swallow
vs
gulp

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"Swallow" is a transitive verb which is often translated as "tragar", and "gulp" is a noun which is often translated as "el trago". Learn more about the difference between "swallow" and "gulp" below.

swallow(

swa

)

A transitive verb is a verb that requires a direct object (e.g., I bought a book.).

transitive verb

1. (to ingest)

a. tragar

My cousin swallowed the hamburger without tasting it.Mi primo se tragó la hamburguesa sin saborearla.

2. (to accept)

a. aceptar

That is a difficult truth to swallow.Esa es una verdad muy difícil de aceptar.

An intransitive verb is one that does not require a direct object (e.g., The man sneezed.).

intransitive verb

3. (to gulp)

a. tragar

To get rid of the hiccups, you need to swallow three times.Para curarte los hipos, hay que tragar tres veces.

A noun is a word referring to a person, animal, place, thing, feeling, or idea (e.g., man, dog, house).

noun

4. (action of ingesting)

a. el trago

(m) means that a noun is masculine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).

(M)

He finished his drink in one swallow.Terminó su bebida de un trago.

5. (bird)

a. la golondrina

(f) means that a noun is feminine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).

(F)

By the window you can hear the song of the swallow.Por la ventana se oye el canto de la golondrina.

gulp(

guhlp

)

A noun is a word referring to a person, animal, place, thing, feeling, or idea (e.g., man, dog, house).

noun

1. (swallow)

a. el trago

(m) means that a noun is masculine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).

(M)

She drained her glass of vodka in one gulp.Vació el vaso de vodka de un trago.

b. la bocanada

(f) means that a noun is feminine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).

(F)

(of air)

I took a huge gulp of air when I reached the surface.Al volver a la superficie, aspiré una enorme bocanada de aire.

An intransitive verb is one that does not require a direct object (e.g., The man sneezed.).

intransitive verb

2. (to breathe with difficulty)

a. tragar saliva

The poor boy gulped and stuttered as he tried to explain through his tears what had happened.El pobre chico tragaba saliva y balbuceaba al intentar explicar entre lágrimas lo que había pasado.

A transitive verb is a verb that requires a direct object (e.g., I bought a book.).

transitive verb

3. (to eat rapidly)

a. engullir

If you gulp your food like that you'll get indigestion.Si engulles tu comida de esa manera te va a dar indigestión.

b. tragar

I quickly gulped a slice of toast and rushed out to catch the train.Tragué rápidamente una tostada y salí corriendo a tomar el tren.

4. (to drink rapidly)

This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.

no direct translation

He gulped his wine and continued with his story.Tomó un trago de vino y siguió con su relato.

She gulped her tea in between telling me her news.Se bebía el té a tragos muy cortos mientras me contaba sus noticias.