acabar

Asturian

Etymology

Inherited from Vulgar Latin *accapāre. Compare Spanish and Portuguese acabar.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /akaˈbaɾ/, [a.kaˈβ̞aɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Hyphenation: a‧ca‧bar

Verb

acabar (first-person singular indicative present acabo, past participle acabáu)

1. to finish, end, finish off
2. to manage, succeed
3. (acabar de facer) To have just done (something)
4. to die, die out

Conjugation

Conjugation of acabar

infinitive		acabar
gerund		acabando
past participle		m acabáu, f acabada, n acabao, m pl acabaos, f pl acabaes
person		first singular yo	second singular tu	third singular él/elli	first plural nosotros/nós	second plural vosotros/vós	third plural ellos
indicative	present	acabo	acabes	acaba	acabamos	acabáis	acaben
	imperfect	acababa	acababes	acababa	acabábemos, acabábamos	acababeis, acababais	acababen
	preterite	acabé	acabasti, acabesti	acabó	acabemos	acabastis, acabestis	acabaron
	pluperfect	acabare, acabara	acabares, acabaras	acabare, acabara	acabáremos, acabáramos	acabareis, acabarais	acabaren, acabaran
	future	acabaré	acabarás	acabará	acabaremos	acabaréis	acabarán
	conditional	acabaría	acabaríes	acabaría	acabaríemos, acabaríamos	acabaríeis, acabaríais	acabaríen
subjunctive	present	acabe	acabes, acabas	acabe	acabemos	acabéis	acaben, acaban
	imperfect	acabare, acabara	acabares, acabaras	acabare, acabara	acabáremos, acabáramos	acabareis, acabarais	acabaren, acabaran
imperative		—	acaba	—	—	acabái	—

Related terms

• cabu

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Vulgar Latin *accapāre. Compare Occitan acabar.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ə.kəˈβa]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ə.kəˈba]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [a.kaˈbaɾ]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -a(ɾ)

Verb

acabar (first-person singular present acabo, first-person singular preterite acabí, past participle acabat)

1. (transitive) to finish, complete

   Ella ha acabat el batxillerat. ― She finished high school.

2. (transitive, reflexive) to finish, complete

   El nen s'ha acabat el llibre. ― The boy has finished the book.

3. (transitive) to give last touch to something

   Synonym: donar l'última mà

4. (transitive) to use up, to exhaust

   Synonym: exhaurir

   Han acabat els diners. ― They have run out of money.

5. (transitive, reflexive) to use up, to exhaust

   Synonym: exhaurir

   Ella s'ha acabat l'aigua. ― She has run out of water.

6. (intransitive, reflexive) to run out, to be used up

   S'ha acabat l'aigua. ― The water has run out.

   s'ha acabat el bròquil!

   that's enough!

   (literally, “The broccoli has run out”)

   used to end a conversation, a list of objections, etc.

7. (intransitive) to end

   Creia que el món acabaria ― I/he/she thought the world was going to end

   On acaba aquest camí? ― Where does this path end?

   acabar com el rosari de l'aurora

   to end up in fights and in an unfriendly way

   (literally, “to end like the rosary at dawn”)

8. (intransitive, reflexive) to end

   Això no s'acaba mai ― This isn't ending ever

   El camí s'acaba aquí ― The path ends here.

9. to have just done or completed something [with de (+ infinitive)]

   Acaba d'arribar. ― It has just arrived.

10. (in the negative) to fail to do something [with de (+ infinitive)]

    No ho acabo d'entendre. ― I didn't understand that.

11. (transitive) to end up, wind up

    Acabarà penjat. ― He'll end up hanged.

12. (auxiliary followed by a gerund) to get finally to do something or to reach a certain state

    Acabarà tornant ― It will come again.

13. to get finally to do something or to reach a certain state [with per (+ infinitive)]

    Acabarà per no tornar. ― It won't come again.

Conjugation

    Conjugation of acabar (first conjugation)

infinitive			acabar
gerund			acabant
past participle				masculine		feminine
		singular		acabat		acabada
		plural		acabats		acabades
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		jo	tu	ell/ella vostè	nosaltres nós	vosaltres vós	ells/elles vostès
	present	acabo	acabes	acaba	acabem	acabeu	acaben
	imperfect	acabava	acabaves	acabava	acabàvem	acabàveu	acabaven
	future	acabaré	acabaràs	acabarà	acabarem	acabareu	acabaran
	preterite	acabí	acabares	acabà	acabàrem	acabàreu	acabaren
	conditional	acabaria	acabaries	acabaria	acabaríem	acabaríeu	acabarien
subjunctive		jo	tu	ell/ella vostè	nosaltres nós	vosaltres vós	ells/elles vostès
	present	acabi	acabis	acabi	acabem	acabeu	acabin
	imperfect	acabés	acabessis	acabés	acabéssim	acabéssiu	acabessin
imperative		—	tu	vostè	nosaltres	vosaltres vós	vostès
	affirmative	—	acaba	acabi	acabem	acabeu	acabin
	negative (no)	—	no acabis	no acabi	no acabem	no acabeu	no acabin

Derived terms

• acabador
• acaballes
• acabament
• s'ha acabat el bròquil

 

Further reading

• “acabar” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “acabar”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “acabar” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “acabar” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Galician

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese acabar, from Vulgar Latin *accapāre. Compare Spanish and Portuguese acabar.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /akaˈbaɾ/ [ɑ.kɑˈβ̞aɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Hyphenation: a‧ca‧bar

Verb

acabar (first-person singular present acabo, first-person singular preterite acabei, past participle acabado)

1. (intransitive) to finish
2. (transitive) to complete, finish
3. (catenative) to end up [with gerund ‘doing something’]
4. (catenative) to have just [with de (+ infinitive) ‘done something’]

   Acabo de chegar a casa. ― I have just gotten home.

5. (intransitive) to destroy completely, to defeat thoroughly; to put an end to [with con]

Conjugation

    Conjugation of acabar

	Singular			Plural
	First-person (eu)	Second-person (ti)	Third-person (el / ela / Vde.)	First-person (nós)	Second-person (vós)	Third-person (eles / elas / Vdes.)
Infinitive
Impersonal	acabar
Personal	acabar	acabares	acabar	acabarmos	acabardes	acabaren
Gerund
	acabando
Past participle
Masculine	acabado			acabados
Feminine	acabada			acabadas
Indicative
Present	acabo	acabas	acaba	acabamos	acabades	acaban
Imperfect	acababa	acababas	acababa	acababamos	acababades	acababan
Preterite	acabei	acabaches	acabou	acabamos	acabastes	acabaron
Pluperfect	acabara	acabaras	acabara	acabaramos	acabarades	acabaran
Future	acabarei	acabarás	acabará	acabaremos	acabaredes	acabarán
Conditional	acabaría	acabarías	acabaría	acabariamos	acabariades	acabarían
Subjunctive
Present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabemos	acabedes	acaben
Imperfect	acabase	acabases	acabase	acabásemos	acabásedes	acabasen
Future	acabar	acabares	acabar	acabarmos	acabardes	acabaren
Imperative
Affirmative		acaba	acabe	acabemos	acabade	acaben
Negative (non)		non acabes	non acabe	non acabemos	non acabedes	non acaben

    Reintegrated conjugation of acabar (See Appendix:Reintegrationism)

	Singular			Plural
	First-person (eu)	Second-person (ti / tu)	Third-person (ele / ela / você)	First-person (nós)	Second-person (vós)	Third-person (eles / elas / vocês)
Infinitive
Impersonal	acabar
Personal	acabar	acabares	acabar	acabarmos	acabardes	acabarem
Gerund
	acabando
Past participle
Masculine	acabado			acabados
Feminine	acabada			acabadas
Indicative
Present	acabo	acabas	acaba	acabamos	acabades, acabais	acabam
Imperfect	acabava	acabavas	acabava	acabávamos	acabávades, acabáveis, acabávais1	acabavam
Preterite	acabei	acabaste, acabache1	acabou	acabamos	acabastes	acabárom, acabaram
Pluperfect	acabara	acabaras	acabara	acabáramos	acabárades, acabáreis, acabárais1	acabaram
Future	acabarei	acabarás	acabará	acabaremos	acabaredes, acabareis	acabarám, acabarão
Conditional	acabaria	acabarias	acabaria	acabaríamos	acabaríades, acabaríeis, acabaríais1	acabariam
Subjunctive
Present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabemos	acabedes, acabeis	acabem
Imperfect	acabasse	acabasses	acabasse	acabássemos	acabássedes, acabásseis	acabassem
Future	acabar	acabares	acabar	acabarmos	acabardes	acabarem
Imperative
Affirmative		acaba	acabe	acabemos	acabade, acabai	acabem
Negative (nom)		nom acabes	nom acabe	nom acabemos	nom acabedes, nom acabeis	nom acabem

¹Less recommended.

Related terms

• cabo

References

• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “acabar”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Xavier Varela Barreiro, Xavier Gómez Guinovart (2006–2018) “acab”, in Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: ILG
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “acabar”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “acabar”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “acabar”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN

Occitan

Alternative forms

• chabar

Etymology

From Old Occitan, from Vulgar Latin *accapāre. Compare Catalan acabar.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Verb

acabar

1. to finish; to complete

Conjugation

    Lengadocian (Central Occitan)

		simple			compound
infinitive		acabar			aver acabat
gerund		acabant			use gerund of aver + past participle
past participle		acabat			—
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		ieu	tu	el	nosautres	vosautres	eles
	present	acabi	acabas	acaba	acabam	acabatz	acaban
	imperfect	acabavi	acabavas	acabava	acabàvem	acabàvetz	acabavan
	preterite	acabèri	acabères	acabèt	acabèrem	acabèretz	acabèron
	future	acabarai	acabaràs	acabarà	acabarem	acabaretz	acabaràn
	conditional	acabariái	acabariás	acabariá	acabariam	acabariatz	acabarián
	conditional 2nd form1	acabèra	acabèras	acabèra	acaberam	acaberatz	acabèran
compound tenses	present perfect	use the present tense of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle
	past anterior	use the preterite tense of aver + past participle
	future perfect	use the future tense of aver + past participle
	conditional perfect	use the conditional tense of aver + past participle
subjunctive		que ieu	que tu	que el	que nosautres	que vosautres	que eles
	present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabem	acabetz	acaben
	imperfect	acabèssi	acabèsses	acabèsse	acabèssem	acabèssetz	acabèsson
compound tenses	past	use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle
imperative		—	tu	—	nosautres	vosautres	—
			acaba		acabem	acabatz	1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects

    Auvernhàs

		simple			compound
infinitive		acabar			aver acabat
gerund		acabant			use gerund of aver + past participle
past participle		acabat			—
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		ieu	tu	el	nosautres	vosautres	eles
	present	acabe	acabes	acaba	acabam	acabatz	acabon
	imperfect	acabave	acabaves	acabava	acabaviam	acabaviatz	acabavon
	preterite	acabere	acaberes	acabet	acabem	acabetz	acaberon
	future	acabarai	acabaràs	acabará	acabarem	acabaretz	acabarán
	conditional	acabariá	acabariás	acabariá	acabariam	acabariatz	acabarián
	conditional 2nd form1	acabèra	acabèras	acabèra	acaberam	acaberatz	acabèran
compound tenses	present perfect	use the present tense of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle
	past anterior	use the preterite tense of aver + past participle
	future perfect	use the future tense of aver + past participle
	conditional perfect	use the conditional tense of aver + past participle
subjunctive		que ieu	que tu	que el	que nosautres	que vosautres	que eles
	present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabassiam	acabassiatz	acabon
	imperfect	acabesse	acabesses	acabesse	acabessiam	acabessiatz	acabesson
compound tenses	past	use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle
imperative		—	tu	—	nosautres	vosautres	—
			acaba		acabassiam	acabatz	1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects

    Gascon

		simple			compound
infinitive		acabar			aver acabat
gerund		acabant			use gerund of aver + past participle
past participle		acabat			—
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		ieu	tu	el	nosautres	vosautres	eles
	present	acabi	acabas	acaba	acabam	acabatz	acaban
	imperfect	acabavi	acabavas	acabava	acabàvam	acabàvatz	acabavan
	preterite	acabèi	acabès	acabè	acabèm	acabètz	acabèn
	future	acabarèi	acabaràs	acabarà	acabaram	acabaratz	acabaràn
	conditional	acabarí	acabarés	acabaré	acabarem	acabaretz	acabarén
	conditional 2nd form1	acabèra	acabèras	acabèra	acaberam	acaberatz	acabèran
compound tenses	present perfect	use the present tense of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle
	past anterior	use the preterite tense of aver + past participle
	future perfect	use the future tense of aver + past participle
	conditional perfect	use the conditional tense of aver + past participle
subjunctive		que ieu	que tu	que el	que nosautres	que vosautres	que eles
	present	acabi	acabes	acabe	acabem	acabetz	acaben
	imperfect	acabèssi	acabèsses	acabèsse	acabèssem	acabèssetz	acabèssen
compound tenses	past	use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle
imperative		—	tu	—	nosautres	vosautres	—
			acaba		acabem	acabatz	1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects

    Lemosin

		simple			compound
infinitive		acabar			aver acabat
gerund		acabant			use gerund of aver + past participle
past participle		acabat			—
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		ieu	tu	el	nosautres	vosautres	eles
	present	acabe	acabas	acaba	acabam	acabatz	acaban
	imperfect	acabava	acabavas	acabava	acabàvam	acabàvatz	acabavan
	preterite	acabei	acaberas	acabet	acabèram	acabèratz	acaberan
	future	acabarai	acabaràs	acabará	acabarem	acabaretz	acabarán
	conditional	acabariá	acabariàs	acabariá	acabariam	acabariatz	acabarián
	conditional 2nd form1	acabèra	acabèras	acabèra	acaberam	acaberatz	acabèran
compound tenses	present perfect	use the present tense of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle
	past anterior	use the preterite tense of aver + past participle
	future perfect	use the future tense of aver + past participle
	conditional perfect	use the conditional tense of aver + past participle
subjunctive		que ieu	que tu	que el	que nosautres	que vosautres	que eles
	present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabem	acabetz	acaben
	imperfect	acabèsse	acabèsses	acabèsse	acabèssem	acabèssetz	acabèssen
compound tenses	past	use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle
imperative		—	tu	—	nosautres	vosautres	—
			acaba		acabem	acabatz	1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects

    Provençau

		simple			compound
infinitive		acabar			aver acabat
gerund		acabant			use gerund of aver + past participle
past participle		acabat			—
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		ieu	tu	el	nosautres	vosautres	eles
	present	acabe	acabes	acaba	acabam	acabatz	acaban
	imperfect	acabavi	acabavas	acabava	acabàvem	acabàvetz	acabavan
	preterite	acabère	acabères	acabèt	acaberiam	acaberiatz	acabèron
	future	acabarai	acabaràs	acabarà	acabarem	acabaretz	acabaràn
	conditional	acabariáu	acabariás	acabariá	acabariam	acabariatz	acabarián
	conditional 2nd form1	acabèra	acabèras	acabèra	acaberam	acaberatz	acabèran
compound tenses	present perfect	use the present tense of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect tense of aver + past participle
	past anterior	use the preterite tense of aver + past participle
	future perfect	use the future tense of aver + past participle
	conditional perfect	use the conditional tense of aver + past participle
subjunctive		que ieu	que tu	que el	que nosautres	que vosautres	que eles
	present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabem	acabetz	acaban
	imperfect	acabèsse	acabèsses	acabèsse	acabessiam	acabessiatz	acabèsson
compound tenses	past	use the present subjunctive of aver + past participle
	pluperfect	use the imperfect subjunctive of aver + past participle
imperative		—	tu	—	nosautres	vosautres	—
			acaba		acabem	acabatz	1Now chiefly obsolete, still in use in some Limousin and Vivaro-Alpin dialects

Derived terms

• acabada
• acabador
• acabadura
• acabament
• acabat

 

Portuguese

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese acabar, from Vulgar Latin *accapāre. Compare Spanish acabar, French achever and English achieve. By surface analysis, a- +‎ cabo +‎ -ar.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /a.kaˈba(ʁ)/ [a.kaˈba(h)]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /a.kaˈba(ʁ)/ [a.kaˈba(h)]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /a.kaˈba(ɾ)/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /a.kaˈba(ʁ)/ [a.kaˈba(χ)]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /a.kaˈba(ɻ)/

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ɐ.kɐˈbaɾ/ [ɐ.kɐˈβaɾ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ɐ.kɐˈbaɾ/ [ɐ.kɐˈβaɾ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /ɐ.kɐˈba.ɾi/ [ɐ.kɐˈβa.ɾi]

• Audio (Portugal, Oporto):

  (file)

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: a‧ca‧bar

Verb

acabar (first-person singular present acabo, first-person singular preterite acabei, past participle acabado)

2. (intransitive) to finish (to be over, completed)

   Synonyms: terminar, finalizar

   Antonym: começar

   O filme acabou. ― The film is over.

4. (transitive) to complete; to finish (to make done)

   Synonyms: terminar, completar, finalizar, concluir

   Antonyms: iniciar, começar, inicializar

   Acabe suas tarefas antes de sair. ― Finish your chores before going out.

6. (catenative) to end up (to eventually do) [with gerund ‘doing something’]

   Synonym: terminar por

   No fim, acabamos comendo naquele restaurante maltrapilho. ― In the end, we ended up eating at that shabby restaurant.

8. (copulative) to end up; to turn out (to become, at the end of a process)

   Synonym: ficar

   De tanto misturarmos, a cor da tinta acabou cinza. ― Because we mixed it so much, the colour of the paint ended up grey.

10. (catenative) to have just; just (indicates recency) [with de (+ infinitive) ‘done something’]

    Ele acabou de sair. ― He had just left.

12. (intransitive) to destroy completely, to defeat thoroughly [with com ‘someone’]

    Synonyms: destruir, matar

    O inseticida prometeu que acabaria com as baratas. ― The insecticide promised to exterminate cockroaches.

    Nosso time acabou com o deles! ― Our team murdered theirs!

14. (intransitive) to break up; to put an end to (to make an activity or practice stop) [with com ‘something’]

    Essa lei acabará com a impunidade. ― This law will put an end to impunity.

16. (intransitive) to break up with (to end a relationship with) [with com ‘someone’]

    Synonym: terminar com

    Ele acabou com ela. ― He broke up with her.

18. (intransitive or pronominal) to run out (to be entirely used up)

    Synonym: esgotar-se

    Todo o dinheiro acabou. ― All the money ran out.

Conjugation

    Conjugation of acabar (See Appendix:Portuguese verbs)

	Singular			Plural
	First-person (eu)	Second-person (tu)	Third-person (ele / ela / você)	First-person (nós)	Second-person (vós)	Third-person (eles / elas / vocês)
Infinitive
Impersonal	acabar
Personal	acabar	acabares	acabar	acabarmos	acabardes	acabarem
Gerund
	acabando
Past participle
Masculine	acabado			acabados
Feminine	acabada			acabadas
Indicative
Present	acabo	acabas	acaba	acabamos	acabais	acabam
Imperfect	acabava	acabavas	acabava	acabávamos	acabáveis	acabavam
Preterite	acabei	acabaste	acabou	acabamos1, acabámos2	acabastes	acabaram
Pluperfect	acabara	acabaras	acabara	acabáramos	acabáreis	acabaram
Future	acabarei	acabarás	acabará	acabaremos	acabareis	acabarão
Conditional	acabaria	acabarias	acabaria	acabaríamos	acabaríeis	acabariam
Subjunctive
Present	acabe	acabes	acabe	acabemos	acabeis	acabem
Imperfect	acabasse	acabasses	acabasse	acabássemos	acabásseis	acabassem
Future	acabar	acabares	acabar	acabarmos	acabardes	acabarem
Imperative
Affirmative		acaba	acabe	acabemos	acabai	acabem
Negative (não)		não acabes	não acabe	não acabemos	não acabeis	não acabem

¹Brazilian Portuguese.
²European Portuguese.

Descendants

• Kabuverdianu: kaba
• Macanese: cavâ
• → Guianese Creole: kaba
• → Sranan Tongo: kaba, kba
  • Aukan: kaba, kaa
  • Saramaccan: kabá

Further reading

• “acabar”, in iDicionário Aulete (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2024
• “acabar”, in Dicionário inFormal (in Portuguese), 2006–2024
• “acabar” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
• “acabar”, in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2024
• “acabar”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2024
• “acabar”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2024

Spanish

Etymology

Inherited from Vulgar Latin *accapāre. By surface analysis, a- +‎ cabo (“end, conclusion”) +‎ -ar.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /akaˈbaɾ/ [a.kaˈβ̞aɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: a‧ca‧bar

Verb

acabar (first-person singular present acabo, first-person singular preterite acabé, past participle acabado)

1. (transitive) to finish; to end

   Synonyms: terminar, finalizar, rematar

2. (catenative) to end up (eventually doing) [with gerund ‘doing something’]

   Acabarás haciendo lo que él diga.

   You'll end up doing what he says.

3. (catenative) to have just; just (indicates recency) [with de (+ infinitive) ‘done something’]

   Acabo de dormir ocho horas pero todavía estoy cansada.

   I just slept eight hours but I still feel tired.

4. (pronominal) to run out of

   Se me acabó la paciencia.

   I've run out of patience.

5. (pronominal) to come to an end, to be over, to be done, to be finished, to be it, to be no more, to be up

   Lo siento. Su tiempo se acabó, señor.

   I am sorry. Your time is up, sir.

6. (Latin America, vulgar, slang) to orgasm; to cum

   Synonyms: venirse, irse, correrse, eyacular

Conjugation

    Conjugation of acabar (See Appendix:Spanish verbs)

infinitive			acabar
gerund			acabando
past participle				masculine		feminine
		singular		acabado		acabada
		plural		acabados		acabadas
		singular			plural
		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
indicative		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	present	acabo	acabastú acabásvos	acaba	acabamos	acabáis	acaban
	imperfect	acababa	acababas	acababa	acabábamos	acababais	acababan
	preterite	acabé	acabaste	acabó	acabamos	acabasteis	acabaron
	future	acabaré	acabarás	acabará	acabaremos	acabaréis	acabarán
	conditional	acabaría	acabarías	acabaría	acabaríamos	acabaríais	acabarían
subjunctive		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	present	acabe	acabestú acabésvos2	acabe	acabemos	acabéis	acaben
	imperfect (ra)	acabara	acabaras	acabara	acabáramos	acabarais	acabaran
	imperfect (se)	acabase	acabases	acabase	acabásemos	acabaseis	acabasen
	future1	acabare	acabares	acabare	acabáremos	acabareis	acabaren
imperative		—	tú vos	usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ustedes
	affirmative		acabatú acabávos	acabe	acabemos	acabad	acaben
	negative		no acabes	no acabe	no acabemos	no acabéis	no acaben

¹Mostly obsolete, now mainly used in legal language.
²Argentine and Uruguayan voseo prefers the tú form for the present subjunctive.

    Selected combined forms of acabar

These forms are generated automatically and may not actually be used. Pronoun usage varies by region.

		singular			plural
		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
with infinitive acabar	dative	acabarme	acabarte	acabarle, acabarse	acabarnos	acabaros	acabarles, acabarse
	accusative	acabarme	acabarte	acabarlo, acabarla, acabarse	acabarnos	acabaros	acabarlos, acabarlas, acabarse
with gerund acabando	dative	acabándome	acabándote	acabándole, acabándose	acabándonos	acabándoos	acabándoles, acabándose
	accusative	acabándome	acabándote	acabándolo, acabándola, acabándose	acabándonos	acabándoos	acabándolos, acabándolas, acabándose
with informal second-person singular tú imperative acaba	dative	acábame	acábate	acábale	acábanos	not used	acábales
	accusative	acábame	acábate	acábalo, acábala	acábanos	not used	acábalos, acábalas
with informal second-person singular vos imperative acabá	dative	acabame	acabate	acabale	acabanos	not used	acabales
	accusative	acabame	acabate	acabalo, acabala	acabanos	not used	acabalos, acabalas
with formal second-person singular imperative acabe	dative	acábeme	not used	acábele, acábese	acábenos	not used	acábeles
	accusative	acábeme	not used	acábelo, acábela, acábese	acábenos	not used	acábelos, acábelas
with first-person plural imperative acabemos	dative	not used	acabémoste	acabémosle	acabémonos	acabémoos	acabémosles
	accusative	not used	acabémoste	acabémoslo, acabémosla	acabémonos	acabémoos	acabémoslos, acabémoslas
with informal second-person plural imperative acabad	dative	acabadme	not used	acabadle	acabadnos	acabaos	acabadles
	accusative	acabadme	not used	acabadlo, acabadla	acabadnos	acabaos	acabadlos, acabadlas
with formal second-person plural imperative acaben	dative	acábenme	not used	acábenle	acábennos	not used	acábenles, acábense
	accusative	acábenme	not used	acábenlo, acábenla	acábennos	not used	acábenlos, acábenlas, acábense

    Conjugation of acabarse (See Appendix:Spanish verbs)

infinitive			acabarse
gerund			acabándose
past participle				masculine		feminine
		singular		acabado		acabada
		plural		acabados		acabadas
		singular			plural
		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
personal non-finite		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	infinitive	acabarme	acabarte	acabarse	acabarnos	acabaros	acabarse
	gerund	acabándome	acabándote	acabándose	acabándonos	acabándoos	acabándose
indicative		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	present	me acabo	te acabastú te acabásvos	se acaba	nos acabamos	os acabáis	se acaban
	imperfect	me acababa	te acababas	se acababa	nos acabábamos	os acababais	se acababan
	preterite	me acabé	te acabaste	se acabó	nos acabamos	os acabasteis	se acabaron
	future	me acabaré	te acabarás	se acabará	nos acabaremos	os acabaréis	se acabarán
	conditional	me acabaría	te acabarías	se acabaría	nos acabaríamos	os acabaríais	se acabarían
subjunctive		yo	tú vos	él/ella/ello usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ellos/ellas ustedes
	present	me acabe	te acabestú te acabésvos2	se acabe	nos acabemos	os acabéis	se acaben
	imperfect (ra)	me acabara	te acabaras	se acabara	nos acabáramos	os acabarais	se acabaran
	imperfect (se)	me acabase	te acabases	se acabase	nos acabásemos	os acabaseis	se acabasen
	future1	me acabare	te acabares	se acabare	nos acabáremos	os acabareis	se acabaren
imperative		—	tú vos	usted	nosotros nosotras	vosotros vosotras	ustedes
	affirmative		acábatetú acabatevos	acábese	acabémonos	acabaos	acábense
	negative		no te acabes	no se acabe	no nos acabemos	no os acabéis	no se acaben

¹Mostly obsolete, now mainly used in legal language.
²Argentine and Uruguayan voseo prefers the tú form for the present subjunctive.

Derived terms

• acabamiento
• acabar con (“to finish; to put an end to”)
• acabar de (“to have just”)
• acabar de una vez (“to get it over with, to be done with it”)
• acabar por (“to end up”)
• acabarse
• de nunca acabar
• muerto el perro, se acabó la rabia
• quien empieza ganando acaba llorando
• se acabó la fiesta
• y se acabó lo que se daba

 

Further reading

• “acabar”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10