Aren’t You Trying Them in Spanish? | Natural Usage Tips

Most often, you’ll say “¿No las pruebas?” or “¿No los pruebas?”, choosing la(s)/lo(s) to match what “them” refers to.

You’re trying to say one small English sentence in Spanish, and Spanish makes you pick details English can skip. “Them” could be feminine or masculine. It could be people or things. You might mean “try” as in taste, test, attempt, or give something a shot. Once you lock that down, Spanish becomes clean and natural.

This guide gives you the most common translations, shows how to choose the right pronoun, and helps you avoid the classic traps that make a sentence sound off.

Aren’t You Trying Them in Spanish? Natural Translations

In everyday Spanish, “Aren’t you trying them?” usually comes out as a negative question with a direct-object pronoun. These are the go-to options:

Most common for tasting or sampling

• ¿No los pruebas? = Aren’t you trying them? (masculine plural: tacos, cafés, zapatos)
• ¿No las pruebas? = Aren’t you trying them? (feminine plural: ensaladas, galletas, uvas)

This version is short, friendly, and fits restaurant and shopping talk. It’s the same pattern you’ll see in many beginner Spanish examples like “¿Y esas ensaladas, no las pruebas?”

When you mean “aren’t you trying them out” right now

• ¿No los estás probando?
• ¿No las estás probando?

Use estar + gerundio when you want the “right now” feel. This is handy when someone has a set of items in front of them and you’re reacting in the moment.

When you mean “aren’t you attempting them”

• ¿No los intentas?
• ¿No las intentas?

This is less common for food. It fits tasks, exercises, levels, problems, routines, or challenges.

When “them” is people

• ¿No los pruebas? / ¿No las pruebas? can still work, but context matters.
• ¿No los estás viendo? / ¿No las estás viendo? changes meaning to “seeing them.”

With people, English “try” may mean “date,” “test,” or “give them a chance,” and Spanish will pick a more specific verb. If you mean “give them a chance,” you’ll often hear darles una oportunidad, which uses an indirect object pronoun (les) instead of los/las.

What The Sentence Is Doing In Spanish

English hides the object details inside “them.” Spanish doesn’t. If “them” receives the action of “try,” Spanish uses a direct object pronoun: lo, la, los, las.

So the Spanish sentence is built around three choices:

1. Which “try” verb matches your meaning? Taste/sample: probar. Test out: probar. Attempt: intentar.
2. Which pronoun matches the noun? Masculine plural: los. Feminine plural: las.
3. Which question style fits your tone? A negative question is normal in Spanish for a gentle nudge.

If you want a solid reference for how Spanish handles lo/la/le in standard usage, the RAE’s note on uso de los pronombres «lo(s)», «la(s)», «le(s)» lays out the core pattern clearly.

Picking Los Or Las Fast

Here’s the quickest way to choose. Say the noun you mean in Spanish for a second, even in your head. Then match the pronoun to that noun.

Masculine plural: Los

• los tacos → ¿No los pruebas?
• los zapatos → ¿No los estás probando?
• los cafés → ¿No los pruebas?

Feminine plural: Las

• las ensaladas → ¿No las pruebas?
• las galletas → ¿No las estás probando?
• las muestras → ¿No las pruebas?

If you’re used to English, this can feel like extra work at first. After a while, it becomes automatic because Spanish nouns come with gender built in.

Word Order That Sounds Natural

Spanish object pronouns usually go right before a conjugated verb.

• ¿No las pruebas?
• ¿No los intentas?

With a two-verb structure, you get two common placements. Both can sound fine:

• Before the first verb: ¿No las estás probando?
• Attached to the second verb: ¿No estás probándolas?

The first option is easier to read and say when you’re learning. The second is common in speech, and you’ll see it in writing too. Just watch accents when you attach pronouns.

If you want a quick refresher on direct vs. indirect objects in plain language, Duolingo’s explanation is easy to follow: Direct vs. Indirect Objects In Spanish.

Meaning Choices: Probar Vs Intentar

“Try” is a shape-shifter in English. Spanish forces you to pick the meaning. That’s a good thing once you get used to it.

Probar: taste, sample, test out

Probar fits food, drinks, and products you test. It’s the default for “try them” when you’re looking at items on a table, menu, shelf, or screen.

• At a café: ¿No los pruebas? (the teas, the coffees, the pastries)
• In a store: ¿No te los pruebas? (trying clothes on; see note below)
• With an app feature: ¿No lo pruebas? (trying a feature)

Intentar: attempt, make an effort

Intentar fits tasks, questions, workouts, routines, and plans. If you’re talking about exercises, lessons, or challenges, intentar is often the better match.

• About exercises: ¿No los intentas?
• About recipes: ¿No las intentas?

Try on (clothes): Probarse

English “try them on” needs the reflexive form in Spanish: probarse. That creates a pattern many learners miss:

• ¿No te los pruebas? (masculine plural: pants, shoes)
• ¿No te las pruebas? (feminine plural: jackets, shirts)

Here te marks “on yourself,” and los/las are the items.

For practice material from a Spanish-teaching institution, this Centro Virtual Cervantes activity page focuses on direct-object pronouns: pronombres personales de complemento directo (lo, la, los, las).

Common Versions You Can Copy

Use these as plug-and-play templates. Swap los and las based on the noun.

Simple present

• ¿No los pruebas?
• ¿No las pruebas?

Right now

• ¿No los estás probando?
• ¿No las estás probando?

“Why not?” tone

• ¿Por qué no los pruebas?
• ¿Por qué no las pruebas?

With “yet”

• ¿Todavía no los pruebas?
• ¿Todavía no las pruebas?

Soft suggestion

• ¿No quieres probarlos?
• ¿No quieres probarlas?

Notice how Spanish can tuck the pronoun onto the infinitive (probarlos/probarlas). That’s a clean, common pattern.

Context Table For The Best Translation

When you’re stuck, pick the row that matches your situation and copy the Spanish line. Then change los/las if needed.

Context	Natural Spanish	Notes
Tasting food on the table	¿No las pruebas?	Use las for feminine plural foods like ensaladas.
Tasting drinks	¿No los pruebas?	Use los for masculine plural like tés or cafés.
Trying products in a store	¿No los estás probando?	Add the “right now” feel when someone is browsing.
Trying clothes on	¿No te los pruebas?	Reflexive: te + direct object pronoun.
Trying a feature or tool	¿Por qué no lo pruebas?	Singular item uses lo or la.
Attempting exercises or questions	¿No los intentas?	Use intentar for attempts, not tasting.
Offering a gentle nudge	¿Todavía no las pruebas?	Sounds like “you haven’t tried them yet?”
Inviting someone to sample with you	¿No quieres probarlas?	Infinitive + pronoun attached is common.

Small Details That Change The Meaning

Spanish can shift the feeling of the same idea with tiny word choices. Here are the ones that matter most with this sentence.

Adding “a ver” for a friendly push

A ver works like “come on” or “let’s see.” It’s casual and common.

• A ver, ¿no las pruebas?
• A ver, ¿por qué no los pruebas?

Using “ya” to hint that time has passed

• ¿No los pruebas ya?
• ¿No las pruebas ya?

This can sound impatient in the wrong moment, so save it for when the vibe is playful or you’re close with the person.

Choosing “tú” or “usted” without saying it

Spanish often drops the subject. The verb form already tells you who it is. If you want formal address, swap the verb form:

• Informal: ¿No las pruebas?
• Formal: ¿No las prueba?

Pronoun Pitfalls Learners Hit

If your Spanish feels close but not quite right, one of these is usually the reason.

Mixing up Los/Las with Le/Les

For “them” as the direct object, standard Spanish uses los/las. Le/les are for indirect objects, like “to him/to her/to them.”

There are regional patterns where speakers use le in places you might expect lo. If you want the standard rule set first, the RAE’s guidance on leísmo, laísmo y loísmo explains where variation shows up and what is recommended in formal Spanish.

Forgetting that Spanish nouns drive the pronoun

You’re not matching “them.” You’re matching the noun you mean. If you point at two pastries and say “them,” Spanish still wants: are those los pasteles or las galletas?

Using the wrong “try” verb

If someone is tasting a dish, intentar will sound odd. If someone is attempting a set of problems, probar can drift toward “test out” rather than “attempt.” Pick the verb that fits the scene.

Skipping the reflexive “te” with clothes

Clothes-on-your-body talk is where this sentence often appears in real life. “Try them on” needs probarse. That’s why te shows up:

• ¿No te los pruebas?
• ¿No te las pruebas?

Mini Checklist Before You Say It

Run this quick mental check and your sentence will land well.

1. What is “them”? Say the noun in Spanish in your head.
2. Pick los or las. Match gender and number.
3. Pick the “try” meaning. Taste/test: probar. Attempt: intentar. Try on: probarse.
4. Pick the time feel. General: simple present. Right now: estar + gerundio.

Placement Table For One Verb And Two Verbs

Use this as a fast reference when you’re building your sentence. It keeps you from second-guessing where los/las should go.

Structure	Pronoun Placement	Sample
One conjugated verb	Before the verb	¿No las pruebas?
Two verbs: conjugated + infinitive	Before the first verb	¿No las quieres probar?
Two verbs: conjugated + infinitive	Attached to the infinitive	¿No quieres probarlas?
Two verbs: conjugated + gerund	Before the first verb	¿No las estás probando?
Two verbs: conjugated + gerund	Attached to the gerund	¿No estás probándolas?
Clothes: reflexive + direct object	Reflexive then direct object	¿No telas pruebas?

A Few Natural Lines You’ll Hear

If you want your Spanish to sound less like a classroom sentence, these short lines are the ones people actually say in casual moments:

• ¿Y esas, no las pruebas?
• ¿Esos no los pruebas?
• ¿Por qué no las pruebas?
• ¿Todavía no los pruebas?
• ¿No quieres probarlas?

Notice what’s missing. No extra words. No forced subject pronouns. Spanish gets to the point.

Putting It All Together

If you want one default translation you can use most days, go with ¿No los pruebas? or ¿No las pruebas?. It’s short, natural, and fits food, drinks, and items people sample.

When you need a “right now” feel, shift to ¿No los estás probando? or ¿No las estás probando?. When you mean “attempt,” switch to intentar. When you mean “try on,” use ¿No te los pruebas? / ¿No te las pruebas?.

Do that, and the sentence stops being a puzzle. It becomes a clean, native-style question you can say without thinking twice.