"to touch upon"

Question

Hello all! I am wondering how to say "to touch upon" in Spanish. I know that the verb for (literally) "to touch" is "tocar", however I am trying to use the verb "to touch" in the figurative sense. For example, when someone briefly mentions or hints at a topic, you might describe the conversation later to a friend by saying: "Yes, she touched upon her divorce only briefly." I am trying to figure out what the corresponding spanish translation of this use of "to touch (on/upon)" would be.

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So, if the English sentence is:

• He touched upon the topic of his father before changing the subject.

What would the Spanish translation be?

My guess:

• Tocó ligeramente el tópico de su padre antes de que cambió de tema.

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What do you guys think? Thank you in advance for your answers! =]

Answer 1

Hi Alyssal,

You can use tocar in this case... Él tocó brevemente el tema de su padre antes de cambiar la conversación.

Other alternatives include: Mencionar, aludir a, referirse a. Examples: Él mencionó/aludió a/se refirió a.

I hope this helps!

Answer 2

I am not positive, but I don´t know if you can use tocar in the way you´d like to.

I would use "referir a" instead.

He touched upon the topic briefly.

Refiró al tema brevemente.

Don´t forget the "A" before the noun.

Oh, and use "tema," not "tópico." The latter means something completely different in Spanish!