Is Alberca used in the D.R. at all? I ask because I always called a swimming pool a "Piscina", but all my Mexican friends call it an Alberca. At first, I didn't know what they were talking about and they didn't know what I was talking about when I said Piscina.
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Alberca or Piscina
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Is Alberca used in the D.R. at all? I ask because I always called a swimming pool a "Piscina", but all my Mexican friends call it an Alberca. At first, I didn't know what they were talking about and they didn't know what I was talking about when I said Piscina.
I think most Dominicans say "piscina".
Right on
Another word used mostly by Mexicans (and some places in Central America) is zacate (lawn) when most other countries, including the DR, use cesped or hierba.
I've only heard it in Mexico to mean swimming pool. It's also used in Spain, but it means a type of open cistern.
Alberca comes from Arabic, like most words that begin with 'al' in Spanish..
alberca.
(Del ?r. hisp. alb?rka, y este del ?r. cl?s. birkah).
1. f. Dep?sito artificial de agua, con muros de f?brica, para el riego.
2. f. poza (? balsa para empozar el c??amo).
3. f. M?x. Piscina deportiva.
en ~.
1. loc. adj. Dicho de un edificio: Que, por no estar terminado o por haberse ca?do, solo tiene las paredes y carece de techo. (RAE)
Another word used mostly by Mexicans (and some places in Central America) is zacate (lawn) when most other countries, including the DR, use cesped or hierba.
You have not been around Mexicans, then.I use Piscina... I have only heard alberca used in Mexican soap operas.
Common vocabulary concept in Spanish-
IMO, this is a classic example of the diversity that exists in Spanish vocabulary and the usage as mentioned in my commentary in this post (http://www.dr1.com/forums/642298-post2.html). Since words in Spanish have such a diverse origin and usage can be very regional, it lends itself to the variety that one experiences in the language and fully exemplifies my theory of the more exposure the better. Although the dictionary provides a specific usage for alberca, Mexicans use alberca and piscina interchangeably to mean pool. In the dictionary it is defined as a Mexican regionalism, however, I think anyone with a broad vocabulary in Spanish will be familiar with the word.
Once again word origin is the key to the selected usage of one word over another. Alberca derived from Arabic. Piscina comes from Latin. Logically piscina is the generic word, alberca, the foreign and borrowed word will be a synonym or have a specific meaning. The question is why alberca, with the meaning of pool and defined as an americanismo remained in the Mexican vernacular specifically. Also proof positive of my point in my post linked above is when you look for a synonym of a word not all in the list can be used. It depends on the meaning that you want to convey. There are many word pairs like this in Spanish, the foreign word vs. the Latin based word.
Dictionary synonyms:
piscina-
dep?sito, alberca, estanque, pileta
alberca-
acequia, balsa, charca, pozo, cisterna, aljibe, dep?sito, estanque, alberque
source: elmundo.es
To add to Norma?s options for lawn, how about la grama which, I think is very regional and may not be familiar to all Spanish-speakers but is used.
-LDG.
IMO, this is a classic example of the diversity that exists in Spanish vocabulary and the usage as mentioned in my commentary in this post (http://www.dr1.com/forums/642298-post2.html). Since words in Spanish have such a diverse origin and usage can be very regional, it lends itself to the variety that one experiences in the language and fully exemplifies my theory of the more exposure the better. Although the dictionary provides a specific usage for alberca, Mexicans use alberca and piscina interchangeably to mean pool. In the dictionary it is defined as a Mexican regionalism, however, I think anyone with a broad vocabulary in Spanish will be familiar with the word.
Once again word origin is the key to the selected usage of one word over another. Alberca derived from Arabic. Piscina comes from Latin. Logically piscina is the generic word, alberca, the foreign and borrowed word will be a synonym or have a specific meaning. The question is why alberca, with the meaning of pool and defined as an americanismo remained in the Mexican vernacular specifically. Also proof positive of my point in my post linked above is when you look for a synonym of a word not all in the list can be used. It depends on the meaning that you want to convey. There are many word pairs like this in Spanish, the foreign word vs. the Latin based word.
Dictionary synonyms:
piscina-
dep?sito, alberca, estanque, pileta
alberca-
acequia, balsa, charca, pozo, cisterna, aljibe, dep?sito, estanque, alberque
source: elmundo.es
To add to Norma?s options for lawn, how about la grama which, I think is very regional and may not be familiar to all Spanish-speakers but is used.
-LDG.
Lesley D;646832 to add to Norma’s options for lawn said:Yes, la grama very common in the DR, even more so than c?sped.
Norma
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I have another word that my Mexican friends use differently than I do. I always understood "Comadre" was the godmother of your child. They use it to describe someone that is always on the phone gossiping.
In the DR you might hear comadreando, compadreando (gossiping, looking for a comadre/compadre, someone to side with you). The gossiping doesn't have to occur just on the phone.
Norma (Now gold)
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