Whether you are taking swimming lessons in Spain, talking about your favorite sport, or simply spending a day at the pool, knowing the right Spanish vocabulary is essential. Below you’ll find categorized lists of words related to swimming vocabulary in Spanish, grouped into six main sections.

Swimming Vocabulary in Spanish

This guide presents six key groups of swimming vocabulary in Spanish that range from pool-related expressions to those used in competitions.

The Pool and Surroundings

The first group introduces the pool and its surroundings.

  1. La natación (swimming)
  2. La piscina (swimming pool)
    • La alberca Mexican Spanish (swimming pool)
  3. El borde de la piscina (pool edge)
  4. El trampolín (diving board)
  5. El carril (lane)
  6. La cuerda de carril (lane rope)
  7. El vestuario (changing room)
  8. La ducha (shower)
  9. La toalla (towel)
  10. El flotador (float, inflatable ring)
  11. El salvavidas (lifeguard)
  12. El or la socorrista (lifeguard)
  13. La tumbona (sun lounger)
  14. La sombrilla (parasol, sunshade)
  15. El agua (water)
  16. El cloro (chlorine)

Swimming Equipment

Here a list of essential swimming equipment.

  1. El gorro de natación (swimming cap)
  2. Las gafas de natación (goggles)
  3. El bañador (swimsuit)
  4. El traje de baño (swimsuit)
  5. Las aletas (fins)
  6. El tubo de respiración (snorkel)
  7. La tabla (kickboard)
  8. El chaleco salvavidas (life jacket)
  9. La crema solar (sunscreen)
  10. El reloj acuático (waterproof watch)
  11. Las sandalias (flip-flops)

Swimming Strokes and Actions

This third group focuses on common strokes and swimming actions.

  1. El estilo libre (freestyle)
  2. La braza (breaststroke)
  3. La espalda (backstroke)
  4. La mariposa (butterfly)
  5. El crol (crawl stroke)
  6. Nadar (to swim)
  7. Bucear (to dive, to snorkel)
  8. Flotar (to float)
  9. Chapotear (to splash)
  10. Sumergirse (to submerge, to dive underwater)
  11. Lanzarse (to jump in)
  12. Bracear (to move one’s arms while swimming)
  13. Patalear (to kick one’s legs)
  14. Respirar (to breathe)
  15. Entrenar (to train)

Competitions and Swimmers

The fourth group covers competitions and professional swimmers.

  1. La competición de natación (swimming competition)
  2. La carrera (race)
  3. El torneo (tournament)
  4. La medalla (medal)
  5. El equipo (team)
  6. El entrenador or la entrenadora (coach)
  7. El nadador or la nadadora (swimmer)
  8. La salida (start)
  9. La meta (finish line)
  10. El cronómetro (stopwatch)
  11. La piscina olímpica (Olympic pool)
  12. El calentamiento (warm-up)
  13. La práctica (practice)
  14. El récord (record)
  15. La victoria (victory)

Artistic Swimming

Artistic swimming (natación artística) is an Olympic discipline and adds depth to your vocabulary coverage.

  1. La natación artística (artistic swimming)
  2. La coreografía (choreography)
  3. La sincronización (synchronization)
  4. El dúo (duet)
  5. La rutina (routine)
    • La rutina libre (free routine)
    • La rutina técnica (technical routine)
  6. La puntuación (score)
    • La puntuación artística (artistic score)
    • La puntuación técnica (technical score)
  7. La flexibilidad (flexibility)
  8. El or la juez (judge)
  9. La presentación (performance)
  10. La posición (position)
    • La posición vertical (vertical position)
    • La posición ballet (ballet position)
    • La posición cola de pez (fishtail position)
  11. La figura obligatoria (required figure)
  12. El movimiento de piernas (leg movement)
  13. El impulso (lift, boost)
  14. El empuje (push, thrust)
  15. El soporte (support, base)
  16. El traje de competición (competition costume)
  17. El maquillaje artístico (artistic makeup)
  18. El peinado (hairstyle)
  19. El esfuerzo físico (physical effort)
  20. La apnea (freediving)
  21. La evaluación del jurado (judges’ evaluation)
  22. El entrenamiento fuera del agua (land training)

Open Water Swimming

Finally, here is some swimming vocabulary in Spanish about this long-distance swimming discipline practiced in lakes, rivers, or seas.

  1. La natación en aguas abiertas (open water swimming)
  2. El lago (lake)
  3. El río (river)
  4. El mar (sea)
  5. La boya (buoy)
  6. El recorrido (course)
  7. La resistencia (endurance)
  8. La corriente (current)
  9. La profundidad (depth)
  10. La seguridad (safety)
  11. Las normas de seguridad (safety rules)
  12. La seguridad acuática (water safety)
  13. El rescate (rescue)
  14. La bandera roja (red flag – no swimming)
  15. La bandera verde (green flag – swimming is allowed)

Exercises

Now that you know the key terms, you are ready to practice. In this section, you will find exercises designed to test and strengthen your understanding of Spanish swimming.

Remember, in our blog, you can also learn American football, chess, fencing, soccer, baseball, basketball, cricket, golf, horse riding, ice hockey, rugby or tennis vocabulary in Spanish.

Exercise 1

Exercise 2

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Vocabulary