How to Say "to compliment" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “to compliment” is “elogiar” — use 'elogiar' when you are verbally praising someone's specific action, quality, or creation, often in a formal or semi-formal context..
elogiar
/eh-loh-hee-AHR//eloˈxjaɾ/
Examples
El director elogió el arduo trabajo del equipo.
The director praised the team's hard work.
El profesor elogió mi dibujo frente a toda la clase.
The teacher praised my drawing in front of the whole class.
Es bueno elogiar el esfuerzo de los demás, no solo el resultado.
It is good to praise the effort of others, not just the result.
La prensa elogió la valentía de los bomberos tras el incendio.
The press praised the bravery of the firefighters after the fire.
Using the 'Personal A'
When you are praising a specific person, you must put the word 'a' before their name. For example: 'Elogió a María' (He praised Maria).
A Regular Verb
This verb follows the standard pattern for all verbs ending in -ar, so once you learn the pattern, you can conjugate it easily!
Missing the 'a'
Mistake: “Elogio mi madre por su cocina.”
Correction: Elogio a mi madre por su cocina. (Always use 'a' when the person receiving the action is a specific human.)
felicitar
/feh-lee-see-tahr//feliθiˈtaɾ/
Examples
Quiero felicitarte por ganar la competencia.
I want to congratulate you for winning the competition.
Vine para felicitarte por tu nuevo bebé.
I came to congratulate you on your new baby.
Todo el equipo te felicita por el excelente trabajo.
The whole team congratulates you on the excellent work.
No te olvides de felicitar a tu abuela por su santo.
Don't forget to wish your grandmother a happy Saint's Day.
Using 'por' for the reason
In Spanish, we use the word 'por' to explain what you are congratulating someone for. For example: 'Te felicito por tu éxito' (I congratulate you on your success).
The 'Personal A'
When you congratulate a specific person, you must put the little word 'a' before their name or the noun. Say 'Felicité a Juan' instead of 'Felicité Juan'.
Don't use 'en' for the reason
Mistake: “Te felicito en tu trabajo.”
Correction: Te felicito por tu trabajo. (Use 'por' to connect the action to the reason/cause).
Mixing up 'felicidades' and 'felicitar'
Mistake: “Yo te felicidades.”
Correction: Yo te felicito. ('Felicidades' is the noun/exclamation, 'felicitar' is the action you do).
halagar
/ah-lah-GAR//alaˈɡaɾ/
Examples
Sus cumplidos sonaban huecos, solo quería halagarme.
His compliments sounded hollow, he just wanted to flatter me.
No me digas eso solo para halagarme.
Don't tell me that just to flatter me.
Me halaga mucho que hayas venido a mi fiesta.
It flatters me a lot that you came to my party.
El director halagó el gran trabajo del equipo.
The director praised the team's great work.
The 'G' to 'GU' Spelling Rule
To keep the hard 'G' sound (like in 'game'), we change 'g' to 'gu' whenever the next letter is 'e'. This happens in the 'yo' form of the past tense (halagué) and in all special 'wishes and commands' forms (halague).
Using it like 'Gustar'
When something (like a comment) flatters you, we often use the word order: 'Me halaga tu comentario'. Here, the comment is doing the action to you.
Spelling Error in the Past
Mistake: “Yo halagé.”
Correction: Yo halagué. Without the 'u', the word would sound like 'ha-la-HEH'.
Choosing between 'elogiar' and 'felicitar'
Related Translations
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