Patinar Examples, Sentences and Quiz
Patinar means “to skate”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Patinar means to skate, and it covers ice skating, roller skating and skateboarding. It is fully regular, and it appears in sport, winter and leisure contexts, usually with en el hielo, en la pista or con los patines. This page shows patinar 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 patino sobre hielo en invierno.” — I skate on ice in winter.
Patinar in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how patinar 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 patinar in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Patino sobre hielo en invierno.” — I skate on ice in winter.
“¿Tú patinas en la pista del parque?” — Do you skate on the rink in the park?
“Patina con los amigos el sábado.” — He/she skates with friends on Saturday.
“Patinamos en el parque con los patines.” — We skate in the park with skates.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show patinar in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo patiné sobre hielo en invierno.” — Yesterday, I skated on ice in winter. (preterite)
“Él patinaba en la pista del parque todos los días.” — He used to skate on the rink in the park 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 patinar stays the same.
“Nosotros patinaremos con los amigos el sábado mañana.” — We will skate with friends on Saturday tomorrow. (future)
“¿Tú has patinado en el parque con los patines?” — Have you skated in the park with skates? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Patináis sobre hielo en invierno.” — You skate on ice in winter.
“Patinan en la pista del parque.” — They skate on the rink in the park.
“Patino con los amigos el sábado.” — I skate with friends on Saturday.
“Patina en el parque con los patines.” — He/she skates in the park with skates.
Patinar 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 patinar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Lucía: “¿Tú patinas sobre hielo en invierno?” — Do you skate on ice in winter?
Carlos: “Sí, yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.” — Yes, I skate on ice in winter.
Lucía: “Nosotros patinamos en la pista del parque.” — We skate on the rink in the park.
Carlos: “Y ellos patinan con los amigos el sábado.” — And they skate with friends on Saturday.
Lucía: “Vosotros patináis en el parque con los patines.” — You skate in the park with skates.
Carlos: “Sí, y él patina en la pista del parque.” — Yes, and he skates on the rink in the park.
A short paragraph
Lucía patina sobre hielo en invierno, y Carlos patina en la pista del parque. Nosotros patinamos con los amigos el sábado, y ellos patinan en el parque con los patines. Yo patino con los amigos el sábado, y mi padre patina en el parque con los patines. Patinar is part of everyday life, because to skate is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.
Common mistakes with patinar
These are the errors learners actually make with patinar. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo patina sobre hielo en invierno.” Right: “Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.” Why: The person matters: patina is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is patino. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Ayer yo patino en la pista del parque.” Right: “Ayer yo patiné en la pista del parque.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: patino is happening now, while patiné is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating patinar and esquiar as identical in every context.” Right: “Patinar means to skate, while esquiar means to ski.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: patinar fits sentences such as Patino sobre hielo en invierno, while esquiar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy patinado en la pista del parque.” Right: “Yo he patinado en la pista del parque.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he patinado, has patinado, ha patinado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo patiné con los amigos el sábado todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo patinaba con los amigos el sábado todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (patinaba), not the preterite. The preterite (patiné) is for one finished action.
Quiz: patinar in use
Ten questions on patinar in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ sobre hielo en invierno.” (On ice in winter.)
- (a) patináis
- (b) patino
- (c) patinas
Answer: patináis — The vosotros/as form of patinar in the present is patináis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ en la pista del parque.” (On the rink in the park.)
- (a) patino
- (b) patinas
- (c) patinan
Answer: patinan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of patinar in the present is patinan.
3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ sobre hielo en invierno.” (On ice in winter.)
- (a) patinó
- (b) patiné
- (c) patinaste
Answer: patiné — The yo form of patinar in the preterite is patiné.
4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ en la pista del parque.” (On the rink in the park.)
- (a) patinaba
- (b) patinabas
- (c) patinábamos
Answer: patinaba — The él/ella/Ud. form of patinar in the imperfect is patinaba.
5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ con los amigos el sábado.” (With friends on saturday.)
- (a) patinaré
- (b) patinarás
- (c) patinaremos
Answer: patinaremos — The nosotros/as form of patinar in the future is patinaremos.
6. What does patinar mean in English?
- (a) to ride, to mount
- (b) to skate
- (c) to ski
Answer: to skate — Patinar means “to skate”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.
- (b) Ellos patina sobre hielo en invierno.
- (c) Yo patino en la pista del parque ayer.
Answer: Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno. — “Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I skate on ice in winter.” in Spanish?
- (a) Yo patinan sobre hielo en invierno.
- (b) Yo patiné sobre hielo en invierno.
- (c) Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.
Answer: Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno. — “Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.” 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 patinar in the present tense?
- (a) patinas
- (b) patinamos
- (c) patino
Answer: patinamos — The nosotros form is patinamos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Ayer, yo patiné sobre hielo en invierno.
- (b) Nosotros patinaremos sobre hielo en invierno mañana.
- (c) Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.
Answer: Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno. — “Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I skate' in Spanish?
Say 'Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo patino sobre hielo en invierno todos los días'.
How do you say 'I skate' in the past?
For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo patiné en la pista del parque'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo patinaba en la pista del parque todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo he patinado en la pista del parque'.
What is the difference between patinar and esquiar?
Patinar means to skate, while esquiar means to ski. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use patinar when you mean to skate, as in Patino sobre hielo en invierno.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of patinar — every tense of patinar in one place.
- Patinar in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on patinar and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of patinar until they are automatic.