Introduction

Preguntar means “to ask (a question)”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Preguntar is the verb for asking a question. It is followed by the question itself, or by por or sobre for the topic. Preguntar por + thing or person means to ask about someone or something. It is how you enquire after a person or a topic. This page shows preguntar 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 pregunto al profesor.” — I ask the teacher.

Preguntar in real example sentences

The twelve sentences below are grouped by how preguntar 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 preguntar in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.

  1. “Yo pregunto al profesor.” — I ask the teacher.

  2. “¿Tú preguntas por María?” — Do you ask about María?

  3. “El estudiante pregunta por el examen.” — The student asks about the exam.

  4. “Nosotros preguntamos al profesor por el examen.” — We ask the teacher about the exam.

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show preguntar in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.

  1. “Ayer yo pregunté al profesor.” — Yesterday I asked the teacher. (preterite)

  2. “El estudiante preguntaba por el examen siempre.” — The student always used to ask about the exam. (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 preguntar stays the same.

  1. “Nosotros preguntaremos al profesor mañana.” — We will ask the teacher tomorrow. (future)

  2. “¿Tú has preguntado ya por el precio?” — Have you asked about the price yet? (present perfect)

More everyday uses

Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.

  1. “Vosotros preguntáis demasiado.” — You ask too much.

  2. “Ellos preguntan por el precio.” — They ask about the price.

  3. “Yo pregunto siempre en clase.” — I always ask questions in class.

  4. “Mi hijo pregunta por todo.” — My son asks about everything.

Preguntar 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 preguntar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

A short dialogue

  • Lucía: “¿Tú preguntas por María?” — Do you ask about María?

  • Pablo: “Sí, yo pregunto al profesor.” — Yes, I ask the teacher.

  • Lucía: “Nosotros preguntamos al profesor por el examen.” — We ask the teacher about the exam.

  • Pablo: “Y ellos preguntan por el precio.” — And they ask about the price.

  • Lucía: “Vosotros preguntáis demasiado.” — You ask too much.

  • Pablo: “Sí, y mi hijo pregunta por todo.” — Yes, and my son asks about everything.

A short paragraph

Lucía pregunta al profesor, y su hijo pregunta por todo. Nosotros preguntamos al profesor por el examen, y ellos preguntan por el precio. Yo pregunto siempre en clase, y el estudiante pregunta por el examen. Preguntar is part of every lesson, because asking the teacher, asking about someone and asking about the price are all part of the same verb.

Common mistakes with preguntar

These are the errors learners actually make with preguntar. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Yo pregunto el profesor.” Right: “Yo pregunto al profesor.” Why: Asking a person needs the personal a: pregunto al profesor. Without the a the sentence sounds unfinished to a native speaker.

  • Wrong: “Ellos pregunta por el precio.” Right: “Ellos preguntan por el precio.” Why: Ellos needs the ellos form preguntan. The singular pregunta belongs with él, ella or a singular noun such as el estudiante.

  • Wrong: “Yo pregunto al profesor ayer.” Right: “Ayer yo pregunté al profesor.” Why: The present tense cannot describe a finished action yesterday. Ayer forces the preterite, so the form must change to pregunté.

  • Wrong: “Nosotros preguntas demasiado.” Right: “Nosotros preguntamos demasiado.” Why: Nosotros needs preguntamos. The tú form preguntas belongs with tú.

  • Wrong: “Ellos pregunto todos los días.” Right: “Ellos preguntan todos los días.” Why: The verb must agree with its subject. Ellos needs the ellos form preguntan, not the yo form pregunto. This is the most common agreement slip in the present tense, and it happens because learners memorise the yo form first and then reuse it for every person.

Quiz: preguntar in use

Ten questions on preguntar in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.

1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ demasiado.” (You ask too much.)

  • (a) preguntas
  • (b) preguntáis
  • (c) pregunto

Answer: preguntáis — The vosotros/as form of preguntar in the present tense is preguntáis.

2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ por el precio.” (They ask about the price.)

  • (a) preguntan
  • (b) pregunto
  • (c) preguntas

Answer: preguntan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of preguntar in the present tense is preguntan.

3. Complete the sentence (preterite): “Ayer yo ______ al profesor.” (Yesterday I asked the teacher.)

  • (a) preguntaste
  • (b) preguntó
  • (c) pregunté

Answer: pregunté — In the preterite, the yo form of preguntar is pregunté.

4. Complete the sentence (imperfect): “El estudiante ______ por el examen siempre.” (The student always used to ask about the exam.)

  • (a) preguntabas
  • (b) preguntaba
  • (c) preguntaba

Answer: preguntaba — In the imperfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of preguntar is preguntaba.

5. Complete the sentence (future): “Nosotros ______ al profesor mañana.” (We will ask the teacher tomorrow.)

  • (a) preguntaremos
  • (b) preguntaré
  • (c) preguntarás

Answer: preguntaremos — In the future, the nosotros/as form of preguntar is preguntaremos.

6. What does preguntar mean in English?

  • (a) to finish, to end
  • (b) to serve
  • (c) to ask (a question)

Answer: to ask (a question) — Preguntar means “to ask (a question)”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • (a) Yo pregunto al profesor.
  • (b) Yo pregunto el profesor.
  • (c) Ellos pregunta por el precio.

Answer: Yo pregunto al profesor. — “Yo pregunto al profesor.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.

8. How do you say “I always ask questions in class.” in Spanish?

  • (a) Yo preguntan siempre en clase.
  • (b) Yo pregunto siempre en clase.
  • (c) Mi hijo pregunta por todo.

Answer: Yo pregunto siempre en clase. — “Yo pregunto siempre en clase.” is the correct translation. The second option means something different, and the third uses the wrong person's form.

9. What is the nosotros form of preguntar in the present tense?

  • (a) pregunto
  • (b) preguntas
  • (c) preguntamos

Answer: preguntamos — The nosotros form is preguntamos.

10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?

  • (a) Ayer yo pregunté al profesor.
  • (b) Nosotros preguntaremos al profesor mañana.
  • (c) Yo pregunto al profesor.

Answer: Yo pregunto al profesor. — “Yo pregunto al profesor.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say 'I ask the teacher' in Spanish?

Say 'Pregunto al profesor'. The personal a is required before a person. For a question: 'Pregunto al profesor por el examen'.

How do you say 'to ask about the price' in Spanish?

Say 'preguntar por el precio'. In the present: 'Ellos preguntan por el precio'. Por marks the topic of the question.

Can preguntar be used without an object?

Yes. 'Yo pregunto siempre en clase' means 'I always ask questions in class', with no object at all. Add a person or a topic only when you want to say whom or what you ask about.

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