Skip to content

arreciar

to intensify, to worsen

verb ah-rreh-SYAHR Rare

Also means

to pick up (of wind, rain)

Usage Note

Arreciar is most naturally used for weather and conflict growing stronger; arreció el viento means 'the wind picked up.' It is also used figuratively — arreció la polémica — to convey that a controversy has grown fiercer. The verb is regular -ar and does not have stem changes.

Examples

"La tormenta arreció de repente."

Natural Translation

The storm suddenly intensified.

Free starter pack

Building your Spanish vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common Spanish words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore Spanish by topic