esfumar
“esfumar” means “to vanish” in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:
to vanish, to fade awayAlso: to slip away
📝 In Action
Mis ahorros se esfumaron en un mes.
B1My savings vanished in a month.
El ladrón se esfumó entre la multitud.
B1The thief slipped away into the crowd.
Tus miedos se esfumarán pronto.
B2Your fears will fade away soon.
Word Connections
to blur, to shade
📝 In Action
Debes esfumar los bordes del dibujo.
B2You should blur the edges of the drawing.
El artista esfumó el color azul con el blanco.
C1The artist shaded the blue color into the white.
Word Connections
Subjunctive
Imperfect Subjunctive
Present Subjunctive
Indicative
Preterite
Imperfect
Present
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: esfumar
Question 1 of 3
Which sentence means 'The money vanished'?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family
📚 Etymology
Derived from the Latin word 'fumus', which means 'smoke'. The idea is that something turns into smoke and disappears or becomes blurry.
First recorded: 16th century
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between 'esfumar' and 'desaparecer'?
'Desaparecer' is the general word for 'to disappear'. 'Esfumar' implies disappearing quickly or mysteriously, like smoke in the wind.
Do I always need 'se' with this word?
No. Use 'se' when something is vanishing (El humo se esfuma). Don't use 'se' when you are manually blurring something, like a pencil sketch (Yo esfumo el dibujo).
Is it related to 'fumar' (to smoke)?
Yes! Both come from the Latin word for smoke. 'Fumar' is the act of smoking, and 'esfumar' is the act of turning into smoke/vanishing.