alarmarse

Alarmarse is a pronominal Spanish verb that means to become alarmed, frightened, or worried in response to a situation. It describes a sudden emotional shift toward concern or fear and can be used for both personal reactions and perceptions of others. The reflexive form emphasizes the subject’s own reaction, rather than causing alarm in someone else.

Etymology and usage notes: alarmarse derives from the noun alarma (alarm). It is commonly used with prepositions to indicate the source of the concern, most often alarmarse de something or alarmarse por something, or alarmarse de que clauses in more formal or written contexts. It is often contrasted with asustarse (to be scared) and preocuparse (to worry), where alarmarse conveys a more sudden, acute sense of alarm.

Conjugation: alarmarse follows the regular -ar verb pattern with reflexive pronouns. Present indicative: me alarmo, te alarmas, se alarma, nos alarmamos, os alarmáis, se alarman. Preterite: me alarmé, te alarmaste, se alarmó, nos alarmamos, os alarmasteis, se alarmaron. Present subjunctive: me alarme, te alarmes, se alarme, nos alarmemos, os alarméis, se alarmen. It can also be used in continuous forms with estar and the gerund: alarmándose, as in “Me estoy alarmando al oír las noticias.”

Examples:

- Me alarmé al escuchar el anuncio de la tormenta.

- No te alarmes por esa llamada; probablemente solo era un error.

- Se alarmaron de que la empresa no informara a tiempo sobre los cambios.

In sum, alarmarse describes una respuesta emocional repentina ante una situación, y se puede expresar con distintas preposiciones o estructuras según el matiz deseado.