elefante
eh-leh-FAHN-teh
/e.leˈfan.te/
📝 In Action
El elefante es el animal terrestre más grande del mundo.
A1The elephant is the largest land animal in the world.
Mi hijo quiere un juguete de un elefante gris.
A1My son wants a gray elephant toy.
Se movía con la gracia de un elefante en una tienda de porcelana.
B2He moved with the grace of a bull in a china shop (literally: an elephant in a china shop).
💡 Grammar Points
Fixed Gender
Even though the word ends in '-e,' 'elefante' is always a masculine noun ('el elefante'). To specify a female animal, you add an '-a' to the end: 'la elefanta'.
❌ Common Pitfalls
Confusing Gender
Mistake: “Using 'la elefante' for a female elephant.”
Correction: The correct term for a female elephant is 'la elefanta,' though the general species name remains 'el elefante'.
⭐ Usage Tips
Describing Clumsiness
Spanish often uses 'elefante' in the figurative sense of being clumsy or huge, similar to the English idiom 'elephant in the room' (but Spanish often uses other phrases for that specific idiom).
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: elefante
Question 1 of 1
Which sentence correctly uses the gender of 'elefante'?
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Frequently Asked Questions
If I see a female elephant, should I call it 'elefante' or 'elefanta'?
You can use 'elefante' to refer to the species in general, but if you want to specify the female animal, the correct and common word is 'elefanta'.