Preferir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish
The Spanish verb preferir means to prefer. You can learn its forms from the full preferir conjugation, but forms on their own are not enough: you need to see the verb in real sentences, in conversation, and in the mistakes people actually make. That is what this page is for. Below you will find example sentences grouped by use, two short dialogues, the common mistakes, a ten-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions learners ask most. One sentence to start: Yo prefiero el té al café. — "I prefer tea to coffee."
Preferir example sentences
Everyday use — the present tense
- Yo prefiero el té al café. — "I prefer tea to coffee."
- Tú prefieres el cine al teatro. — "you prefer the cinema to the theatre."
- Él prefiere quedarme en casa. — "he/she prefers to stay at home."
- Nosotros preferimos la playa a la montaña. — "we prefer the beach to the mountains."
Talking about the past
- Yo preferí quedarme en casa. — "I preferred to stay at home."
- Él prefería la playa a la montaña. — "he/she used to prefer the beach to the mountains."
- Nosotros preferimos el verano al invierno. — "we preferred summer to winter."
Plans and wishes
- Yo preferiré el verano al invierno. — "I will prefer summer to winter."
- Tú preferirías leer a ver la televisión. — "you would prefer reading to watching television."
More examples with preferir
- Prefiero el té al café. — "I prefer tea to coffee."
- Mis hijos prefieren el cine al teatro. — "My children prefer the cinema to the theatre."
- Ayer preferí quedarme en casa. — "Yesterday I preferred to stay at home."
- De niño, prefería la playa a la montaña. — "As a child, I used to prefer the beach to the mountains."
- Mañana preferiré leer a ver la televisión. — "Tomorrow I will prefer reading to watching television."
- Si pudiera elegir, preferiría el verano al invierno. — "If I could choose, I would prefer summer to winter."
Preferir in conversation
Two short dialogues using preferir naturally. Read them out loud: hearing the verb in a question and an answer is the fastest way to make the forms stick.
Dialogue 1: making plans
María: ¿Tú prefieres el té al café? Carlos: Sí, yo prefiero el té al café. ¿Y tú? María: Yo también. ¿Prefiere el cine al teatro? Carlos: Sí, él prefiere el cine al teatro todos los días. María: ¿Y mañana? ¿Tú preferirás quedarme en casa? Carlos: Sí, mañana yo preferiré quedarme en casa.
In this dialogue María asks Carlos what he does, and then they talk about tomorrow. Notice how the verb changes with the person: prefieres for tú, prefiero for yo, prefiere for él. The future forms at the end (preferirás, preferiré) show the same verb talking about tomorrow.
Dialogue 2: talking about yesterday
Ana: ¿Tú prefieres la playa a la montaña? Luis: Sí, yo prefiero la playa a la montaña. ¿Y tú? Ana: Yo también. ¿Prefiere el verano al invierno? Luis: Sí, él prefiere el verano al invierno todos los días. Ana: ¿Y ayer? ¿Tú preferiste la playa a la montaña? Luis: Sí, ayer yo preferí la playa a la montaña.
Here Ana asks Luis about yesterday, so the answers use the preterite: preferí for yo, preferiste for tú. The preterite is the right choice because yesterday is finished; the present would describe a habit instead.
Common mistakes with preferir in the present
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why it is wrong.
1. Yo prefero el té.
Wrong: Yo prefero el té.
Right: Yo prefiero el té.
Preferir is an e → ie stem-changing verb: yo prefiero, tú prefieres, él prefiere, ellos prefieren. Preferimos and preferís keep the plain e.
2. Ellos preferieron quedarse.
Wrong: Ellos preferieron quedarse.
Right: Ellos prefirieron quedarse.
In the preterite, the third-person forms change e to i: él prefirió, ellos prefirieron. The yo and tú preterite forms keep e: preferí, preferiste.
3. Confusing preferir with gustar
Preferir means you like one thing more than another; gustar means you like something. Prefiero el té al café compares two things, while me gusta el té just says you like tea.
4. Using the present for a finished past action
Wrong: Ayer yo prefiero el té al café.
Right: Ayer yo preferí el té al café.
Ayer (yesterday) signals a finished action, so it needs the preterite: preferí. The present describes what you do now or usually.
Quiz: preferir in use
Ten questions across five tenses. Choose the right form for each sentence, then check the answers at the end of this section.
- Tú ___ el té al café (present)
- a) prefieres
- b) prefiero
- c) prefiere
- d) preferimos
- Nosotros ___ el cine al teatro (preterite)
- a) preferí
- b) preferiste
- c) prefirió
- d) preferimos
- Ellos ___ quedarme en casa (imperfect)
- a) preferías
- b) prefería
- c) preferían
- d) prefería
- Tú ___ la playa a la montaña (future)
- a) preferiremos
- b) preferirás
- c) preferiré
- d) preferirá
- Nosotros ___ el verano al invierno (conditional)
- a) preferiríamos
- b) preferiría
- c) preferirías
- d) preferiría
- Ellos ___ leer a ver la televisión (present)
- a) prefiero
- b) prefieres
- c) prefiere
- d) prefieren
- Tú ___ el té al café (preterite)
- a) prefirió
- b) preferimos
- c) preferiste
- d) preferí
- Nosotros ___ el cine al teatro (imperfect)
- a) prefería
- b) preferíamos
- c) prefería
- d) preferías
- Ellos ___ quedarme en casa (future)
- a) preferirán
- b) preferiré
- c) preferirás
- d) preferirá
- Tú ___ la playa a la montaña (conditional)
- a) preferiría
- b) preferiría
- c) preferiríamos
- d) preferirías
Answers
- a) prefieres — the present form, for tú.
- d) preferimos — the preterite form, for nosotros/as.
- c) preferían — the imperfect form, for ellos/ellas/Uds..
- b) preferirás — the future form, for tú.
- a) preferiríamos — the conditional form, for nosotros/as.
- d) prefieren — the present form, for ellos/ellas/Uds..
- c) preferiste — the preterite form, for tú.
- b) preferíamos — the imperfect form, for nosotros/as.
- a) preferirán — the future form, for ellos/ellas/Uds..
- d) preferirías — the conditional form, for tú.
Frequently asked questions about preferir
Why is it prefiero and not prefero?
Preferir changes e to ie in the stressed present forms: prefiero, prefieres, prefiere, prefieren. Nosotros and vosotros are unstressed: preferimos, preferís.
Why is the preterite él prefirió and not preferió?
Preferir is also a stem-changing verb in the preterite, but only in the third person, where e becomes i: él prefirió, ellos prefirieron. The gerund changes too: prefiriendo.
What are the gerund and the past participle of preferir?
The gerund is prefiriendo, used with estar for the progressive (estoy prefiriendo), and the past participle is preferido, used with haber for the perfect tenses (he preferido).
Is preferir regular?
Not entirely: preferir has irregular forms, listed on its conjugation page. The present is prefiero, prefieres, prefiere, preferimos, preferís, prefieren, and the full tables are on the preferir conjugation page.
How to remember preferir
Four small habits will fix preferir in your memory. First, say the present tense out loud, in order, three times: prefiero, prefieres, prefiere, preferimos, preferís, prefieren. Saying the forms is far more effective than reading them silently, because you hear the endings and the stem at the same time. Second, write three sentences about your own life: one about today with the present (prefiero), one about yesterday with the preterite (preferí), and one about tomorrow with the future (preferiré). Personal sentences stick because they are about you, not about a textbook. Third, remember the difference from gustar: Preferir means you like one thing more than another; gustar means you like something. Prefiero el té al café compares two things, while me gusta el té just says you like tea. Finally, learn the two key forms by heart: the gerund prefiriendo and the past participle preferido. With those two and the present tense, you can already build the progressive (estoy prefiriendo) and the present perfect (he preferido), which covers most everyday conversation.
Related pages
- Preferir conjugation: full tables — every tense of preferir on one page.
- Preferir Present tense — the deep dive on preferir in the present.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for all Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.
- Spanish verb quiz — test yourself on real conjugated forms.
- Conjugation practice — fill-in-the-blank drills with instant feedback.