trocar
Lemma Details
Translation: to exchange; to swap; to trade; to barter; to change; to transform
Part of Speech: verb
Etymology: Trocar comes from the Old French 'troquer' meaning 'to barter or exchange'. It's related to medieval Latin 'trocare' with the same meaning. The word reflects the ancient practice of direct exchange of goods without using money. While English has 'truck' in the sense of bartering (now archaic), Spanish maintained this word as a common verb for exchanges of all kinds.
Commonality: 70%
Guessability: 30%
Register: neutral
Example Usage
Quiero trocar mi coche por uno más nuevo.
I want to exchange my car for a newer one.
Trocaron miradas significativas durante la reunión.
They exchanged meaningful glances during the meeting.
La alegría se trocó en tristeza cuando recibieron la noticia.
Joy turned to sadness when they received the news.
Mnemonics
- Think of 'trocar' as 'to-rock-a' deal - when you exchange items, you're 'rocking' a transaction.
- Associate with 'truck' (in its old English meaning of bartering) - you're 'trucking' items between people.
Related Words, Phrases & Idioms
Synonyms
Cultural Context
In Latin American countries with indigenous populations, the concept of 'trocar' remains important in traditional economies where bartering systems still exist alongside modern monetary exchanges.
Easily Confused With
Explanation: While 'trocar' means 'to exchange', 'tocar' means 'to touch' or 'to play (an instrument)'. They look and sound similar but have completely different meanings.
Notes: The conjugation patterns are similar which adds to the confusion, but the meanings are entirely distinct.
Mnemonic: Trocar has an extra 'r' - think 'r' for 'replace' or 'r' for 'trade', while tocar is for touching.
Explanation: 'Trocar' means to exchange, while 'troncar' means to truncate or cut short.
Confused word:
Decidieron troncar la reunión debido al mal tiempo.
They decided to cut the meeting short due to bad weather.
Notes: Troncar is less common in everyday speech than trocar.
Mnemonic: Troncar has an 'n' - think 'n' for 'not complete' (truncated), while trocar is for complete exchanges.