How to Say "to sadden" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “to sadden” is “entristecer” — use 'entristecer' when you want to express causing someone to feel unhappy or sorrowful about a specific situation..
entristecer
/en-trees-teh-SEHR//entɾisteˈθeɾ/
Examples
Me entristece ver a los animales abandonados en la calle.
It saddens me to see abandoned animals on the street.
La noticia sobre la guerra entristeció a todo el país.
The news about the war saddened the entire country.
No quería entristecer tu fiesta con mis historias aburridas.
I didn't want to make your party sad with my boring stories.
The 'ZC' Change
For verbs like this that end in -ecer, the 'c' changes to 'zc' when you say 'yo' (I) in the present, or when you use the subjunctive (the forms for wishes/commands).
Using 'Me' and 'Te'
Just like 'gustar,' we often use this verb to say how things affect us: 'La lluvia me entristece' (The rain saddens me).
Literal Translation Error
Mistake: “Me hace triste.”
Correction: Me entristece.
deprimir
/deh-pree-MEER//depriˈmiɾ/
Examples
Las noticias grises me deprimen un poco.
The grey news depresses me a little.
No quiero deprimirte, pero el examen fue muy difícil.
I don't want to depress you, but the exam was very difficult.
Ella se deprime cuando llega el invierno.
She gets depressed when winter arrives.
Using the 'me/te/le' structure
Often, we use this word to say something 'depresses us.' In Spanish, the thing causing the sadness is the boss of the sentence: 'La lluvia (the rain) me deprime (depresses me).'
Becoming depressed
If you want to say you are 'getting' or 'falling into' a depressed state, add 'se' to the end (deprimirse). For example: 'Me deprimí' means 'I got depressed.'
Deprimir vs. Estar deprimido
Mistake: “Yo deprimo hoy.”
Correction: Estoy deprimido hoy.
Deprimir vs. Entristecer
Related Translations
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