colmena
/kolˈmena/feminine
The Spanish word for beehive is colmena.
colmena refers to the home of bees. Much like in English, it can also be used metaphorically to describe a place that is full of busy activity.
Meaning: home of bees (noun)
Which one should you use?
The formal term Colmenar refers to the place where beehives are kept.
How does it change in a sentence?
colmena is a feminine noun. When referring to multiple beehives, the plural form is las colmenas. Because it is feminine, you must use the feminine indefinite article una (a beehive) instead of the masculine uno.
How do you pronounce it?
/kolˈmena/
Did you know?
- The word colmena is a doublet of cuelmo, which is a word used to describe a bundle of straw used for a torch.
- Beyond just activity, colmena is used in Spanish to describe any highly organized collective or social community.
Examples in context
- No se acerque a la colmena.Stay away from the beehive.This sentence uses colmena to give a warning to stay away.Tatoeba #13861303 by Seael, translation #5618461 by CK
- El lugar es tan activo como una colmena.The place is a beehive of activity.This sentence uses colmena as a metaphor for a place of high activity.Tatoeba #1829564 by marcelostockle, translation #1829587 by marcelostockle
- En cada colmena sólo puede haber una reina.In each beehive there can only be one queen.This sentence uses colmena to describe the capacity of a beehive for a queen.Tatoeba #1135957 by nancy, translation #871291 by CM
- En el jardín encontramos una colmena repleta de abejas.In the garden, we found a beehive full of bees.
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sofía and Javier are walking in a garden.
- SofíaMira, hay una colmena en ese árbol.Look, there is a beehive in that tree.
- JavierEs muy grande, no te acerques.It is very big, do not get close.
- SofíaMe pregunto si hay miel en la colmena.I wonder if there is honey in the beehive.
- JavierProbablemente, pero es mejor dejarlas tranquilas.Probably, but it is better to leave them alone.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “beehive” translations and entries colmena, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries colmena, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
