Obedecer Examples, Sentences and Quiz in Spanish

obedecer means to obey, and it is a verb you will meet in everyday Spanish again and again. Obedecer means to obey, and it covers obeying parents, orders, school rules and traffic laws. It takes a direct object for the person or rule obeyed, and it is a -cer spelling-change verb: yo obedezco. This page puts obedecer to work: twelve example sentences in different tenses and persons, grouped by use, then two short dialogues where the verb appears naturally, then the common mistakes to avoid, and finally a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Every Spanish form on this page comes from the verified conjugation tables for obedecer, and the full tables are on the obedecer conjugation page if you need to check a form.

Example sentences

Everyday uses

  1. Yo obedezco a sus padres sin discutir. — I obey his parents without arguing.
  2. Él obedece las órdenes del jefe. — He/she obeys the boss's orders.
  3. Ayer, yo obedecí las normas del colegio. — Yesterday, I obeyed the school rules.
  4. Antes, nosotros obedecíamos las leyes de tráfico. — Before, we used to obey the traffic laws.

In other tenses

  1. Mañana, tú obedecerás a sus padres sin discutir. — Tomorrow, you will obey his parents without arguing.
  2. Yo obedecería las órdenes del jefe. — I would obey the boss's orders.
  3. Él ha obedecido las normas del colegio. — He/she has obeyed the school rules.
  4. Espero que él obedezca las leyes de tráfico. — I hope he/she obeys the traffic laws.

With other people

  1. Nosotros obedecemos a sus padres sin discutir. — We obey his parents without arguing.
  2. Vosotros obedecéis las órdenes del jefe. — You all obey the boss's orders.
  3. Antes, ellos obedecían las normas del colegio. — Before, they used to obey the school rules.
  4. Mañana, él obedecerá las leyes de tráfico. — Tomorrow, he/she will obey the traffic laws.

Obedecer in context

Two short dialogues that use obedecer the way people really use it. Read them aloud — the verb forms will stick much faster in a conversation than in a table.

Dialogue 1: today and yesterday

  • Ana: "Hola, ¿qué tal?" — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Luis: "Hoy obedezco a sus padres sin discutir." — "Today I obey his parents without arguing."
  • Ana: "¿Y ayer?" — "And yesterday?"
  • Luis: "Ayer, obedecí las normas del colegio." — "Yesterday I obeyed the school rules."
  • Ana: "¿Y mañana, tú obedecerás las órdenes del jefe?" — "And tomorrow, will you will obey the boss's orders?"
  • Luis: "Sí, claro. Y tú también." — "Yes, of course. And you too."

Dialogue 2: making plans

  • Marta: "Mañana, nosotros obedecemos las leyes de tráfico." — "Tomorrow we obey the traffic laws."
  • Carlos: "Perfecto. Yo obedecería las órdenes del jefe si tuviera más tiempo." — "Perfect. I would would obey the boss's orders if I had more time."
  • Marta: "Espero que él obedezca a sus padres sin discutir." — "I hope he obeys his parents without arguing."
  • Carlos: "Seguro que sí. Él ya ha obedecido las normas del colegio." — "Surely. He has already has obeyed the school rules."
  • Marta: "Vale, nos vemos mañana." — "OK, see you tomorrow."

Notice how the same verb changes with the tense: the present for the plan, the conditional for the wish, the subjunctive after espero que, and the present perfect for what has already happened. That is the whole point of learning a verb across its tenses, not just in one form.

Common mistakes

  1. Wrong: Yo obedece a sus padres sin discutir. — Right: Yo obedezco a sus padres sin discutir. — The person matters: obedece is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is obedezco. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
  2. Wrong: Yo obedeco las órdenes del jefe. — Right: Yo obedezco las órdenes del jefe. — In the present, the correct first-person form is obedezco, not obedeco. obedecer is a spelling-change verb: c becomes zc before o and a, so the written form changes to keep the same sound. The regular-looking form is wrong.
  3. Wrong: Treating obedecer and escuchar as identical in every context. — Right: Obedecer means to obey, while escuchar means to listen, the step before obeying. — They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: obedecer fits sentences such as Obedezco a sus padres sin discutir, while escuchar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
  4. Wrong: Yo soy obedecido las órdenes del jefe. — Right: Yo he obedecido las órdenes del jefe. — Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he obedecido, has obedecido, ha obedecido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
  5. Wrong: De niño, yo obedecí las normas del colegio todos los días. — Right: De niño, yo obedecía las normas del colegio todos los días. — For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (obedecía), not the preterite. The preterite (obedecí) is for one finished action.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on obedecer: four on the forms, three on the meaning, and three on spotting the correct sentence. Check the answer key below.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ___ a sus padres sin discutir. (present tense) A. obedezco B. obedeces C. obedece D. obedecemos

  2. Complete the sentence: Él ___ las órdenes del jefe. (preterite tense) A. obedecí B. obedeciste C. obedecimos D. obedeció

  3. Complete the sentence: Tú ___ las normas del colegio. (future tense) A. obedecerá B. obedeceremos C. obedecerás D. obedeceré

  4. Complete the sentence: Nosotros ___ las leyes de tráfico. (imperfect tense) A. obedecíais B. obedecíamos C. obedecía D. obedecías

  5. What does "Yo obedezco a sus padres sin discutir." mean in English? A. I obey his parents without arguing. B. I obey the boss's orders. C. I obey the school rules. D. I obey the traffic laws.

  6. What does "Él obedeció las órdenes del jefe." mean in English? A. He/she obeyed his parents without arguing. B. He/she obeyed the school rules. C. He/she obeyed the traffic laws. D. He/she obeyed the boss's orders.

  7. What does "Nosotros obedeceremos las normas del colegio." mean in English? A. We will obey the boss's orders. B. We will obey the traffic laws. C. We will obey the school rules. D. We will obey his parents without arguing.

  8. Which sentence is correct? A. Yo obedeco las órdenes del jefe. B. Yo obedece las órdenes del jefe. C. Yo obedezco las órdenes del jefe.

  9. Which sentence is correct? A. Él obedecí las normas del colegio. B. Él obedeció las normas del colegio. C. Él obedecieron las normas del colegio.

  10. Which sentence is correct? A. Espero que yo obedezca las leyes de tráfico. B. Yo obedeca las leyes de tráfico. C. Yo obedezca las leyes de tráfico.

Answer key

  1. obedezco — The yo present form of obedecer is obedezco.
  2. obedeció — The el preterite form of obedecer is obedeció.
  3. obedecerás — The tu future form of obedecer is obedecerás.
  4. obedecíamos — The nosotros imperfect form of obedecer is obedecíamos.
  5. I obey his parents without arguing. — The Spanish sentence uses the present form obedezco, so the English is "I obey his parents without arguing." The other options use a different object or situation.
  6. He/she obeyed the boss's orders. — The Spanish sentence uses the preterite form obedeció, so the English is "He/she obeyed the boss's orders." The other options use a different object or situation.
  7. We will obey the school rules. — The Spanish sentence uses the future form obedeceremos, so the English is "We will obey the school rules." The other options use a different object or situation.
  8. Yo obedezco las órdenes del jefe. — The correct sentence is "Yo obedezco las órdenes del jefe." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  9. Él obedeció las normas del colegio. — The correct sentence is "Él obedeció las normas del colegio." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.
  10. Espero que yo obedezca las leyes de tráfico. — The correct sentence is "Espero que yo obedezca las leyes de tráfico." The other sentences use the wrong form or the wrong person for the subject.

Frequently asked questions

What does obedecer mean, and when do I use it?

Obedecer means to obey. Obedecer means to obey, and it covers obeying parents, orders, school rules and traffic laws. It takes a direct object for the person or rule obeyed, and it is a -cer spelling-change verb: yo obedezco. A good first sentence to remember is Yo obedezco a sus padres sin discutir. — "I obey his parents without arguing."

What is the difference between obedecer and escuchar?

Obedecer means to obey, while escuchar means to listen, the step before obeying. They appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use obedecer when you mean to obey, as in Yo obedezco las órdenes del jefe., and use escuchar for to listen, the step before obeying.

How do I say "I obey" in the past?

For one finished action, use the preterite: Yo obedecí las órdenes del jefe.. For a repeated habit or background in the past, use the imperfect: Yo obedecía las normas del colegio.. For something that has just happened, use the present perfect: Yo he obedecido las órdenes del jefe..

How do I practise obedecer?

Start with the obedecer conjugation page for the full tables, then the obedecer in the present tense page for the tense in focus, and use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure. Spelling change: c becomes zc before o and a, so yo obedezco and the subjunctive obedezca.

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