Regatear Examples, Sentences and Quiz
Regatear means “to haggle”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Regatear means to haggle, and it is used for bargaining over a price in a market, a shop or a deal. It is fully regular, and it appears in shopping and market contexts, usually with el precio or por el precio. This page shows regatear 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 regateo el precio en el mercado.” — I haggle the price in the market.
Regatear in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how regatear 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 regatear in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Regateo el precio en el mercado.” — I haggle the price in the market.
“¿Tú regateas por un descuento en la tienda?” — Do you haggle for a discount in the shop?
“Regatea con el vendedor toda la mañana.” — He/she haggles with the seller all morning.
“Regateamos hasta conseguir un buen precio.” — We haggle until I get a good price.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show regatear in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo regateé el precio en el mercado.” — Yesterday, I haggled the price in the market. (preterite)
“Él regateaba por un descuento en la tienda todos los días.” — He used to haggle for a discount in the shop every day. (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 regatear stays the same.
“Nosotros regatearemos con el vendedor toda la mañana mañana.” — We will haggle with the seller all morning tomorrow. (future)
“¿Tú has regateado hasta conseguir un buen precio?” — Have you haggled until I get a good price? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Regateáis el precio en el mercado.” — You haggle the price in the market.
“Regatean por un descuento en la tienda.” — They haggle for a discount in the shop.
“Regateo con el vendedor toda la mañana.” — I haggle with the seller all morning.
“Regatea hasta conseguir un buen precio.” — He/she haggles until I get a good price.
Regatear 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 regatear appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Lucía: “¿Tú regateas el precio en el mercado?” — Do you haggle the price in the market?
Carlos: “Sí, yo regateo el precio en el mercado.” — Yes, I haggle the price in the market.
Lucía: “Nosotros regateamos por un descuento en la tienda.” — We haggle for a discount in the shop.
Carlos: “Y ellos regatean con el vendedor toda la mañana.” — And they haggle with the seller all morning.
Lucía: “Vosotros regateáis hasta conseguir un buen precio.” — You haggle until I get a good price.
Carlos: “Sí, y él regatea por un descuento en la tienda.” — Yes, and he haggles for a discount in the shop.
A short paragraph
Lucía regatea el precio en el mercado, y Carlos regatea por un descuento en la tienda. Nosotros regateamos con el vendedor toda la mañana, y ellos regatean hasta conseguir un buen precio. Yo regateo con el vendedor toda la mañana, y mi padre regatea hasta conseguir un buen precio. Regatear is part of everyday life, because to haggle is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.
Common mistakes with regatear
These are the errors learners actually make with regatear. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo regatea el precio en el mercado.” Right: “Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.” Why: The person matters: regatea is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is regateo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Ayer yo regateo por un descuento en la tienda.” Right: “Ayer yo regateé por un descuento en la tienda.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: regateo is happening now, while regateé is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating regatear and negociar as identical in every context.” Right: “Regatear means to haggle, while negociar means to negotiate.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: regatear fits sentences such as Regateo el precio en el mercado, while negociar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy regateado por un descuento en la tienda.” Right: “Yo he regateado por un descuento en la tienda.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he regateado, has regateado, ha regateado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo regateé con el vendedor toda la mañana todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo regateaba con el vendedor toda la mañana todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (regateaba), not the preterite. The preterite (regateé) is for one finished action.
Quiz: regatear in use
Ten questions on regatear in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ el precio en el mercado.” (The price in the market.)
- (a) regateáis
- (b) regateo
- (c) regateas
Answer: regateáis — The vosotros/as form of regatear in the present is regateáis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ por un descuento en la tienda.” (For a discount in the shop.)
- (a) regateo
- (b) regateas
- (c) regatean
Answer: regatean — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of regatear in the present is regatean.
3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ el precio en el mercado.” (The price in the market.)
- (a) regateó
- (b) regateé
- (c) regateaste
Answer: regateé — The yo form of regatear in the preterite is regateé.
4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ por un descuento en la tienda.” (For a discount in the shop.)
- (a) regateaba
- (b) regateabas
- (c) regateábamos
Answer: regateaba — The él/ella/Ud. form of regatear in the imperfect is regateaba.
5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ con el vendedor toda la mañana.” (With the seller all morning.)
- (a) regatearé
- (b) regatearás
- (c) regatearemos
Answer: regatearemos — The nosotros/as form of regatear in the future is regatearemos.
6. What does regatear mean in English?
- (a) to wait for
- (b) to haggle
- (c) to negotiate
Answer: to haggle — Regatear means “to haggle”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.
- (b) Ellos regatea el precio en el mercado.
- (c) Yo regateo por un descuento en la tienda ayer.
Answer: Yo regateo el precio en el mercado. — “Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I haggle the price in the market.” in Spanish?
- (a) Yo regatean el precio en el mercado.
- (b) Yo regateé el precio en el mercado.
- (c) Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.
Answer: Yo regateo el precio en el mercado. — “Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.” is the correct translation. The second option uses the wrong person's form, and the third uses the preterite.
9. What is the nosotros form of regatear in the present tense?
- (a) regateas
- (b) regateamos
- (c) regateo
Answer: regateamos — The nosotros form is regateamos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Ayer, yo regateé el precio en el mercado.
- (b) Nosotros regatearemos el precio en el mercado mañana.
- (c) Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.
Answer: Yo regateo el precio en el mercado. — “Yo regateo el precio en el mercado.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I haggle' in Spanish?
Say 'Yo regateo el precio en el mercado'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo regateo el precio en el mercado todos los días'.
How do you say 'I haggle' in the past?
For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo regateé por un descuento en la tienda'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo regateaba por un descuento en la tienda todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo he regateado por un descuento en la tienda'.
What is the difference between regatear and negociar?
Regatear means to haggle, while negociar means to negotiate. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use regatear when you mean to haggle, as in Regateo el precio en el mercado.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of regatear — every tense of regatear in one place.
- Regatear 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 regatear and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of regatear until they are automatic.