Distraír

Distraír is a Spanish verb that appears in some dictionaries as a nonstandard or regional variant of distraer. Its core meaning is to divert or attract someone’s attention away from something, often by occupying them with another activity or thought. It can also convey the sense of amusing or entertaining someone to some extent, though this nuance is commonly expressed with distraer in everyday usage.

Etymology and orthography

Distraer derives from Latin distrahere, formed with the prefix dis- and trahere “to pull.” The modern standard form is distraer, with distraír appearing only in a limited or historic lexicon. When distraír is used, it generally follows the same semantic range as distraer, namely to cause distraction or diversion.

Usage

In contemporary Spanish, distraer is the preferred and widely understood form. Distraír is rarely encountered in formal writing and is considered nonstandard in many dialects. When distraír does occur, its meaning aligns with causing distraction or drawing attention away from a previous focus, rather than addressing the distraction itself. Regions or older texts might retain distraír as an orthographic variant, but most grammar references treat distraer as the correct norm.

Conjugation

If distraír is employed, it follows the same conjugation patterns as distraer. Examples in the present tense include distraigo, distraes, distrae, distraemos, distraéis, distraen. The past tenses and other forms would mirror distraer’s conjugations (distraje, distrajiste, distrae, etc.), with the regular endings for -er verbs in Spanish.

See also: Distraer, Distraction, Attention.