Did you know that some animal Spanish names also have other meanings? If you want to know more, take a look at the blog of our Spanish school El Rincón del Tándem! Enjoy your reading 😊

Today we dedicate our blog to get to know some animal Spanish names with other meanings.

Spanish language is very rich in polysemic words; therefore, the teachers of our Spanish school always spend some time to explain them fully during Spanish lessons.

Among these special words, we also find animal names. So, let’s take a look at the list below to improve our usage of Spanish words!

CABALLO

Caballo means “horse”. Besides it, it also means:

– Knight (chess)

  • En ajedrez, el caballo tiene un valor de tres puntos = In chess, the knight is equal to three points

– Vaulting horse

  • El caballo es uno de los seis aparatos que se usan en la gimnasia = The vaulting horse is one of the six equipment used in gymnastics.

GATO

If you say gato the first word that comes up to mind is a cat. Nevertheless, there is another gato that would come very in handy if you need to change a tyre of the car…

– Jack (vehicle)

  • Es imprescindible llevar un gato en el maletero del coche = It is essential to carry a jack in the boot of the car

LLAMA

Llama is not only the name of the well-known Latina American mammal. In fact, in Spanish, this words also means

– Flame

  • En cuanto vimos las llamas, llamamos a los bomberos = As soon as we saw the flames, we called the firefighters

– Llama, as flame, is also used in a figurative way, meaning “passion or love”:

  • En una relación hay que avivar la llama del amor con pequeños detalles = In a relationship you have to fan the flame of love with small details

– Call(s).

From the Spanish verb llamar. 3rd person singular present indicative.

  • Ana llama a su madre todos los días a las 12.00h = Ana calls her mother every day at 12pm

From the Spanish verb llamar. 2nd person singular imperative.

  • Llama a Pablo para decirle que en diez minutos estamos en su casa = Call Pablo to tell him that we will be at his house in ten minutes

MONO

Besides meaning “monkey”, the Spanish word mono also means:

– Overalls, jumpsuit

  • El mecánico siempre se pone el mono antes de empezar a trabajar = The mechanic always puts on his overalls before starting work

– Cute, pretty, adorable

  • Amparo está muy mona con este corte de pelo = Amparo looks very cute with this haircut

– Craving, withdrawal symptoms

  • Dejé de fumar hace dos años, pero de vez en cuando me entra el mono = I gave up smoking two years ago but every now and then I get the craving

RATÓN

Meaning “mouse”. In Spanish, the English word mouse is replaced by the Spanish equivalent ratón to indicate the computer pointing device

  • El ratón de mi ordenador no funciona = My computer mouse is not working

Furthermore, in colloquial language, ratónes (pural) is also use to mean “guns”.

  • Haciendo este ejercicio cada día, fortalecerás los ratones = By doing this exercise every day, your guns will get stronger.

We hope that our article on animal Spanish names with other meanings will be come in handy to you.

Finally, we remind you that our Spanish school, El Rincón del Tándem, keeps providing Spanish lessons in a cosy and friendly space.

If you want to study Spanish in Valencia, tale a look at the list of our Spanish courses 😊

¡Hasta pronto!

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