How to Say "martial" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “martial” is “marcial” — use 'marcial' when referring to a general atmosphere of war or the military, or specifically when talking about combat sports.
marcial
mar-SYALmaɾˈsjal
Examples
Los soldados caminaban con un paso marcial por la plaza.
The soldiers walked with a martial stride through the square.
El gobierno declaró la ley marcial tras las protestas.
The government declared martial law after the protests.
Me gusta la música marcial de las bandas de guerra.
I like the military-style music of the marching bands.
El karate es mi arte marcial favorita.
Karate is my favorite martial art.
One Form for All
This word is 'gender-neutral,' meaning it stays the same whether you are describing a masculine noun (el ritmo marcial) or a feminine noun (la ley marcial).
Placement Matters
Like most adjectives in Spanish, it usually comes after the person or thing it is describing to sound natural.
Pluralizing Marcial
To describe more than one thing (like 'artes'), we add '-es' to the end: 'marciales'.
Avoiding 'Marciala'
Mistake: “La ley marciala.”
Correction: La ley marcial. Because the word ends in 'l', we don't add an 'a' for feminine things.
The 'Mixed' Order
Mistake: “Mixtas artes marciales.”
Correction: Artes marciales mixtas. In Spanish, we start with the main thing (arts), then the type (martial), then the specific detail (mixed).
marcial
mar-SYALmaɾˈsjal
Examples
El karate es mi arte marcial favorita.
Karate is my favorite martial art.
Los soldados caminaban con un paso marcial por la plaza.
The soldiers walked with a martial stride through the square.
El gobierno declaró la ley marcial tras las protestas.
The government declared martial law after the protests.
Me gusta la música marcial de las bandas de guerra.
I like the military-style music of the marching bands.
One Form for All
This word is 'gender-neutral,' meaning it stays the same whether you are describing a masculine noun (el ritmo marcial) or a feminine noun (la ley marcial).
Placement Matters
Like most adjectives in Spanish, it usually comes after the person or thing it is describing to sound natural.
Pluralizing Marcial
To describe more than one thing (like 'artes'), we add '-es' to the end: 'marciales'.
Avoiding 'Marciala'
Mistake: “La ley marciala.”
Correction: La ley marcial. Because the word ends in 'l', we don't add an 'a' for feminine things.
The 'Mixed' Order
Mistake: “Mixtas artes marciales.”
Correction: Artes marciales mixtas. In Spanish, we start with the main thing (arts), then the type (martial), then the specific detail (mixed).
militares
mee-lee-TAH-resmiliˈtaɾes
Examples
Necesitan más recursos para las operaciones militares.
They need more resources for the military operations.
Las bases militares están en zonas estratégicas.
The military bases are in strategic zones.
Invariable Ending
The adjective 'militar' (and its plural 'militares') is one of those adjectives that works for both masculine and feminine nouns. For example, 'operaciones militares' (feminine) and 'conflictos militares' (masculine).
Marcial vs. Militares
Related Translations
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