Introduction
Prosperar means “to prosper”, and it is one of the verbs you will use again and again in Spanish. Prosperar means to prosper or to thrive, and it is used for businesses, towns, families and crops: el negocio prospera, la ciudad prospera. It is fully regular and common in news and economics. This page shows prosperar 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: “Prospero con el negocio nuevo.” — I prosper with the new business.
Prosperar in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how prosperar 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 prosperar in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Prospero con el negocio nuevo.” — I prosper with the new business.
“¿Prosperas en la ciudad grande?” — Do you prosper in the big city?
“Prospera gracias al turismo.” — He/she prospers thanks to tourism.
“Nosotros prosperamos con los años de trabajo.” — We prosper with years of work.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show prosperar in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo prosperé con el negocio nuevo.” — Yesterday, I prospered with the new business. (preterite)
“Antes, él prosperaba en la ciudad grande.” — Before, he used to prosper in the big city. (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 prosperar stays the same.
“Mañana, nosotros prosperaremos gracias al turismo.” — Tomorrow, we will prosper thanks to tourism. (future)
“¿Tú has prosperado con los años de trabajo?” — Have you prospered with years of work? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Vosotros prosperáis con el negocio nuevo.” — You prosper with the new business.
“Ellos prosperan en la ciudad grande.” — They prosper in the big city.
“Yo prospero gracias al turismo.” — I prosper thanks to tourism.
“Mi padre prospera con los años de trabajo.” — My father prospers with years of work.
Prosperar 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 prosperar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Marta: “¿Tú prosperas en la ciudad grande?” — Do you prosper in the big city?
Pedro: “Sí, yo prospero con el negocio nuevo.” — Yes, I prosper with the new business.
Marta: “Nosotros prosperamos con los años de trabajo.” — We prosper with years of work.
Pedro: “Y ellos prosperan en la ciudad grande.” — And they prosper in the big city.
Marta: “Vosotros prosperáis gracias al turismo.” — You prosper thanks to tourism.
Pedro: “Sí, y él prospera con el negocio nuevo.” — Yes, and he prospers with the new business.
A short paragraph
Prospera con el negocio nuevo, y nosotros prosperamos con los años de trabajo. Yo prospero en la ciudad grande, y ellos prosperan gracias al turismo. Prosperar is part of everyday life, because prosper is something people do in work, at home and with friends, in the present, the past and the future.
Common mistakes with prosperar
These are the errors learners actually make with prosperar. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo prospera con el negocio nuevo.” Right: “Yo prospero con el negocio nuevo.” Why: The person matters: prospera is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is prospero. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Ayer yo prospero en la ciudad grande.” Right: “Ayer yo prosperé en la ciudad grande.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: prospero is happening now, while prosperé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating prosperar and crecer as identical in every context.” Right: “Prosperar means to prosper, while crecer means to grow.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: prosperar fits sentences such as Prospero con el negocio nuevo, while crecer belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy prosperado en la ciudad grande.” Right: “Yo he prosperado en la ciudad grande.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he prosperado, has prosperado, ha prosperado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo prosperé gracias al turismo todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo prosperaba gracias al turismo todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (prosperaba), not the preterite. The preterite (prosperé) is for one finished action.
Quiz: prosperar in use
Ten questions on prosperar in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ con el negocio nuevo.” (You prosper with the new business.)
- (a) prosperáis
- (b) prospero
- (c) prosperas
Answer: prosperáis — The vosotros/as form of prosperar in the present tense is prosperáis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ en la ciudad grande.” (They prosper in the big city.)
- (a) prosperas
- (b) prosperan
- (c) prospero
Answer: prosperan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of prosperar in the present tense is prosperan.
3. Complete the sentence (preterite): “Ayer yo ______ con el negocio nuevo.” (Yesterday I prospered with the new business.)
- (a) prosperaste
- (b) prosperó
- (c) prosperé
Answer: prosperé — In the preterite, the yo form of prosperar is prosperé.
4. Complete the sentence (imperfect): “Antes, él ______ en la ciudad grande.” (Before, he used to prosper in the big city.)
- (a) prosperaba
- (b) prospero
- (c) prosperabas
Answer: prosperaba — In the imperfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of prosperar is prosperaba.
5. Complete the sentence (future): “Mañana, nosotros ______ gracias al turismo.” (Tomorrow we will prosper thanks to tourism.)
- (a) prosperarás
- (b) prosperaremos
- (c) prosperaré
Answer: prosperaremos — In the future, the nosotros/as form of prosperar is prosperaremos.
6. What does prosperar mean in English?
- (a) to prosper
- (b) to spread, to propagate
- (c) to grow
Answer: to prosper — Prosperar means “to prosper”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo prospera con el negocio nuevo.
- (b) Ellos prospera en la ciudad grande.
- (c) Yo prospero con el negocio nuevo.
Answer: Yo prospero con el negocio nuevo. — “Yo prospero con el negocio nuevo.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I prosper with the new business.” in Spanish?
- (a) Mi padre prospera con los años de trabajo.
- (b) Prospero con el negocio nuevo.
- (c) Prosperan con el negocio nuevo.
Answer: Prospero con el negocio nuevo. — “Prospero con el negocio nuevo.” is the correct translation.
9. What is the nosotros form of prosperar in the present tense?
- (a) prospero
- (b) prosperas
- (c) prosperamos
Answer: prosperamos — The nosotros form is prosperamos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Mañana, nosotros prosperaremos gracias al turismo.
- (b) Prospero con el negocio nuevo.
- (c) Ayer, yo prosperé con el negocio nuevo.
Answer: Prospero con el negocio nuevo. — “Prospero con el negocio nuevo.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I prosper with the new business' in Spanish?
Say 'Prospero con el negocio nuevo'. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Prospero con el negocio nuevo todos los días'.
How do you say 'He prospers in the big city' in Spanish?
Say 'Él prospera en la ciudad grande'. The subject comes first, and the verb agrees with it: él takes prospera.
What is the difference between prosperar and crecer?
Prosperar means to prosper, while crecer means to grow. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use prosperar when you mean to prosper, as in 'Prospero con el negocio nuevo', and use crecer for to grow.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of prosperar — every tense of prosperar in one place.
- Prosperar 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 prosperar and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of prosperar until they are automatic.