retar

Retar is a Spanish verb meaning to challenge, dare, or provoke someone, or more broadly to test someone’s abilities or to push against limits. It is transitive and commonly used with the preposition a to introduce the person or thing being challenged, as in retar a alguien a algo (to challenge someone to something).

In everyday use, retar can describe inviting someone to a contest or duel, prompting someone to prove their skill, or defying expectations or authorities. Phrases such as retar a un rival a un encuentro, retar a la suerte, or retar a uno mismo are typical. The sense can be competitive, adversarial, or motivational, depending on context.

Conjugation and form

Retar is a regular -ar verb. Present: reto, retas, reta, retamos, retáis, retan. Preterite (simple): reto, retaste, retó, retamos, retasteis, retaron. Imperfect: retaba, retabas, retaba, retábamos, retabais, retaban. Future: retaré, retarás, retará, retaremos, retaréis, retarán. Gerund: retando. Past participle: retado. It is common to use reflexive constructions (retarse) to emphasize self-imposed challenges, or to pair the verb with a prepositional phrase (retar a alguien a algo) to specify the challenge.

Etymology and related usage

Retar originates in the Spanish language as a core verb of the romance family, with its use established in medieval and modern Spanish. It remains widely employed across Spanish-speaking regions in sports, competition, and everyday speech.