empeñar
Spanish, verb/empeˈɲaɾ/
empeñar is spelled E-M-P-E-Ñ-A-R (7 letters) and appears about once in every 2 million words in written Spanish, the 58,329th most frequent Spanish word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Empeñar is a Spanish verb meaning “to pawn, to hock (sell something to a pawn shop)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) defines it as “Dejar un objeto de valor a un prestamista o empeñador a cambio de un préstamo y mientras dure el mismo”.
What does empeñar mean in English?
verb
- 1
to pawn, to hock (sell something to a pawn shop)
- 2
to involve
- 3
to pledge
- 4
to strive, make an effort, insist
Source: English Wiktionary, Spanish section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Spanish dictionaries define it
verb: 1. Dejar un objeto de valor a un prestamista o empeñador a cambio de un préstamo y mientras dure el mismo. 2. Emplear o utilizar de algo para conseguir otro fin. 3. Poner a uno por empeño o medianero para conseguir alguna cosa. 4. Obligar a alguien a hacer algo.
The definition in the Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario), in Spanish.
Source: Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of empeñar
- empeño first-person present singular
- empeñé first-person preterite singular
- empeñado participle past
- empeñando gerund
- empeñada feminine participle past
- empeñados masculine participle past
- empeñadas feminine participle past
- empeñas indicative informal present
- empeñás indicative informal present
- empeña indicative present singular
- empeñamos first-person indicative plural
- empeñáis indicative plural present
- empeñan indicative plural present
- empeñaba first-person imperfect indicative
- empeñabas imperfect indicative second-person
- empeñábamos first-person imperfect indicative
- empeñabais imperfect indicative plural
- empeñaban imperfect indicative plural
Source: English Wiktionary and Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce empeñar?
- /empeˈɲaɾ/
- [ẽm.peˈɲaɾ]
- [ẽmpeˈɲaɾ]
Sources: English Wiktionary, Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to empeñar
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is empeñar in Spanish?
empeñar appears about once in every 2 million words in written Spanish.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).