How to Say "Anteater" in Spanish

oso hormiguero

/oso oɾmiɡeɾo/from spelling rulesmasculine

The English word 'anteater' is oso hormiguero in Spanish. Wiktionary also lists shihui.

Meaning: mammal (noun)

Ways to say it

“anteater” in Spanish
Spanish	IPA	Note
oso hormiguero	/oso oɾmiɡeɾo/ (from spelling rules)	masculine
shihui	/sjwi/ (from spelling rules)	Peru, feminine, masculine

The term oso hormiguero literally translates to 'ant bear'.

In Peru, the term shihui is used to refer to an anteater.

To form the plural, both the noun and the adjective are pluralized, resulting in osos hormigueros.

/oso oɾmiɡeɾo/

The word hormiguero can refer to the animal itself or to the physical structure of an 'anthill'.
The word oso is a direct descendant of the Latin ursus, which is also the root for the English word 'ursine'.
In some regions, the animal is simply called hormiguero, omitting the word oso entirely.

El oso hormiguero come muchas hormigas.
The anteater eats many ants.
This sentence is useful for seeing how to use oso hormiguero in a simple sentence.
Tatoeba #2279632 by Amymps1, translation #13040693 by araneo
El oso hormiguero es un animal fascinante por su apariencia y hábitos alimentarios.
The anteater is a fascinating animal due to its appearance and eating habits.
El yurumí es nativo de las provincias del norte de Argentina.
The anteater is native to the provinces in northern Argentina.
Vi un oso hormiguero en el zoológico.
I saw an anteater at the zoo.
El oso hormiguero es un animal muy lento.
The anteater is a very slow animal.

Daniel and Sofía are looking at a nature documentary.

Sources

Wiktionary, “anteater” translations and entries oso hormiguero, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries hormiguero, oso, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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