How to use “Cumplir” in Spanish

Cumplir is one of those verbs that keeps cropping up but can mean different things depending on the context. In general it can mean “to comply”, “to fulfill”, “to reach a certain age” or “to stick to”. In this blog post we will look at how to use cumplir with many examples and common expressions.

What does cumplir mean?

Cumplir can mean:

1) To fulfill
2) To comply
3) To reach (an age, anniversary)
4) To stick to

Let’s look at each one in more detail and offer some common examples of how it is used.

1) To fulfill

Whenever you want to talk about someone achieving certain objectives or fulfilling a requirement then you would use cumplir. You can also use it to talk about fulfilling your goals or ambitions. Here are some examples:

Ana cumplió su sueño de viajar por el mundo.
(Ana achieved her dream of travelling around the world.)

Cumplimos con nuestro deseo de vivir en España.
(We achieved our wish to live in Spain.)

2) To comply

It is also used to talk about following rules, complying with certain regulations:

Los estudiantes tienen que cumplir con las reglas del colegio.
(The students have to comply with the school rules.)

Los concursantes tienen que cumplir con los requisitos del concurso.
(The contestants have to comply with the requirements of the competition.)

Los que venden comida deben cumplir con las reglamentos de la salud.
(Those who sell food must comply with health regulations.)

3) To reach a certain age

A common use of cumplir is to talk about reaching a certain age (almost like completing or fulfilling years). For example, you may say:

Voy a cumplir treinta años este año.
(I am going to be 30 this year.)

Mi abuelo cumplió noventa ayer.
(My grandfather turned 90 yesterday.)

Mis padres cumplieron veinte años casados.
(My parents celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary.)

4) To stick to

Cumplir can also mean to stick to an agreement or a promise.

Logramos cumplir con los plazos que querían inicialmente.
(We managed to stick to the time scales that they initially wanted.)

Cumplí mi promesa de terminar el proyecto para viernes.
(I stuck to my promise to finish the project by Friday.)

Expressions using cumplir

There are a few expressions that use cumplir. Here we will look at the most common and useful ones to learn.

* Cumplir con su palabra – To keep your word/be true to your word
* Cumplir a la letra – To follow to the letter, exactly as required
* Cumplir con la ley – To abide by the law
* Feliz cumpleaños y que cumplas muchos más – Happy birthday and I hope you achieve many more