Mostrar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

mostrar means "to show" 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. Mostrar is the everyday verb for showing: mostrar las fotos, mostrar el camino. It takes a direct object for the thing shown and often an indirect object for the person: le muestro la casa. Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by use, 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 mostrar; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the mostrar present tense page.

mostrar in everyday use: examples with translations

Everyday present uses

How the verb sounds in the present, the future and in hypotheticals — the forms you will use most often.

  1. Yo muestro sus fotos de las vacaciones — "I show his holiday photos"
  2. Mi amigo muestra el camino al visitante — "My friend shows the way to the visitor"
  3. Mañana, tú mostrarás su pasaporte en la frontera — "Tomorrow, you will show his passport at the border"
  4. Yo mostraría interés por la música si pudiera — "I would show interest in music if I could"

Talking about the past

The same verb in the past: one finished action, a habit, something that has just happened, and something that had already happened.

  1. Ayer, yo mostré sus fotos de las vacaciones — "Yesterday, I showed his holiday photos"
  2. Antes, nosotros mostrábamos el camino al visitante — "Before, we used to show the way to the visitor"
  3. Él ha mostrado su pasaporte en la frontera — "He has showed his passport at the border"
  4. Yo ya había mostrado interés por la música antes de salir — "I already had showed interest in music before leaving"

Wishes, conditions and commands

The verb after espero que, in si clauses, as a command — and in the conditional perfect, for what would have happened.

  1. Espero que él muestre sus fotos de las vacaciones — "I hope he shows his holiday photos"
  2. Si yo mostrara el camino al visitante, todo cambiaría — "If I showed the way to the visitor, everything would change"
  3. Muestra su pasaporte en la frontera. — "Show his passport at the border."
  4. Yo habría mostrado interés por la música con más tiempo — "I would have showed interest in music with more time"

mostrar in conversation

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

Two friends talk about it.

  • Lucía: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Lucía: Yo muestro sus fotos de las vacaciones — "I show his holiday photos"
  • Marcos: Él muestra el camino al visitante — "He shows the way to the visitor"
  • Lucía: Ayer, yo mostré su pasaporte en la frontera — "Yesterday, I showed his passport at the border"
  • Marcos: Mañana, tú mostrarás interés por la música — "Tomorrow, you will show interest in music"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: Muestra la casa a los compradores. — "Show the house to the buyers."
  • Lucía: Él ha mostrado sus fotos de las vacaciones — "He has showed his holiday photos"
  • Marcos: Espero que él muestre el camino al visitante — "I hope he shows the way to the visitor"
  • Lucía: Antes, yo mostraba su pasaporte en la frontera — "Before, I used to show his passport at the border"

Common mistakes with mostrar

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

✗ *Yo mostro interés por la música.

✓ Correct: Yo muestro interés por la música.

mostrar is a stem-changing verb (o → ue): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is muestro, not mostro.

✗ *Espero que él muestra interés por la música

✓ Correct: Espero que él muestre interés por la música

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él muestre interés por la música — not the indicative Espero que él muestra interés por la música.

✗ *Ayer, yo muestro la casa a los compradores

✓ Correct: Ayer, yo mostré la casa a los compradores

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo mostré la casa a los compradores.

✗ *De niño, yo mostré sus fotos de las vacaciones todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, yo mostraba sus fotos de las vacaciones todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo mostraba sus fotos de las vacaciones todos los días.

✗ *Yo muestro en su pasaporte en la frontera.

✓ Correct: Yo muestro su pasaporte en la frontera.

mostrar takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo muestro su pasaporte en la frontera.

Quiz: mostrar in use

Ten questions on mostrar — 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: Yo ______ sus fotos de las vacaciones — "I show his holiday photos" (present) A. muestras B. muestra C. mostramos D. muestro

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ el camino al visitante — "Yesterday, I showed the way to the visitor" (preterite) A. mostré B. mostraste C. mostró D. mostramos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ______ su pasaporte en la frontera — "Before, we used to show his passport at the border" (imperfect) A. mostraba B. mostrabas C. mostrabais D. mostrábamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ______ interés por la música — "Tomorrow, you will show interest in music" (future) A. mostrarás B. mostraré C. mostrará D. mostraremos

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ la casa a los compradores — "I would show the house to the buyers" (conditional) A. mostraríais B. mostraría C. mostrarías D. mostraríamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Él ______ sus fotos de las vacaciones — "He has showed his holiday photos" (present perfect) A. ha mostrado B. he mostrado C. has mostrado D. hemos mostrado

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ el camino al visitante — "I hope he shows the way to the visitor" (present subjunctive) A. muestres B. mostremos C. mostréis D. muestre

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ su pasaporte en la frontera. — "Show his passport at the border." (affirmative imperative) A. muestre B. mostremos C. mostrad D. muestra

  9. Which is the gerund of mostrar, used with estar for the progressive? A. muestro B. mostré C. mostrando D. mostrado

  10. What does mostrar mean in English? A. to show B. to demonstrate C. to enjoy D. to cross

Answer key

  1. muestro — The present form for yo is muestro.
  2. mostré — The preterite form for yo is mostré.
  3. mostrábamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is mostrábamos.
  4. mostrarás — The future form for tú is mostrarás.
  5. mostraría — The conditional form for yo is mostraría.
  6. ha mostrado — The present perfect form for él/ella/Ud. is ha mostrado.
  7. muestre — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is muestre.
  8. muestra — The affirmative imperative form is muestra.
  9. mostrando — The gerund of mostrar is mostrando: estoy mostrando. The participle mostrado is used with haber instead.
  10. to show — mostrar means to show.

Frequently asked questions

What does mostrar mean in English?

mostrar means to show. For example: Yo muestro sus fotos de las vacaciones — "I show his holiday photos". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with mostrar?

mostrar takes its complement directly, with no preposition, as in the examples above. Adding an extra preposition is a common learner error.

Is mostrar regular?

No. mostrar is a stem-changing -ar verb (o → ue). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: muestro, muestras, muestra and muestran — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: mostramos, mostráis.

How do I practise mostrar?

Start with the present tense table on the full conjugation page, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure, and come back to the sentences above until you can say them without looking.

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