madrugar
/madɾuɡaɾ/from spelling rules
In Spanish, the phrase 'waking up early' is expressed by the verb madrugar.
While English uses a phrase to describe the act of rising from sleep at a very early hour, Spanish has a single, specific verb, madrugar, to express this action. It is an intransitive verb, which means it does not require a direct object to complete its meaning.
How does it change in a sentence?
You can use the related forms madrugador (masculine) or madrugadora (feminine) as nouns to describe a person who is an early riser.
How do you pronounce it?
/madɾuɡaɾ/
Did you know?
- There is a popular Spanish proverb, No por mucho madrugar amanece más temprano, which literally says that waking up earlier does not make the sun rise any sooner.
- The verb madrugar shares an unexpected root with the word madurar, which means 'to ripen' or 'to mature'.
- Spanish uses the noun madrugada to name the specific window of time between midnight and dawn. English has no single word for this period.
Examples in context
- Nunca me acostumbraré a madrugar, es muy duro.I will never get used to waking up early. It's very hard.This sentence shows how to express that someone finds the act of madrugar to be difficult.Tatoeba #10825917 by saverius, translation #13050132 by saverius
- Me gusta levantarme temprano para aprovechar el día.I like to wake up early to make the most of the day.
- Mi padre siempre se despierta temprano para ir al gimnasio.My father always wakes up early to go to the gym.
- Los agricultores suelen madrugar para trabajar en el campo.Farmers often wake up early to work in the fields.
- Mi abuela siempre se despierta tempranito para hacer ejercicio.My grandma always wakes up nice and early to exercise.
- No me gusta madrugar los fines de semana.I do not like waking up early on weekends.
- Mañana me toca madrugar para ir al aeropuerto.Tomorrow I have to wake up early to go to the airport.
Example conversation
María and Mateo are discussing their work schedules at a cafe.
- María¿Te gusta madrugar para trabajar?Do you like waking up early to work?
- MateoNo, odio tener que madrugar tanto.No, I hate having to wake up so early.
- MaríaYo prefiero madrugar para aprovechar el día.I prefer waking up early to make the most of the day.
- MateoEres muy diferente a mí, María.You are very different from me, María.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries madrugar, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
