pudrirse
/pudɾiɾse/from spelling rules
To rot in Spanish is pudrirse.
pudrirse is used to describe the process of suffering decomposition. This can be used literally for organic matter, such as fruit or figuratively to describe a person or a situation becoming corrupt or 'rotten'.
Meaning: (intransitive) to suffer decomposition (verb)
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb is pronominal, meaning it is used with reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nos, os, se) to indicate the subject is undergoing the process. For example, the preterite (past tense) form for 'it rotted' is se pudrió.
How do you pronounce it?
/pudɾiɾse/
What mistakes should you avoid?
When describing something that is rotting on its own, do not use the transitive form pudrir. English speakers often forget the reflexive pronoun 'se'. You should use pudrirse instead.
Did you know?
- In certain Spanish-speaking cultures, if you say a person is podrido/a of a certain emotion, like 'podrido de rabia', it doesn't mean they are rotting, but that they are 'sick and tired' or 'fed up' with it.
- While pudrirse describes organic decay, the phrase pudrir el cerebro is a common way to say someone is 'rotting one's brain' with mindless television or internet content.
- When discussing politics, the phrase podredumbre (rot/putrefaction) is frequently used in news headlines to describe systemic corruption, making the biological term a political weapon.
Examples in context
- Llevo meses sin bañarme, mi culo ha comenzado a pudrirse.I haven't bathed in months, my ass has started to rot.This sentence uses pudrirse to describe a person's body.Tatoeba #9132023 by rafaeldejesus8199, translation #9132024 by rafaeldejesus8199
- Esta manzana empezó a pudrirse.This apple began to rot.This sentence uses pudrirse to describe an apple.Tatoeba #2751548 by Amerika, translation #625258 by szaby78
- La podredumbre de la madera se extendió por toda la estructura.The rot of the wood spread throughout the structure.
- El animal estaba en avanzado estado de descomposición.The animal was in an advanced state of decay.
- El olor a putrefacción se hizo insoportable en el almacén.The smell of rot became unbearable in the storage room.
- ¡La comida que dejaste en la nevera se ha empezado a pudrir!The food you left in the fridge has started to rot!
- No comas eso, se ha echado a perder y te puede enfermar.Don't eat that, it's gone bad and could make you sick.
- El paso del tiempo ha carcomido la madera de la casa.The passing of time has rotted the wood of the house.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry pudrirse, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
