Mamar Examples, Sentences and Quiz

Mamar means “to suckle”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Mamar means to suckle, and it is used for a baby feeding from its mother and, in a wider sense, for sucking at the breast. It is fully regular, and it is a gentle, specific verb that appears in parenting and nature contexts. This page shows mamar in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make most often, and it finishes with a ten-question quiz so you can test yourself. Every sentence below comes with its English translation, and every form is the correct present-tense form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.” — I suckle from his mother's breast.

Mamar in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how mamar is used. Read each one out loud, then read the translation. If a sentence feels useful, copy it into your own notebook with one small change — a different time, a different person, a different place — and you have a new sentence of your own.

In the present: everyday use

These sentences use mamar in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Mamo del pecho de su madre.” — I suckle from his mother's breast.

  2. “¿Tú mamas cada tres horas de noche?” — Do you suckle every three hours at night?

  3. “Mama con calma en el sofá.” — He/she suckles calmly on the sofa.

  4. “Mamamos hasta quedarse dormido.” — We suckle until he falls asleep.

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show mamar in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.

  1. “Ayer, yo mamé del pecho de su madre.” — Yesterday, I suckled from his mother's breast. (preterite)

  2. “Él mamaba cada tres horas de noche todos los días.” — He used to suckle every three hours at night every day. (imperfect)

Plans and things already done

These sentences look forward, or look back at something already finished. Notice how the verb form changes while the meaning of mamar stays the same.

  1. “Nosotros mamaremos con calma en el sofá mañana.” — We will suckle calmly on the sofa tomorrow. (future)

  2. “¿Tú has mamado hasta quedarse dormido?” — Have you suckled until he falls asleep? (present perfect)

More everyday uses

Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.

  1. “Mamáis del pecho de su madre.” — You suckle from his mother's breast.

  2. “Maman cada tres horas de noche.” — They suckle every three hours at night.

  3. “Mamo con calma en el sofá.” — I suckle calmly on the sofa.

  4. “Mama hasta quedarse dormido.” — He/she suckles until he falls asleep.

Mamar in context

Single sentences teach you the forms. Dialogues teach you when to use them. Read the short conversation below, then the paragraph that follows, and notice how mamar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

A short dialogue

  • Lucía: “¿Tú mamas del pecho de su madre?” — Do you suckle from his mother's breast?

  • Carlos: “Sí, yo mamo del pecho de su madre.” — Yes, I suckle from his mother's breast.

  • Lucía: “Nosotros mamamos cada tres horas de noche.” — We suckle every three hours at night.

  • Carlos: “Y ellos maman con calma en el sofá.” — And they suckle calmly on the sofa.

  • Lucía: “Vosotros mamáis hasta quedarse dormido.” — You suckle until he falls asleep.

  • Carlos: “Sí, y él mama cada tres horas de noche.” — Yes, and he suckles every three hours at night.

A short paragraph

Lucía mama del pecho de su madre, y Carlos mama cada tres horas de noche. Nosotros mamamos con calma en el sofá, y ellos maman hasta quedarse dormido. Yo mamo con calma en el sofá, y mi padre mama hasta quedarse dormido. Mamar is part of everyday life, because to suckle is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.

Common mistakes with mamar

These are the errors learners actually make with mamar. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Yo mama del pecho de su madre.” Right: “Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.” Why: The person matters: mama is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is mamo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.

  • Wrong: “Ayer yo mamo cada tres horas de noche.” Right: “Ayer yo mamé cada tres horas de noche.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: mamo is happening now, while mamé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.

  • Wrong: “Treating mamar and chupar as identical in every context.” Right: “Mamar means to suckle, while chupar means to suck.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: mamar fits sentences such as Mamo del pecho de su madre, while chupar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.

  • Wrong: “Yo soy mamado cada tres horas de noche.” Right: “Yo he mamado cada tres horas de noche.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he mamado, has mamado, ha mamado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.

  • Wrong: “De niño, yo mamé con calma en el sofá todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo mamaba con calma en el sofá todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (mamaba), not the preterite. The preterite (mamé) is for one finished action.

Quiz: mamar in use

Ten questions on mamar in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.

1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ del pecho de su madre.” (From his mother's breast.)

  • (a) mamáis
  • (b) mamo
  • (c) mamas

Answer: mamáis — The vosotros/as form of mamar in the present is mamáis.

2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ cada tres horas de noche.” (Every three hours at night.)

  • (a) mamo
  • (b) mamas
  • (c) maman

Answer: maman — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of mamar in the present is maman.

3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ del pecho de su madre.” (From his mother's breast.)

  • (a) mamó
  • (b) mamé
  • (c) mamaste

Answer: mamé — The yo form of mamar in the preterite is mamé.

4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ cada tres horas de noche.” (Every three hours at night.)

  • (a) mamaba
  • (b) mamabas
  • (c) mamábamos

Answer: mamaba — The él/ella/Ud. form of mamar in the imperfect is mamaba.

5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ con calma en el sofá.” (Calmly on the sofa.)

  • (a) mamaré
  • (b) mamarás
  • (c) mamaremos

Answer: mamaremos — The nosotros/as form of mamar in the future is mamaremos.

6. What does mamar mean in English?

  • (a) to feed
  • (b) to suckle
  • (c) to suck

Answer: to suckle — Mamar means “to suckle”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • (a) Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.
  • (b) Ellos mama del pecho de su madre.
  • (c) Yo mamo cada tres horas de noche ayer.

Answer: Yo mamo del pecho de su madre. — “Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.

8. How do you say “I suckle from his mother's breast.” in Spanish?

  • (a) Yo maman del pecho de su madre.
  • (b) Yo mamé del pecho de su madre.
  • (c) Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.

Answer: Yo mamo del pecho de su madre. — “Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.” is the correct translation. The second option uses the wrong person's form, and the third uses the preterite.

9. What is the nosotros form of mamar in the present tense?

  • (a) mamas
  • (b) mamamos
  • (c) mamo

Answer: mamamos — The nosotros form is mamamos.

10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?

  • (a) Ayer, yo mamé del pecho de su madre.
  • (b) Nosotros mamaremos del pecho de su madre mañana.
  • (c) Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.

Answer: Yo mamo del pecho de su madre. — “Yo mamo del pecho de su madre.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say 'I suckle' in Spanish?

Say 'Yo mamo del pecho de su madre'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo mamo del pecho de su madre todos los días'.

How do you say 'I suckle' in the past?

For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo mamé cada tres horas de noche'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo mamaba cada tres horas de noche todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo he mamado cada tres horas de noche'.

What is the difference between mamar and chupar?

Mamar means to suckle, while chupar means to suck. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use mamar when you mean to suckle, as in Mamo del pecho de su madre.

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