How to Say "to calm" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “to calm” is “calmar” — A1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
English → SpanishA1
verbA1
General meaning - making someone or something more peaceful
Examples
La madre calma al bebé.
The mother calms the baby.
Necesito calmar mis nervios antes del examen.
I need to calm my nerves before the exam.
El viento se calmó por la noche.
The wind settled down at night.
Calmarse vs. Calmar
Use 'calmarse' (with -se) when the person doing the action is also the one getting calm: 'Me calmé' = 'I calmed down.' Use 'calmar' (without -se) when you calm someone else: 'Te calmé' = 'I calmed you down.'
Forgetting the reflexive pronoun
Mistake: “Yo calmé después del examen”
Correction: Yo me calmé después del examen. When you mean 'to calm down' (yourself), Spanish needs the '-se' ending attached to the verb.
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