alce
/ˈalθe/
The Spanish word for elk is alce.
alce refers to the large deer species found in North America and Asia that possesses broad antlers.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /ˈalθe/.
Did you know?
- In Spanish, alce is used to refer to both the North American elk and the European moose, whereas English distinguishes between the two species.
- Because alce is a homonym for the first-person singular present subjunctive of the verb alzar meaning 'to lift', the word can appear in sentences where it functions as a verb rather than an animal.
- The word alce is a linguistic traveler that likely entered Latin from a Germanic source, rather than being a purely Romance word.
Examples in context
- ¿Eso es un alce?Is it an elk?This sentence is useful for asking whether a specific animal is an alce.Tatoeba #2231774 by wallebot, translation #1100714 by cntrational
- El alce es nativo de las regiones nórdicas.The elk is native to the Nordic regions.
- El alce es un animal muy grande.The elk is a very large animal.
- Vi un alce en la montaña.I saw an elk in the mountains.
Example conversation
Mateo and Lucía are looking at a picture book about nature.
- MateoMira este alce, Lucía.Look at this elk, Lucía.
- Lucía¡Qué cornamenta tan impresionante tiene!What an impressive set of antlers it has!
- MateoSí, el alce es muy fuerte.Yes, the elk is very strong.
- LucíaMe gustaría verlo en persona.I would like to see one in person.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry alce, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries alce, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
