Introduction

relucir means “to shine”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. It is the verb for expressing “to shine” in everyday Spanish — in conversation, at work, and at home. This page shows relucir 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 form unless the sentence is clearly marked as past or future. For a first taste: “El coche reluce en el sol por la mañana.” — “The car shines in the sun.”

relucir in real example sentences

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

  1. “El coche reluce en el sol cada día.” — “The car shines in the sun.”
  2. “El coche reluce en el sol cada día.” — “The car shines in the sun.”
  3. “El coche reluce en el sol siempre.” — “The car shines in the sun.”
  4. “El coche reluce en el sol todos los días.” — “The car shines in the sun.”

Talking about the past

The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show {verb} in the past, so you can talk about what already happened. 5. “El coche relució en el sol ayer.” — “The car shone in the sun.” (preterite) 6. “El coche relució en el sol ayer.” — “The car shone in the sun.” (preterite) 7. “El coche relucía en el sol cuando era joven.” — “The car used to shine in the sun.” (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 {verb} stays the same. 8. “El coche relucirá en el sol mañana.” — “The car will shine in the sun.” (future) 9. “El coche ha relucido en el sol hoy.” — “The car has shone in the sun.” (present-perfect) 10. “Espero que el coche reluzca en el sol.” — “I hope that the car shines in the sun.” (present-subjunctive)

More everyday uses

Two more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action. 11. “El coche reluce en el sol cada semana.” — “The car shines in the sun.” 12. “Los coches relucen en el sol normalmente.” — “The cars shines in the sun.”

relucir 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 relucir appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.

Dialogue on the phone

Lucía: “¿El coche reluce en el sol?” — The car shines in the sun?

Pedro: “Sí, el coche reluce en el sol cada día.” — Yes, it shines in the sun every day.

Lucía: “¿Y los coches? ¿También relucen en el sol?” — And the others? They shine in the sun too?

Pedro: “Sí, todos relucen en el sol. Es normal.” — Yes, they all shine in the sun. It is normal.

A short paragraph

El coche reluce en el sol cada día — that one sentence already tells you a lot about how relucir works in real Spanish: who does it, when, and with what. Around it you can build a whole paragraph: what happened yesterday, what is happening now, and what will happen tomorrow, all with the same verb. When you write your own paragraph, start with the present — yo reluzco en el sol — then add one past sentence and one future sentence, and you have practised three tenses with one verb. That is the fastest way to make relucir yours: use it in a story, not only in a table.

Common mistakes

Using the unchanged stem

Learners often write reluco for the yo form, keeping the infinitive stem unchanged. The correct form is reluzco. Because relucir changes its stem vowel, the change appears in the stressed syllables of the present: say the correct form out loud a few times — yo reluzco en el sol — until the changed stem feels natural.

Forgetting the accent in the preterite

The yo preterite form is relucí, with an accent on the stressed vowel. Writing it without the accent — reluci — is a spelling error, and in speech the stress lands in the wrong place. Preterite yo forms that end in a vowel carry that accent, so check it every time you write the preterite of relucir.

Mixing up present and preterite nosotros

For relucir, the nosotros form is the same in the present and the preterite: relucimos. Only the context tells you which tense is meant, so pay attention to the time words around it — cada día points to the present, ayer points to the preterite. Do not invent a different form for one of the tenses.

Using ser instead of haber in perfect tenses

Spanish perfect tenses always use haber, never ser: yo he relucido en el sol. English speakers sometimes reach for soy because English uses to be in some passives, but soy relucido is not the present perfect of relucir — it is a passive construction with a different meaning.

Confusing relucir with relacionar

relucir and relacionar look similar, and learners mix them up. They are different verbs with different meanings, so check which one the sentence needs before you conjugate. If you can substitute the English meaning of relucir — shine — the sentence needs relucir; if it needs the meaning of relacionar, use that verb instead.

Quiz

Test yourself on the forms above. Choose the best answer, then check the key below.

1. What is the yo form of relucir in the present?

  • A. reluces
  • B. reluce
  • C. relucimos
  • D. reluzco

2. What is the tu form of relucir in the preterite?

  • A. relucimos
  • B. reluciste
  • C. relucí
  • D. relució

3. What is the el form of relucir in the imperfect?

  • A. relucías
  • B. relucíamos
  • C. relucíais
  • D. relucía

4. What is the nosotros form of relucir in the future?

  • A. relucirá
  • B. reluciremos
  • C. reluciré
  • D. relucirás

5. What is the vosotros form of relucir in the present perfect?

  • A. he relucido
  • B. has relucido
  • C. ha relucido
  • D. habéis relucido

6. What is the ellos form of relucir in the present subjunctive?

  • A. reluzca
  • B. reluzcan
  • C. reluzca
  • D. reluzcas

7. What is the yo form of relucir in the preterite?

  • A. reluciste
  • B. relució
  • C. relucimos
  • D. relucí

8. What is the tu form of relucir in the imperfect?

  • A. relucíamos
  • B. relucías
  • C. relucía
  • D. relucía

9. What is the el form of relucir in the future?

  • A. reluciré
  • B. relucirás
  • C. reluciremos
  • D. relucirá

10. What is the nosotros form of relucir in the conditional?

  • A. reluciría
  • B. reluciríamos
  • C. reluciría
  • D. relucirías

Answer key

  1. reluzco — The present table gives yo = reluzco.
  2. reluciste — The preterite table gives tu = reluciste.
  3. relucía — The imperfect table gives el = relucía.
  4. reluciremos — The future table gives nosotros = reluciremos.
  5. habéis relucido — The present perfect table gives vosotros = habéis relucido.
  6. reluzcan — The present subjunctive table gives ellos = reluzcan.
  7. relucí — The preterite table gives yo = relucí.
  8. relucías — The imperfect table gives tu = relucías.
  9. relucirá — The future table gives el = relucirá.
  10. reluciríamos — The conditional table gives nosotros = reluciríamos.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use relucir in a sentence?

Put the subject first, then the conjugated form, then the rest: “El coche reluce en el sol.” — “The car shines in the sun.” Change the form for the person and the tense, but keep the sentence pattern the same.

What is the most useful form of relucir to learn first?

Learn the present yo form reluzco first, then the preterite yo form relucí and the participle relucido. With those three you can talk about the present, the past and the perfect tenses. Add the gerund reluciendo next, and you can describe actions in progress too.

Is relucir reflexive?

No — relucir is not reflexive. It takes a direct object, not a reflexive pronoun: yo reluzco en el sol. Do not add me or se to it unless the sentence genuinely needs a pronoun for another reason.

Where can I see the full conjugation of relucir?

On the main conjugation page for relucir, which has every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle, plus notes, examples and a quiz. The preterite-tense page covers one tense in depth if that is what you need right now.

Related links