derretir
verbCEFR B1
What does “derretir” mean in English?
to melt
to melt (turn a solid into a liquid through heat; reflexively: los glaciares se derriten — the glaciers are melting)
Example sentences
El calentamiento global provoca que los glaciares se derritan a una velocidad que los científicos nunca habían previsto.
Global warming causes glaciers to melt at a rate that scientists had never anticipated.
Si las temperaturas siguen subiendo, los casquetes polares se derretirán y el nivel del mar subirá de forma dramática.
If temperatures keep rising, the polar ice caps will melt and sea levels will rise dramatically.
Se han derretido más hielos árticos este verano que en cualquier otro verano registrado desde que hay datos.
More Arctic ice has melted this summer than in any other recorded summer since data has been available.
How to use it
Derretir means 'to melt' — to turn a solid into a liquid through heat. It is a stem-changing -ir verb (e→i in stressed forms: yo derrrito, él derrite). In environmental contexts it is used reflexively: los glaciares se derriten (glaciers are melting). Key collocates: derretir el hielo, derretir el chocolate (cooking), los glaciares se derriten.
Common mistake
The stem change is e→i (not e→ie as in other groups): él derrite, no él *derriete. The reflexive form se derrite/se derriten is used when describing the natural melting process (the glacier melts). The transitive form (without se) is used when an agent causes the melting: el sol derrite la nieve (the sun melts the snow). Students often confuse with fundir (to smelt / to fuse metals), which is different.