Spanish Conversation · Level 76
60 words
Spanish word
muda
Pronunciation
IPA/ˈmuða/
Meaning
- adjectivespeechless
Example
Después del accidente, ella quedó muda por varios días.
After the accident, she was speechless for several days.
More examples
En la conferencia, ella se quedó muda ante la pregunta inesperada.
At the conference, she was left speechless by the unexpected question.
Core concept
Person with mouth closed and stunned expression.
Common phrases
quedarse muda de impresión
be left speechless with astonishment
ponerse muda
go silent
Similar words
mudo: Masculine adjective for a man left unable to speak because of emotional shock.
enmudecido: Adjective for a person made temporarily mute by a startling or shocking occurrence.
Definition in Spanish
Describe a alguien incapaz de hablar por una condición o que ha quedado sin palabras por sorpresa.
Word origin
From Latin mutus 'silent', Spanish mudo/muda preserves the sense of being unable to speak while the unrelated noun una muda comes from Latin mutare 'to change' and means a change of clothes.
Usage tips
- The adjective agrees in gender (mudo for a man, muda for a woman) and quedarse muda usually describes becoming temporarily speechless from shock rather than a permanent condition.
Other meanings
- change of clothesnoun
Opposites
- locuazloquaciousadjective
- habladortalkativeadjective
Related words
- mudezspeechlessnessnoun
- enmudecerfall silentverb