Interesar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

interesar means "to interest" 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. Interesar means "to interest", and it works exactly like gustar and encantar: the thing that interests you is the subject, and you are the indirect object. Me interesa la historia means "history interests me", word for word. The verb agrees with the thing: me interesa el arte (singular) but me interesan las ciencias (plural). Learners use interesar constantly — for school subjects, for jobs, for hobbies — so the pattern me interesa / me interesan is worth memorising as a pair, and the third-person forms do almost all the work. 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 interesar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the interesar present tense page.

interesar in everyday use: examples with translations

Being interested in subjects

  1. Me interesa la historia. — "History interests me."
  2. Me interesan las ciencias. — "Science interests me."
  3. Me interesó la charla de ayer. — "Yesterday's talk interested me."
  4. De niño, me interesaba la astronomía. — "As a child, astronomy used to interest me."

Being interested in activities

  1. Me interesa aprender idiomas. — "Learning languages interests me."
  2. A mi hermano le interesa el fútbol. — "My brother is interested in football."
  3. Me interesará el curso nuevo. — "The new course will interest me."
  4. Me ha interesado el libro. — "The book has interested me."

Not being interested

  1. No me interesa la política. — "Politics doesn't interest me."
  2. Nos interesan los deportes. — "Sports interest us."
  3. Me interesaría el trabajo si pagaran más. — "The job would interest me if they paid more."
  4. Les interesa el cine. — "Cinema interests them."

interesar in conversation

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

Two students choose their subjects.

  • Ana: Me interesa la historia. — "History interests me."
  • Bea: Me interesan las ciencias. — "Science interests me."
  • Ana: ¿Te interesa la música? — "Does music interest you?"
  • Bea: A mi hermano le interesa el fútbol. — "My brother is interested in football."

A job interview, talking about interests.

  • Entrevistador: Me interesa aprender idiomas. — "Learning languages interests me."
  • Candidato: No me interesa la política. — "Politics doesn't interest me."
  • Entrevistador: Nos interesan los deportes. — "Sports interest us."
  • Candidato: Me interesaría el trabajo si pagaran más. — "The job would interest me if they paid more."

Common mistakes with interesar

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

✗ *Yo intereso la historia (treating interesar like a normal verb).

✓ Correct: Me interesa la historia.

Interesar is gustar-like: the subject is the thing. Say me interesa la historia, never yo intereso la historia.

✗ *Me interesa las ciencias (singular verb with a plural subject).

✓ Correct: Me interesan las ciencias.

The verb agrees with the thing: las ciencias is plural, so the verb is interesan.

✗ *Me interesan aprender idiomas (plural verb with an infinitive).

✓ Correct: Me interesa aprender idiomas.

With an infinitive, always use the singular: me interesa aprender.

✗ *A mi hermano interesa el fútbol (missing the pronoun le).

✓ Correct: A mi hermano le interesa el fútbol.

The pattern needs the indirect object pronoun: a mi hermano le interesa.

Quiz: interesar in use

Ten questions on interesar — 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: Me ______ la historia. — "History interests me."

  • a) interesa
  • b) interesas
  • c) intereso
  • d) interesó

2. Complete the sentence: Me ______ la charla de ayer. — "Yesterday's talk interested me."

  • a) interesó
  • b) interesé
  • c) interesa
  • d) interesaste

3. Complete the sentence: A mi hermano le ______ el fútbol. — "My brother is interested in football."

  • a) intereso
  • b) interesa
  • c) interesó
  • d) interesas

4. Complete the sentence: No me ______ la política. — "Politics doesn't interest me."

  • a) interesó
  • b) intereso
  • c) interesas
  • d) interesa

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

  • a) interesamos
  • b) intereso
  • c) interesa
  • d) interesas

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

  • a) interesamos
  • b) interesas
  • c) intereso
  • d) interesa

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

  • a) interesan
  • b) interesas
  • c) intereso
  • d) interesa

8. Which sentence uses interesar correctly?

  • a) Te interesa las matemáticas.
  • b) Te interesan las matemáticas.
  • c) Te interesaron las matemáticas.
  • d) Yo intereso el cine español.

9. What is the past participle of interesar?

  • a) intereso
  • b) interesado
  • c) interesando
  • d) interesó

10. What does interesar mean in English?

  • a) to interest
  • b) to love
  • c) to have
  • d) to go

Answer key

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

  2. a) interesó — The sentence needs the él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite: interesó.

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

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

  5. b) intereso — The present tense form for yo is intereso.

  6. b) interesas — The present tense form for tú is interesas.

  7. a) interesan — The present tense form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is interesan.

  8. b) Te interesan las matemáticas. — Te interesan las matemáticas. is correct. The other sentences use the wrong person, the wrong tense, or the wrong pattern for this verb.

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

  10. a) to interest — interesar means "to interest".

Frequently asked questions

How do I use interesar in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as me interesa la historia and me interesan las ciencias. 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 interesar and encantar?

interesar means "to interest", while encantar means "to love". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use interesar when you mean "to interest" and encantar when you mean "to love".

Which tense do I need most with interesar?

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

interesar 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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