How to Say "to ruin" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “to ruin” is “arruinar” — use 'arruinar' when you want to express the physical destruction of an object or resource, or the complete failure of something like a plan or a business..
arruinar
ahr-roo-ee-NAHR/ar.rwiˈnar/
Examples
El mal tiempo arruinó nuestra escapada de fin de semana.
The bad weather ruined our weekend getaway.
La tormenta arruinó la cosecha de este año.
The storm ruined this year's harvest.
El terremoto arruinó muchos edificios históricos.
The earthquake wrecked many historic buildings.
No dejes que un error arruine tu reputación.
Don't let one mistake ruin your reputation.
Regular -AR Verb
This verb follows the standard, predictable pattern for all verbs ending in -ar. If you know how to conjugate 'hablar' (to speak), you know how to conjugate 'arruinar'.
Accenting the 'u'
Mistake: “Using *arruíno* or *arruínas*.”
Correction: The stress stays on the last part of the stem: *arruino*, *arruinas*. The 'u' and 'i' are pronounced together as one syllable (rwee), not separately.
asesinar
/a-se-si-nar//ase.siˈnaɾ/
Examples
Sus comentarios inapropiados asesinaron la celebración.
His inappropriate comments killed the celebration.
El tráfico pesado asesinó el ambiente romántico de la cena.
The heavy traffic killed the romantic atmosphere of the dinner.
Con esa mala iluminación, la fotografía ha asesinado todos los detalles.
With that bad lighting, the photograph has ruined all the details.
Arruinar vs. Asesinar
Related Translations
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