llamas
“llamas” means “you call” in Spanish. It has 3 different meanings depending on context:
you call
Also: you name, you knock
📝 In Action
¿Cómo te llamas?
A1What is your name?
Si necesitas ayuda, me llamas.
A1If you need help, you call me.
Tú llamas a la puerta mientras yo espero en el coche.
A2You knock on the door while I wait in the car.
flames
Also: blazes
📝 In Action
Las llamas del fuego eran muy altas y anaranjadas.
A2The flames from the fire were very high and orange.
Los bomberos lucharon para apagar las llamas.
B1The firefighters fought to put out the flames.
llamas
📝 In Action
En Perú vimos muchas llamas en las montañas.
A1In Peru we saw many llamas in the mountains.
Las llamas son animales muy tranquilos, pero a veces escupen.
A2Llamas are very calm animals, but sometimes they spit.
🔄 Conjugations
indicative
present
imperfect
preterite
subjunctive
present
imperfect
Vocabulary Collections
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✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: llamas
Question 1 of 1
Which sentence uses 'llamas' to mean the animals?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family▼
📚 Etymology▼
This word has a fascinating double origin! The nouns come from two different languages. 'Llama' (the animal) is from the Quechua language of the Andes. 'Llama' (the flame) comes from the Latin word 'flamma'. The verb form 'llamas' comes from the Latin verb 'clamāre', which means 'to shout' or 'to cry out'.
First recorded: 15th-16th centuries (for the nouns)
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does 'llamas' have three completely different meanings?
It's a cool coincidence of language! The meanings for 'flame' and 'to call' both evolved from Latin, while the word for the animal was adopted directly from Quechua, the language of the Inca Empire. Words that sound and are spelled the same but have different origins and meanings are called homonyms. The only way to know which 'llamas' is being used is from the other words in the sentence.
Is the 'll' in 'llamas' pronounced like a 'y' or a 'j'?
Great question! It varies by region. In most of Spain and Latin America, it sounds like the 'y' in 'yes' (/YA-mas/). In Argentina and Uruguay, it sounds more like the 's' in 'measure' or a 'j' sound (/JA-mas/). Both are perfectly correct, so you can choose the one you like best!