ballenas
/ba-YE-nas/
whales
Ballenas can mean whales, the large animals that live in the ocean.
📝 In Action
Vimos varias ballenas saltando en el océano.
A1We saw several whales jumping in the ocean.
Las ballenas son animales muy inteligentes.
A1Whales are very intelligent animals.
💡 Grammar Points
Making it Plural
Since the singular word 'ballena' ends in a vowel, you just add an '-s' to make it plural.
❌ Common Pitfalls
Gender Check
Mistake: "el ballena"
Correction: la ballena
⭐ Usage Tips
Pronunciation Tip
The 'll' sounds like the 'y' in 'yes' for most Spanish speakers.
In the context of clothing, ballenas are the stays used to stiffen shirt collars.
ballenas(noun)
collar stays
?plastic or metal inserts for shirt collars
whalebone / corset stays
?stiff strips used to shape garments
📝 In Action
Perdí las ballenas de mi camisa favorita.
B2I lost the collar stays of my favorite shirt.
Antiguamente, los corsés llevaban ballenas de verdad.
C1In the old days, corsets contained real whalebones.
💡 Grammar Points
Context is Key
If you are at a dry cleaner or a tailor, 'ballenas' refers to clothing parts, not sea animals.
⭐ Usage Tips
History Fact
These are called 'ballenas' because they were originally made from the baleen of whales.
As a verb, ballenas refers to the act of stiffening a garment by adding stays.
📝 In Action
Si ballenas el cuello, quedará más firme.
C2If you put stays in the collar, it will be firmer.
🔄 Conjugations
subjunctive
imperfect
present
indicative
preterite
imperfect
present
✏️ Quick Practice
💡 Quick Quiz: ballenas
Question 1 of 1
If you are looking at 'ballenas' in a clothing store, what are you likely looking at?
📚 More Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 'ballenas' used for both male and female whales?
Yes, 'ballenas' is a feminine noun regardless of the animal's biological sex. To distinguish, you add 'macho' (male) or 'hembra' (female).