Yo me disculpo con mi amigo por mi error.

I apologize to my friend for my mistake.

Breakdown of Yo me disculpo con mi amigo por mi error.

• yo: I
• con: with
• mi: my
• el amigo: the friend
• por: for
• el error: the mistake
• disculparse: to apologize

Questions & Answers about Yo me disculpo con mi amigo por mi error.

Why is the verb written as me disculpo instead of just disculpo?

In Spanish, the verb disculparse is reflexive. This means that you must include the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, etc.) to indicate that the subject is performing the action on itself. Although in English “to apologize” doesn’t require a reflexive construction, in Spanish the form “me disculpo” shows that I am apologizing.

Is it necessary to include the subject pronoun Yo at the beginning of the sentence?

No, it isn’t strictly required because the verb disculpo already indicates a first person singular subject by its conjugation. However, Yo can be added for emphasis or clarity, especially when you want to stress who is apologizing.

Why is the preposition con used in con mi amigo instead of using a?

The preposition con is used here to indicate the person to whom the apology is directed – “with my friend.” Although in English we say “to my friend,” the standard Spanish construction for apologizing uses disculparse con rather than disculparse a. This is simply an idiomatic usage in Spanish.

What is the function of the phrase por mi error in the sentence?

The phrase por mi error explains the cause or reason behind the apology. The preposition por here means “because of” or “for,” clarifying that the apology is being made due to the mistake that the speaker acknowledges.

Could this sentence be rephrased using another common structure like pido disculpas? What would be the difference?

Yes, you could say Yo pido disculpas a mi amigo por mi error. In that case, you are using the construction “pido disculpas” which literally means “I ask for apologies.” Although both versions express the same idea of apologizing, pido disculpas uses the noun disculpas and a non-reflexive construction, while me disculpo is a reflexive form. The choice depends on personal preference or regional usage.

Why do we use the possessive mi before both amigo and error?

The possessive mi is used to indicate that the friend and the error belong to the speaker (i.e., “my friend” and “my mistake”). This emphasizes personal involvement and responsibility—the apology is directed toward one’s own friend about something that one recognizes as one’s own error.