Retroceder Examples, Sentences and Quiz
Retroceder means “to go back, to reverse”, and it is one of the verbs you will use every day in Spanish. Retroceder means to go back or to reverse, and it is used for reversing a car, going back on a decision and a situation getting worse. It is fully regular, and it is the opposite of adelantar in driving contexts. This page shows retroceder 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 retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” — I go back with the car in the garage.
Retroceder in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how retroceder 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 retroceder in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” — I go back with the car in the garage.
“¿Tú retrocedes en su decisión tras la reunión?” — Do you go back on his decision after the meeting?
“Retrocede hasta la puerta sin mirar.” — He/she goes back to the door without looking.
“Retrocedemos poco a poco por el pasillo.” — We go back little by little down the corridor.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show retroceder in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo retrocedí con el coche en el garaje.” — Yesterday, I went back with the car in the garage. (preterite)
“Él retrocedía en su decisión tras la reunión todos los días.” — He used to go back on his decision after the meeting 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 retroceder stays the same.
“Nosotros retrocederemos hasta la puerta sin mirar mañana.” — We will go back to the door without looking tomorrow. (future)
“¿Tú has retrocedido poco a poco por el pasillo?” — Have you gone back little by little down the corridor? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Retrocedéis con el coche en el garaje.” — You go back with the car in the garage.
“Retroceden en su decisión tras la reunión.” — They go back on his decision after the meeting.
“Retrocedo hasta la puerta sin mirar.” — I go back to the door without looking.
“Retrocede poco a poco por el pasillo.” — He/she goes back little by little down the corridor.
Retroceder 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 retroceder appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Lucía: “¿Tú retrocedes con el coche en el garaje?” — Do you go back with the car in the garage?
Carlos: “Sí, yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” — Yes, I go back with the car in the garage.
Lucía: “Nosotros retrocedemos en su decisión tras la reunión.” — We go back on his decision after the meeting.
Carlos: “Y ellos retroceden hasta la puerta sin mirar.” — And they go back to the door without looking.
Lucía: “Vosotros retrocedéis poco a poco por el pasillo.” — You go back little by little down the corridor.
Carlos: “Sí, y él retrocede en su decisión tras la reunión.” — Yes, and he goes back on his decision after the meeting.
A short paragraph
Lucía retrocede con el coche en el garaje, y Carlos retrocede en su decisión tras la reunión. Nosotros retrocedemos hasta la puerta sin mirar, y ellos retroceden poco a poco por el pasillo. Yo retrocedo hasta la puerta sin mirar, y mi padre retrocede poco a poco por el pasillo. Retroceder is part of everyday life, because to go back, to reverse is something Spanish speakers do again and again, in every tense and every situation.
Common mistakes with retroceder
These are the errors learners actually make with retroceder. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo retrocede con el coche en el garaje.” Right: “Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” Why: The person matters: retrocede is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is retrocedo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Ayer yo retrocedo en su decisión tras la reunión.” Right: “Ayer yo retrocedí en su decisión tras la reunión.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: retrocedo is happening now, while retrocedí is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating retroceder and adelantar as identical in every context.” Right: “Retroceder means to go back, to reverse, while adelantar means to overtake.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: retroceder fits sentences such as Retrocedo con el coche en el garaje, while adelantar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy retrocedido en su decisión tras la reunión.” Right: “Yo he retrocedido en su decisión tras la reunión.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he retrocedido, has retrocedido, ha retrocedido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo retrocedí hasta la puerta sin mirar todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo retrocedía hasta la puerta sin mirar todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (retrocedía), not the preterite. The preterite (retrocedí) is for one finished action.
Quiz: retroceder in use
Ten questions on retroceder 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 coche en el garaje.” (With the car in the garage.)
- (a) retrocedéis
- (b) retrocedo
- (c) retrocedes
Answer: retrocedéis — The vosotros/as form of retroceder in the present is retrocedéis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ en su decisión tras la reunión.” (On his decision after the meeting.)
- (a) retrocedo
- (b) retrocedes
- (c) retroceden
Answer: retroceden — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of retroceder in the present is retroceden.
3. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ con el coche en el garaje.” (With the car in the garage.)
- (a) retrocedió
- (b) retrocedí
- (c) retrocediste
Answer: retrocedí — The yo form of retroceder in the preterite is retrocedí.
4. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ en su decisión tras la reunión.” (On his decision after the meeting.)
- (a) retrocedía
- (b) retrocedías
- (c) retrocedíamos
Answer: retrocedía — The él/ella/Ud. form of retroceder in the imperfect is retrocedía.
5. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ hasta la puerta sin mirar.” (To the door without looking.)
- (a) retrocederé
- (b) retrocederás
- (c) retrocederemos
Answer: retrocederemos — The nosotros/as form of retroceder in the future is retrocederemos.
6. What does retroceder mean in English?
- (a) to stop, to detain
- (b) to go back, to reverse
- (c) to overtake
Answer: to go back, to reverse — Retroceder means “to go back, to reverse”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.
- (b) Ellos retrocede con el coche en el garaje.
- (c) Yo retrocedo en su decisión tras la reunión ayer.
Answer: Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje. — “Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I go back with the car in the garage.” in Spanish?
- (a) Yo retroceden con el coche en el garaje.
- (b) Yo retrocedí con el coche en el garaje.
- (c) Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.
Answer: Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje. — “Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” 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 retroceder in the present tense?
- (a) retrocedes
- (b) retrocedemos
- (c) retrocedo
Answer: retrocedemos — The nosotros form is retrocedemos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Ayer, yo retrocedí con el coche en el garaje.
- (b) Nosotros retrocederemos con el coche en el garaje mañana.
- (c) Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.
Answer: Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje. — “Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I go back' in Spanish?
Say 'Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje'. The complement follows directly, as in the examples above. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Yo retrocedo con el coche en el garaje todos los días'.
How do you say 'I go back' in the past?
For one finished action, say 'Ayer, yo retrocedí en su decisión tras la reunión'. For a repeated habit, say 'Yo retrocedía en su decisión tras la reunión todos los días'. For something already done, say 'Yo he retrocedido en su decisión tras la reunión'.
What is the difference between retroceder and adelantar?
Retroceder means to go back, to reverse, while adelantar means to overtake. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use retroceder when you mean to go back, to reverse, as in Retrocedo con el coche en el garaje.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of retroceder — every tense of retroceder in one place.
- Retroceder 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 retroceder and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of retroceder until they are automatic.