buscar la excelencia
/buskaɾ la eɡsθelenθja/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'strive for excellence' is translated into Spanish as buscar la excelencia.
buscar la excelencia is commonly used in professional, academic and motivational contexts to describe a commitment to high standards.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase buscar la excelencia literally translates to 'to seek excellence'.
Which one should you use?
While buscar la excelencia is a common way to express the sentiment, esforzarse por la excelencia is a more direct translation of the effort involved in 'striving'. Other formal variations include Perseguir la excelencia (pursue excellence) and Ambicionar la excelencia (to aspire).
How does it change in a sentence?
If you want to express that you strived for excellence in the past as a completed action, you can conjugate the verb 'buscar' in the preterite indicative as busqué la excelencia (I strived for excellence).
How do you pronounce it?
/buskaɾ la eɡsθelenθja/
Did you know?
- The word excelencia is not just a goal but also a formal honorific title used when addressing certain high-ranking officials, such as ambassadors, as Su Excelencia.
- The verb buscar might share a common ancestor with the Old Irish word búaid, meaning 'victory'. This suggests that the act of 'seeking' something could be linguistically tied to the concept of 'winning'.
- While 'strive' in English implies a physical or mental struggle, the Spanish buscar la excelencia uses a verb that is most commonly used for 'looking for' lost keys or 'searching' for a person.
Examples in context
- Desde hoy, busquemos siempre la excelencia en nuestros estudios y en nuestras vidasFrom today onwards, let's always seek excellence in our studies and in our lives
- Debemos buscar la excelencia en cada proyecto.We must strive for excellence in every project.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries buscar, la, CC BY-SA 4.0.
