Spanish Word of the Day

Quote: Wizard

Recoge algunos higos para que pudiere hacer un pastel. = Gather some figs so that I can make a pie.

"you pick up some figs so that I may make a pie."

Quote: Nareed

"you pick up some figs so that I may make a pie."

I'll take that. At least it makes sense.

Quote: Wizard

The question for the advanced readers is whether other fruits follow a similar fruit/tree convention as figs.

The apricot/apricot tree follows a similar convention
el albericoque, albaricoquero
el higo, higuera


The names of fruits/fruit trees (plants) seem to be divided between feminine and masculine. Sometimes they have one of each.

apple — la manzana
banana — la banana
blackberry— la mora, la zarzamora
cherimoya — la chirimoya
cherry — la cereza
gooseberry — la grosella espinosa
grape — la uva
grapefruit — la toronja
guarana — la fruta de guaraná
lime — la lima
loganberry — la zarza, la frambuesa
mandarin — la mandarina
mulberry — la mora
naranjilla — la naranjilla
nectarine — la nectarina
orange — la naranja
papaya — la papaya
pear — la pera
pineapple — la piña
plum — la ciruela
pomegranate — la granada
prickly pear — la tuna
raspberry — la frambuesa
strawberry — la fresa, la frutilla
tangerine — la mandarina
watermelon — la sandía


cranberry — el arándano
galia — el melón galia
apricot — el albericoque
avocado — el aguacate
banana — el plátano,
blueberry — el arándano
camu camu — el camu camu
cantaloupe — el cantalupo
coconut — el coco
date — el dátil
huckleberry — el arándano
fig — el higo
kiwi — el kiwi
kumquat — el kinoto
lemon — el limón
mango — el mango
melón — el melón
peach — el durazno, el melocotón
persimmon — el caqui
plantain — el plátano
tomatillo — el tomatillo
tomato — el tomate

Quote: Wizard

If the Academia Real Española is following this thread, I submit for their consideration that they change the name to higa. "Why?", you might ask. With other fruits the name of the fruit is feminine, but to get the name of the tree that bears the fruit, just change the a to an o.

I think that's not so much a apttern as an accident. Aside from higo there are other frutis ending in "o." Offhand I can think of "platano" and "arándano." Also not all fruits grow on trees, and not all trees have the same name as the fruit.

Quote: Wizard

Note that I'm not sure about using the future subjunctive of poder. The conditional tense would be my second choice. Ordinary future would be my third.

I was told that most Mexicans prefer to use the ir conjugation + a + infinitive version of the future tense (similar to English) and not use the conjugated verb form. I've read about this preference, and it seems to vary somewhat with ethnic groups through Latin America. Some people say they usually say the "periphrastic" future, but when they write they use the conjugated version.


Recoge algunos higos para que pudiera hacer un pastel.
Reune algunos higos para que voy a hacer un pastel.

Fecha: 4-12-12
Palabra: Alfiler

Today's SWD means pin, as in the sharp thing used in sewing. It should not be confused with aguja, which means needle, nor alphahor, which is a sweet snack from Argentina.

The assignment for the advanced readers is to explain what the "fil" means. We see it in several words in English and Spanish, generally referring to sharp things.

Ejemplo time

Quite la alfiler de la granada y echarlo. = Take the pin out of the grenade and throw it.

Quote: Wizard

Fecha: 4-12-12 Palabra: Alfiler The assignment for the advanced readers is to explain what the "fil" means. We see it in several words in English and Spanish, generally referring to sharp things.

Sorry Wizard, you picked up on the wrong part of the word. Almost every word that begins with Al- in either English or Spanish is Arabic in origin (examples alcohol, algebra , albóndiga, algodón ... there are dozens). It's a false cognate.

However, the Latin word filum means "thread". In English the word "file" could be "rank and file" (which literally means to "thread out" the soldiers into a line). The way that documents were organized in the 16th century was to string them out along a thread. Hence the idea of "filing" documents comes from the word for thread. The sense of sharp things is probably related to the idea of sewing or to the fact that you could cut yourself with a strong thread,

The same Latin word came down in Spanish as hilo which is usually a noun meaning thread, yarn, or string, but could also mean the :edge of something sharp". The verb hilar means "to spin" as in spinning thread.

Three other words where the Latin "f" mutated into an "h" in Spanish are:
facere hacer
febrem fiebre
focum fuego

Sometimes both letters remain, as in Fernando and Hernando as alternate spellings for a name. Another example is that Spanish fondo means "depth" while hondo means "deep".

Quote: Wizard

nor alphahor, which is a sweet snack from Argentina.

AlfaJor. The "h" is silent in Spanish. Why the need for a letter without a sound is beyond me.

Quote:

The assignment for the advanced readers is to explain what the "fil" means. We see it in several words in English and Spanish, generally referring to sharp things.

No idea.

But just to get you more confused, in chess the "bishop" is called "alfil." No, that's not the SPanish word for "bishop."

Quote:

Quite la alfiler de la granada y echarlo. = Take the pin out of the grenade and throw it.

1) The genders for "alfiler" are mixed and screwed up. It's a masculine noun.

2) The pin on a hand grenade is not called "alfiler" in Spanish. As you mentioned above, it's a small, usually metal, object with a sharp tip, meant to pierce other objects.

3) The way you wrote that sentence, you mean throw the pin after removing it from the grenade. That would make your life very short.

Quote: Nareed

But just to get you more confused, in chess the "bishop" is called "alfil." No, that's not the SPanish word for "bishop."

Most words that begin with al- are Arabic. The word "alfil" means elephant, which was the name of the piece in ancient India and Persia.

Quote: Nareed

The way you wrote that sentence, you mean throw the pin after removing it from the grenade. That would make your life very short.

Or that of the person I was teaching grenade throwing lessons too. Hopefully I would turn and run as soon as he threw the pin.

Quote: Pacomartin

Most words that begin with al- are Arabic. The word "alfil" means elephant, which was the name of the piece in ancient India and Persia.

I see the Spanish word for rook is torre, which makes sense, because in every conventional chess set I've seen the rook looks like a tower. However, it got me wondering what a "rook" is, other than the chess piece. The dictionary says it also means "crow," but I've never once heard that usage, except I had a card game as a kid called "rook" and there was a picture of a crow on the box.

So, if a rook is supposed to be a crow, why do they make the piece look like a tower?