Spanish Word of the Day: engañar

When traveling to a Spanish-speaking country, it can always happen that people try to trick or cheat on you. There are several ways to say that you know that someone swindles you, but one of the most common ways is to use the word engañar. Remember: there are quite some slang and colloquial words to say this, but most of these terms are bound to certain regions. The word engañar is used throughout the hispanosphere.

Engañar translates to ‘to deceive’ or ‘to mislead’, but can also mean ‘to trick’. The reflexive form engañarse means ‘to deceive oneself’ or ‘to kid oneself’ (in this context it’s a colloquial expression). The noun that’s linked to the verb engañar is el engaño, which means ‘deception’ (mentira), ’swindle’ (timo) or ‘trick’ (ardid).

Sentences

Me engañó la vista.
My eyes deceived me.

Tú a mí no me engañas.
You can’t fool me.

Lo engañó haciéndole creer que…
She deceived him into thinking that…

No me engañes, ese no es tu coche.
You can’t fool me, this isn’t your car.

*Sentences taken from “EsPasa diccionario de la lengua española” and “Pocket Oxford Spanish Dictionary”.

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