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sanar

sah-NAR/saˈnaɾ/

“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

🔄 Conjugations

subjunctive

imperfect

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

present

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

indicative

preterite

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

imperfect

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

present

ellos/ellas/ustedessanan
yosano
túsanas
vosotrossanáis
nosotrossanamos
él/ella/ustedsana
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'.