What is the difference between "cuchichear" and "susurrar"?

Question

I'm reading harry potter 1 right now in spanish trying to learn the language, and they used both words on the same page. I figure they're probably interchangeable, but I'm curious.

Answer 1

The difference is subtle: with "cuchichear" you are talking to someone to prevent others from hearing it, while with "susurrar" you simply refer to any quiet talk or noise, without further implications. You expect most "cuchicheos" to be "susurros", although you can achieve the latter without the former if you speak very close to the other person, so your words are not just "whispers", but clear words if you are close enough. Many "susurros" don't even involve people, as it happens with winds, water streams and other noises.

Answer 2

I think Lazarus has answered your question perfectly. Just as an aside, you might find it interesting (if your a weird grammar geek like me) that, the word susurrar is a cognate of the of the English verb susurrate (to whisper, murmur, rustle). Both are derived from the Latin verb susurr?re (to whisper).

The adjectival and nominal forms in English are "susurrant (whispering, murmuring, rustling)" and "susurrus/susurration (a whispering, murmuring or rustling sound)." If you read much, it might not be too uncommon to run into these words, but I doubt that you would hear them much in spoken English.

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The verb "cuchichear" on the other hand is derived from the verb "cuchichiar (to call/sing like a partridge). This in term comes from the word "cuchichí" which, in Spanish, is the onomatopoeia for the sound that a partridge makes.

So Charo had nothing to do with it? - lorenzo9, Dec 25, 2010

Answer 3

Cuchichear tiene también significado de murmurar ,chismorrear( ¿con una equivalencia a “gossip”?.Me gustaría que alguien me lo aclarara). Cuchichear es hablar en voz muy baja ,para que no te oigan,pero haciendo genaeralmentecomentarios negativos.

Rumorear también se hace en voz baja y es difundir a los demás una noticia (en este caso el que habla transmite una noticia . Ej:” Se rumorea que el Real Madrid ha pagado por un futbolista 6 millones de euros”.

Susurrar es hablar en voz muy baja pero la conversación es inocente .El verbo susurrar es más poético. Ningún poeta usaría el verbo cuchichear. Susurrar es lo que hacia Robert Redford en la película “Horse Whisperer”,traducida en España como El hombre que susurraba a los caballos . Susurras en el oído de tu novia una frase romántica. El viento susurra entre los árboles. Dos viejas brujas cuchicheaban que María era una ladrona.

Una pregunta: ¿ traduciríais whisper como susurro y gossip como chismorreo?

Yes, but in English "gossip" can mean the person, the act of saying it, or what is said. - lorenzo9, Dec 25, 2010

To be precise, 'to gossip'=chismorrear. 'gossip' as a noun would be 'chismorreo / chisme / cotilleo' (Did you hear the latest gossip?) or 'chismoso/a / cotilla' (This woman is a gossip) - bill1111, Dec 25, 2010

thanks - lukaaxx, Dec 27, 2010