How do you say, 'to stand.'

Question

Can you translate 'to stand.'

The dictionary says: a pie.

is that correct?

So how would you say, he stood?

Please use proper punctuation in your postings. This is a language learning site. Thank You. - 002262dd, Jan 17, 2011

Answer 1

Spanish does not have an actual verb for "to stand" (as in to be in the upright position upon one's feet). So, there are a couple of verbs they add phrases like "de pie" to (estar de pie and ponerse de pie, for example).

se puso de pie

That's preterite of ponerse plus "de pie." A very literal translation would be, "he put himself of foot." But it does mean simply "he stood."

Thank you webdunce. I'm just a beginner, I probably should bypass all these hard questions, how about 'estaba de pie'? - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

estaba de pie, I think is was standing, or he was standing. - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

Estaba de pie = I was standing - webdunce, Jan 17, 2011

Great answer, WEb :) - FELIZ77, Jan 17, 2011

Or, he/she/it/you was/were standing. lol. Depends on context. I assumed yo, but estaba can take él, ella, and usted, too. I guess estaba de pie could also translate as "stood" but keep in mind that it is in the imperfect which indicates the action is - webdunce, Jan 17, 2011

...ongoing (not completed, not perfected) at the point in time being referenced. (Thus, I was standing is more accurate). - webdunce, Jan 17, 2011

Answer 2

"A pie" means "by foot". You can simply say "Estoy en frente del edificio", and most people will assume that you are standing, but if you want to clarify that you are standing and not sitting (or lying) in front of the building, then say "Estoy de pie..." (in Latin America, also "Estoy parado")

gracias. - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

Entonces Salomón se puso de pie delante del altar de Jehovah, frente a toda la Congregación de Israel, y Extendió sus manos. - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

Also, I could not figure out 'se puso de pie.' Do you need all those words to say stood? - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

Hi Maria, you could say "se puso delante del..." and that will imply that Salomon was standing. - chicasabrosa, Jan 17, 2011

Answer 3

Hi Maria,

The site dictionary says "estar de pie" but I find so many different answers, I figure that the context determines what a good translation for "to stand" would be". Could you post the whole sentence or at least some more context?

Saludos, Chica

he is standing in front of the building, There he stands, in front of the building. He stood there, in front of the building, something like that. - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

: ) Thanks for responding to my question. - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

I stand, I am standing in front of the building; does that give you enough context? - Maria-Russell, Jan 17, 2011

Answer 4

Also, I could not figure out 'se puso de pie.' Do you need all those words to say stood?

Knowing that "de pie" is on foot, you can deduce the phrase's meaning by figuring out what the verb means, in this case ponerse. Ponerse + adjetivo means to go/become (ponerse rojo = to become red, ponerse colorado = to blush) thus ponerse de pie would mean to stand up (be in a standing position), of course implying that you were previously in a non-standing position (sitting, lying down, etc.).