How to Say "dirt" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “dirt” is “tierra” — use 'tierra' when referring to the actual soil or ground that plants grow in, or the general substance of the earth..
tierra
/TYEH-rrah//ˈtjera/
Examples
Los niños jugaban con la tierra del jardín.
The children were playing with the dirt from the garden.
Las flores crecen en la tierra.
The flowers grow in the soil.
El niño se sentó en la tierra para jugar.
The child sat on the ground to play.
Compraron un gran pedazo de tierra para construir su casa.
They bought a large piece of land to build their house.
Using 'la'
Since 'tierra' is a feminine word (it ends in -a), you'll almost always see it with 'la' or 'una' before it, like 'la tierra' (the ground) or 'una tierra' (a land).
polvo
POHL-boh/ˈpol.βo/
Examples
El polvo se acumula rápidamente en los muebles.
Dirt (dust) accumulates quickly on the furniture.
Necesitas limpiar el polvo de esa mesa.
You need to clean the dust off that table.
La receta pide una cucharada de polvo de hornear.
The recipe calls for a tablespoon of baking powder.
Después de la sequía, había mucho polvo en el camino.
After the drought, there was a lot of dust on the road.
Gender Reminder
Even though many things that scatter or are fine particles are feminine (like la arena or la ceniza), polvo is always masculine: el polvo.
Confusing Soil with Dust
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