Inklingo

asusta

ah-SOOS-tahaˈsusta

asusta means he/she/it scares in Spanish (Present action).

he/she/it scares, you scare (formal)

Also: frightens, scare!
A friendly purple monster is startling a small child by jumping out from behind a large tree trunk. The child reacts with wide, startled eyes and appears to be jumping back.
infinitiveasustar
gerundasustando
past Participleasustado

📝 In Action

Esa película de terror siempre me asusta mucho.

A2

That horror movie always scares me a lot.

El ruido de la alarma asusta a todos los vecinos.

B1

The noise of the alarm frightens all the neighbors.

Usted asusta a la gente cuando aparece de repente.

B2

You scare people when you appear suddenly. (Formal)

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • atemoriza (terrifies)
  • espanta (drives away/scares)

Antonyms

  • calma (calms)
  • tranquiliza (soothes)

Common Collocations

  • asusta muchoscares a lot
  • me asusta la ideathe idea frightens me

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedasusta
yoasusto
asustas
ellos/ellas/ustedesasustan
nosotrosasustamos
vosotrosasustáis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedasustaba
yoasustaba
asustabas
ellos/ellas/ustedesasustaban
nosotrosasustábamos
vosotrosasustabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedasustó
yoasusté
asustaste
ellos/ellas/ustedesasustaron
nosotrosasustamos
vosotrosasustasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedasuste
yoasuste
asustes
ellos/ellas/ustedesasusten
nosotrosasustemos
vosotrosasustéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedasustara/asustase
yoasustara/asustase
asustaras/asustases
ellos/ellas/ustedesasustaran/asustasen
nosotrosasustáramos/asustásemos
vosotrosasustarais/asustaseis

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "asusta" in Spanish:

frightens

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: asusta

Question 1 of 1

Which sentence correctly uses 'asusta' to mean 'The dark frightens me'?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family
🎵 Rhymes
gustaajusta
📚 Etymology

Comes from the verb *asustar*, which evolved from the Latin verb *sustare*, meaning 'to lift up' or 'to raise.' Over time, the meaning shifted from physically raising something to mentally raising or startling someone, leading to the modern meaning of 'to frighten.'

First recorded: Medieval Spanish

Cognates (Related words)

Portuguese: assustar

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between 'asusta' and 'tiene miedo'?

'Asusta' is an action; it means something *is doing* the frightening (The ghost asusta). 'Tiene miedo' describes a state of being; it means someone *is* afraid (She tiene miedo). They are not interchangeable.

If I want to say 'Don't scare him,' do I use 'asusta'?

No. 'Asusta' is the positive command ('Scare him!'). For the negative command ('Don't scare him!'), you must use the subjunctive form: 'No lo asustes'.