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verb

catar

taste

Probar una pequeña cantidad de comida o bebida para conocer su sabor.

Definition & meaning

Catar is a Spanish verb meaning to taste or to sample something, especially food or drink, in order to assess its flavor, quality, or characteristics.

It is commonly used for wine and other beverages:

  • Catar un vino — to taste a wine
  • El experto cató varios aceites — The expert tasted several oils.

It can also mean to evaluate something through tasting, rather than merely eating or drinking it.

In older or literary Spanish, catar may also mean to look at, observe, or examine, although this meaning is uncommon in modern everyday speech.

Grammar & Word origin

  • Part of speech: verb
  • Conjugation: regular -ar verb
  • Present tense: cato, catas, cata, catamos, catáis, catan
  • Past participle: catado
  • Gerund: catando

The verb comes from Latin captāre, meaning “to try to catch” or “to seek,” and developed the sense of testing or examining something through its taste.

The related noun cata means a tasting, especially a formal wine tasting.

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms

  • probar — “to try” or “to taste.” This is more general and can refer to tasting casually, whereas catar often suggests careful evaluation.
  • degustar — “to savor” or “to taste appreciatively.” It is more formal and emphasizes pleasure or appreciation.
  • saborear — “to savor.” It focuses on enjoying the flavor rather than assessing quality.
  • examinar — “to examine.” This can correspond to the older meaning of catar, but it does not specifically involve tasting.

Antonyms

There is no exact antonym for catar. Depending on the context, possible opposites include:

  • rechazar — “to reject,” especially without tasting something.
  • ignorar — “to ignore” or pay no attention to something.
  • evitar — “to avoid,” such as avoiding a food or drink rather than sampling it.

Common phrases & collocations

  • catar un vino — to taste a wine
  • catar un queso — to taste a cheese
  • catar alimentos — to taste food products
  • cata de vinos — wine tasting
  • catador de vinos — wine taster or wine expert
  • nota de cata — tasting note, describing the qualities of a food or drink

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Examples

Nunca he catado un queso tan fuerte como este.verb

I have never tasted a cheese as strong as this one.

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