protestar

Protestar is a verb in Spanish and Portuguese that means to express a strong objection or to oppose something. In legal and formal contexts it can also mean to file a formal protest. The term derives from Latin protestari, which indicated publicly bearing witness or voicing opposition.

In Spanish, protestar is used to express disapproval of an action, law, decision, or situation: protestar contra una medida, protestar por una causa, protestar ante una autoridad. It can also refer to making a formal objection in administrative or judicial procedures; in mercantile language it may mean to register a refusal of acceptance or payment of a negotiable instrument, through a protesto. The conjugation is regular: present tense protesto, protestas, protesta, protestamos, protestáis, protestan; pretérito protesté, protestaste, protestó, protestamos, protestasteis, protestaron; subjunctive proteste, protestes, proteste, protestemos, protestéis, protesten; imperative protesta (tú), proteste (usted), protestemos, protestad, protesten.

In Portuguese, protestar similarly means to protest or to object, and can also denote taking a formal stand or action against something. Typical phrases include protestar contra uma decisão or protestar por uma causa. The legal sense exists as well, where protestar um título de crédito refers to a formal declaration of non-acceptance or non-payment.

Protestas and protestos are common nouns for acts of objection or demonstrations. The term is often used alongside synonyms such as objección, manifestação, or recusa, depending on the context.