murciélago

Spanish

FWOTD – 4 February 2013

Alternative forms

• murciégalo (obsolete, or, nonstandard)

Etymology

From metathetic murciégalo, from Latin mus (“mouse”) + caeculus, diminutive of caecus (“blind”). Compare Portuguese and Galician morcego. Also compare with Old Spanish mur (“mouse”).

Pronunciation

• (Castilian) IPA^(key): /muɾˈθjelaɡo/, [muɾˈθjelaɣo]
• (Latin America) IPA^(key): /murˈsjelaɡo/, [murˈsjelaɣo]

Noun

murciélago m (plural murciélagos, feminine murciélaga, feminine plural murciélagas)

1. bat (winged mammal)
   • 1800, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, Historia General del Perú Chapter 12

     ...adoraban al buho por la hermosura de sus ojos y cabeza, y al murciélago por la sutileza de su vista...

     ...they adored the owl for the prettiness of its eyes and head, and the bat for the subtlety of its sight...

Synonyms

• panarra

Derived terms

• murciélago vampiro

Further reading

• “murciélago” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.