"Stop" in Spanish

Quick Answer

The English word stop can be translated into Spanish in many different ways. For example, the verb stop in Spanish can be parar, detener, interrumpir, poner fin a, bloquear, dejar de, impedir, and taponar. As a noun, stop in Spanish can be el alto, la parada, la escala, el tope, and el registro. Finally, as an interjection, stop is alto. Read on to learn when to use each translation of stop in Spanish!

Stop searching for the perfect article on stop in Spanish! We’ve pulled out all the stops and written a one-stop article for you to learn all that you need to know about this versatile word!

Let’s get started. How can we say stop in Spanish? stop

Stop as a Verb

Learn all about Spanish verbs in this article.

Stop as a verb has multiple translations in Spanish. We can say:

Spanish	Stop as in…
bloquear	to stop a check
dejar de, detenerse	to cease
impedir	to prevent
parar, detener, interrumpir, poner fin a, pararse	to halt
taponar	to obstruct or fill in (a pipe, etc.)

Let’s put these translations of stop into context:

examples
José, deja de hablar tan alto. Son las 11 de la noche, y tenemos vecinos. José, stop talking so loudly. It’s 11 at night, and we have neighbors.
Tenemos que poner fin al cambio climático. Todos debemos hacer más. We have to stop climate change. We should all do more.
Olga taponó el orificio del tiesto. Ahora no sale el agua cuando regamos la planta. Olga stopped up the hole in the flowerpot. Now it doesn’t leak when we water the plant.

Stop in Spanish: Stop as a Noun

Stop can also be a noun. Check out how we can say stop in Spanish:

Spanish	Stop as in…
el alto, la parada	the act of stopping
la parada	public transportation
la escala	halt in a journey, layover
el tope	obstacle
el registro	music (organ, harpsichord)

For example:

examples
Este autobús tiene paradas en la estación de trenes y en la piscina municipal. This bus has stops at the train station and the town pool.
Cuando vamos a Boston, tenemos que hacer escala en Madrid. When we go to Boston, we have to make a stop in Madrid.
Los registros de un órgano afectan el sonido que produce. The stops on an organ affect the sound that it produces.

Stop in Spanish: Stop as an Interjection

Last, but certainly not least, if you need to use stop as an interjection, you can simply say alto. For example:

examples
¡Alto! ¿Me puede enseñar su carnet de conducir, por favor? Stop! May I see your driver’s license, please?

Stop in Spanish: Words and Phrases with Stop

Now you know how to translate stop as a word on its own. But what about other words and phrases in English that include stop? Here are the translations for some common words and phrases in English that use the word stop: stoplight

Spanish	English
¡Basta!, ¡Para!, ¡Cortala!(Argentina)	Stop it!
el cronómetro	stopwatch
hacer escala, hacer noche, parar	to stop over
la parada de autobús, la parada del colectivo	bus stop
el semáforo, el alto(Mexico, Central America)	stoplight
el stop, la señal de stop, la señal de pare, el alto(Mexico, Central America)	stop sign

Let’s see how we use these words and phrases in context:

examples
¡Basta! No quiero saber más sobre la araña que encontraste en tu cocina. Stop it! I don’t to hear any more about the spider you found in your kitchen.
Debes detener el coche cuando ves que el semáforo está en ámbar. You should stop your car when you see that the stoplight is yellow.
A menudo hay una línea al lado del stop para indicar dónde debes parar. There’s often a line next to the stop sign that tells you where to stop.