Introduction
Urgir means “to be urgent”, and it is one of the verbs you will use again and again in Spanish. Urgir means to be urgent or to urge, and it is used when something cannot wait: urge una respuesta, urge reparar la gotera. The subject is usually the thing that is urgent, and the verb is most common in the third person. It is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so yo urjo and the subjunctive urja. This page shows urgir 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: “Urjo una respuesta inmediata.” — I be urgent an immediate answer.
Urgir in real example sentences
The twelve sentences below are grouped by how urgir 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 urgir in the present tense, which is how you will meet it most often: routines, facts, and things happening now.
“Urjo una respuesta inmediata.” — I be urgent an immediate answer.
“¿Urges una decisión antes del viernes?” — Do you be urgent a decision before Friday?
“Urge reparar la gotera.” — He/she is urgent repairing the leak.
“Nosotros urgimos que alguien llame al médico.” — We be urgent someone calling the doctor.
Talking about the past
The present is not the only tense you need. These sentences show urgir in the past, so you can talk about what already happened.
“Ayer, yo urgí una respuesta inmediata.” — Yesterday, I was urgent an immediate answer. (preterite)
“Antes, él urgía una decisión antes del viernes.” — Before, he used to be urgent a decision before Friday. (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 urgir stays the same.
“Mañana, nosotros urgiremos reparar la gotera.” — Tomorrow, we will be urgent repairing the leak. (future)
“¿Tú has urgido que alguien llame al médico?” — Have you been urgent someone calling the doctor? (present perfect)
More everyday uses
Four more present-tense sentences, covering the remaining persons, so you can see the whole table in action.
“Vosotros urgís una respuesta inmediata.” — You be urgent an immediate answer.
“Ellos urgen una decisión antes del viernes.” — They be urgent a decision before Friday.
“Yo urjo reparar la gotera.” — I be urgent repairing the leak.
“Mi padre urge que alguien llame al médico.” — My father is urgent someone calling the doctor.
Urgir 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 urgir appears naturally, without anyone stopping to think about conjugation.
A short dialogue
Marta: “¿Tú urges una decisión antes del viernes?” — Do you be urgent a decision before Friday?
Pedro: “Sí, yo urjo una respuesta inmediata.” — Yes, I be urgent an immediate answer.
Marta: “Nosotros urgimos que alguien llame al médico.” — We be urgent someone calling the doctor.
Pedro: “Y ellos urgen una decisión antes del viernes.” — And they be urgent a decision before Friday.
Marta: “Vosotros urgís reparar la gotera.” — You be urgent repairing the leak.
Pedro: “Sí, y él urge una respuesta inmediata.” — Yes, and he is urgent an immediate answer.
A short paragraph
Urge una respuesta inmediata, y nosotros urgimos que alguien llame al médico. Yo urjo una decisión antes del viernes, y ellos urgen reparar la gotera. Urgir is part of everyday life, because be urgent is something people do in work, at home and with friends, in the present, the past and the future.
Common mistakes with urgir
These are the errors learners actually make with urgir. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Yo urge una respuesta inmediata.” Right: “Yo urjo una respuesta inmediata.” Why: The person matters: urge is the él/ella/Ud. form, while the yo form is urjo. Using the third-person form with yo is one of the most common beginner errors.
Wrong: “Yo urgo una decisión antes del viernes.” Right: “Yo urjo una decisión antes del viernes.” Why: Urgir is a -gir verb: g becomes j before o and a, so the present first person is urjo and the present subjunctive is urja. The form urjo follows that pattern, not the plain stem plus -o.
Wrong: “Treating urgir and apresurar as identical in every context.” Right: “Urgir means to be urgent, while apresurar means to hurry.” Why: They overlap, but each has uses the other does not: urgir fits sentences such as Urjo una respuesta inmediata, while apresurar belongs in a different sentence. Check the meaning you want before choosing.
Wrong: “Yo soy urgido una decisión antes del viernes.” Right: “Yo he urgido una decisión antes del viernes.” Why: Spanish perfect tenses use haber, not ser: he urgido, has urgido, ha urgido. Ser plus the participle makes a passive, not a perfect tense.
Wrong: “De niño, yo urgí reparar la gotera todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo urgía reparar la gotera todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (urgía), not the preterite. The preterite (urgí) is for one finished action.
Quiz: urgir in use
Ten questions on urgir in real sentences. Choose the correct answer for each one, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained.
1. Complete the sentence: “Vosotros ______ una respuesta inmediata.” (You be urgent an immediate answer.)
- (a) urgís
- (b) urjo
- (c) urges
Answer: urgís — The vosotros/as form of urgir in the present tense is urgís.
2. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ una decisión antes del viernes.” (They be urgent a decision before Friday.)
- (a) urges
- (b) urgen
- (c) urjo
Answer: urgen — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of urgir in the present tense is urgen.
3. Complete the sentence (preterite): “Ayer yo ______ una respuesta inmediata.” (Yesterday I was urgent an immediate answer.)
- (a) urgiste
- (b) urgió
- (c) urgí
Answer: urgí — In the preterite, the yo form of urgir is urgí.
4. Complete the sentence (imperfect): “Antes, él ______ una decisión antes del viernes.” (Before, he used to be urgent a decision before Friday.)
- (a) urgía
- (b) urjo
- (c) urgías
Answer: urgía — In the imperfect, the él/ella/Ud. form of urgir is urgía.
5. Complete the sentence (future): “Mañana, nosotros ______ reparar la gotera.” (Tomorrow we will be urgent repairing the leak.)
- (a) urgirás
- (b) urgiremos
- (c) urgiré
Answer: urgiremos — In the future, the nosotros/as form of urgir is urgiremos.
6. What does urgir mean in English?
- (a) to be urgent
- (b) to join, to unite
- (c) to hurry
Answer: to be urgent — Urgir means “to be urgent”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- (a) Yo urge una respuesta inmediata.
- (b) Ellos urge una decisión antes del viernes.
- (c) Yo urjo una respuesta inmediata.
Answer: Yo urjo una respuesta inmediata. — “Yo urjo una respuesta inmediata.” is correct. The other two sentences contain the mistakes explained in the section above.
8. How do you say “I be urgent an immediate answer.” in Spanish?
- (a) Mi padre urge que alguien llame al médico.
- (b) Urjo una respuesta inmediata.
- (c) Urgen una respuesta inmediata.
Answer: Urjo una respuesta inmediata. — “Urjo una respuesta inmediata.” is the correct translation.
9. What is the nosotros form of urgir in the present tense?
- (a) urjo
- (b) urges
- (c) urgimos
Answer: urgimos — The nosotros form is urgimos.
10. Which of these sentences is in the present tense?
- (a) Mañana, nosotros urgiremos reparar la gotera.
- (b) Urjo una respuesta inmediata.
- (c) Ayer, yo urgí una respuesta inmediata.
Answer: Urjo una respuesta inmediata. — “Urjo una respuesta inmediata.” is in the present tense. The other two are in the preterite and the future.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say 'I be urgent an immediate answer' in Spanish?
Say 'Urjo una respuesta inmediata'. For a routine, add a time expression: 'Urjo una respuesta inmediata todos los días'.
How do you say 'He is urgent a decision before Friday' in Spanish?
Say 'Él urge una decisión antes del viernes'. The subject comes first, and the verb agrees with it: él takes urge.
What is the difference between urgir and apresurar?
Urgir means to be urgent, while apresurar means to hurry. They are easy to confuse because they appear in similar situations, but they are not interchangeable: use urgir when you mean to be urgent, as in 'Urjo una respuesta inmediata', and use apresurar for to hurry.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of urgir — every tense of urgir in one place.
- Urgir 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 urgir and other verbs.
- Conjugation practice — drill the forms of urgir until they are automatic.