Pedir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

pedir — to ask for — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Pedir means to ask for and to order: pedir un café, pedir ayuda, pedir perdón. It is an e → i stem-changing verb (pido, pides, pide) with the preterite third persons pidió and pidieron and the gerund pidiendo. It differs from preguntar, which is to ask a question. On this page you will find pedir in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself.

Example sentences with pedir

In the present tense

  • “Yo pido un café con leche.” — “I order a coffee with milk.”
  • “Ella pide ayuda a sus compañeros.” — “She asks her classmates for help.”
  • “Nosotros pedimos la cuenta al final.” — “We ask for the bill at the end.”
  • “Ellos piden perdón por el retraso.” — “They apologise for the delay.”
  • “¿Tú pides permiso para salir?” — “Do you ask permission to go out?”
  • “Vosotros pedís más tiempo al profesor.” — “You ask the teacher for more time.”

In the preterite

  • “Ayer yo pedí un taxi por teléfono.” — “Yesterday I ordered a taxi by phone.”
  • “Ella pidió una pizza para cenar.” — “She ordered a pizza for dinner.”
  • “Nosotros pedimos dos cafés y un zumo.” — “We ordered two coffees and a juice.”
  • “Ellos pidieron prestado el coche.” — “They asked to borrow the car.”
  • “¿Tú pediste la dirección al policía?” — “Did you ask the policeman for directions?”
  • “El cliente pidió la carta en inglés.” — “The customer asked for the menu in English.”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present perfect — the four tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “De niño, yo pedía un café con leche.” — “As a child, I used to ask for a coffee with milk.”
  • “Mañana, yo pediré un café con leche.” — “Tomorrow, I will ask for a coffee with milk.”
  • “Si pudiera, yo pediría un café con leche.” — “If I could, I would ask for a coffee with milk.”
  • “Yo he pedido un café con leche.” — “I have asked for a coffee with milk.”

Pedir in context

Cada día, yo pido un café con leche. Mi amigo también pide un café con leche cuando tiene tiempo. Después, yo pido un café de nuevo por la tarde. Es una parte normal de mi rutina, y por eso el presente de pedir es la primera forma que conviene aprender.

Ayer, yo pedí un café con leche. Mi amigo pidió un café con leche también, y por la noche yo pedí un café otra vez. Fue un día normal, pero es justo en días así cuando el pretérito de pedir aparece una y otra vez: una acción terminada, un momento concreto, y la historia sigue.

Common mistakes with pedir

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo pedo un café.

Right: Yo pido un café.

Pedir changes e to i: pido, not pedo.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Él pedió una pizza.

Right: Él pide una pizza.

The third-person preterite keeps the i stem: pidió, not pedió.

Mistake 3

Wrong: Using the plain stem instead of the changed stem.

Right: Use the changed stem in the stressed forms: pido.

The e → i stem change applies to pedir in the present — the yo form is pido, not the infinitive stem.

Mistake 4

Wrong: Treating pedir as a regular verb.

Right: Learn the irregular forms: present pido, preterite pedí.

pedir is irregular — its present and preterite do not follow the regular endings, so they have to be memorised as a set.

Quiz: pedir in everyday use

Ten questions on pedir across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of pedir in the present tense?

  • A) pido
  • B) pides
  • C) pide
  • D) pedimos

Answer: A — The yo form in the present tense is pido.

2. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of pedir in the present tense?

  • A) pido
  • B) pides
  • C) pedimos
  • D) pide

Answer: D — The él/ella/Ud. form in the present tense is pide.

3. What is the yo form of pedir in the preterite?

  • A) pidió
  • B) pedimos
  • C) pedí
  • D) pediste

Answer: C — The yo form in the preterite is pedí.

4. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of pedir in the preterite?

  • A) pidió
  • B) pidieron
  • C) pedí
  • D) pediste

Answer: B — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the preterite is pidieron.

5. What is the yo form of pedir in the imperfect?

  • A) pedía
  • B) pedías
  • C) pedía
  • D) pedíamos

Answer: A — The yo form in the imperfect is pedía.

6. What is the tú form of pedir in the future?

  • A) pediré
  • B) pedirá
  • C) pediremos
  • D) pedirás

Answer: D — The tú form in the future is pedirás.

7. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of pedir in the conditional?

  • A) pedirías
  • B) pediríamos
  • C) pediría
  • D) pediría

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the conditional is pediría.

8. What is the nosotros/as form of pedir in the present perfect?

  • A) ha pedido
  • B) hemos pedido
  • C) he pedido
  • D) has pedido

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the present perfect is hemos pedido.

9. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ un café con leche.” (I order a coffee with milk.)

  • A) pido
  • B) pides
  • C) pide
  • D) pedimos

Answer: A — The sentence needs pido.

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo pido un café.
  • B) Yo pedo un café.

Answer: A — Pedir changes e to i: pido, not pedo.

Frequently asked questions

What does pedir mean?

pedir means “to ask for” in English. Pedir means to ask for and to order: pedir un café, pedir ayuda, pedir perdón. It is an e → i stem-changing verb (pido, pides, pide) with the preterite third persons pidió and pidieron and the gerund pidiendo. It differs from preguntar, which is to ask a question.

Is pedir regular?

No. pedir is an e → i stem-changing irregular -ir verb (irregular in present, present-subjunctive, preterite, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative). It is irregular in present, present-subjunctive, preterite, imperfect-subjunctive, gerund, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative, and those forms have to be learnt as a set rather than built by rule. The full conjugation page shows every tense.

When do I use pedir in the past — preterite or imperfect?

Use the preterite — pedí, pediste, pidió — for a finished action at a specific moment, and the imperfect — pedía, pedías, pedía — for what was happening, what used to happen, or the background. The same rule applies to pedir as to every Spanish verb; the tense changes the meaning, not the verb.

How can I practise pedir?

Start with the examples above, say them aloud, then take the quiz on this page. For more practice, use the Spanish Verb Quiz and the Pedir Conjugator, and read the full conjugation page for pedir to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo pido…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo pedí…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo pediré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

Related pages