Intensificar Examples, Sentences and Quiz in Spanish

intensificar means to intensify, and it is a verb you will meet in everyday Spanish again and again. Intensificar means to intensify, and it covers intensifying border checks, training before a match, a search and efforts to finish on time. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. This page puts intensificar 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 intensificar, and the full tables are on the intensificar conjugation page if you need to check a form.

Example sentences

Everyday uses

  1. Yo intensifico los controles en la frontera. — I intensify the checks at the border.
  2. Él intensifica el entrenamiento antes del partido. — He/she intensifies the training before the match.
  3. Ayer, yo intensifiqué la búsqueda del niño perdido. — Yesterday, I intensified the search for the lost child.
  4. Antes, nosotros intensificábamos los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. — Before, we used to intensify the efforts to finish on time.

In other tenses

  1. Mañana, tú intensificarás los controles en la frontera. — Tomorrow, you will intensify the checks at the border.
  2. Yo intensificaría el entrenamiento antes del partido. — I would intensify the training before the match.
  3. Él ha intensificado la búsqueda del niño perdido. — He/she has intensified the search for the lost child.
  4. Espero que él intensifique los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. — I hope he/she intensifies the efforts to finish on time.

With other people

  1. Nosotros intensificamos los controles en la frontera. — We intensify the checks at the border.
  2. Vosotros intensificáis el entrenamiento antes del partido. — You all intensify the training before the match.
  3. Antes, ellos intensificaban la búsqueda del niño perdido. — Before, they used to intensify the search for the lost child.
  4. Mañana, él intensificará los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. — Tomorrow, he/she will intensify the efforts to finish on time.

Intensificar in context

Two short dialogues that use intensificar 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 intensifico los controles en la frontera." — "Today I intensify the checks at the border."
  • Ana: "¿Y ayer?" — "And yesterday?"
  • Luis: "Ayer, intensifiqué la búsqueda del niño perdido." — "Yesterday I intensified the search for the lost child."
  • Ana: "¿Y mañana, tú intensificarás el entrenamiento antes del partido?" — "And tomorrow, will you will intensify the training before the match?"
  • Luis: "Sí, claro. Y tú también." — "Yes, of course. And you too."

Dialogue 2: making plans

  • Marta: "Mañana, nosotros intensificamos los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo." — "Tomorrow we intensify the efforts to finish on time."
  • Carlos: "Perfecto. Yo intensificaría el entrenamiento antes del partido si tuviera más tiempo." — "Perfect. I would would intensify the training before the match if I had more time."
  • Marta: "Espero que él intensifique los controles en la frontera." — "I hope he intensifies the checks at the border."
  • Carlos: "Seguro que sí. Él ya ha intensificado la búsqueda del niño perdido." — "Surely. He has already has intensified the search for the lost child."
  • 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 intensifica los controles en la frontera. — Right: Yo intensifico los controles en la frontera. — The person matters: intensifica is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is intensifico. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Yo intensificé el entrenamiento antes del partido. — Right: Yo intensifiqué el entrenamiento antes del partido. — In the preterite, the correct first-person form is intensifiqué, not intensificé. intensificar 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 intensificar and aumentar as identical in every context. — Right: Intensificar means to intensify, while aumentar means to increase, the general verb. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: intensificar fits sentences such as Intensifico los controles en la frontera, while aumentar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy intensificado el entrenamiento antes del partido. — Right: Yo he intensificado el entrenamiento antes del partido. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he intensificado, has intensificado, ha intensificado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo intensifiqué la búsqueda del niño perdido todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo intensificaba la búsqueda del niño perdido todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (intensificaba), not the preterite. The preterite (intensifiqué) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on intensificar: 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 ___ los controles en la frontera. (present tense) A. intensifico B. intensificas C. intensifica D. intensificamos

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ___ el entrenamiento antes del partido. (preterite tense) A. intensifiqué B. intensificaste C. intensificamos D. intensificó

  3. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ la búsqueda del niño perdido. (future tense) A. intensificará B. intensificaremos C. intensificarás D. intensificaré

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. (imperfect tense) A. intensificabais B. intensificábamos C. intensificaba D. intensificabas

  5. What does "Yo intensifico los controles en la frontera." mean in English? A. I intensify the checks at the border. B. I intensify the training before the match. C. I intensify the search for the lost child. D. I intensify the efforts to finish on time.

  6. What does "Él intensificó el entrenamiento antes del partido." mean in English? A. He/she intensified the checks at the border. B. He/she intensified the search for the lost child. C. He/she intensified the efforts to finish on time. D. He/she intensified the training before the match.

  7. What does "Nosotros intensificaremos la búsqueda del niño perdido." mean in English? A. We will intensify the training before the match. B. We will intensify the efforts to finish on time. C. We will intensify the search for the lost child. D. We will intensify the checks at the border.

  8. Which sentence is correct? A. Yo intensifican el entrenamiento antes del partido. B. Yo intensifica el entrenamiento antes del partido. C. Yo intensifico el entrenamiento antes del partido.

  9. Which sentence is correct? A. Él intensifiqué la búsqueda del niño perdido. B. Él intensificó la búsqueda del niño perdido. C. Él intensificaron la búsqueda del niño perdido.

  10. Which sentence is correct? A. Espero que yo intensifique los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. B. Yo intensifice los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. C. Yo intensifique los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo.

Answer key

  1. intensifico — The yo present form of intensificar is intensifico.
  2. intensificó — The el preterite form of intensificar is intensificó.
  3. intensificarás — The tu future form of intensificar is intensificarás.
  4. intensificábamos — The nosotros imperfect form of intensificar is intensificábamos.
  5. I intensify the checks at the border. — The Spanish sentence uses the present form intensifico, so the English is "I intensify the checks at the border." The other options use a different object or situation.
  6. He/she intensified the training before the match. — The Spanish sentence uses the preterite form intensificó, so the English is "He/she intensified the training before the match." The other options use a different object or situation.
  7. We will intensify the search for the lost child. — The Spanish sentence uses the future form intensificaremos, so the English is "We will intensify the search for the lost child." The other options use a different object or situation.
  8. Yo intensifico el entrenamiento antes del partido. — The correct sentence is "Yo intensifico el entrenamiento antes del partido." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  9. Él intensificó la búsqueda del niño perdido. — The correct sentence is "Él intensificó la búsqueda del niño perdido." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  10. Espero que yo intensifique los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo. — The correct sentence is "Espero que yo intensifique los esfuerzos para terminar a tiempo." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.

Frequently asked questions

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

Intensificar means to intensify. Intensificar means to intensify, and it covers intensifying border checks, training before a match, a search and efforts to finish on time. It is a spelling-change verb: the c becomes qu before e. A good first sentence to remember is Yo intensifico los controles en la frontera. — "I intensify the checks at the border."

What is the difference between intensificar and aumentar?

Intensificar means to intensify, while aumentar means to increase, the general verb. They appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use intensificar when you mean to intensify, as in Yo intensifico el entrenamiento antes del partido., and use aumentar for to increase, the general verb.

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

For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo intensifiqué el entrenamiento antes del partido.. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo intensificaba la búsqueda del niño perdido.. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he intensificado el entrenamiento antes del partido..

How do I practise intensificar?

Start with the intensificar conjugation page for the full tables, then the intensificar 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 intensifiqué and the subjunctive is intensifique.

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