Rendir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Spanish

rendir means "to surrender, to yield" in English, and this page shows you how it actually sounds in everyday Spanish — not just the conjugation table, but the verb in real sentences, in short dialogues, and in the mistakes learners make with it. Rendir means to surrender or yield: rendir las armas, rendirse ante el enemigo. It also appears in set phrases: rendir homenaje (to pay tribute), rendir cuentas (to give an account), and in Latin America rendir un examen (to sit an exam). Below you will find twelve example sentences grouped by use, two short dialogues, the most common mistakes with corrections, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. If you want the full tables first, start with the full conjugation of rendir; if you want to study one tense in depth, see the rendir present tense page.

rendir in everyday use: examples with translations

Everyday present uses

How the verb sounds in the present, the future and in hypotheticals — the forms you will use most often.

  1. Yo rindo las armas ante el enemigo — "I surrender his weapons before the enemy"
  2. Mi amigo rinde el castillo tras el asedio — "My friend surrenders the castle after the siege"
  3. Mañana, tú rendirás su espada al vencedor — "Tomorrow, you will surrender his sword to the victor"
  4. Yo rendiría ante la evidencia de los hechos si pudiera — "I would surrender in the face of the evidence if I could"

Talking about the past

The same verb in the past: one finished action, a habit, something that has just happened, and something that had already happened.

  1. Ayer, yo rendí las armas ante el enemigo — "Yesterday, I surrendered his weapons before the enemy"
  2. Antes, nosotros rendíamos el castillo tras el asedio — "Before, we used to surrender the castle after the siege"
  3. Él ha rendido su espada al vencedor — "He has surrendered his sword to the victor"
  4. Yo ya había rendido ante la evidencia de los hechos antes de salir — "I already had surrendered in the face of the evidence before leaving"

Wishes, conditions and commands

The verb after espero que, in si clauses, as a command — and in the conditional perfect, for what would have happened.

  1. Espero que él rinda las armas ante el enemigo — "I hope he surrenders his weapons before the enemy"
  2. Si yo rindiera el castillo tras el asedio, todo cambiaría — "If I surrendered the castle after the siege, everything would change"
  3. Rinde su espada al vencedor. — "Surrender his sword to the victor."
  4. Yo habría rendido ante la evidencia de los hechos con más tiempo — "I would have surrendered in the face of the evidence with more time"

rendir in conversation

Two short dialogues that use rendir the way people really speak it. Notice how the verb changes with the person, and how the same verb fits different situations.

Two friends talk about it.

  • Lucía: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Lucía: Yo rindo las armas ante el enemigo — "I surrender his weapons before the enemy"
  • Marcos: Él rinde el castillo tras el asedio — "He surrenders the castle after the siege"
  • Lucía: Ayer, yo rendí su espada al vencedor — "Yesterday, I surrendered his sword to the victor"
  • Marcos: Mañana, tú rendirás ante la evidencia de los hechos — "Tomorrow, you will surrender in the face of the evidence"

A practical exchange.

  • Marcos: Hola, ¿qué tal? — "Hello, how are you?"
  • Marcos: Rinde su voluntad tras la derrota. — "Surrender his will after the defeat."
  • Lucía: Él ha rendido las armas ante el enemigo — "He has surrendered his weapons before the enemy"
  • Marcos: Espero que él rinda el castillo tras el asedio — "I hope he surrenders the castle after the siege"
  • Lucía: Antes, yo rendía su espada al vencedor — "Before, I used to surrender his sword to the victor"

Common mistakes with rendir

The errors learners actually make with rendir, each with the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.

✗ *Yo rendo ante la evidencia de los hechos.

✓ Correct: Yo rindo ante la evidencia de los hechos.

rendir is a stem-changing verb (e → i): the stem vowel changes in the stressed present forms, so the yo form is rindo, not rendo.

✗ *Espero que él rinde ante la evidencia de los hechos

✓ Correct: Espero que él rinda ante la evidencia de los hechos

After espero que, Spanish requires the subjunctive: Espero que él rinda ante la evidencia de los hechos — not the indicative Espero que él rinde ante la evidencia de los hechos.

✗ *Ayer, yo rindo su voluntad tras la derrota

✓ Correct: Ayer, yo rendí su voluntad tras la derrota

Ayer points to a finished action in the past, so it needs the preterite: Ayer, yo rendí su voluntad tras la derrota.

✗ *De niño, yo rendí las armas ante el enemigo todos los días

✓ Correct: De niño, yo rendía las armas ante el enemigo todos los días

For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect, not the preterite: De niño, yo rendía las armas ante el enemigo todos los días.

✗ *Yo rindo en su espada al vencedor.

✓ Correct: Yo rindo su espada al vencedor.

rendir takes this complement directly, with no preposition: Yo rindo su espada al vencedor.

Quiz: rendir in use

Ten questions on rendir — its forms, its tenses and its everyday use. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below, where every answer is explained.

  1. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ las armas ante el enemigo — "I surrender his weapons before the enemy" (present) A. rindo B. rindes C. rinde D. rendimos

  2. Complete the sentence: Ayer, yo ______ el castillo tras el asedio — "Yesterday, I surrendered the castle after the siege" (preterite) A. rendí B. rendiste C. rindió D. rendimos

  3. Complete the sentence: Antes, nosotros ______ su espada al vencedor — "Before, we used to surrender his sword to the victor" (imperfect) A. rendía B. rendías C. rendíais D. rendíamos

  4. Complete the sentence: Mañana, tú ______ ante la evidencia de los hechos — "Tomorrow, you will surrender in the face of the evidence" (future) A. rendirá B. rendiremos C. rendirás D. rendiré

  5. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ su voluntad tras la derrota — "I would surrender his will after the defeat" (conditional) A. rendiríais B. rendiría C. rendirías D. rendiríamos

  6. Complete the sentence: Él ______ las armas ante el enemigo — "He has surrendered his weapons before the enemy" (present perfect) A. hemos rendido B. ha rendido C. he rendido D. has rendido

  7. Complete the sentence: Espero que él ______ el castillo tras el asedio — "I hope he surrenders the castle after the siege" (present subjunctive) A. rindas B. rindamos C. rindáis D. rinda

  8. Complete the sentence: ______ su espada al vencedor. — "Surrender his sword to the victor." (affirmative imperative) A. rinda B. rindamos C. rendid D. rinde

  9. Which is the gerund of rendir, used with estar for the progressive? A. rindo B. rendí C. rindiendo D. rendido

  10. What does rendir mean in English? A. to surrender B. to surrender oneself C. to enjoy D. to cross

Answer key

  1. rindo — The present form for yo is rindo.
  2. rendí — The preterite form for yo is rendí.
  3. rendíamos — The imperfect form for nosotros/as is rendíamos.
  4. rendirás — The future form for tú is rendirás.
  5. rendiría — The conditional form for yo is rendiría.
  6. ha rendido — The present perfect form for él/ella/Ud. is ha rendido.
  7. rinda — The present subjunctive form for él/ella/Ud. is rinda.
  8. rinde — The affirmative imperative form is rinde.
  9. rindiendo — The gerund of rendir is rindiendo: estoy rindiendo. The participle rendido is used with haber instead.
  10. to surrender — rendir means to surrender.

Frequently asked questions

What does rendir mean in English?

rendir means to surrender, to yield. For example: Yo rindo las armas ante el enemigo — "I surrender his weapons before the enemy". The exact English wording depends on the context, but the core meaning stays the same across the tenses.

What preposition goes with rendir?

rendir takes its complement directly, with no preposition, as in the examples above. Adding an extra preposition is a common learner error.

Is rendir regular?

No. rendir is a stem-changing -ir verb (e → i). The stem vowel changes in the stressed forms of the present: rindo, rindes, rinde and rinden — but nosotros and vosotros keep the plain stem: rendimos, rendís. In the preterite the third-person forms change too: rindió, rindieron, and the gerund is rindiendo.

How do I practise rendir?

Start with the present tense table on the full conjugation page, then drill the preterite and the imperfect, since those two past tenses cause the most mistakes. Try the Spanish Verb Quiz to test the forms under pressure, and come back to the sentences above until you can say them without looking.

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