Spanish vocabulary · Beginner

Spoiled in Spanish: Consentido, Malcriado, and Echado a Perder

Consentido · adjective · kohn-sehn-TEE-doh

Spoiled in Spanish splits by meaning. A spoiled person is consentido (pampered) or malcriado (badly raised). Spoiled food is echado a perder or podrido (rotten). Mimado is another synonym for a pampered person.

Consentido is kohn-sehn-TEE-doh. Malcriado is mahl-kree-AH-doh.

Ese niño está muy consentido porque es hijo único.

That child is very spoiled because he's an only child.

Spoiled in Spanish: Quick Reference

Below are the most common Spanish words for spoiled, with pronunciation and regional usage notes.

SpanishEnglishPronunciationRegion / Register
consentidospoiledkohn-sehn-TEE-dohDefault, widely understood
malcriadospoiledspoiled (badly raised)
echado a perderspoiledspoiled (food gone bad)
mimadospoiledpampered, spoiled

How Native Speakers Use Consentido

Real example sentences across three contexts you'll actually run into.

Spoiled child

Su hija está muy consentida; le compran todo lo que pide.

Their daughter is very spoiled; they buy her everything she asks for.

Consentido/a implies pampering, not necessarily bad behavior.

Badly behaved

No seas malcriado y saluda a tus mayores.

Don't be spoiled and greet your elders.

Malcriado adds a judgmental tone—badly raised, rude.

Spoiled food

La leche se echó a perder porque la dejaste fuera del refrigerador.

The milk spoiled because you left it out of the fridge.

Echarse a perder is the reflexive verb phrase for food going bad.

Avoid These Mistakes When Using Consentido

Using consentido for spoiled food

Incorrect: La fruta está consentida.

Correct: La fruta está echada a perder.

Consentido describes a pampered person, never rotten food. Use echado a perder or podrido for food.

Forgetting gender agreement

Incorrect: La niña está consentido.

Correct: La niña está consentida.

Consentido is an adjective that must agree in gender: consentido (masculine), consentida (feminine).

Lock in Spoiled Vocabulary with the Parrot Method

Why word lists alone don't stick

Memorizing a translation feels productive, but most learners forget 70% of what they studied within 48 hours. Vocabulary needs spaced repetition AND real-world exposure to transfer to long-term memory.

See Consentido used by native speakers

Parrot's short-form videos feature native speakers using consentido in real situations. Context-based exposure beats flashcards, you hear Ese niño está muy consentido porque es hijo único. while watching someone live the moment, connecting meaning, sound, and rhythm at once.

Save, review, repeat, stay consistent

Tap any word to save it. Parrot's spaced-repetition system surfaces it right before you'd forget, no manual flashcard creation. The watch, parrot back, save, review cycle turns recognition into fluency at 2.7x the speed of traditional study.

Common Questions About Spoiled in Spanish

How do you say spoiled in Spanish?
For a person: consentido (pampered) or malcriado (badly raised). For food: echado a perder (gone bad) or podrido (rotten).
Is consentido always negative?
No, consentido often carries affection—it can mean someone is well-loved and pampered without implying bratty behavior. Malcriado, by contrast, has a harsher, judgmental tone that criticizes upbringing.
How do I say 'spoil the surprise' in Spanish?
Arruinar la sorpresa or echar a perder la sorpresa. In this sense, spoil means to ruin, not to pamper.