echarse

Echarse is a Spanish pronominal verb with multiple related meanings that express a change of state, a commencement of an action, or a physical action performed by the subject. The form is widely used in Spain and Latin America, and its meaning depends on the complement that follows, often in combination with a noun, an adjective, or an infinitive.

Common uses include: to lie down or take a nap, as in me voy a echar una siesta or voy a echarme en la cama; to begin doing something suddenly, seen in phrases like se echó a llorar, se echó a reír, or se echó a caminar; to take the blame or feel responsible, as in echarse la culpa or me eché la culpa; to back out or withdraw from a plan, expressed as echarse para atrás or se echó atrás; to spoil or go bad, with la comida se echó a perder; and to throw oneself onto or against someone, used in constructions like echarse encima de alguien to indicate a physical or figurative confrontation.

Other productive uses involve combining echarse with different verb stems to indicate a change of mood or action, such as echándose a levantar el ánimo or echándose a sudar in informal speech. The exact sense is determined by the accompanying elements and the regional variety, and many idiomatic expressions with echarse are widely understood across Spanish-speaking communities. In summary, echarse serves as a versatile reflexive form that signals starting, intensifying, or changing a state or action, with numerous common collocations and idioms.