encender
Spanish, verb/enθenˈdeɾ/
encender is spelled E-N-C-E-N-D-E-R (8 letters) and appears 5.8 times per million words in written Spanish, the 10,811th most frequent Spanish word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Encender is a Spanish verb meaning “to light, ignite” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) defines it as “Iniciar una combustión”.
What does encender mean in English?
verb
- 1
to light, ignite
Julio encendió la fogata.
- 2
to turn on, switch on, power up
María encendió la máquina.
- 3
to burn, have a burning sensation
Source: English Wiktionary, Spanish section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Spanish dictionaries define it
verb: 1. Iniciar una combustión. 2. Prender fuego o incendiar algo. 3. Poner a funcionar un aparato o máquina. 4. Provocar una guerra.
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 encender
- enciendo first-person present singular
- encendí first-person preterite singular
- encendido participle past
- e-ie alternation
- encendiendo gerund
- encendida feminine participle past
- encendidos masculine participle past
- encendidas feminine participle past
- enciendes indicative informal present
- encendés indicative informal present
- enciende indicative present singular
- encendemos first-person indicative plural
- encendéis indicative plural present
- encienden indicative plural present
- encendía first-person imperfect indicative
- encendías imperfect indicative second-person
- encendíamos first-person imperfect indicative
- encendíais imperfect indicative plural
Source: English Wiktionary and Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce encender?
- /enθenˈdeɾ/
- [ẽn̟.θẽn̪ˈd̪eɾ]
- /ensenˈdeɾ/
Sources: English Wiktionary, Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to encender
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is encender in Spanish?
encender appears 5.8 times per million words in written Spanish.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).