detestar

Definition & meaning

Detestar means to hate, to detest, or to strongly dislike someone or something. It expresses a strong negative feeling, usually stronger than simply disliking something.

It can refer to people, things, activities, or situations:

• Detesto el ruido. — “I hate noise.”
• Detesta esperar. — “He/She hates waiting.”

Grammar & word origin

Detestar is a regular -ar verb. Its present-tense forms include detesto (“I hate”), detestas (“you hate”), and detesta (“he/she hates”).

It is generally used with a direct object. When that object is a specific person, Spanish typically uses the personal a: Detesto a ese hombre (“I hate that man”). It can also be followed by another verb in the infinitive, as in detestar esperar (“to hate waiting”), or by que plus the subjunctive when expressing dislike of an action: Detesto que lleguen tarde (“I hate it when they arrive late”).

The word comes from Latin detestari, meaning “to call upon as a witness” or “to curse.”

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms:

• odiar ↗ — “to hate”; a close synonym, often equally strong.
• aborrecer ↗ — “to abhor” or “to loathe”; often sounds particularly intense.
• abominar ↗ — “to abhor”; can sound more formal or emphatic.
• no soportar [?](vocabuo://word/no soportar) — “to be unable to stand”; more conversational and often focused on irritation or intolerance.

Antonyms:

• amar ↗ — “to love”; expresses a strong positive feeling.
• apreciar ↗ — “to appreciate” or “to value”; generally milder than amar.
• gustar ↗ — “to like”; positive, but usually less intense than amar.

Common phrases & collocations

• detestar algo ↗ — to hate something.
• detestar a alguien ↗ — to hate someone.
• detestar hacer algo ↗ — to hate doing something.
• detestar que alguien haga algo ↗ — to hate it when someone does something.