arraigado
adjectiveCEFR B2
What does “arraigado” mean in English?
deep-rooted, ingrained — embedded through long growth or tradition; can be neutral or negative
deep-rooted, ingrained — embedded through long growth or tradition; can be neutral or negative (costumbres profundamente arraigadas, estereotipos arraigados)
Example sentences
Los estereotipos de género están profundamente arraigados en el imaginario colectivo y no se modifican únicamente a través de la legislación.
Gender stereotypes are deeply rooted in the collective imagination and cannot be changed through legislation alone.
La fiesta del pueblo es una tradición arraigada que se ha transmitido de generación en generación sin interrupciones.
The village festival is a deep-rooted tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation without interruption.
How to use it
Arraigado (past participle used as adjective, from arraigar — to take root) means 'deep-rooted', 'entrenched', or 'firmly established'. The metaphor is botanical — deep roots that are hard to pull out. Unlike enquistado (sealed in, dangerous, cyst-like), arraigado can be neutral or even positive: una tradición arraigada (a well-established tradition), una costumbre profundamente arraigada (a deeply ingrained custom). The intensifier profundamente is its most common companion. In negative social contexts: prejudices, inequalities, and customs that resist change are arraigados; in positive contexts: values, cultural practices, and identities are arraigados in a community.
Common mistake
Arraigado (deep-rooted, plant metaphor — can be positive or negative) vs enquistado (encyst-like, sealed in — always negative). 'A deeply rooted tradition' = 'una tradición arraigada' (not *enquistada, which would imply it is a dangerous obstruction).