basura
/baˈsuɾa/feminine
In Spanish, the word for garbage is basura.
basura is the most common and neutral term for garbage or waste material. You may also encounter orgánicos when specifically referring to organic waste, such as food scraps and garden waste. Related terms include el camión de la basura for the garbage truck, día de recolección for the day of garbage collection and horarios de recolección for the collection schedule.
Meaning: waste material (noun)
Which one should you use?
While basura is the standard term, you might see residuos or desperdicios in formal contexts to refer to waste or residues. In a more colloquial sense, porquería is used to describe something as garbage or junk. For a more playful or affectionate tone, you can use the diminutive basurita.
How does it change in a sentence?
basura is a feminine noun. Therefore, when using the definite article 'the', you must use the feminine form la, resulting in la basura.
How do you pronounce it?
/baˈsuɾa/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Because basura is feminine, avoid the common mistake of using the masculine article el basura. It must always be la basura.
Did you know?
- Depending on the region, the phrase sacar la basura can be a euphemism for getting rid of something unwanted or breaking up with someone.
- While basura refers to waste, porquería specifically links garbage to the word porco or cerdo, meaning 'pig'.
- The word basura is actually a descendant of the Latin verb verrō, which means 'to sweep'.
Examples in context
- Tom sacó la basura.Tom threw out the garbage.This sentence shows how to use basura when talking about throwing out the garbage.Tatoeba #1278893 by marcelostockle, translation #1141117 by CK
- No tires basura aquí.Don't dump garbage here.This sentence uses basura to tell someone not to dump garbage in a specific place.Tatoeba #1426317 by marcelostockle, translation #1290714 by CK
- Lleva afuera la basura.Take the garbage out.This sentence uses basura to instruct someone to take the garbage out.Tatoeba #4183289 by Leono, translation #1841187 by CK
- Por favor, saque la basuraPlease take out the garbage
- Es importante reducir la cantidad de residuos que producimosIt's important to reduce the amount of waste we produce
- El camión de la ciudad recolecta los desperdicios todos los martesThe city truck collects the garbage every Tuesday
- No compres ese producto, es una porqueríaDon't buy that product, it's junk
- Recuerda separar los orgánicos de los reciclablesRemember to separate organic waste from recyclables
- No olvides sacar la basura antes de que pase el camiónDon't forget to take out the garbage before the truck comes
- 37 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Javier are in their kitchen.
- Elena¿Puedes sacar la basura, Javier?Can you take out the garbage, Javier?
- JavierSí, ahora mismo lo hago.Yes, I will do it right now.
- ElenaGracias, la bolsa está muy pesada.Thanks, the bag is very heavy.
- JavierNo hay problema, Elena.No problem, Elena.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “garbage” translations and entries basura, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries basura, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
