Está demasiado cerca.
It's too close.
When something gets uncomfortably close, this is the line that slips out, with demasiado for "too".
From Rascacielos: rescate en las alturas · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "close" in Spanish
cerca
adverbcerca de + placeopposite: lejosto close: cerrar
When "close" means near, the Spanish word is cerca: El mercado está muy cerca. When it means to shut, use the verb cerrar, as in Cierra la ventana (close the window). To say what something is close to, add de: cerca de la plaza.
Hear "cerca" and "cerrar" in real movie scenes
Two scenes for near and one for shut. Each video starts and stops on that line.
No están cerca.
They aren't close.
The others ask if they can finally come down, and the calming answer is that what they fear isn't nearby, with cerca unchanged after a plural verb.
From Tremors 3: de regreso a Perfection · Spanish audio
Sí, voy a cerrar.
Yes, I'm going to close up.
Cerrar also works for a business: the person behind the counter uses it to say the day is over.
From ¿Cómo sobrevivir a mi ex? · Spanish audio
Cerca or cerrar: which "close" do you mean?
English uses one word for two ideas. Spanish splits them.
| English | Spanish | Example |
|---|---|---|
| close, near | cerca | La playa está cerca. (The beach is close.) |
| close to | cerca de | cerca de la plaza (close to the square) |
| very close | muy cerca | Está muy cerca. (It's very close.) |
| to close, to shut | cerrar | Cierra la puerta. (Close the door.) |
| closed | cerrado, cerrada | La tienda está cerrada. (The store is closed.) |
| a close friend | un amigo cercano | Es una amiga cercana. (She's a close friend.) |
Tip: The opposite of cerca is lejos (far), and the opposite of cerrar is abrir (to open).
Grammar: cerca and cerrar
Two Spanish words for one English one, and four rules.
Cerca never changes
It's an adverb, so it has no gender or plural: Está cerca. Están cerca.Close to: cerca de
Name the place after de: cerca de la plaza. De + el becomes del: cerca del parque.Location takes estar
El mercado está muy cerca. Use está, not es, to say where something is.Cerrar: e becomes ie
In the stressed syllable: cierro, cierras, cierra, but cerramos. To a friend: Cierra la puerta.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
El mercado está muy cerca.
The market is very close.
Gira a la derecha: la biblioteca está muy cerca.
Turn right: the library is very close.
Cierra la ventana, por favor.
Close the window, please.
¿Tiene que cerrar ya?
Do you have to close now?
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗Es cerca
✓Está cerca
To say where something is, use estar.
✗cerca la plaza
✓cerca de la plaza
When you name what it's close to, you need de.
✗Cerra la puerta
✓Cierra la puerta
The stressed e of cerrar becomes ie.
Practice: 3 quick exercises
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1 of 3 · Watch and choose
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The other 31 exercises on this topic are in the app.
How to remember it
Cerca sounds a bit like circle. Anything cerca is inside your circle.
Questions about "close" in Spanish
How do you say close in Spanish?
Cerca when close means near, and cerrar when it means to shut: Cierra la puerta (Close the door).
How do you say "close to" in Spanish?
Cerca de: cerca de la plaza. Before a masculine noun, de + el becomes del: cerca del parque.
How do you say "close the door" in Spanish?
Cierra la puerta to a friend, or cierre la puerta to someone you call usted.
What's the opposite of cerca?
Lejos, far: El supermercado está lejos. Like cerca, it takes de before a place: lejos de casa.
