ponerse

Spanish

Verb

1. reflexive of poner, to put on, as in clothing.

   Me puse las gafas.

   I put my glasses on.

2. to become (used with adjective)

   Se puso muy enfermo después de comerse la comida descompuesta.

   He got very sick after eating the rotten food.

3. to set (sun)

   ¿A qué hora se pone el sol?

   What time does the sun set?

4. to begin (doing something)

   Se puso a decirnos de las cosas que había visto.

   He began telling us about the things he had seen.

Usage notes

• ponerse in the sense of to become is used to indicate changes in physical condition, appearance, or mood (voluntary or involuntary) which are usually short-lived.
• The form of ponerse a is followed by an infinitive verb form.

Synonyms

• hacerse
• volverse
• convertirse

Derived terms

• ponerse al día con (“to catch up on”)