I made a mistake
A slightly more formal way to say 'I committed an error.' Useful in professional or serious situations.
Use this to take direct responsibility. It means 'It was my fault.'
A good way to explain the mistake was due to confusion. It means 'I got confused.'
Sorry, I made a mistake with the phone number.
I made a mistake on the bill. I'm sorry.
We arrived late. It was my fault, I didn't look at the clock.
I thought the appointment was today. I got the day wrong (confused).
'Me equivoqué' and 'cometí un error' are understood everywhere. They are the most standard and recommended phrases for learners.
It is very common to hear 'Me he equivocado,' using the present perfect tense. This is a key grammatical difference from Latin American Spanish, which prefers the simple past ('Me equivoqué').
A very common, informal slang is 'La regué,' which means 'I messed it up.' Use this only with friends.
In many parts of Latin America, including Argentina and Colombia, you'll hear the colloquial phrase 'Metí la pata' (I put my foot in it). In Colombia, 'La embarré' is also very common slang for 'I messed up.'
Hice un error. — Cometí un error. — This is a direct translation from English 'I made a mistake.' In Spanish, you don't 'make' an error with the verb 'hacer.' You 'commit' it with the verb 'cometer.'
Estoy equivocado. — Me equivoqué. — 'Estoy equivocado' means 'I am wrong' (a current state of being mistaken). 'Me equivoqué' refers to the specific action of making a mistake in the past. If you gave someone wrong directions, you would say 'Me equivoqué' to admit the past action.
Equivoqué. — Me equivoqué. — The verb is 'equivocarse,' which is reflexive. This means it needs a reflexive pronoun (like 'me', 'te', 'se') to show the action is done to oneself. You must include 'me' to say 'I made a mistake.'
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