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sanar

sah-NARsaˈnaɾ

“sanar” means “to heal” in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:

to heal

Also: to get well, to cure
VerbA2regular ar
A small bird with a neatly bandaged wing resting on a soft green leaf.
gerundsanando
past Participlesanado
infinitivesanar

📝 In Action

La herida sanó completamente en una semana.

A2

The wound healed completely in a week.

Espero que sanes pronto de tu resfriado.

A2

I hope you get well soon from your cold.

El médico hizo todo lo posible por sanar al paciente.

B1

The doctor did everything possible to heal the patient.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • curar (to cure/heal)
  • recuperarse (to recover)

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • sanar pronto – to heal quickly
  • ayudar a sanar – to help heal

to heal

Also: to mend
VerbB2regular ar
A person sitting peacefully in a garden, holding a glowing heart-shaped object.
gerundsanando
past Participlesanado
infinitivesanar

📝 In Action

Necesitas tiempo para sanar tu corazón después de la ruptura.

B2

You need time to heal your heart after the breakup.

Sanar las heridas del pasado no es fácil.

B2

Healing the wounds of the past is not easy.

El perdón es el primer paso para sanar el alma.

C1

Forgiveness is the first step to healing the soul.

Word Connections

Synonyms

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • sanar el alma – to heal the soul
  • sanar heridas emocionales – to heal emotional wounds

Subjunctive

Imperfect Subjunctive

yosanara
túsanaras
él/ella/ustedsanara
nosotrossanáramos
vosotrossanarais
ellos/ellas/ustedessanaran

Present Subjunctive

yosane
túsanes
él/ella/ustedsane
nosotrossanemos
vosotrossanéis
ellos/ellas/ustedessanen

Indicative

Preterite

yosané
túsanaste
él/ella/ustedsanó
nosotrossanamos
vosotrossanasteis
ellos/ellas/ustedessanaron

Imperfect

yosanaba
túsanabas
él/ella/ustedsanaba
nosotrossanábamos
vosotrossanabais
ellos/ellas/ustedessanaban

Present

yosano
túsanas
él/ella/ustedsana
nosotrossanamos
vosotrossanáis
ellos/ellas/ustedessanan
View All Tenses & Moods →

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "sanar" in Spanish:

to cure→to heal→to mend→

🗣️ Practice in a Tongue Twister

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: sanar

Question 1 of 3

How do you say 'The wound is healing'?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family▼
sano(healthy) — Adjective
sanación(healing process) — Noun
sanador(healer) — Noun
sanatorio(clinic or hospital) — Noun
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼

From the Latin word 'sanare', which comes from 'sanus' (healthy/whole). It is the root of English words like 'sanity' and 'sanitary'.

First recorded: 13th century

Cognates (Related words)

Italian: sanarePortuguese: sanar

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is 'sanar' a regular verb?

Yes! It follows the standard pattern for verbs ending in '-ar' in all tenses.

Can I use 'sanar' to mean 'to clean'?

No. While it sounds like 'sanitize,' in Spanish 'sanar' is only for health and healing. To say 'to clean' or 'to sanitize,' you should use 'limpiar' or 'desinfectar'.

Is it 'sanar a alguien' or just 'sanar alguien'?

When you are healing a person, you need to use the 'personal a': 'Sanar a mi hermano'.