10 Spanish Words with W

In this article, we are going to go through some Spanish words with W. The letter W together with the letter K is the least common in the Spanish language.

The name of the letter W in Spanish is uve doble.

There are not a lot of words that start with or contain W in Spanish. As the Royal Spanish Academy states, this happens because Spanish words with W were taken or adopted from another language. In other words, they are all from foreign origin. For this reason, they all masculine.

Let’s take a look at some Spanish words that start with or contain the letter W.

5 Spanish Words that Start with W

In Spanish, when the letter W is at the beginning of a word, it is pronounced as G (like in give).

Waterpolo

Waterpolo is a sport similar to the handball, but it is played in a swimming pool. In some American countries, they use the term polo acuático instead. In Spain, however, the most commonly used term is waterpolo and the person who practices this sport is called waterpolista.

Mis amigo nunca han jugado a waterpolo.

My friends have never played water polo.

Su equipo de waterpolo perdió el partido.

His water polo team lost the game.

Wéstern

In Spanish, the word wéstern or película del Oeste refers to a type of movie about cowboys set in the western United States in the late 19th or early 20th century. Wéstern can also refer to the genre of this kind of movies.

Fuimos a casa de Ana para ver un wéstern.

We went to Ana’s house to see a western.

Visitaron en Almería el set de rodaje de un wéstern.

They visited in Almeria a western film set.

Whisky

You can use the spelling whisky (in italics), wiski or even güisqui to refer to this Scottish alcoholic drink. The place where whisky is sold and drunk is called whiskería.

Está bebiendo un vaso de whisky.

He is drinking a glass of whisky.

He traído de Escocia una botella de whisky.

I have brought from Scotland a bottle of whisky.

Windsurf

In Spanish, the word windsurf (in italics) refers to the sport in which you ride on water standing on a sailboard. The person who practices this sport is called windsurfista.

Este verano voy a aprender a hacer windsurf.

This summer I am going to learn to windsurf.

Mis hijos no tienen miedo cuando practican windsurf.

My children are not afraid when they practice windsurfing.

Wok

In Spanish, the word wok refers to a metal frying pan that is shaped like a bowl. It is usually used for Chinese cooking. You can also use the word wok to refer to the dish that has been prepared in this pan.

Mi padre salteó las verduras en un wok.

My father stir-fried the vegetables in a wok.

¿Dónde está el wok? No lo encuentro en la cocina.

Where is the wok? I don’t find it in the kitchen.

5 Spanish Words that Contain W

As you know, there are not a lot of Spanish words with W. We have seen the letter W is pronounced as G when it appears at the start of a Spanish word. It is also pronounced like G when it starts a syllable in the middle of the word. However, the letter W is pronounced as U (like in bull) when it is at the end of the syllable.

Bungalow

In Spanish, a bungalow (in italics) or bungaló refers to a small one-level house that was built in a holiday resort.

Hemos alquilado un bungalow para este fin de semana.

We have rented a bungalow for the weekend.

Luis pasó las vacaciones con su familia en un bungalow.

Luis spent the vacation with his family in a bungalow.

Kiwi

In Spanish, the word kiwi can refer to a type of New Zealand bird that cannot fly, to the kiwi tree and to its fruit.

He añadido kiwi y mango a la macedonia.

I have added kiwi and mango to the fruit salad.

Me gusta mucho este cóctel. Sabe a kiwi.

I like this cocktail a lot. It tastes like kiwi.

Sándwich

In English, a sandwich is any food served between two bread buns. They do not make differences based on the type of bread they use. However, the word sándwich in Spanish refers only to the sandwich made with tin loaf. If you use a crusty bread, such as a baguette, then it is called bocadillo.

Señor, su sándwich estará listo en diez minutos.

Sir, your sandwich will be ready in ten minutes.

Ayer pedí un sándwich de jamón y queso para cenar.

Yesterday I ordered a ham and cheese sandwich for dinner.

Show

The words show, show business and showman or show-woman are accepted in Spanish. According to the punctuation rules, they should be written in italics since they are foreign words that have kept their original spelling.

No hay más entradas para el show.

There are not any more tickets for the show.

¿Has visto el nuevo show de magia?

Have you seen the new magic show?

Even though the Spanish Royal Academy accepted these words, it is preferred to use the Spanish equivalents such as espectáculo, negocio or industria del espectáculo and presentador or presentadora de un espectáculo.

Taekwondo

Taekwondo is the Spanish most popular spelling. However, the Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts has also proposed the spelling of taekuondo. The person who practices this sport is called taekwondista.

Necesitarás protección para hacer taekwondo.

You will need protection to do taekwondo.

La escuela también ofrece cursos de taekwondo.

The school also offers courses in taekwondo.

Exercises

Feel like learning more vocabulary? You can also practice Spanish words with CH, H, J, K, Ñ, Q, R, X, Y or Z in our blog. Now let’s do some exercises to practice this article’s Spanish words with W.