Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA |
|---|---|
| plano | /ˈplano/ |
| llano | /ˈʝano/ |
This term is an adjective used to describe surfaces or terrains that lack bumps, hills or variations in altitude. If you are referring to a musical note played a semitone lower than a natural, use the noun bemol. If you are describing a tire that has gone flat, the intransitive verb espichar is used.
Which one should you use?
While plano is the general word for flat, llano is often used specifically to describe flat, level terrain or a plain. The noun form for a large area of flat land is llanura.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain, piso is a common word for a flat (an apartment) and its diminutive pisito is used to convey a sense of a cozy or small-scale flat. In Mexico, departamento is a common way to refer to a flat. In parts of Argentina, the term monoambiente is used to refer to a studio flat or a one-room apartment.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective plano must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. For example, if you are describing multiple feminine nouns, such as surfaces, you would use planas.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈplano/
Did you know?
- While plano is the standard word for a flat surface, the word llano is also used idiomatically to describe a person who is straightforward, honest or plain-speaking.
- The words llano and plano are doublets, meaning they both evolved from the same Latin word plānus. While llano evolved naturally through spoken language, plano was later reintroduced as a learned borrowing.
- In some regions, espichar is used not just for tires, but as a slang term for something that has failed or 'gone flat' in spirit.
Examples in context
- Tom tiene pies planos.Tom has flat feet.This sentence is useful for describing the shape of feet using the form plano.Tatoeba #9510640 by jatubio, translation #2649890 by sharptoothed
- ¿Tú tienes los pies planos?Do you have flat feet?This sentence is a question about the shape of feet using the form plano.Tatoeba #9510641 by jatubio, translation #5752111 by CM
- El paisaje era plano y monótono.The landscape was flat and monotonous.This sentence describes a landscape using the form plano.Tatoeba #4484738 by emanuel81, translation #4484569 by AlanF_US
- ¿Dónde está tu apartamento?Where is your flat located?
- Mi pisito está en el centroMy little flat is downtown
- ¿Cuál es el precio del apartamento?What is the price of the flat?
- Vivo en un departamento en ArgentinaI live in an apartment in Argentina
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucía and Daniel are hiking in a field.
- LucíaEste camino es muy plano y fácil.This path is very flat and easy.
- DanielSí, es un terreno muy plano.Yes, it is a very flat terrain.
- LucíaMe gusta caminar por sitios así.I like walking in places like this.
- DanielA mí también, es muy relajante.Me too, it is very relaxing.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “flat” translations and entries plano, llano, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries llano, plano, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
