armar
set up · assemble
Reunir piezas o partes para crear algo completo, o dar herramientas o equipos para proteger o defender.
Definition & meaning
Armar is a regular Spanish verb with several related meanings:
-
To assemble or put together something from separate parts.
- Armar un mueble — to assemble a piece of furniture.
- Armar un rompecabezas — to put together a jigsaw puzzle.
-
To arm or equip someone with weapons.
- Armar a los soldados — to arm the soldiers.
- Armarse — to arm oneself.
-
To organize, prepare, or set up an event, plan, or object.
- Armar una fiesta — to organize a party.
- Armar un plan — to put together a plan.
-
To cause or create a disturbance, argument, or commotion, usually in colloquial language.
- Armar un escándalo — to cause a scandal or make a scene.
- Armar una pelea — to start a fight.
-
In some varieties of Spanish, especially in Latin America, armar can mean to make something work or to manage to arrange something.
- Armar una solución — to devise or put together a solution.
Grammar & Word origin
Armar is a regular -ar verb. Its basic forms include:
- Present: yo armo, tú armas, él/ella arma
- Past participle: armado — assembled, armed
- Gerund: armando — assembling, arming
It can be used:
- Transitively: Armar la mesa — to assemble the table.
- Pronominally: Armarse de valor — to gather courage; literally, “to arm oneself with courage.”
- Intransitively in colloquial expressions: Se armó una discusión — an argument broke out.
The verb comes from arma “” (“weapon” or “tool”) plus the verb-forming suffix -ar. Its original sense was “to provide with weapons,” which later expanded to include assembling and preparing things.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonyms
- Montar — to assemble, set up, or organize. It is often the closest synonym when referring to furniture, equipment, or events.
- Ensamblar — to assemble parts, especially in a technical or precise context.
- Construir — to build; it usually suggests creating something rather than simply putting pre-existing parts together.
- Organizar — to organize or arrange an event or plan; it does not normally carry the sense of physically assembling something.
- Equipar — to equip or supply, but it is broader and less specifically associated with weapons.
- Preparar — to prepare; it emphasizes readiness rather than assembly.
Antonyms
- Desarmar — to disarm someone or take something apart; it is the direct opposite of several meanings of armar.
- Desmontar — to dismantle or disassemble an object.
- Desorganizar — to disorganize, opposite to armar when it means organizing or arranging something.
- Deshacer — to undo or take apart something that has been assembled or arranged.
Common phrases & collocations
- Armar un mueble — to assemble a piece of furniture
- Armar un rompecabezas — to put together a puzzle
- Armar una fiesta — to organize or throw a party
- Armar un escándalo — to make a scene
- Armar una pelea — to start a fight
- Armarse de valor — to gather courage
- Armarse de paciencia — to summon patience
- Se armó — colloquially, “things got chaotic” or “a commotion broke out”
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Examples
Vamos a armar la tienda de campaña juntos.verb
Let's set up the tent together.
María sabe armar el mueble muy rápido.verb
María knows how to assemble the furniture very quickly.
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