Indicar Examples, Sentences and Quiz in Spanish

indicar means to indicate, and it is a verb you will meet in everyday Spanish again and again. Indicar means to indicate, and it is used for indicating the way with a finger, a clock indicating the time, a map showing the way and a patient indicating symptoms to a doctor. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. This page puts indicar 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 indicar, and the full tables are on the indicar conjugation page if you need to check a form.

Example sentences

Everyday uses

  1. Yo indico el camino con el dedo. — I indicate the way with my finger.
  2. Él indica la hora en el reloj. — He/she indicates the time on the clock.
  3. Ayer, yo indiqué el camino a seguir en el mapa. — Yesterday, I indicated the way to follow on the map.
  4. Antes, nosotros indicábamos los síntomas al médico. — Before, we used to indicate the symptoms to the doctor.

In other tenses

  1. Mañana, tú indicarás el camino con el dedo. — Tomorrow, you will indicate the way with my finger.
  2. Yo indicaría la hora en el reloj. — I would indicate the time on the clock.
  3. Él ha indicado el camino a seguir en el mapa. — He/she has indicated the way to follow on the map.
  4. Espero que él indique los síntomas al médico. — I hope he/she indicates the symptoms to the doctor.

With other people

  1. Nosotros indicamos el camino con el dedo. — We indicate the way with my finger.
  2. Vosotros indicáis la hora en el reloj. — You all indicate the time on the clock.
  3. Antes, ellos indicaban el camino a seguir en el mapa. — Before, they used to indicate the way to follow on the map.
  4. Mañana, él indicará los síntomas al médico. — Tomorrow, he/she will indicate the symptoms to the doctor.

Indicar in context

Two short dialogues that use indicar 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 indico el camino con el dedo." — "Today I indicate the way with my finger."
  • Ana: "¿Y ayer?" — "And yesterday?"
  • Luis: "Ayer, indiqué el camino a seguir en el mapa." — "Yesterday I indicated the way to follow on the map."
  • Ana: "¿Y mañana, tú indicarás la hora en el reloj?" — "And tomorrow, will you will indicate the time on the clock?"
  • Luis: "Sí, claro. Y tú también." — "Yes, of course. And you too."

Dialogue 2: making plans

  • Marta: "Mañana, nosotros indicamos los síntomas al médico." — "Tomorrow we indicate the symptoms to the doctor."
  • Carlos: "Perfecto. Yo indicaría la hora en el reloj si tuviera más tiempo." — "Perfect. I would would indicate the time on the clock if I had more time."
  • Marta: "Espero que él indique el camino con el dedo." — "I hope he indicates the way with my finger."
  • Carlos: "Seguro que sí. Él ya ha indicado el camino a seguir en el mapa." — "Surely. He has already has indicated the way to follow on the map."
  • 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 indica el camino con el dedo. — Right: Yo indico el camino con el dedo. — The person matters: indica is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is indico. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Yo indicé la hora en el reloj. — Right: Yo indiqué la hora en el reloj. — In the preterite, the correct first-person form is indiqué, not indicé. indicar 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 indicar and mostrar as identical in every context. — Right: Indicar means to indicate, while mostrar means to show, the close verb. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: indicar fits sentences such as Indico el camino con el dedo, while mostrar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy indicado la hora en el reloj. — Right: Yo he indicado la hora en el reloj. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he indicado, has indicado, ha indicado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo indiqué el camino a seguir en el mapa todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo indicaba el camino a seguir en el mapa todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (indicaba), not the preterite. The preterite (indiqué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on indicar: 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 ___ el camino con el dedo. (present tense) A. indico B. indicas C. indica D. indicamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ___ la hora en el reloj. (preterite tense) A. indiqué B. indicaste C. indicamos D. indicó

  3. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ el camino a seguir en el mapa. (future tense) A. indicará B. indicaremos C. indicarás D. indicaré

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ los síntomas al médico. (imperfect tense) A. indicabais B. indicábamos C. indicaba D. indicabas

  5. What does "Yo indico el camino con el dedo." mean in English? A. I indicate the way with my finger. B. I indicate the time on the clock. C. I indicate the way to follow on the map. D. I indicate the symptoms to the doctor.

  6. What does "Él indicó la hora en el reloj." mean in English? A. He/she indicated the way with my finger. B. He/she indicated the way to follow on the map. C. He/she indicated the symptoms to the doctor. D. He/she indicated the time on the clock.

  7. What does "Nosotros indicaremos el camino a seguir en el mapa." mean in English? A. We will indicate the time on the clock. B. We will indicate the symptoms to the doctor. C. We will indicate the way to follow on the map. D. We will indicate the way with my finger.

  8. Which sentence is correct? A. Yo indican la hora en el reloj. B. Yo indica la hora en el reloj. C. Yo indico la hora en el reloj.

  9. Which sentence is correct? A. Él indiqué el camino a seguir en el mapa. B. Él indicó el camino a seguir en el mapa. C. Él indicaron el camino a seguir en el mapa.

  10. Which sentence is correct? A. Espero que yo indique los síntomas al médico. B. Yo indice los síntomas al médico. C. Yo indique los síntomas al médico.

Answer key

  1. indico — The yo present form of indicar is indico.
  2. indicó — The el preterite form of indicar is indicó.
  3. indicarás — The tu future form of indicar is indicarás.
  4. indicábamos — The nosotros imperfect form of indicar is indicábamos.
  5. I indicate the way with my finger. — The Spanish sentence uses the present form indico, so the English is "I indicate the way with my finger." The other options use a different object or situation.
  6. He/she indicated the time on the clock. — The Spanish sentence uses the preterite form indicó, so the English is "He/she indicated the time on the clock." The other options use a different object or situation.
  7. We will indicate the way to follow on the map. — The Spanish sentence uses the future form indicaremos, so the English is "We will indicate the way to follow on the map." The other options use a different object or situation.
  8. Yo indico la hora en el reloj. — The correct sentence is "Yo indico la hora en el reloj." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  9. Él indicó el camino a seguir en el mapa. — The correct sentence is "Él indicó el camino a seguir en el mapa." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  10. Espero que yo indique los síntomas al médico. — The correct sentence is "Espero que yo indique los síntomas al médico." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.

Frequently asked questions

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

Indicar means to indicate. Indicar means to indicate, and it is used for indicating the way with a finger, a clock indicating the time, a map showing the way and a patient indicating symptoms to a doctor. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. A good first sentence to remember is Yo indico el camino con el dedo. — "I indicate the way with my finger."

What is the difference between indicar and mostrar?

Indicar means to indicate, while mostrar means to show, the close verb. They appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use indicar when you mean to indicate, as in Yo indico la hora en el reloj., and use mostrar for to show, the close verb.

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

For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo indiqué la hora en el reloj.. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo indicaba el camino a seguir en el mapa.. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he indicado la hora en el reloj..

How do I practise indicar?

Start with the indicar conjugation page for the full tables, then the indicar 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 indiqué and the subjunctive is indique.

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