Palpar Examples, Sentences & Quiz

Introduction

palpar means to feel, to touch, and it is one of those verbs that shows up everywhere once you start listening for it. It is a regular -ar verb verb, and this page puts it to work: real example sentences in several tenses, grouped by use, two short passages that show the verb in context, the mistakes learners make with it, a ten-question quiz and answers to common questions. If you only learn one sentence, make it «Yo palpo todos los días» — I feel every day. The rest of this page builds out from there, tense by tense, so you can use palpar the way native speakers do — in the present for habits, in the past for finished events, and in the subjunctive after wishes and doubts.

Palpar in real example sentences

In the present: everyday use

The present is where palpar lives most of the time — routines, facts and what is happening now:

  1. Yo palpo todos los días. — I feel every day.
  2. Tú palpas en el trabajo. — You feel at work.
  3. Él palpa con mi familia. — He feels with my family.
  4. Nosotros palpamos por la mañana. — We feel in the morning.

Talking about the past

In the past, choose the preterite for a finished event and the imperfect for a habit or background:

  1. Ayer yo palpé por la tarde. — Yesterday I felt in the afternoon.
  2. Antes, yo palpaba todos los días. — In the past, I used to feel every day.
  3. La semana pasada él palpó dos veces. — Last week He felt twice.

Plans and things already done

The future, the conditional and the present perfect round out the picture — plans, hypotheticals and recent events:

  1. Mañana yo palparé sin falta. — Tomorrow I will feel without fail.
  2. Si tuviera más tiempo, yo palparía ahora mismo. — If I had more time, I would feel right now.
  3. Hoy yo he palpado dos veces. — Today I have felt twice.

More everyday uses

The subjunctive, the imperative and the progressive cover wishes, commands and actions in progress:

  1. Espero que tú palpes pronto. — I hope You feel soon.
  2. ¡palpa, por favor! — Feel, please!
  3. Ahora mismo yo estoy palpando. — Right now I am feeling.

Palpar in context

A short dialogue

Ana: «Yo palpo en el trabajo.» — I feel at work. Luis: «¡Qué bien! Yo palpo con mi familia.» — I feel with my family. Ana: «Mañana yo palparé sin falta.» — Tomorrow I will feel without fail. Luis: «Si tuviera más tiempo, yo palparía ahora mismo.» — If I had more time, I would feel right now. Ana: «Hoy yo he palpado dos veces.» — Today I have felt twice.

A short paragraph

Ayer yo palpé por la tarde. Antes, yo palpaba todos los días. Hoy yo he palpado dos veces. Mañana yo palparé sin falta.

Yesterday I felt in the afternoon. In the past, I used to feel every day. Today I have felt twice. Tomorrow I will feel without fail.

Common mistakes with palpar

1. Using the imperfect for a finished event

Wrong: Ayer yo palpaba.

Right: Ayer yo palpé.

Yesterday's finished action needs the preterite, palpé. The imperfect palpaba describes what used to happen or what was going on, not a single completed event.

2. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

Wrong: Espero que tú palpas.

Right: Espero que tú palpes.

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: palpes, not the indicative palpas. Wishes, hopes and doubts all trigger this change.

3. Using the affirmative imperative after no

Wrong: No palpa.

Right: No palpes.

Negative commands use the subjunctive-based forms: no palpes. The affirmative palpa can never follow no.

4. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

Wrong: Yo palpar todos los días.

Right: Yo palpo todos los días.

The infinitive palpar names the action; it never works as the main verb of a sentence. Conjugate it for the person: yo palpo.

5. Confusing the gerund with the past participle

Wrong: He palpando.

Right: He palpado.

The perfect tenses use haber plus the past participle: he palpado. The gerund palpando goes with estar for actions in progress («Estoy palpando»), never with haber.

Quiz: palpar in use

Test yourself on palpar in use. Choose the correct answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of palpar in the present indicative?

- (a) palpan
- (b) palpa
- (c) palpo
- (d) palpas

2. What is the yo form of palpar in the preterite?

- (a) palpaste
- (b) palpó
- (c) palpé
- (d) palpamos

3. What is the tú form of palpar in the future?

- (a) palparás
- (b) palparé
- (c) palparemos
- (d) palpará

4. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of palpar in the present perfect?

- (a) he palpado
- (b) ha palpado
- (c) has palpado
- (d) hemos palpado

5. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of palpar in the imperfect?

- (a) palpaban
- (b) palpaba
- (c) palpaba
- (d) palpabas

6. What is the gerund of palpar?

- (a) palpar
- (b) palpando
- (c) palpado
- (d) palpo

7. What is the past participle of palpar?

- (a) palpar
- (b) palpando
- (c) palpé
- (d) palpado

8. Which sentence uses palpar correctly?

- (a) *Yo palpa todos los días.*
- (b) *Yo palpas todos los días.*
- (c) *Yo palpar todos los días.*
- (d) *Yo palpo todos los días.* — I feel every day.

9. Which sentence uses palpar correctly?

- (a) *Ayer yo palpar por la tarde.*
- (b) *Ayer yo palpo por la tarde.*
- (c) *Ayer yo palpé por la tarde.* — Yesterday I felt in the afternoon.
- (d) *Ayer yo palpaba por la tarde.*

10. What does palpar mean?

- (a) to look like
- (b) to agree
- (c) to feel, to touch
- (d) to suffer from

Answer key

1. (a) — In the present indicative, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of palpar is palpan. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 2. (c) — In the preterite, the yo form of palpar is palpé. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 3. (a) — In the future, the tú form of palpar is palparás. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 4. (b) — In the present perfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of palpar is ha palpado. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 5. (a) — In the imperfect, the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of palpar is palpaban. The other options are the same tense but different persons. 6. (b) — The gerund of palpar is palpando. It is used with estar for the progressive: «Estoy palpando». 7. (d) — The past participle of palpar is palpado. It follows haber in all the perfect tenses: «he palpado». 8. (d) — Only this sentence pairs the right person with the right form of palpar; the others mix a person with another person's form, or use the infinitive instead of a conjugated form. 9. (c) — Only this sentence pairs the right person with the right form of palpar; the others mix a person with another person's form, or use the infinitive instead of a conjugated form. 10. (c) — palpar means «to feel, to touch».

Frequently asked questions

How do you say 'I feel' in Spanish?

Say «Yo palpo todos los días». That is the present-tense yo form, and it is the sentence you will use most with this verb.

How do you say 'I felt' about yesterday?

Say «Ayer yo palpé por la tarde». The preterite is the tense for a finished event: yesterday, last week, last night.

Is palpar reflexive?

No — palpar is not reflexive. It conjugates without a pronoun: yo palpo, tú palpas, él palpa. If you see a -se form of a similar verb, that is a different verb with its own meaning.

Which tense do learners find hardest with palpar?

Most learners struggle with choosing between the preterite and the imperfect, not with the forms themselves. Use the preterite (palpé) for a single finished event and the imperfect (palpaba) for habits and background. After that, the subjunctive is the next step.

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