Llorar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

llorar means "to cry" 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. Llorar means "to cry" or "to weep" — from sadness, from pain, from joy, from laughter. It is also used for onions making your eyes water (la cebolla me hace llorar) and for complaining (llorar por todo, to cry over everything). It is a fully regular -ar verb, and its present tense is emotional, everyday language: babies cry, children cry when they fall, adults cry at films and at weddings. The fixed expression llorar de risa (to cry with laughter) is the happy side of the verb. 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 llorar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the llorar present tense page.

llorar in everyday use: examples with translations

Crying from sadness

  1. El niño llora porque se cayó. — "The child cries because he fell over."
  2. Tú lloras con las películas tristes. — "You cry at sad films."
  3. Ayer yo lloré en el cine. — "Yesterday I cried at the cinema."
  4. De niño, yo lloraba mucho. — "As a child, I used to cry a lot."

Crying with laughter and joy

  1. Yo lloro de risa con tus chistes. — "I cry with laughter at your jokes."
  2. Nosotros lloramos de alegría en la boda. — "We cry with joy at the wedding."
  3. Yo lloraré de alegría si ganas. — "I will cry with joy if you win."
  4. Yo he llorado mucho hoy. — "I have cried a lot today."

Babies and children crying

  1. Los bebés lloran mucho por la noche. — "Babies cry a lot at night."
  2. El bebé llora de hambre. — "The baby cries from hunger."
  3. Yo lloraría si perdiera el partido. — "I would cry if I lost the match."
  4. Tú lloras por todo. — "You cry over everything."

llorar in conversation

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

At the cinema, a sad film ends.

  • Ana: Yo lloro con las películas tristes. — "I cry at sad films."
  • Bea: ¿Tú lloras con las películas tristes? — "Do you cry at sad films?"
  • Ana: Nosotros lloramos de risa en clase. — "We cry with laughter in class."
  • Bea: Ayer yo lloré en el cine. — "Yesterday I cried at the cinema."

A baby cries at night.

  • Padre: Los bebés lloran mucho por la noche. — "Babies cry a lot at night."
  • Madre: El bebé llora de hambre. — "The baby cries from hunger."
  • Padre: El niño llora porque se cayó. — "The child cries because he fell over."
  • Madre: Yo lloro de risa con tus chistes. — "I cry with laughter at your jokes."

Common mistakes with llorar

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

✗ *Tú llora por todo (using the él form for tú).

✓ Correct: Tú lloras por todo.

Tú takes lloras, with the -s ending. Llora is the él/ella form.

✗ *Yo lloro a risa.

✓ Correct: Yo lloro de risa con tus chistes.

The fixed expression is llorar de risa, with de: to cry with laughter. Never use a here.

✗ *Vosotros lloráis en los funerales (written without the accent: llorais).

✓ Correct: Vosotros lloráis en los funerales.

Lloráis needs the written accent on the á.

✗ *Ellos lloran a la derrota.

✓ Correct: Ellos lloran por la derrota.

The cause takes por: llorar por la derrota, llorar por amor. Never use a for the cause.

Quiz: llorar in use

Ten questions on llorar — 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: El niño ______ porque se cayó. — "The child cries because he fell over."

  • a) lloro
  • b) lloró
  • c) lloras
  • d) llora

2. Complete the sentence: Ayer yo ______ en el cine. — "Yesterday I cried at the cinema."

  • a) lloraste
  • b) lloré
  • c) lloro
  • d) lloró

3. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ______ de alegría en la boda. — "We cry with joy at the wedding."

  • a) lloramos
  • b) lloramos
  • c) lloras
  • d) lloro

4. Complete the sentence: Los bebés ______ mucho por la noche. — "Babies cry a lot at night."

  • a) lloraron
  • b) lloro
  • c) lloran
  • d) lloras

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

  • a) lloras
  • b) lloro
  • c) llora
  • d) lloramos

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

  • a) lloramos
  • b) lloras
  • c) lloro
  • d) llora

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

  • a) lloro
  • b) lloran
  • c) llora
  • d) lloras

8. Which sentence uses llorar correctly?

  • a) Nosotros lloramos de risa en clase.
  • b) Nosotros llorábamos de risa en clase.
  • c) Nosotros llora de risa en clase.

9. What is the past participle of llorar?

  • a) llorado
  • b) lloró
  • c) lloro
  • d) llorando

10. What does llorar mean in English?

  • a) to laugh
  • b) to go
  • c) to cry
  • d) to have

Answer key

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

  2. b) lloré — The sentence needs the yo form in the preterite: lloré.

  3. a) lloramos — The sentence needs the nosotros/as form in the present: lloramos.

  4. c) lloran — The sentence needs the ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the present: lloran.

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

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

  7. b) lloran — The present tense form for ellos/ellas/Uds. is lloran.

  8. a) Nosotros lloramos de risa en clase. — Nosotros lloramos de risa en clase. is correct. The other sentences use the wrong person, the wrong tense, or the wrong pattern for this verb.

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

  10. c) to cry — llorar means "to cry".

Frequently asked questions

How do I use llorar in everyday conversation?

Start with the phrases in the examples above — especially the common combinations such as llorar de risa and llorar de alegría. 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 llorar and reír?

llorar means "to cry", while reír means "to laugh". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use llorar when you mean "to cry" and reír when you mean "to laugh".

Which tense do I need most with llorar?

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

llorar 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.

Related links