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toser

toh-SEHR/toˈseɾ/

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

to cough

Also: to clear one's throat
VerbA1regular er
A child in a cozy sweater covering their mouth with their hand while coughing.
gerundtosiendo
past Participletosido
infinitivetoser

📝 In Action

Tengo que toser porque hay mucho humo aquí.

A1

I have to cough because there is a lot of smoke here.

El niño empezó a toser muy fuerte durante la noche.

A2

The boy started to cough very loudly during the night.

Si vas a toser, por favor cúbrete la boca con el codo.

B1

If you are going to cough, please cover your mouth with your elbow.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • carraspear (to clear one's throat)

Common Collocations

  • toser fuerte – to cough hard
  • parar de toser – to stop coughing
  • toser sangre – to cough up blood

Idioms & Expressions

  • toserle a alguien – to stand up to someone or to rival someone (usually used in the negative to say someone is unbeatable)

to rival

Also: to challenge
VerbC1informal
Two people standing side-by-side, both holding identical golden trophies to show they are equally matched.

📝 In Action

En esta empresa, nadie se atreve a toserle al director.

C1

In this company, nobody dares to stand up to the director.

Messi está en tal forma que nadie le puede toser.

C2

Messi is in such good shape that nobody can touch/rival him.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • desafiar (to challenge)
  • rivalizar (to rival)

Antonyms

🔄 Conjugations

subjunctive

imperfect

ellos/ellas/ustedestosieran
yotosiera
tútosieras
vosotrostosierais
nosotrostosiéramos
él/ella/ustedtosiera

present

ellos/ellas/ustedestosan
yotosa
tútosas
vosotrostosáis
nosotrostosamos
él/ella/ustedtosa

indicative

preterite

ellos/ellas/ustedestosieron
yotosí
tútosiste
vosotrostosisteis
nosotrostosimos
él/ella/ustedtosió

imperfect

ellos/ellas/ustedestosían
yotosía
tútosías
vosotrostosíais
nosotrostosíamos
él/ella/ustedtosía

present

ellos/ellas/ustedestosen
yotoso
tútoses
vosotrostoséis
nosotrostosemos
él/ella/ustedtose
View All Tenses & Moods →

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "toser" in Spanish:

to challenge→to cough→to rival→

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: toser

Question 1 of 3

How do you say 'I have a cough' in Spanish?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family▼
tos(cough) — Noun
tosido(a single cough) — Noun
tosedera(fit of coughing) — Noun
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼

From the Latin word 'tussire', which also means 'to cough.' It is related to the Latin noun 'tussis.'

First recorded: 13th century

Cognates (Related words)

Italian: tossirePortuguese: tossirFrench: tousser

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is 'toser' irregular?

No, 'toser' is a completely regular -er verb. It follows the same conjugation rules as 'comer' or 'beber'.

What is the difference between 'toser' and 'tos'?

'Toser' is the verb (the action of coughing), while 'tos' is the noun (the cough itself). Example: 'Toser mucho te da dolor de tos' (Coughing a lot gives you a cough pain).

How do I say 'Stop coughing'?

You can say 'Deja de toser' or 'Para de toser'.