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borrar

boh-RRAHRboˈraɾ

“borrar” means “erase” in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:

erase, rub out

Also: wipe off
VerbA1regular ar
A close-up view of a hand holding a pink rectangular eraser rubbing away a light gray pencil line on a white piece of paper, showing the physical act of removal.
infinitiveborrar
gerundborrando
past Participleborrado

📝 In Action

Por favor, borra lo que escribiste en la pizarra.

A1

Please, erase what you wrote on the whiteboard.

El lápiz se borra fácilmente, pero la tinta no.

A2

Pencil is erased easily, but ink is not.

Tienes que borrar los errores antes de entregar el examen.

B1

You have to rub out the mistakes before handing in the test.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • borrar con goma – to erase with a rubber/eraser
  • borrar de la lista – to cross off the list

delete, wipe out

Also: clear, remove
VerbA2regular ar
A simple, colorful illustration of a stylized digital document icon floating down into a large, open wastebasket icon, symbolizing digital deletion.
infinitiveborrar
gerundborrando
past Participleborrado

📝 In Action

Borra todas las fotos antiguas de tu teléfono para liberar espacio.

A2

Delete all the old photos from your phone to free up space.

Intenté borrar su número de mi memoria, pero fue imposible.

B1

I tried to wipe his number from my memory, but it was impossible.

Si borras la caché, la aplicación debería funcionar mejor.

B2

If you clear the cache, the application should work better.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • borrar un mensaje – to delete a message
  • borrar la cuenta – to delete the account

Idioms & Expressions

  • borrar del mapa – to destroy completely; to make something disappear entirely

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedborra
yoborro
túborras
ellos/ellas/ustedesborran
nosotrosborramos
vosotrosborráis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedborraba
yoborraba
túborrabas
ellos/ellas/ustedesborraban
nosotrosborrábamos
vosotrosborrabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedborró
yoborré
túborraste
ellos/ellas/ustedesborraron
nosotrosborramos
vosotrosborrasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedborre
yoborre
túborres
ellos/ellas/ustedesborren
nosotrosborremos
vosotrosborréis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedborrara
yoborrara
túborraras
ellos/ellas/ustedesborraran
nosotrosborráramos
vosotrosborrarais
View All Tenses & Moods →

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "borrar" in Spanish:

clear→delete→erase→remove→rub out→wipe off→wipe out→

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: borrar

Question 1 of 2

Which sentence correctly uses 'borrar' in the context of digital technology?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family▼
el borrador(eraser / rough draft) — Noun
la borradura(erasure / smudge) — Noun
borrable(erasable) — Adjective
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼

'Borrar' comes from the Latin word *burra*, which meant 'coarse wool' or 'fleece.' The original connection was to the action of rubbing or wiping something away using a rough cloth.

First recorded: 13th century

Cognates (Related words)

Portuguese: borrar

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is 'borrar' a common verb in daily conversation?

Yes, absolutely! It is used constantly, whether you are talking about rubbing out pencil marks or deleting emails and files on your computer or phone.

How do I say 'I need an eraser'?

You would say, 'Necesito un borrador.' Remember that the tool used to perform the action ('borrar') is the noun 'el borrador'.