acercar

From a- +‎ cerca +‎ -ar. First attested in c. 15th century. Compare Spanish acercar.

acercar (first-person singular present acerco, first-person singular preterite acerquei, past participle acercado)

1. to approach
2. to approximate

From a- +‎ cerca (“near”) +‎ -ar. Compare Ladino aserkar and Portuguese acercar.

• IPA^(key): /aθeɾˈkaɾ/ (Spain)
• IPA^(key): /aseɾˈkaɾ/ (Latin America, Philippines)

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• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: a‧cer‧car

acercar (first-person singular present acerco, first-person singular preterite acerqué, past participle acercado)

1. (transitive) to bring close
2. (transitive) to zoom in

   acercar y alejar el mapa

   to zoom in and zoom out on the map

3. (reflexive) to approach, to get close, to come

   Se acerca el invierno.

   Winter is coming.

4. (reflexive) to draw near, to gather around

   acercarse más ― to come closer / to move closer / to draw closer

5. (reflexive) to become close
6. (reflexive) to get close to, to come up to, to draw near to, to walk up to, to go over to (+a)
   • Félix Torres Amat, Book of Psalms 42.4:

     Y me acercaré al altar de Dios, al Dios que llena de alegría mi juventud.

     And I shall go up to the altar of God, to the God who filleth my youth with joy.

7. (reflexive) to reach out to (+a)
8. (reflexive) to close in on (+a)
9. (intransitive) to assemble

• “acercar”, in Diccionario de la lengua española (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy , 2024 December 10