Pegar vs Golpear
How are Pegar and Golpear different when hitting someone?
11 Answers
I grew using "pegar" to hit and "golpear" to hurt. Like my mother would say " Lo vas a golpear", You are going to hurt him or her. When she said " Te voy a pegar" we ran because she was going to hit us.
In this particular context of hitting a person, they are synonymous:
He beats his wife = Pega a su mujer
Her husband hits her = Su marido la golpea
As Timothy says, there are tons of uses for the verb "pegar," and "to hit" is one of them.
They are interchangeable but pegar usually means to punish and/or to hit someone with your fists. Golpear means also to strike someone with your fists but it is also used when someone gets hit accidentally by himself or someone else.
Le pegué duro.
Te golpeé sin querer.
Golpear a la puerta (you would never said 'pegar' a la puerta for a knock. Perhaps if you are hitting the door in anger. Golpear can be used to get someone's attention. (A person banging on a table). La lluvia golpeando a la ventana. Rain on a window (never pegar). For a saying: Le ha golpeado la vida. Life gave him some hard knocks. (or something like that?) Best I can do Joyce, anyone else?
The biggest difference is that when you "pegar a" somebody they are the indirect object of an intransitive verb, while when you "golpear" somebody they are the direct object of a transitive verb.
In the context of hitting, reading the above, would golpear mean hit whilst pegar punch?
Some other uses: pegar un grito - to shout or cry out. pegar un salto - jump like with fright. Pegar un susto a alguien - scare someone. Then there is 'pegar el oído - to listen up. El sol pega fuerte a las dos de la tarde. Sun is hot at 2 PM. To be a heavy drinker: pegar a la bebida. I'll try to think of some for golpear...
Puede haber una ligera diferencia. Se golpea con el puño cerrado, más que con la mano abierto pero igual funciona. Se pega... como sea, no importa, con el puño, mano abierta, etc.
Golpear means more "hit"
Pegar also has other meanings
Golpear means more "hit"
Pegar also has other meanings
In the context of hitting someone, these two verbs have the same meaning.
