Apetecer
To feel like, to fancy — Spain's go-to verb for wanting something in the moment.
Related lesson: The Five Verbs Natives Use Constantly.
Hear it in context
¿Te apetece un café?
Do you fancy a coffee?
No me apetece nada salir hoy, estoy agotada.
I really don't feel like going out today, I'm exhausted.
¿Os apetece que cenemos fuera el viernes?
Do you guys feel like eating out on Friday?
Me apetece muchísimo ver esa película.
I really want to see that film.
What It Actually Means
Apetecer expresses wanting something right now, in the moment — a craving, a mood, a whim. It’s how people in Spain make and respond to plans all day long: “¿Te apetece…?” is the standard friendly invitation, softer and more natural than “¿Quieres…?”, which can sound like a transaction.
The Rule That Matters
Apetecer works exactly like gustar — backwards, from an English point of view. The thing you fancy is the grammatical subject; you are the indirect object:
- “Me apetece una caña.” — I fancy a beer. (Literally: a beer appeals to me.)
- “¿Te apetecen unas tapas?” — plural noun, plural verb: apetecen.
- “Me apetece dormir.” — with an infinitive, always singular.
Where Textbooks Get It Wrong
Textbooks lean on tener ganas de for “to feel like”, and that’s fine — but in Spain, apetecer is the everyday default, especially in questions. Note also that this is a distinctly Peninsular preference: in much of Latin America apetecer sounds bookish, and people use provocar or antojarse instead.
Common Pitfall
Don’t conjugate it like a normal verb: “yo apetezco un café” is a real utterance grammatically, but it means “I am appetizing” territory — natives will smile. Keep yourself in the me/te/le slot: “me apetece un café.”