Inklingo

How to Say "prepare yourself" in Spanish

The Spanish word forprepare yourselfis prepárateA1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.

English → SpanishA1
VerbA1
as a command
A friendly cartoon character kneeling down, actively tying the laces of a bright red running shoe, demonstrating preparation for an activity.

Examples

¡Prepárate! El autobús llega en cinco minutos.

Get ready! The bus arrives in five minutes.

Prepárate para la sorpresa. Es algo increíble.

Prepare yourself for the surprise. It's something incredible.

Tienes que estudiar mucho. Prepárate para el examen final.

You have to study a lot. Prepare yourself for the final exam.

Command Form Rule

This word is a command telling 'you' (tú) to prepare. When giving an affirmative command in Spanish, the little word 'te' (yourself) is always attached directly to the end of the verb.

The Accent Mark

Notice the accent mark on the 'a' (prepárate). This is added to make sure the stress stays on the correct syllable, even after adding the pronoun 'te' to the end.

Base Verb

The original verb is 'prepararse,' which means 'to prepare oneself' (a reflexive action). The 'te' in 'prepárate' is the 'self' part.

Forgetting the Accent

Mistake:Preparate (without accent)

Correction: Prepárate. Without the accent, the stress shifts, and the word sounds wrong. Always add the accent when attaching pronouns to affirmative commands.

Using it for 'You all'

Mistake:¡Prepárate! (when talking to a group)

Correction: Use '¡Prepárense!' (formal/Latin America) or '¡Preparaos!' (Spain) for groups. 'Prepárate' is only for one person you know well.

Related Translations

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