How to Say "to shudder" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “to shudder” is “estremecer” — B1 level.
Examples
El rugido del motor hizo estremecer el suelo.
The roar of the engine made the ground shake.
Ella se estremeció al sentir el viento helado en su cara.
She shuddered when she felt the icy wind on her face.
Un fuerte terremoto estremeció la ciudad durante la noche.
A strong earthquake shook the city during the night.
The 'ZC' Spelling Change
For this verb, when you have a 'yo' form or a 'special form' (subjunctive) that ends in 'o' or 'a', the 'c' changes to 'zc' to keep the soft 's' or 'th' sound.
When to use 'se'
Use 'estremecerse' (with the extra 'se') when you are talking about a person shivering or shuddering on their own. Use 'estremecer' without 'se' when something else is doing the shaking.
Missing the 'Z'
Mistake: “Yo estremeco.”
Correction: Yo estremezco. (The 'z' is needed before the 'o' to maintain the correct pronunciation pattern.)
Related Translations
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