How to Say "talked back" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “talked back” is “contestó” — A1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
English → SpanishA1
verbA1
answering rudely to an authority figure
Examples
Ella contestó el teléfono a la primera.
She answered the phone on the first ring.
El estudiante contestó todas las preguntas.
The student answered all the questions.
Él me contestó de forma muy amable.
He replied to me in a very kind way.
The Importance of the Accent Mark
The accent on the 'ó' tells you two things: it happened in the past, and 'he', 'she', or 'you (formal)' did it. Without the accent, 'contesto' means 'I answer' right now.
Confusing 'contesto' and 'contestó'
Mistake: “Using 'contesto' to say 'he answered.'”
Correction: Always use 'contestó' with the accent for the past. 'Él contestó' is past; 'Yo contesto' is present.
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