Inklingo

corta

KOR-tah/ˈkoɾta/

corta means short in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:

short

Also: brief
A very short, stubby yellow pencil lying horizontally, emphasizing its short length.

📝 In Action

Necesito una cuerda más corta para atar esto.

A1

I need a shorter rope to tie this.

La reunión fue muy corta, solo duró diez minutos.

A2

The meeting was very short; it only lasted ten minutes.

Ella lleva una falda corta.

A1

She is wearing a short skirt.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • breve (brief)
  • reducida (reduced)

Antonyms

Common Collocations

  • vida cortashort life
  • distancia cortashort distance

cuts, is cutting, Cut!

Also: interrupts
VerbA1regular ar
A close-up view of a hand holding a pair of silver scissors actively cutting a piece of blue paper.
infinitivecortar
gerundcortando
past Participlecortado

📝 In Action

Mi hermana siempre corta el césped los sábados.

A1

My sister always cuts the grass on Saturdays.

¡Corta el pan en rebanadas finas, por favor!

A1

Cut the bread into thin slices, please!

Cuando habla, siempre corta la conversación de los demás.

B1

When she speaks, she always interrupts other people's conversation.

Word Connections

Synonyms

  • secciona (sections)
  • interrumpe (interrupts)

Antonyms

  • une (joins)
  • alarga (lengthens)

Common Collocations

  • corta la electricidadcuts the power
  • corta el quesocuts the cheese

Idioms & Expressions

  • Corta por lo sanoTo cut losses/make a clean break/start fresh.

🔄 Conjugations

indicative

present

él/ella/ustedcorta
yocorto
cortas
ellos/ellas/ustedescortan
nosotroscortamos
vosotroscortáis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedcortaba
yocortaba
cortabas
ellos/ellas/ustedescortaban
nosotroscortábamos
vosotroscortabais

preterite

él/ella/ustedcortó
yocorté
cortaste
ellos/ellas/ustedescortaron
nosotroscortamos
vosotroscortasteis

subjunctive

present

él/ella/ustedcorte
yocorte
cortes
ellos/ellas/ustedescorten
nosotroscortemos
vosotroscortéis

imperfect

él/ella/ustedcortara/cortase
yocortara/cortase
cortaras/cortases
ellos/ellas/ustedescortaran/cortasen
nosotroscortáramos/cortásemos
vosotroscortarais/cortaseis

Translate to Spanish

Words that translate to "corta" in Spanish:

cutsinterruptsis cutting

✏️ Quick Practice

Quick Quiz: corta

Question 1 of 2

Which sentence uses 'corta' as an adjective?

📚 More Resources

👥 Word Family
🎵 Rhymes
📚 Etymology

The word comes from the Late Latin verb *curtare*, which meant 'to shorten' or 'to cut short.' This root is also where we get the English word 'short.'

First recorded: 13th century

Cognates (Related words)

Italian: cortaPortuguese: curta

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between 'corta' and 'corto'?

'Corta' is the feminine form, used when describing feminine things (like 'la falda corta'). 'Corto' is the masculine form, used for masculine things (like 'el pelo corto').

Can 'corta' mean 'short' in terms of height for a person?

Yes, but it is much more common to use 'baja' (low/short) to describe a person's height. You would usually say 'Ella es baja,' not 'Ella es corta.'