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pretend and Spanish pretender
In English
pretend
to fake / act as if
In Spanish
pretender
intentar
Spanish "pretender" means: to intend / to try
Why they get mixed up Spanish "pretender" means to try to achieve something or to aspire to a goal. English "pretend" means to fake something or act as if it were true. Spanish "pretender" in English is "intend" or "aim to."
If you want to say...
- pretendfingir
- intendpretender
- planplanear
Examples
The kids pretended to be superheroes.
Los niños fingían ser superhéroes.
Don't pretend you didn't hear me.
No finjas que no me escuchaste.
He pretended to be asleep when his mother came in.
Fingió estar dormido cuando su madre entró.
Let's pretend we're on a desert island.
Imaginemos que estamos en una isla desierta.
Common mistakes in Spanish
Incorrect: Los niños pretenden ser superhéroes.
Correct: Los niños fingen ser superhéroes.
Pretender means to intend or to claim. To pretend (make believe), use fingir or hacer como si.
Incorrect: Pretende estar dormido para no hablar con nadie.
Correct: Finge estar dormido para no hablar con nadie.
Use fingir for pretend.
Phrases you will hear
- pretend to be asleepfingir que duermes
- pretend to be sickfingir estar enfermo
- let's pretendimaginemos
- pretend playjuego de fantasía
- intendpretender
- planplanear
In a conversation
- A:
Let's pretend we're superheroes.
Imaginemos que somos superhéroes.
- B:
I'll pretend to be Batman.
Yo fingiré ser Batman.
- A:
What do you intend to do first?
¿Qué piensas hacer primero?
- B:
I plan to save the city.
Planeo salvar la ciudad.
Test yourself
"She pretended to sleep" means she...
To remember it
Pretend = to fake/act as if. To try to achieve (Spanish "pretender") = intend/try.
Frequently asked questions
What does Spanish "pretender" mean?
Spanish "pretender" means "to intend / to try". It looks like the English "pretend", which is exactly why it gets confused, but "pretend" means "to fake / act as if".
Does English "pretend" mean the same as Spanish "pretender"?
Spanish "pretender" means to try to achieve something or to aspire to a goal. English "pretend" means to fake something or act as if it were true. Spanish "pretender" in English is "intend" or "aim to."