"Despertarse" is a reflexive verb in Spanish that means "to wake up." It is commonly used to indicate the action of someone waking from sleep. The verb is versatile and can be used in both formal and informal contexts, although it is more frequently encountered in everyday spoken Spanish.
Me despierto a las seis de la mañana.
I wake up at six in the morning.
Siempre me despierto antes que mi familia.
I always wake up before my family.
Tardé mucho en despertarme hoy.
It took me a long time to wake up today.
"Despertarse" is often used in idiomatic expressions, especially those relating to awareness or coming to a realization.
To wake up on the wrong side of the bed.
Hoy me desperté con el pie izquierdo; todo me salió mal.
(Today I woke up on the wrong side of the bed; everything went wrong for me.)
Despertar a la realidad
To awaken to reality.
Después de ver los resultados de la prueba, despertó a la realidad de su situación.
(After seeing the test results, he awakened to the reality of his situation.)
Despertar el interés
To awaken interest.
El nuevo proyecto despertó el interés de muchos empleados.
(The new project awakened the interest of many employees.)
Despertar la conciencia
The word "despertarse" comes from the Latin word "desperta-re," formed by the prefix "de-" meaning "from" or "away" and "spertare," a frequentative form of "sperare," which means "to hope." The reflexive nature of "despertarse" indicates the action is being performed on oneself.
Levantar (to get up)
Antonyms: