How to Say "shale" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “shale” is “arcilla” — B1 level.
Examples
El artista usa arcilla para hacer jarrones.
The artist uses clay to make vases.
Me puse una máscara de arcilla en la cara.
I put a clay mask on my face.
Rafael Nadal es el rey de la pista de arcilla.
Rafael Nadal is the king of the clay court.
Describing Material
To say something is made of clay, always use the word 'de' before 'arcilla', as in 'un plato de arcilla'.
The Gender of Arcilla
This word is feminine, so you use 'la arcilla' or 'una arcilla'. Unlike some words starting with 'a', the stress is on the second syllable (ar-CI-lla), so the article doesn't change.
Clay vs. Mud
Mistake: “Using 'arcilla' to describe the mud on your shoes after rain.”
Correction: Use 'barro' for generic mud. Use 'arcilla' specifically for the fine-grained earth used by artists or builders.
Related Translations
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