hiperventilando
/ipeɾbentilando/from spelling rules
hiperventilando is the Spanish way to say hyperventilating.
If you need to describe fast breathing in a more formal or clinical context, you can use the phrase Respiración acelerada.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is formed from the prefix hiper- (hyper) and the gerund ventilando (ventilating).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some Latin American countries, Me estoy ahogando may be used to indicate a feeling of suffocation due to hyperventilation.
How does it change in a sentence?
The infinitive form of the verb is hiperventilar. The third-person singular present subjunctive form is hiperventile.
How do you pronounce it?
/ipeɾbentilando/
Did you know?
- The word hiperventilando is a technical loan-translation from English and Greek, but the root ventilar originally referred to the movement of air in a room rather than lungs.
- When someone is hyperventilating due to stress, a common cultural response is to tell them to tomar aire, which treats air as something that can be 'taken' or consumed like a drink.
- While hiperventilando is a clinical term, Spanish speakers often use the phrase me falta el aire to express the feeling of hyperventilating, which literally translates to 'air is missing to me'.
Examples in context
- El paciente está hiperventilando.The patient is hyperventilating.This sentence shows how to use hiperventilando to describe a patient's state.Tatoeba #7993718 by Seael, translation #13032190 by araneo
- Tom está hiperventilando.Tom is hyperventilating.This sentence uses hiperventilando to describe someone's current action.Tatoeba #5854925 by arh, translation #5854426 by CK
- Estoy experimentando hiperventilaciónI am experiencing hyperventilation
- Estoy teniendo una respiración aceleradaI am having fast breathing
- Siento que estoy hiperventilando por el estrés.I feel like I am hyperventilating because of stress.
Example conversation
Lucía notices Alejandro breathing too quickly during a panic attack.
- LucíaAlejandro, cálmate, estás hiperventilando.Alejandro, calm down, you are hyperventilating.
- AlejandroNo puedo controlar mi respiración, Lucía.I can't control my breathing, Lucía.
- LucíaTrata de respirar conmigo despacio.Try to breathe slowly with me.
- AlejandroGracias, lo intentaré.Thanks, I will try.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
