English words from Spanish
6 English words with Spanish in their history, whether borrowed directly or passed on through other languages.
avocado
It is borrowed from Spanish avocado, altered by folk etymology after Spanish avocado, an earlier form of abogado “lawyer”, from earlier Spanish aguacate, from Classical Nahuatl āhuacatl (“avocado…
barbecue
It is borrowed from Spanish barbacoa (“framework for roasting meat”), from an Arawakan language of the West Indies, perhaps Taino. Barnhart and Etymonline cite a Haitian word barbakoa for a…
bonanza
It is borrowed from Spanish bonanza (“fair weather at sea; prosperity”), which in American Spanish meant a rich vein of ore. The Spanish word comes from Medieval Latin bonacia (“calm sea”), an…
coyote
It is borrowed from Spanish coyote, a Mexican Spanish word, from Nahuatl coyōtl. Random House records earlier English forms cuiota and cayota.
hammock
It is borrowed from Spanish hamaca, from Taíno (an Arawakan language of Hispaniola), perhaps meaning “fish nets”. Earlier English forms were hamack and hamaca. The Dutch hangmat and German…
mascara
It is probably borrowed from Spanish máscara (“mask; stain”), from the same source as Italian maschera (“mask”); Merriam-Webster derives it probably from the Italian word directly.