Identificar Examples, Sentences and Quiz in Spanish

identificar means to identify, and it is a verb you will meet in everyday Spanish again and again. Identificar means to identify, and it covers identifying the author of a message, a problem in an engine, a person in a photo and the cause of an error. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. This page puts identificar to work: twelve example sentences in different tenses and persons, grouped by use, then two short dialogues where the verb appears naturally, then the common mistakes to avoid, and finally a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Every Spanish form on this page comes from the verified conjugation tables for identificar, and the full tables are on the identificar conjugation page if you need to check a form.

Example sentences

Everyday uses

  1. Yo identifico al autor del mensaje. — I identify the author of the message.
  2. Él identifica el problema en el motor. — He/she identifies the problem in the engine.
  3. Ayer, yo identifiqué a la persona de la foto. — Yesterday, I identified the person in the photo.
  4. Antes, nosotros identificábamos la causa del error. — Before, we used to identify the cause of the error.

In other tenses

  1. Mañana, tú identificarás al autor del mensaje. — Tomorrow, you will identify the author of the message.
  2. Yo identificaría el problema en el motor. — I would identify the problem in the engine.
  3. Él ha identificado a la persona de la foto. — He/she has identified the person in the photo.
  4. Espero que él identifique la causa del error. — I hope he/she identifies the cause of the error.

With other people

  1. Nosotros identificamos al autor del mensaje. — We identify the author of the message.
  2. Vosotros identificáis el problema en el motor. — You all identify the problem in the engine.
  3. Antes, ellos identificaban a la persona de la foto. — Before, they used to identify the person in the photo.
  4. Mañana, él identificará la causa del error. — Tomorrow, he/she will identify the cause of the error.

Identificar in context

Two short dialogues that use identificar the way people really use it. Read them aloud — the verb forms will stick much faster in a conversation than in a table.

Dialogue 1: today and yesterday

  • Ana: "Hola, ¿qué tal?" — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Luis: "Hoy identifico al autor del mensaje." — "Today I identify the author of the message."
  • Ana: "¿Y ayer?" — "And yesterday?"
  • Luis: "Ayer, identifiqué a la persona de la foto." — "Yesterday I identified the person in the photo."
  • Ana: "¿Y mañana, tú identificarás el problema en el motor?" — "And tomorrow, will you will identify the problem in the engine?"
  • Luis: "Sí, claro. Y tú también." — "Yes, of course. And you too."

Dialogue 2: making plans

  • Marta: "Mañana, nosotros identificamos la causa del error." — "Tomorrow we identify the cause of the error."
  • Carlos: "Perfecto. Yo identificaría el problema en el motor si tuviera más tiempo." — "Perfect. I would would identify the problem in the engine if I had more time."
  • Marta: "Espero que él identifique al autor del mensaje." — "I hope he identifies the author of the message."
  • Carlos: "Seguro que sí. Él ya ha identificado a la persona de la foto." — "Surely. He has already has identified the person in the photo."
  • Marta: "Vale, nos vemos mañana." — "OK, see you tomorrow."

Notice how the same verb changes with the tense: the present for the plan, the conditional for the wish, the subjunctive after espero que, and the present perfect for what has already happened. That is the whole point of learning a verb across its tenses, not just in one form.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo identifica al autor del mensaje. — Right: Yo identifico al autor del mensaje. — The person matters: identifica is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is identifico. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Yo identificé el problema en el motor. — Right: Yo identifiqué el problema en el motor. — In the preterite, the correct first-person form is identifiqué, not identificé. identificar is a spelling-change verb: c becomes qu before e, so the written form changes to keep the same sound. The regular-looking form is wrong.
  3. Wrong: Treating identificar and clasificar as identical in every context. — Right: Identificar means to identify, while clasificar means to classify, the close verb. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: identificar fits sentences such as Identifico al autor del mensaje, while clasificar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy identificado el problema en el motor. — Right: Yo he identificado el problema en el motor. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he identificado, has identificado, ha identificado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo identifiqué a la persona de la foto todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo identificaba a la persona de la foto todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (identificaba), not the preterite. The preterite (identifiqué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on identificar: four on the forms, three on the meaning, and three on spotting the correct sentence. Check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ al autor del mensaje. (present tense) A. identifico B. identificas C. identifica D. identificamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ___ el problema en el motor. (preterite tense) A. identifiqué B. identificaste C. identificamos D. identificó

  3. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ a la persona de la foto. (future tense) A. identificará B. identificaremos C. identificarás D. identificaré

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ la causa del error. (imperfect tense) A. identificabais B. identificábamos C. identificaba D. identificabas

  5. What does "Yo identifico al autor del mensaje." mean in English? A. I identify the author of the message. B. I identify the problem in the engine. C. I identify the person in the photo. D. I identify the cause of the error.

  6. What does "Él identificó el problema en el motor." mean in English? A. He/she identified the author of the message. B. He/she identified the person in the photo. C. He/she identified the cause of the error. D. He/she identified the problem in the engine.

  7. What does "Nosotros identificaremos a la persona de la foto." mean in English? A. We will identify the problem in the engine. B. We will identify the cause of the error. C. We will identify the person in the photo. D. We will identify the author of the message.

  8. Which sentence is correct? A. Yo identifican el problema en el motor. B. Yo identifica el problema en el motor. C. Yo identifico el problema en el motor.

  9. Which sentence is correct? A. Él identifiqué a la persona de la foto. B. Él identificó a la persona de la foto. C. Él identificaron a la persona de la foto.

  10. Which sentence is correct? A. Espero que yo identifique la causa del error. B. Yo identifice la causa del error. C. Yo identifique la causa del error.

Answer key

  1. identifico — The yo present form of identificar is identifico.
  2. identificó — The el preterite form of identificar is identificó.
  3. identificarás — The tu future form of identificar is identificarás.
  4. identificábamos — The nosotros imperfect form of identificar is identificábamos.
  5. I identify the author of the message. — The Spanish sentence uses the present form identifico, so the English is "I identify the author of the message." The other options use a different object or situation.
  6. He/she identified the problem in the engine. — The Spanish sentence uses the preterite form identificó, so the English is "He/she identified the problem in the engine." The other options use a different object or situation.
  7. We will identify the person in the photo. — The Spanish sentence uses the future form identificaremos, so the English is "We will identify the person in the photo." The other options use a different object or situation.
  8. Yo identifico el problema en el motor. — The correct sentence is "Yo identifico el problema en el motor." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  9. Él identificó a la persona de la foto. — The correct sentence is "Él identificó a la persona de la foto." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  10. Espero que yo identifique la causa del error. — The correct sentence is "Espero que yo identifique la causa del error." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.

Frequently asked questions

What does identificar mean, and when do I use it?

Identificar means to identify. Identificar means to identify, and it covers identifying the author of a message, a problem in an engine, a person in a photo and the cause of an error. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. A good first sentence to remember is Yo identifico al autor del mensaje. — "I identify the author of the message."

What is the difference between identificar and clasificar?

Identificar means to identify, while clasificar means to classify, the close verb. They appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use identificar when you mean to identify, as in Yo identifico el problema en el motor., and use clasificar for to classify, the close verb.

How do I say "I identify" in the past?

For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo identifiqué el problema en el motor.. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo identificaba a la persona de la foto.. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he identificado el problema en el motor..

How do I practise identificar?

Start with the identificar conjugation page for the full tables, then the identificar in the present tense page for the tense in focus, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure. Spelling change: c becomes qu before e, so the preterite is identifiqué and the subjunctive is identifique.

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