things up

  1. Mi móvil gasta la batería muy rápido. — "My phone uses up the battery very fast."
  2. Los niños gastan los zapatos en una semana. — "The children wear out their shoes in a week."
  3. Yo gastaría menos si cocinara en casa. — "I would spend less if I cooked at home."
  4. Vosotros gastáis demasiado en restaurantes. — "You spend too much in restaurants."

gastar in conversation

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

A couple reviews the monthly budget.

  • María: Yo gasto mucho dinero en comida. — "I spend a lot of money on food."
  • Juan: Nosotros gastamos poco en ropa. — "We spend little on clothes."
  • María: Tú gastas demasiado tiempo en el móvil. — "You spend too much time on your phone."
  • Juan: Yo gastaré menos el mes que viene. — "I will spend less next month."

A teenager spends all his money on games.

  • Padre: Tú gastas todo tu dinero en videojuegos. — "You spend all your money on video games."
  • Hijo: Yo gasto cien euros a la semana. — "I spend one hundred euros a week."
  • Padre: Ellos gastan su sueldo en alquiler. — "They spend their salary on rent."
  • Hijo: Yo gastaría menos si cocinara en casa. — "I would spend less if I cooked at home."

Common mistakes with gastar

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

✗ *Yo gasto a mucho dinero en comida.

✓ Correct: Yo gasto mucho dinero en comida.

Money takes no personal a: gastar dinero, not gastar a dinero. The en for "on" is correct: gastar en comida.

✗ *Tú gastas demasiado tiempo al móvil (using a instead of en).

✓ Correct: Tú gastas demasiado tiempo en el móvil.

To spend time or money on something, use en: gastar tiempo en el móvil, gastar dinero en ropa.

✗ *Vosotros gastáis demasiado (written without the accent: gastais).

✓ Correct: Vosotros gastáis demasiado en restaurantes.

Gastáis needs the written accent on the á.

✗ *Ellos gastan a su sueldo.

✓ Correct: Ellos gastan su sueldo en alquiler.

Gastar takes a direct object: gastar su sueldo. Never put a before a thing.

Quiz: gastar in use

Ten questions on gastar — 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 ______ mucho dinero en comida. — "I spend a lot of money on food."

  • a) gastas
  • b) gasté
  • c) gasta
  • d) gasto

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer yo ______ cincuenta euros en el mercado. — "Yesterday I spent fifty euros at the market."

  • a) gasto
  • b) gasté
  • c) gastó
  • d) gastaste

3. Complete the sentence: Ella ______ su tiempo en leer. — "She spends her time reading."

  • a) gasta
  • b) gasto
  • c) gastas
  • d) gastó

4. Complete the sentence: Mi móvil ______ la batería muy rápido. — "My phone uses up the battery very fast."

  • a) gasto
  • b) gasta
  • c) gastó
  • d) gastas

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

  • a) gasto
  • b) gastamos
  • c) gastas
  • d) gasta

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

  • a) gasto
  • b) gastamos
  • c) gasta
  • d) gastas

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

  • a) gastas
  • b) gasta
  • c) gastan
  • d) gasto

8. Which sentence uses gastar correctly?

  • a) Nosotros gastábamos poco en vacaciones.
  • b) Nosotros gastamos poco en vacaciones.
  • c) Nosotros gasta poco en vacaciones.

9. What is the past participle of gastar?

  • a) gastando
  • b) gastó
  • c) gasto
  • d) gastado

10. What does gastar mean in English?

  • a) to spend (money)
  • b) to have
  • c) to go
  • d) to save

Answer key

  1. d) gasto — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: gasto.

  2. b) gasté — The sentence needs the yo form in the preterite: gasté.

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

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

  5. a) gasto — The present tense form for yo is gasto.

  6. d) gastas — The present tense form for tú is gastas.

  7. c) gastan — The present tense form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is gastan.

  8. b) Nosotros gastamos poco en vacaciones. — Nosotros gastamos poco en vacaciones. is correct. The other sentences use the wrong person, the wrong tense, or the wrong pattern for this verb.

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

  10. a) to spend (money) — gastar means "to spend (money)".

Frequently asked questions

How do I use gastar in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as gastar dinero and gastar tiempo. 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 gastar and ahorrar?

gastar means "to spend (money)", while ahorrar means "to save". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use gastar when you mean "to spend (money)" and ahorrar when you mean "to save".

Which tense do I need most with gastar?

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

gastar 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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