comer
/koh-mehr/
to eat
The most common meaning of 'comer' is the literal act of consuming food, or 'to eat'.
comer(Verb)
to eat
?consuming food
to have lunch
?specifically the midday meal, common in Spain
,to have dinner
?specifically the evening meal, common in Latin America
📝 In Action
Me gusta comer pasta los viernes.
A1I like to eat pasta on Fridays.
¿A qué hora comemos hoy?
A1What time are we eating/having lunch today?
Anoche comimos en un restaurante nuevo.
A2Last night we ate at a new restaurant.
Si no comes tus verduras, no hay postre.
B1If you don't eat your vegetables, there's no dessert.
💡 Grammar Points
Using 'Comer' for Meals
In Spain, 'comer' often specifically means 'to have lunch'. In many parts of Latin America, 'almorzar' is used for lunch, and 'comer' can refer to the main meal of the day, which might be dinner.
❌ Common Pitfalls
'Comer' vs. 'Tomar'
Mistake: "Voy a comer un café."
Correction: Voy a tomar un café. Generally, use 'tomar' for drinks and 'comer' for food. It's a bit like saying 'take' a coffee instead of 'eat' a coffee.
⭐ Usage Tips
Adding Emphasis with 'comerse'
You'll often see 'comer' with 'se' (like 'me como la pizza'). This doesn't change the meaning to 'eat oneself'! It just adds emphasis, like saying 'I ate up the whole pizza' or 'I really enjoyed that pizza'. It makes your Spanish sound more natural.
Figuratively, 'comer' means 'to use up' or 'to consume' resources rapidly, like a car eating gas (Este coche come mucha gasolina).
comer(Verb)
to use up
?resources like time, memory, fuel
to consume
?figuratively
,to eat up
?money, space
📝 In Action
Este coche come mucha gasolina.
B1This car uses up a lot of gas.
El nuevo software se come toda la memoria RAM.
B2The new software eats up all the RAM.
Los gastos inesperados se comieron nuestros ahorros.
B2The unexpected expenses ate up our savings.
⭐ Usage Tips
From Food to Fuel
Think of this meaning as an extension of eating. Just like a person eats food for energy, a car 'eats' gas or a program 'eats' memory. It's a very common and natural-sounding metaphor in Spanish.
In a technical context, 'comer' means 'to eat away at' or 'to corrode,' often used when describing rust or acid.
comer(Verb)
to eat away at
?erosion, corrosion
to corrode
?metals
,to wear away
?surfaces
📝 In Action
El óxido se está comiendo la valla metálica.
B2The rust is eating away at the metal fence.
El ácido comió la superficie de la mesa.
C1The acid ate away the surface of the table.
⭐ Usage Tips
A 'Destructive' Meaning
This sense of 'comer' is about a slow, destructive process, much like how eating breaks something down. It's often used with the reflexive 'se' ('el óxido se come el metal') to emphasize the process happening over time.
Informally, 'comerse' means 'to skip' or 'to drop' sounds or words when speaking quickly (Se come las palabras).
comer(Verb)
to skip
?words, letters, steps in a process
to drop
?sounds when speaking
,to leave out
?information
📝 In Action
Habla tan rápido que se come las palabras.
B2He speaks so fast that he swallows his words.
En esta región, la gente se come la 's' final.
B2In this region, people drop the final 's'.
Te comiste un paso importante en las instrucciones.
C1You skipped an important step in the instructions.
⭐ Usage Tips
Sounding More Natural
Noticing how native speakers 'eat' letters or words is a key step to understanding fast, natural speech. This use of 'comerse' is the perfect way to describe that phenomenon.
🔄 Conjugations
indicative
present
preterite
imperfect
subjunctive
present
imperfect
✏️ Quick Practice
💡 Quick Quiz: comer
Question 1 of 2
Which sentence uses 'comer' in a figurative way, not about food?
📚 More Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between 'comer' and 'almorzar'?
It depends on the region! In Spain, 'comer' is the main word for 'to have lunch', and 'almorzar' is a mid-morning snack. In much of Latin America, it's the opposite: 'almorzar' is 'to have lunch', and 'comer' is a more general term for 'to eat'.
Is 'comer' always regular?
Yes, 'comer' is a completely regular -er verb in all tenses and moods. Once you learn the pattern for one regular -er verb, you know how to conjugate 'comer' perfectly!
When would I use 'dar de comer'?
'Dar de comer' means 'to feed' someone or something else. For example, 'Voy a dar de comer al perro' means 'I'm going to feed the dog.' You use it when you are the one giving the food, not eating it yourself.