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"Llevar" is a transitive verb which is often translated as "to take", and "llegar" is an intransitive verb which is often translated as "to arrive". Learn more about the difference between "llevar" and "llegar" below.
llevar(
yeh
-
bahr
)
A transitive verb is a verb that requires a direct object (e.g., I bought a book.).
transitive verb
a. to take
Lleva los platos sucios a la cocina.Take the dirty plates to the kitchen.
b. to carry
Mi marido llevará las bolsas de la compra.My husband will carry the grocery bags.
c. to bring
Llevaremos nuestros propios patines a la fiesta.We'll bring our own skates to the party.
d. to give a ride (in a vehicle)
Te llevo a la estación si quieres.I can give you a ride to the station if you like.
a. to wear
Ella siempre lleva sus botas favoritas cuando nieva.She always wears her favorite boots when it snows.
a. to take
El mayordomo nos llevó a nuestra habitación.The butler took us to our room.
a. to be
Llevo cuatro horas estudiando y todavía me queda mucho.I've been studying for four hours and there's still a lot left.
b. to take
Solo lleva diez minutos rellenar el formulario.It only takes ten minutes to fill in the form.
a. to be ahead by
Me llevaba dos metros de ventaja en la carrera cuando se cayó.He was ahead of me by two meters in the race when he fell.
b. to be older than (related to age)
Mi marido me lleva dos meses.My husband is two months older than me.
a. to handle
Sofía lleva todos los asuntos de finanzas en la familia.Sofía handles all the finances in the family.
b. to deal with
¿Quién va a llevar lo del traslado de oficina?¿Who's going to deal with the office move?
c. to run
Mi padre está enfermo, por lo que yo estoy llevando la empresa familiar en este momento.My father is sick, so I'm running the family business at the moment.
a. to get on
Me enteré de que cerró la fábrica. ¿Cómo lo llevas?I heard the factory closed down. How are you getting on?
b. to handle
La profesora sabe llevar a los alumnos.The teacher knows how to handle the students.
An intransitive verb is one that does not require a direct object (e.g., The man sneezed.).
intransitive verb
a. to lead to
¿Sabes a dónde lleva este túnel?Do you know where this tunnel leads to?
An auxiliary verb, or helper verb, is a conjugated verb that comes before a main verb and determines the main verb's tense, mood, or aspect (e.g., I have gone.).
auxiliary verb
a. to have (used with past participle)
Lleva comidos cuatro trozos de pizza.She has already eaten four slices of pizza.
llevarse
A pronominal verb always uses a reflexive pronoun. (e.g., Te ves cansado.).
pronominal verb
a. to take
Se llevó todas sus pertenencias consigo.He took all of his belongings with him.
b. to take with one
¿Qué te llevarás cuando te vayas?What will you take with you when you go?
a. to get along
Las dos hermanas nunca se han llevado bien.The two sisters have never gotten along well.
a. to be in
Se llevan mucho las zapatillas de deporte con trajes ahora.Wearing sneakers with a suit is really in now.
a. to take
Por lo que se ve, los intrusos no se llevaron nada.As far as we can see, the intruders didn't take anything.
b. to walk away with
Los ladrones se llevaron los candeleros de plata.The thieves walked away with the silver candlesticks.
Copyright © 2025 Dictionary Media Group, Inc.
llegar(
yeh
-
gahr
)
An intransitive verb is one that does not require a direct object (e.g., The man sneezed.).
intransitive verb
a. to arrive
¿Sabes si ya llegó Miguel?Do you know if Miguel has arrived yet?
b. to get
Voy a llegar al restaurante un poco atrasado.I am going to get to the restaurant a little late.
c. to get here (approaching)
¿Sabes cuándo llegarán?Do you know when they'll get here?
d. to get there (moving away)
¿Cuánto tardaremos en llegar?How long will it take us to get there?
e. to be here (approaching)
Pronto llegarán tus primos.Your cousins will soon be here.
f. to be there (moving away)
No saben decir a qué hora llegarán.They're not sure what time they'll be there.
a. to come
El fin de semana llegó rápido.The weekend came quickly.
b. to arrive
Este año el otoño ha sido lento en llegar.Autumn has been slow to arrive this year.
a. to be enough
No me llega el sueldo, así que voy a pedir un aumento.My salary is not enough, so I'm going to ask for a raise.
a. to reach
¿Llegas al teléfono desde la cama?Can you reach the telephone from the bed?
a. to become
No llegarás a rico haciendo el vago.You won't become rich by slacking off.
b. to go
Con esa persistencia llegarás lejos.You'll go far with that persistence.
c. to make it
Mi sueño es llegar a los cien años.My dream is to make it to a hundred.
d. to come to
Con la información provista, demuestra cómo llegaste a tu conclusión.With the information provided, please show how you came to your conclusion.
a. to reach
El precio del barril de Brent llegó a los 100 dólares.The price of a barrel of Brent reached 100 dollars.
a. to stretch
Nuestras tierras llegan hasta el río.Our lands stretch to the river.
a. to come to
Obama llegó a la Casa Blanca a principios de 2009.Obama came to the White House at the beginning of 2009.
a. to manage to
¿Llegaste a ver el eclipse?Did you manage to see the eclipse?
a. to come up to
Después del aguacero, el agua me llegaba a la rodilla.The water came up to my knees after the downpour.
b. to reach
No llego a la bombilla para cambiarla.I can't reach the bulb to change it.
c. to touch
No me gustan las faldas que llegan hasta el piso.I don't like skirts that touch the floor.
a. to go as far as
El Camino de Santiago llega hasta el extremo oeste de España.The Camino de Santiago goes as far as the far west of Spain.
b. to go to
Esta ruta no llega al mar.This route doesn't go to the sea.
a. to last
Ojalá estas llantas me lleguen otras cien mil millas.Hopefully, these tires will last me another hundred thousand miles.
a. to come to
Esperemos que no llegue a eso.Let's hope it doesn't come to that.
b. to reach
Un jumbo puede llegar a una velocidad de 614 millas por hora.A jumbo jet can reach speeds of 614 miles per hour.
c. to be
Los arreglos a una bicicleta pueden llegar a más de mil dólares.Repairs to bicycles can be as much as a thousand dollars.
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
Si llego a saber que tendrían nuevos episodios, no hubiera cancelado mi membresía.Had I known that they were going to have new episodes, I never would have cancelled my membership.
Si llegaras a ir al restaurante, tienes que probar la tarta de fresa.If you end up going to the restaurant, you must try the strawberry tart.
llegarse
A pronominal verb always uses a reflexive pronoun. (e.g., Te ves cansado.).
pronominal verb
a. to go over to (moving away)
Llégate a casa de Rosa y pídele una taza de azúcar.Go over to Rosa's house and ask her for a cup of sugar.
b. to go round to (moving away)
Regionalism used in the United Kingdom
(United Kingdom)
Llégate a la tienda y cómprame leche, por favor.Go round to the shop and buy me some milk, please.
c. to come over to (approaching)
Llégate a casa de mi hermana mañana y nos pasamos un rato.Come over to my sister's house tomorrow and we can spend some time together.
d. to come by (approaching)
Llégate a la oficina después del trabajo.Come by the office after work.
e. to come around to (approaching)
¿Por qué no te llegas al estudio el sábado e improvisamos un rato?Why don't you come around to the studio on Saturday and we can jam a while?
f. to come round to (approaching)
Regionalism used in the United Kingdom
(United Kingdom)
Llégate al bar una tarde y tomamos algo.Come round to the bar one evening and we can have a drink.
a. to go up to
Me llegué a ella y le pedí un autógrafo.I went up to her and asked her for an autograph.
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