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A close-up view of a patch of bright green grass. A small, swirling puff of golden dust rises from an empty spot, indicating that something has just vanished.

desapareció

deh-sah-pah-reh-see-OH

VerbA2regular (for ER verbs, but has a spelling change in present tense) er
disappeared?He/She/It vanished instantly,vanished?Used for people, objects, or phenomena
Also:went missing?Referring to a person,was discontinued?Referring to a product or service (figurative)

Quick Reference

infinitivedesaparecer
gerunddesapareciendo
past Participledesaparecido

📝 In Action

El mago hizo un truco y el pañuelo desapareció.

A2

The magician did a trick and the handkerchief disappeared.

Mi billetera desapareció de la mesa hace un momento.

A1

My wallet disappeared from the table a moment ago.

¿Viste dónde fue? Simplemente se dio la vuelta y desapareció.

B1

Did you see where she went? She simply turned around and vanished.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • esfumarse (to vanish (like smoke))
  • perderse (to get lost/go missing)

Antonyms

  • apareció (he/she appeared)
  • llegó (he/she arrived)

Common Collocations

  • desapareció sin dejar rastro – disappeared without a trace
  • desapareció en la multitud – disappeared in the crowd

💡 Grammar Points

What 'desapareció' tells us

This is the simple past tense (preterite). It means the action of vanishing started and finished entirely in the past, usually quite quickly. The focus is on the single completed event.

The C to ZC Change

In the 'yo' form of the present tense ('yo desaparezco') and throughout the subjunctive mood, the 'c' changes to 'zc' to keep the soft 's' sound before 'o' or 'a'. This is just a spelling rule for these kinds of verbs!

❌ Common Pitfalls

Confusing Past Tenses

Mistake: "El objeto desaparecía de repente. (Using imperfect 'desaparecía')"

Correction: El objeto desapareció de repente. (Using preterite 'desapareció'). The preterite is used because the vanishing was a single, sudden, finished action.

⭐ Usage Tips

Using the base verb

Since 'desaparecer' is the base verb, you will hear the related noun 'desaparición' (disappearance) and the adjective 'desaparecido/a' (missing person) often.

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/usteddesaparece
yodesaparezco
túdesapareces
ellos/ellas/ustedesdesaparecen
nosotrosdesaparecemos
vosotrosdesaparecéis

imperfect

él/ella/usteddesaparecía
yodesaparecía
túdesaparecías
ellos/ellas/ustedesdesaparecían
nosotrosdesaparecíamos
vosotrosdesaparecíais

preterite

él/ella/usteddesapareció
yodesaparecí
túdesapareciste
ellos/ellas/ustedesdesaparecieron
nosotrosdesaparecimos
vosotrosdesaparecisteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/usteddesaparezca
yodesaparezca
túdesaparezcas
ellos/ellas/ustedesdesaparezcan
nosotrosdesaparezcamos
vosotrosdesaparezcáis

imperfect

él/ella/usteddesapareciera
yodesapareciera
túdesaparecieras
ellos/ellas/ustedesdesaparecieran
nosotrosdesapareciéramos
vosotrosdesaparecierais
View All Tenses & Moods →

✏️ Quick Practice

💡 Quick Quiz: desapareció

Question 1 of 1

Which of these sentences correctly uses 'desapareció'?

📚 More Resources

Word Family

desaparecer(to disappear (infinitive)) - verb
la desaparición(the disappearance) - noun
desaparecido/a(missing (past participle/adjective)) - adjective

Frequently Asked Questions

If 'desapareció' is the past tense, how do I say 'He was disappearing'?

For an ongoing or descriptive action in the past, you would use the imperfect tense: 'Él desaparecía.' This describes the process, not the sudden finish.