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SPANISH VERB

acabar

to end up; to finish

  • #52 most used
  • Regular -ar verb
  • Gerund: acabando
  • Past participle: acabado

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I end up
  2. tú you end up
  3. usted, él, ella he/she ends up
  4. nosotros we end up
  5. vosotros Spain you all end up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they end up

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I ended up
  2. tú you ended up
  3. usted, él, ella he/she ended up
  4. nosotros we ended up
  5. vosotros Spain you all ended up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they ended up

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I used to end up
  2. tú you used to end up
  3. usted, él, ella he/she used to end up
  4. nosotros we used to end up
  5. vosotros Spain you all used to end up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to end up

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I will end up
  2. tú you will end up
  3. usted, él, ella he/she will end up
  4. nosotros we will end up
  5. vosotros Spain you all will end up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they will end up

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I would end up
  2. tú you would end up
  3. usted, él, ella he/she would end up
  4. nosotros we would end up
  5. vosotros Spain you all would end up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they would end up

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I end up
  2. tú (that) you end up
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she end up
  4. nosotros (that) we end up
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all end up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they end up

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I ended up
  2. tú (if) you ended up
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she ended up
  4. nosotros (if) we ended up
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all ended up
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they ended up

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú end up!
  2. usted end up! (formal)
  3. nosotros end up! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain end up! (all of you)
  5. ustedes end up! (all of you)

How to use acabar

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    La clase de salsa acaba a las nueve.

    The salsa class finishes at nine.

  2. Past

    Acabamos cenando tacos en la calle, como siempre.

    We ended up having tacos in the street for dinner, as always.

  3. Imperfect

    Las fiestas de mi tía nunca acababan antes del amanecer.

    My aunt's parties never ended before dawn.

  4. Future

    ¿A qué hora acabará el partido? Tengo que irme.

    What time will the game end? I have to go.

  5. Conditional

    Sin tu ayuda, acabaría el trabajo hasta la medianoche.

    Without your help, I wouldn't finish the work until midnight.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Cuando acabes la tarea, vamos por un helado.

    When you finish your homework, we'll go for ice cream.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Nunca imaginé que acabara viviendo tan lejos de casa.

    I never imagined I'd end up living so far from home.

  8. Imperative

    ¡Acaba tu sopa, que se enfría!

    Finish your soup, it's getting cold!

Good to know

  • "Acabar de" plus a verb is to have just done it: acabo de llegar.
  • "Acabar" plus a gerund is to end up: acabé viviendo en Oaxaca. "Se acabó" is "it's over" or "it's all gone".

Where you hear acabar

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Intermediate Level 2

  • La clase acaba a las cinco. The class finishes at five.
  • Acabé en Oaxaca por Valeria. I ended up in Oaxaca because of Valeria.
  • Vas a acabar viviendo en la playa. You're going to end up living on the beach.

Spanish · Advanced Level 3

  • El turno acaba a las tres. The shift finishes at three.
  • Acabé las notas a las cuatro. I finished the notes at four.
  • Vamos a acabar el libro en junio. We're going to finish the book in June.
23
Do You Remember Me?

Intermediate Level 2 · acabaste

Needs a subscription 8
The Last Birth

Advanced Level 3 · acabas de atender · acaba de nacer

Needs a subscription 25
Coins, Godmother!

Advanced Level 3 · se me han acabado

Needs a subscription 2
Let's Get to Work

Fluency Level 2 · acabáis en Navidad

Free

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -ar verb.