Lastimar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish
lastimar means "to hurt, to injure" in English, and this page shows it in everyday use: real example sentences in several tenses, two short dialogues, the mistakes learners actually make, and a quiz to test yourself. You will see lastimar with his brother with his words, his friend's arm, other people without meaning to and his knee in the game — the situations where Spanish speakers really use it. A good first sentence to learn is: Cada día, yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras. — "Every day, I hurt his brother with his words." Read the examples aloud, notice which tense each one uses, and then try the dialogues and the quiz.
lastimar in everyday sentences
Twelve sentences with lastimar, grouped by situation. Each one shows the verb in a different tense or person, with its English translation and a note on when to use that form.
Everyday use
- Cada día, yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras. — "Every day, I hurt his brother with his words." The present tense fits a habit here.
- Ayer, yo lastimé el brazo de su amigo. — "Yesterday, I hurt his friend's arm." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, yo lastimaba a los demás sin querer. — "In the past, I used to hurt other people without meaning to." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, nosotros lastimaremos su rodilla en el juego. — "Tomorrow, we will hurt his knee in the game." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Si pudieras, tú lastimarías a su hermano con sus palabras. — "If you could, you would hurt his brother with his words." The conditional fits something that would happen.
- Yo he lastimado el brazo de su amigo. — "I have hurt his friend's arm." The present perfect fits an action with present relevance.
More situations
- Normalmente, él lastima a los demás sin querer. — "Normally, he/she hurts other people without meaning to." The present tense fits a general truth here.
- Ayer, él lastimó su rodilla en el juego. — "Yesterday, he/she hurt his knee in the game." The preterite fits one finished action.
- Antes, nosotros lastimábamos a su hermano con sus palabras. — "In the past, we used to hurt his brother with his words." The imperfect fits a repeated action in the past.
- Mañana, yo lastimaré el brazo de su amigo. — "Tomorrow, I will hurt his friend's arm." The future tense fits a plan for tomorrow.
- Espero que él lastime a los demás sin querer. — "I hope that he/she hurts other people without meaning to." The present subjunctive follows espero que.
- ¡Lastima su rodilla en el juego! — "Hurt his knee in the game!" The imperative fits a direct order or request.
The verb in context
Two short dialogues using lastimar naturally. Notice how the verb changes person and tense as the conversation moves, and how the complements stay the same kind of situation: his brother with his words, his friend's arm, other people without meaning to and his knee in the game.
Dialogue 1: talking about his brother with his words
Sofía: ¿Tú lastimas a su hermano con sus palabras? — "Do you hurt his brother with his words?" Diego: Sí, yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras. — "I hurt his brother with his words." Sofía: ¿Y ayer? — "And yesterday?" Diego: Ayer, yo lastimé el brazo de su amigo. — "Yesterday, I hurt his friend's arm." Sofía: Mañana, nosotros lastimaremos a los demás sin querer. — "Tomorrow, we will hurt other people without meaning to." Diego: Si pudiera, yo lastimaría su rodilla en el juego. — "If I could, I would hurt his knee in the game." Sofía: Antes, yo lastimaba el brazo de su amigo. — "In the past, I used to hurt his friend's arm." Diego: Yo he lastimado a su hermano con sus palabras. — "I have hurt his brother with his words." Sofía: ¡Lastima a los demás sin querer! — "Hurt other people without meaning to!"
In this dialogue lastimar appears in the present, the preterite, the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect. That is the point: one verb, many tenses, and the complement tells you which situation you are in. Try the same dialogue with your own complements.
Dialogue 2: talking about other people without meaning to
Sofía: Él lastima a los demás sin querer. — "he/she hurts other people without meaning to." Diego: ¿De verdad? ¿Él lastima a los demás sin querer todos los días? — "Really? Does he/she hurts other people without meaning to every day?" Sofía: Sí, y ellos lastiman su rodilla en el juego. — "they hurt his knee in the game." Diego: Ayer, ellos lastimaron a los demás sin querer. — "Yesterday, they hurt other people without meaning to." Sofía: Espero que él lastime su rodilla en el juego. — "I hope that he/she hurts his knee in the game." Diego: Mañana, él lastimará a los demás sin querer. — "Tomorrow, he/she will hurt other people without meaning to." Sofía: Antes, nosotros lastimábamos su rodilla en el juego. — "In the past, we used to hurt his knee in the game." Diego: Nosotros lastimamos a su hermano con sus palabras también. — "we hurt his brother with his words too."
This dialogue shows lastimar in the third person and in the plural, which is where learners most often hesitate. Read it aloud with a partner, swapping the names and the complements for your own life, and the forms will start to feel automatic.
Common mistakes with lastimar
The errors learners actually make with lastimar in everyday use, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why it is wrong.
Mistake 1: Adding a reflexive pronoun that does not belong
- Wrong: Yo me lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras.
- Right: Yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras.
- Why: lastimar is not reflexive, so there is no pronoun to add: Yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras. is the correct sentence.
Mistake 2: Using the infinitive as a conjugated form
- Wrong: Yo lastimar a su hermano con sus palabras.
- Right: Yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras.
- Why: The infinitive lastimar is the dictionary form, not a conjugated form. In a sentence with yo you need the present-tense form lastimo.
Mistake 3: Using the present tense for yesterday
- Wrong: Ayer, yo lastimo el brazo de su amigo.
- Right: Ayer, yo lastimé el brazo de su amigo.
- Why: Ayer means yesterday, so the action is finished and needs the preterite: Ayer, yo lastimé el brazo de su amigo. — "Yesterday, I hurt his friend's arm."
Mistake 4: Mixing up the gerund and the participle
- Wrong: Estoy lastimado a los demás sin querer.
- Right: Estoy lastimando a los demás sin querer.
- Why: After estar you need the gerund lastimando for the progressive. The participle lastimado goes with haber in the perfect tenses (he lastimado), never after estar.
Mistake 5: Confusing lastimar with lastimarse
- Wrong: Yo me lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras.
- Right: Yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras.
- Why: lastimar (to hurt, to injure) and lastimarse are partners, not the same verb. The reflexive partner lastimarse is used when the action comes back to the subject.
Quiz: lastimar in use
Test yourself with ten questions on lastimar. The answers are explained, so read them even when you get a question right.
1. What is the yo form of lastimar in the present tense?
- (a) lastimo
- (b) lastimas
- (c) lastima
- (d) lastimamos
Answer: (a) lastimo. The yo form is lastimo.
2. What is the tú form of lastimar in the present tense?
- (a) lastimo
- (b) lastima
- (c) lastimamos
- (d) lastimas
Answer: (d) lastimas. The tú form is lastimas.
3. What is the él/ella form of lastimar in the present tense?
- (a) lastimas
- (b) lastimamos
- (c) lastima
- (d) lastimo
Answer: (c) lastima. The él/ella form is lastima.
4. Complete the sentence: Cada día, yo ___ a su hermano con sus palabras.
- (a) lastimamos
- (b) lastimo
- (c) lastimas
- (d) lastima
Answer: (b) lastimo. The sentence needs the yo form lastimo.
5. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ___ el brazo de su amigo.
- (a) lastimé
- (b) lastimaste
- (c) lastimó
- (d) lastimamos
Answer: (a) lastimé. Ayer needs the preterite, and the yo form is lastimé.
6. Complete the sentence: Antes, yo ___ a los demás sin querer.
- (a) lastimabas
- (b) lastimábamos
- (c) lastimabais
- (d) lastimaba
Answer: (d) lastimaba. Antes needs the imperfect, and the yo form is lastimaba.
7. Complete the sentence: Mañana, yo ___ su rodilla en el juego.
- (a) lastimará
- (b) lastimaremos
- (c) lastimaré
- (d) lastimarás
Answer: (c) lastimaré. Mañana needs the future, and the yo form is lastimaré.
8. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a su hermano con sus palabras.
- (a) ha lastimado
- (b) hemos lastimado
- (c) he lastimado
- (d) has lastimado
Answer: (c) he lastimado. The present perfect uses haber plus the participle: he lastimado.
9. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ___ a los demás sin querer.
- (a) lastime
- (b) lastimes
- (c) lastimemos
- (d) lastiméis
Answer: (a) lastime. After espero que Spanish needs the subjunctive, and the él form is lastime.
10. What does lastimar mean in English?
- (a) to hurt, to injure
- (b) to stretch (oneself)
- (c) to exploit, to explode
- (d) to misplace
Answer: (a) to hurt, to injure. lastimar means "to hurt, to injure" in English.
Frequently asked questions about lastimar
What does lastimar mean?
lastimar means "to hurt, to injure" in English. Use it when you talk about his brother with his words, his friend's arm, other people without meaning to and his knee in the game — for example: Cada día, yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras. — "Every day, I hurt his brother with his words."
What is the difference between lastimar and lastimarse?
lastimar means "to hurt, to injure", while lastimarse means "to hurt oneself". The reflexive form is used when the action comes back to the subject, and the plain form is used when the action is done to someone or something else.
What is the most common mistake with lastimar?
The tense, not the form. Learners use the present tense for yesterday, or the preterite for a habit. Remember: Cada día, yo lastimo a su hermano con sus palabras. — "Every day, I hurt his brother with his words." is a habit, while Ayer, yo lastimé a su hermano con sus palabras is one finished action.
How can I practise lastimar?
Take the quiz above, then make your own sentences: change the person in each example, change the complement to something from your own life, and say the sentence aloud. The verb quiz and the verb translator on this site give you more practice with the same forms.