How to Say "to masticate" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “to masticate” is “masticar” — A1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
Examples
Tienes que masticar bien la comida antes de tragar.
You have to chew your food well before swallowing.
El niño está masticando un chicle de fresa.
The boy is chewing a piece of strawberry gum.
Es difícil masticar con este dolor de muelas.
It is hard to chew with this toothache.
The Spelling Change Rule
For verbs ending in -car, the 'c' changes to 'qu' when followed by an 'e'. This happens in the 'yo' form of the past (Preterite) and all forms of the 'special wish' verb mode (Subjunctive) to keep the hard 'K' sound.
Direct Objects with Masticar
Just like in English, you don't need a preposition after 'masticar'. You simply 'masticar [something]' directly.
The Spelling Error
Mistake: “Yo masticé la carne.”
Correction: Yo mastiqué la carne. (We use 'qu' to make sure it still sounds like 'K' rather than 'S'.)
Related Translations
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