me estafaron
/me estafaɾon/from spelling rules
The English phrase "I got scammed" is translated into Spanish as me estafaron.
You use this phrase to state that you have been tricked into giving money or property to someone through a dishonest scheme.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, me estafaron means "they scammed me". It uses the third-person plural to indicate that an unspecified group of people performed the action against you.
How does it change in a sentence?
To express the passive sense of being the victim, use the third-person plural me estafaron. Avoid using the form me estafé, as this is incorrect if you mean you were the victim.
How do you pronounce it?
/me estafaɾon/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use me estafé to mean you were scammed. Instead, use me estafaron to correctly indicate you were the victim.
Did you know?
- To say you were tricked in a lighthearted or casual way, you can use the idiom me tomaron el pelo, which literally translates to 'they pulled my hair'.
- In a legal sense, a crime is only classified as estafa if the scammer uses 'fraudulent mechanisms' to fake reality, rather than just telling a lie.
- The pronoun me in me estafaron is inherited from the Latin accusative mē and the dative mihi.
Examples in context
- Le informo que fui víctima de una estafa en línea. Requiero asistencia para resolver esta situación urgentemente.I inform you that I was a victim of an online scam. I require assistance to resolve this situation urgently.
- Me estafaron con el precio de la casa.I got scammed with the price of the house.
- No confíes en ese sitio, me estafaron.Don't trust that site, I got scammed.
- Me estafaron en la calle ayer.I got scammed on the street yesterday.
Example conversation
Lucía tells Javier about a bad experience with an online purchase.
- LucíaJavier, me estafaron en la tienda online.Javier, I got scammed at the online store.
- Javier¿Qué pasó, Lucía?What happened, Lucía?
- LucíaCompré un teléfono pero nunca llegó.I bought a phone but it never arrived.
- JavierQué mala suerte tienes.You are so unlucky.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries me, CC BY-SA 4.0.
