Introduction
Soportar means “to put up with, to bear”, and it is one of the verbs you will use again and again in Spanish. Soportar means to put up with or to bear, and it covers bearing pain, heat, noise and a difficult person: soportar el dolor, soportar el calor. It is a fully regular -ar verb. Note the false friend: soportar never means to support in the sense of holding something up — that is sujetar or apoyar. This page shows soportar 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: “Soporto el dolor de la pierna.” — I bear the pain in his leg.
Soportar in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how soportar 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 soportar in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Soporto el dolor de la pierna.” — I bear the pain in his leg.
“¿Soportas el calor del verano?” — Do you bear the summer heat?
“Soporta el ruido de la obra.” — He/she bears the building-site noise.
“Nosotros soportamos a su jefe en el trabajo.” — We bear his boss at work.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show soportar in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo soporté el dolor de la pierna.” — Yesterday, I bore the pain in his leg. (preterite)
“Antes, él soportaba el calor del verano.” — Before, he used to bear the summer heat. (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 soportar stays the same.
“Mañana, nosotros soportaremos el ruido de la obra.” — Tomorrow, we will bear the building-site noise. (future)
“¿Tú has soportado a su jefe en el trabajo?” — Have you borne his boss at work? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Vosotros soportáis el dolor de la pierna.” — You bear the pain in his leg.
“Ellos soportan el calor del verano.” — They bear the summer heat.
“Yo soporto el ruido de la obra.” — I bear the building-site noise.
“Mi padre soporta a su jefe en el trabajo.” — My father bears his boss at work.
Soportar 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 soportar appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Marta: “¿Tú soportas el calor del verano?” — Do you bear the summer heat?
Pedro: “Sí, yo soporto el dolor de la pierna.” — Yes, I bear the pain in his leg.
Marta: “Nosotros soportamos a su jefe en el trabajo.” — We bear his boss at work.
Pedro: “Y ellos soportan el calor del verano.” — And they bear the summer heat.
Marta: “Vosotros soportáis el ruido de la obra.” — You bear the building-site noise.
Pedro: “Sí, y él soporta el dolor de la pierna.” — Yes, and he bears the pain in his leg.
A short paragraph
Soporta el dolor de la pierna, y nosotros soportamos a su jefe en el trabajo. Yo soporto el calor del verano, y ellos soportan el ruido de la obra. Soportar is part of everyday life, because put up with, to bear is something people do in work, at home and with friends, in the present, the past and the future.
Common mistakes with soportar
These are the errors learners actually make with soportar. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo soporta el dolor de la pierna.” Right: “Yo soporto el dolor de la pierna.” Why: The person matters: soporta is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is soporto. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Ayer yo soporto el calor del verano.” Right: “Ayer yo soporté el calor del verano.” Why: The present and the preterite are different tenses: soporto is happening now, while soporté is a finished action in the past. Use the preterite with ayer.
Wrong: “Treating soportar and aguantar as identical in every context.” Right: “Soportar means to put up with, to bear, while aguantar means to put up with, to endure.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: soportar fits sentences such as Soporto el dolor de la pierna, while aguantar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy soportado el calor del verano.” Right: “Yo he soportado el calor del verano.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he soportado, has soportado, ha soportado. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo soporté el ruido de la obra todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo soportaba el ruido de la obra todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (soportaba), not the preterite. The preterite (soporté) is for one finished action.
Quiz: soportar in use
Ten questions on soportar 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 dolor de la pierna.” (You bear the pain in his leg.)
- (a) soportáis
- (b) soporto
- (c) soportas
Answer: soportáis — The vosotros/as form of soportar in the present tense is soportáis.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ el calor del verano.” (They bear the summer heat.)
- (a) soportas
- (b) soportan
- (c) soporto
Answer: soportan — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of soportar in the present tense is soportan.
3. Complete the sentence (preterite): “Ayer yo ______ el dolor de la pierna.” (Yesterday I bore the pain in his leg.)
- (a) soportaste
- (b) soportó
- (c) soporté
Answer: soporté — In the preterite, the yo form of soportar is soporté.
4. Complete the sentence (imperfect): “Antes, él ______ el calor del verano.” (Before, he used to bear the summer heat.)
- (a) soportaba
- (b) soporto
- (c) soportabas
Answer: soportaba — In the imperfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of soportar is soportaba.
5. Complete the sentence (future): “Mañana, nosotros ______ el ruido de la obra.” (Tomorrow we will bear the building-site noise.)
- (a) soportarás
- (b) soportaremos
- (c) soportaré
Answer: soportaremos — In the future, the nosotros/as form of soportar is soportaremos.
6. What does soportar mean in English?
- (a) to put up with, to bear
- (b) to solve
- (c) to put up with, to endure
Answer: to put up with, to bear — Soportar means “to put up with, to bear”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo soporta el dolor de la pierna.
- (b) Ellos soporta el calor del verano.
- (c) Yo soporto el dolor de la pierna.
Answer: Yo soporto el dolor de la pierna. — “Yo soporto el dolor de la pierna.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I bear the pain in his leg.” in Spanish?
- (a) Mi padre soporta a su jefe en el trabajo.
- (b) Soporto el dolor de la pierna.
- (c) Soportan el dolor de la pierna.
Answer: Soporto el dolor de la pierna. — “Soporto el dolor de la pierna.” is the correct translation.
9. What is the nosotros form of soportar in the present tense?
- (a) soporto
- (b) soportas
- (c) soportamos
Answer: soportamos — The nosotros form is soportamos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Mañana, nosotros soportaremos el ruido de la obra.
- (b) Soporto el dolor de la pierna.
- (c) Ayer, yo soporté el dolor de la pierna.
Answer: Soporto el dolor de la pierna. — “Soporto el dolor de la pierna.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I bear the pain in his leg' in Spanish?
Say 'Soporto el dolor de la pierna'. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Soporto el dolor de la pierna todos los días'.
How do you say 'He bears the summer heat' in Spanish?
Say 'Él soporta el calor del verano'. The subject comes first, and the verb agrees with it: él takes soporta.
What is the difference between soportar and aguantar?
Soportar means to put up with, to bear, while aguantar means to put up with, to endure. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use soportar when you mean to put up with, to bear, as in 'Soporto el dolor de la pierna', and use aguantar for to put up with, to endure.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of soportar — every tense of soportar in one place.
- Soportar 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 soportar and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of soportar until they are automatic.