Querer Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

querer — to want — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Querer means to want and to love: quiero un café, te quiero. It is an e → ie stem-changing verb in the present (quiero, quieres, quiere) with the irregular preterite quise and the future stem querr-. In the preterite it often means tried or refused: no quise ir means I refused to go. On this page you will find querer 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 querer

In the present tense

  • “Yo quiero un café, por favor.” — “I would like a coffee, please.”
  • “Ella quiere aprender a bailar.” — “She wants to learn to dance.”
  • “Nosotros queremos ir de vacaciones.” — “We want to go on holiday.”
  • “Ellos quieren comprar una casa nueva.” — “They want to buy a new house.”
  • “¿Tú quieres venir conmigo?” — “Do you want to come with me?”
  • “Vosotros queréis más tiempo para decidir.” — “You want more time to decide.”

In the preterite

  • “Ayer yo quise llamarte, pero no pude.” — “Yesterday I wanted to call you, but I could not.”
  • “Ella quiso estudiar medicina.” — “She wanted to study medicine.”
  • “Nosotros quisimos ver la película, pero estaba llena.” — “We wanted to see the film, but it was sold out.”
  • “Ellos no quisieron pagar tanto dinero.” — “They refused to pay so much money.”
  • “¿Tú quisiste ir a la fiesta?” — “Did you want to go to the party?”
  • “El niño quiso un helado de chocolate.” — “The child wanted a chocolate ice cream.”

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 quería un café en el bar.” — “As a child, I used to want a coffee at the bar.”
  • “Mañana, yo querré un café en el bar.” — “Tomorrow, I will want a coffee at the bar.”
  • “Si pudiera, yo querría un café en el bar.” — “If I could, I would want a coffee at the bar.”
  • “Yo he querido un café en el bar.” — “I have wanted a coffee at the bar.”

Querer in context

Cada día, yo quiero un café en el bar. Mi amigo también quiere un café en el bar cuando tiene tiempo. Después, yo quiero un café de nuevo por la tarde. Es una parte normal de mi rutina, y por eso el presente de querer es la primera forma que conviene aprender.

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

Common mistakes with querer

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo quero un café.

Right: Yo quiero un café.

Querer changes e to ie in the present: quiero, not quero.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Ayer yo querí llamarte.

Right: Ayer yo quiero llamarte.

The preterite is quise, from the irregular quis- stem — never querí.

Mistake 3

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

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

The e → ie stem change applies to querer in the present — the yo form is quiero, not the infinitive stem.

Mistake 4

Wrong: Treating querer as a regular verb.

Right: Learn the irregular forms: present quiero, preterite quise.

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

Quiz: querer in everyday use

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

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

  • A) quiero
  • B) quieres
  • C) quiere
  • D) queremos

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

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

  • A) quiero
  • B) quieres
  • C) queremos
  • D) quiere

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

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

  • A) quiso
  • B) quisimos
  • C) quise
  • D) quisiste

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

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

  • A) quiso
  • B) quisieron
  • C) quise
  • D) quisiste

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

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

  • A) quería
  • B) querías
  • C) quería
  • D) queríamos

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

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

  • A) querré
  • B) querrá
  • C) querremos
  • D) querrás

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

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

  • A) querrías
  • B) querríamos
  • C) querría
  • D) querría

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

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

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

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

9. Fill in the blank: “Yo ___ un café, por favor.” (I would like a coffee, please.)

  • A) quiero
  • B) quieres
  • C) quiere
  • D) queremos

Answer: A — The sentence needs quiero.

10. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo quiero un café.
  • B) Yo quero un café.

Answer: A — Querer changes e to ie in the present: quiero, not quero.

Frequently asked questions

What does querer mean?

querer means “to want” in English. Querer means to want and to love: quiero un café, te quiero. It is an e → ie stem-changing verb in the present (quiero, quieres, quiere) with the irregular preterite quise and the future stem querr-. In the preterite it often means tried or refused: no quise ir means I refused to go.

Is querer regular?

No. querer is an e → ie stem-changing irregular -er verb (irregular in preterite, future, conditional, imperfect-subjunctive). It is irregular in preterite, future, conditional, imperfect-subjunctive, 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 querer in the past — preterite or imperfect?

Use the preterite — quise, quisiste, quiso — for a finished action at a specific moment, and the imperfect — quería, querías, quería — for what was happening, what used to happen, or the background. The same rule applies to querer as to every Spanish verb; the tense changes the meaning, not the verb.

How can I practise querer?

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 Querer Conjugator, and read the full conjugation page for querer 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 quiero…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo quise…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo querré…”. 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.

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