se incendió
/se inθendjo/from spelling rules
The English phrase "caught on fire" is translated into Spanish as se incendió.
The verb incendiarse means "to catch on fire".
What does it mean word for word?
The verb incendiar means to set fire to or to cause a fire, and the reflexive pronoun se indicates that the subject itself underwent the process of catching fire.
Which one should you use?
Use se incendió to describe the event of something catching fire, whereas está ardiendo would be used to describe the state of something currently being on fire.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase se incendió is in the preterite tense, indicating a completed action in the past. The present tense form is se incendia.
How do you pronounce it?
/se inθendjo/
Did you know?
- If you use the verb incendiar without the se, you are no longer describing an accident. You are describing an act of arson, as it implies someone intentionally set the fire.
- In Spanish, the word incendio (fire) is closely related to the concept of 'incense'. Both share roots related to burning or causing a scent through heat, though they are used very differently today.
- The word incendiario is not only used for fire but can also describe a person who uses provocative language to stir up political or social conflict.
Examples in context
- Se incendió la chimenea y se quemó toda la casa.The chimney caught on fire and the house burned down.This sentence shows how to describe a chimney catching fire.Tatoeba #2253048 by cueyayotl, translation #2253047 by _undertoad
- inflamarseTo ignite
- El campo quedó en llamas.The field went up in flames
- El carro prendió fuego debido a un cortocircuito.The car caught on fire due to a short circuit
- El viejo almacén se incendió anoche.The old warehouse caught on fire last night.
- Una pila se incendió en el laboratorio.A battery caught on fire in the laboratory.
Example conversation
Mateo and María are talking about a news report.
- MateoMira, se incendió un coche en la calle.Look, a car caught on fire in the street.
- María¡Qué horror! ¿Hay alguien herido?How horrible! Is anyone hurt?
- MateoNo, el conductor salió a tiempo.No, the driver got out in time.
- MaríaMenos mal que no pasó nada grave.Thankfully nothing serious happened.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
