Food vocabulary Posted by Transparent Language on May 27, 2008 in Spanish Culture, Spanish Vocabulary
Hello there! OK, so a reader e-mailed me last week and asked, “Adir, Spanish is spoken in so many countries, and I just found out that food has several names in different countries, so how do I do to memorize that?” I gave it some thought and the answer to that question is: you don´t memorize it, you just have to know the difference and pick a variant, be it in grammar, vocabulary and accent. One of the greatest joys of teaching and learning Spanish is the amount of variety inside Spanish, but for those of you who are so desperate because you´d learned that strawberry is fresa (in Spain) but when you went to Argentina and ordered zumo de fresa (strawberry juice), people gave you a weird look, here´s a small list of some different fruit and vegatable names in Spanish. I chose Spain, Mexico, Argentina and Venezuela for the examples.
1. Strawberry
Spain: fresa
Mexico: fresa
Argentina: frutilla
Venezuela: fresa
2. Peanuts
Spain: cacahuete
Mexico: cacahuete
Argentina: maní
Venezuela: maní
3. Peach
Spain: melocotón
Mexico: durazno
Argentina: durazno
Venezuela: durazno
4. Beans
Spain: judía, alubia, haba
Mexico: frijol
Argentina: poroto
Venezuela: caraota
4. Sweetcorn
Spain: mazorca
Mexico: elote
Argentina: choclo
Venezuela: jojoto
5. Avocado
Spain: aguacate
Mexico: aguacate
Argentina: palta
Venezuela: aguacate
6. Pepper
Spain: pimiento picante
Mexico: chile
Argentina: ají
Venezuela: ají
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Comments:
Sonja Haske:
Hola–
I am just learning Spanish, and I’ve just found this site, and think it is wonderful.
I am teaching (volunteer) English to Hispanic adults at a center near my home. Any information from this site will be helpful to me.
Thank you.
Sonja
Guy Thomas:
Thoroughly enjoy the site. Especially the comparison of Spanish from the various countries. I learned Spanish, or more correctly, Tex-Mex, when i was a young man in Corpus Christi. My wife is Peruvian and lived in Spain. We are always comparing words. This feature really helps us.
Eduardo:
I own a Smoothie King in Miami, and I have been trying to do research on all the different Spanish names for every fruit to make a guide for my guests who might be more comfortable in Spanish. If someone knows of a link to a list like this one, but more comprehensive, it would be very helpful.
edlagniappe:
beans = las habichuelas (in what region?)
corn = el helote [in Mex?] … what region uses “el maíz”
Is there a differentiation between “corn” and “sweet corn” in any region?
Is there a separate term for “feed corn”?
peppers = la ñora (in what region?)
david carmona:
“Habichuelas” is very common in the Caribbean and Spain.
“Elote” means “corncob”, from the Nahuatl language, and is used in Mexico and Central America.
“Sweetcorn” is known as “maíz dulce” o “maíz tierno”, “elote”, “choclo” in South America, and “jojoto” in Venezuela.
As far as I know, there is no specific term in Spanish for “feed corn”. We would rather describe what corn is used for.
“Ñora” is a small red hot pepper named after a village in Murcia (Spain), where it’s originally from. They are used widely in eastern Spain, normally after being sun-dried, and they are the basis for Spanish “pimentón”.
Arvie:
Hola,
I was being assigned working somewhere in europe, and its a big help for me to know this site for me to able to catch up spanish language basic. soy hablo y comprendo hoy leguaje de espanol. Muchas Gracias por su amabilidad!!! Voy con Dios!
Richard Lemley:
Thank you. I really cannot afford to buy all the expensive programs. But I need to learn very bad. Thanks for the help.
yilmaz:
I am learning spaNISH AS 3RD LANGUAGE AND i like the info.GRACIA
Elena:
I’m from Venezuela, so I would complement some of the info you provide:
Maíz is also used in Venezuela for the sweetcorn, The Ají is used for a sweet pepper only, the common pepper that we buy at the supermarket is call pimienta.
To complete this DIC (only with the Venezuelan translation):
pineapple: piña
Orange: naranja
Blueberry: mora
watermelon: patilla
passion fruit: parchita
popcorn: cotufas
lime: limón