despedir

A common verb with three distinct everyday senses: to see someone off / say goodbye (reflexive despedirse: nos despedimos en el aeropuerto), to fire someone from a job (lo despidieron de la empresa), and to give off or emit something like a smell, light, or heat (la fogata despide calor). Context makes the intended sense clear, but a learner has to keep all three straight.

• Nos despedimos con un fuerte abrazo. — We said goodbye with a big hug.
• La empresa despidió a veinte empleados este mes. — The company laid off twenty employees this month.
• La sopa despedía un olor delicioso. — The soup was giving off a delicious smell.

Forgetting the reflexive pronoun for the "say goodbye" sense — despedirse de alguien needs se; without it, despedir a alguien reads as "to fire someone," a very different and potentially awkward meaning.