How to Use the Verb ‘Averiguar’ in Spanish

Have you read the poem Agua del recuerdo by a cuban poet Nicolás Guillén? Check out a snippet of the poem and pay attention to the word averiguar!

(…)
Nada sé nada se sabe
Ni nada sabré jamás
Nada han dicho los periódicos
Nada pude averiguar
De aquella mulata de oro 
Que una vez miré al pasar,
(..)

(…)
I know nothing is known
And I will never know anything
Nothing has been said in the newspapers
I could find out nothing
Of that golden mulata
That I once saw passing by
(…)

The poet wants to averiguar (find out) about a beautiful girl he once saw in a street. He will probably have to research, ask, inquire, or even investigate to get some precious information.

Today I want you to find out what averiguar means and with what words you can substitute it in a sentence and enrich your vocabulary.

What does averiguar mean?

Averiguar—is an interesting Spanish verb with complex meaning. The Real Academia Española says in its definition: inquirir la verdad hasta descubrirla (to inquire the truth until you discover it).  It means that the verb talks about an action that implies a result. In English it is usually translated into “find out” but we can use other words that transmit the same idea.

Similarly in Spanish, the same meaning can be expressed with synonyms. Remember, synonyms are rarely ideal, it means they won’t express exactly the same meaning but they emphasize a certain aspect of the original word. In all the following sentences, you can substitute the synonym given with averiguar.

• Investigar – to investigate

No mé se el número de esta chica pero lo voy a investigar para ti.
I don’t know the number of this girl but I’m going to look it up for you.

• Indagar – to investigate

Tenemos que indagar a fondo para saber las verdaderas causas.
We have to dig deep to find out the true causes.

• Enterarse – to find out

Entérate lo que quiere. Necesito saberlo.
Find out what he wants. I need to know it.

• Inquirir – to inquire into

No sé que pasó pero prefiero no inquirir.
I don’t know what happened but I prefer not to inquire.

• Tantear – to probe, to try out, to check

Puedo tantear cómo lo ven ellos y te lo digo.
I can check how they see it and I’ll tell you.

• Sondear – to probe

Quería sondear los ánimos en el equipo antes de proceder con la reunión.
He wanted to get a feeling about the spirits of the team before proceeding with the meeting.

• Escrutar – to scrutinize

Era incapaz de escrutar su expresión por mucho que lo miraba.
I was unable to scrutinize her expression, no matter how much I looked at him.

• Examinar – to examine

Tenemos que examinar el asunto antes de pronunciarnos.
We have to examine the matter before we speak.

• Descubrir – to find out, to discover

Quiero descubrir la verdad.
I want to discover the truth.

• Resolver – to solve out

El verdadero reto es resolver cómo pasaron las cosas.
The real challenge is to figure out how things happened.

• Determinar – to decide, to determine

Tenemos que determinar sus razones y después podemos juzgar sus acciones.
We have to determine their reasons and then we can judge their actions.

• Informarse – to get information

No puedes hablar antes de informarte.
You cannot speak before you inform yourself.

• Establecer – to establish

Ahora puedo establecer el momento del crimen.
Now, I can establish the time of the crime.

• Recabar – to collect

Es preciso recabar toda la información previa.
All prior information must be collected.

• A ver – let’s see

Vamos a ver qué es lo que pasó.
Let’s see what happened.

• Adivinar – to guess

Adivina la respuesta.
Guess the answer.

• Comprobar – to realize

¿Puedes comprobar si está diciendo la verdad, por favor?
Can you check if he’s telling the truth?

• Curiosear – to nose around

Solo se acerca para curiosear en lo que estamos hablando.
He only comes over to pry what we’re talking about.

• Escarbar – to investigate

Me preocupa lo que pueda encontrar cuando empiece a escarbar.
I’m worried about what I might find when I start digging.

• Explorar – to examine

Vamos a explorar todos los aspectos de la situación.
We’re going to explore all aspects of the situation.

• Preguntar – to ask

Si no sabes, pregunta.
If you don’t know, ask.

• Verificar – to verify

Tenemos que verificar su versión.
We have to verify his version.

Now, if somebody asks you how to say “find out” in Spanish you’ll be able to give many more answers than just averiguar!

Conjugation of the Spanish Verb averiguar

Averiguar is a verb that belongs to the -ar conjugation. Below I will conjugate averiguar in Spanish in the present tense, past tense, and future tense.

Present Simple tense

The conjugation of averiguar in present tense is very simple. It follows al the rules without exceptions.

Averiguar – present tense conjugation chart

Escóndete , mientras yo averiguo quién está rondando la casa.
Hide, while I find out who’s hanging around the house.

Tú averiguas el horario de los trenes a Málaga y yo busco algo para comer.
You find out the timetable for the trains to Malaga and I’ll look for something to eat.

Teresa averigua los secretos de todos sus vecinos.
Teresa finds out the secrets of all her neighbors.

Mi hermano y yo averiguamos las recetas antiguas de nuestra bisabuela para incorporarlos en el recetario familiar.
My brother and I find out our great-grandmother’s old recipes to incorporate them into the family cookbook.

Ustedes averiguan todo muy rápido. ¡No es justo!
You guess everything so fast. That’s not fair!

Ellos averiguan lo que realmente pasó con los documentos que se perdieron.
They investigate what really happened to the documents that got lost.

The Preterite Tense

Let’s see the preterite conjugation for averiguar. Take note that you need to put a dieresis on top of the letter u in the first person singular to keep the /w/ sound.

Averiguar – preterite tense conjugation chart

Averigüé la verdad muy rápido.
I found out the truth pretty fast.

¿Ya averiguaste las repuestas?
Have you already found out the answers?

Mi madre averiguó lo que pasó en la escuela y ya no puedo salir.
My mother found out what happened at school and I can’t go out anymore.

Nosotras averiguamos la verdad sobre el origen de nuestro apellido.
We found out the truth about the origin of our surname.

¡Ustedes averiguaron nuestros secretos!
You found out our secrets!

Mis amigas averiguaron que quería un perro y me regalaron uno para mi cumpleaños.
My friends found out I wanted a dog and they gave me one for my birthday.

The Imperfect Tense

The imperfect tense conjugation for averiguar is also regular without any surprises.

Averiguar – imperfect tense conjugation chart

Me divertí mucho mientras averiguaba las pistas que me habían dejado.
I had a lot of fun figuring out the clues they had left me.

¿Cuando eras chiquita averiguabas las respuestas igual de rápido com ahora?
When you were little, did you find out the answers as quickly as you do now?

Ella averiguaba lo que teníamos que hacer para la tarea y yo pedí pizzas.
She was figuring out what we had to do for homework and I ordered pizzas.

Me acuerdo que nosostros averiguábamos las respuestas de nuestro profesor más rápido que otros niños.
I remember that we used to find out our teacher’s answers faster than other children.

Chicos, ¿ustedes averiguaban esto el año pasado cuando estudiaban la historia de nuestro país?
Guys, did you find out about this last year when you were studying the history of our country?

Ellas averiguaban mis movimientos antes de que pudiera hacer cualquier cosa.
They were guessing my movements before I could do anything.

The Future Simple Tense

Let’s have a look at the regular future tense conjugation for averiguar:

Averiguar – future tense conjugation chart

Lo averiguaré; te lo juro por mi vida.
I’ll find it out; I swear by my life.

Tarde o temprano averiguarás la verdad.
Sooner or later, you’ll find out the truth.

Usted averiguará lo que pasó, estoy seguro.
You will find out what happened, I’m sure.

Nosotros averiguaremos el estado de su caso lo más pronto posible.
We will find out the status of your case as soon as possible.

¿Cómo averiguarán los pormenores?
How will they find out the details?

Las chicas averiguarán las fuentes y los chicos harán el diseño de la presentación.
The girls will find out the sources and the boys will design the presentation.

Practice Time!

You read a lot about averiguar. How about finding out if you can use it in a conversation? Remember that you need to practice your theoretical skills to become fluent. Sign up for a free class to practice using the Spanish verb averiguar with friendly, certified instructors in a 1-on-1, student-tailored environment. ¡Averigua si ya lo sabes todo!

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Olga Put

Freelance Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

I'm a Spanish philologist, teacher, and freelance writer with a Master's degree in Humanities from Madrid. I speak Polish, Spanish, and English fluently, and want to get better in Portuguese and German. A lover of literature, and Mexican spicy cuisine, I've lived in Poland, Spain, and Mexico and I'm currently living and teaching in Madeira, Portugal.

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