tierra santa
/tjera santa/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'holy ground' is translated into Spanish as tierra santa.
tierra santa is used to describe a place that is considered sacred or holds religious importance. When you capitalize the phrase as Tierra Santa, it specifically refers to the Holy Land in the Middle East.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of tierra (meaning land, earth or ground) and santa (meaning holy).
How does it change in a sentence?
To express 'holy lands' or 'holy grounds', use the plural form tierras santas, where both the noun and the adjective are pluralized.
Did you know?
- The word tierra shares a prehistoric root with the English word 'dry'. It originally described the 'dry' part of the world as opposed to the sea.
- In Spanish, the word tierra is used for both 'ground' and 'earth' in the astronomical sense. A speaker can use the same word to describe the soil under their feet and the planet orbiting the sun.
- Spanish uses tierra to describe 'soil' or 'dirt', but it also uses the phrase poner los pies en tierra to mean 'to be realistic', similar to the English 'down to earth'.
Examples in context
- Este bosque es una tierra sagrada para nuestra comunidad.This forest is a holy ground for our community.
- No pises esta tierra santa.Do not step on this holy ground.
- Caminamos con respeto sobre esta tierra santa.We walk with respect on this holy ground.
- No debemos jugar en esta tierra santa.We must not play on this holy ground.
Example conversation
Sofía and Mateo are visiting an ancient cathedral.
- SofíaMateo, entra con cuidado en la iglesia.Mateo, enter the church carefully.
- Mateo¿Por qué, Sofía?Why, Sofía?
- SofíaPorque esto es tierra santa.Because this is holy ground.
- MateoTienes razón, guardaré silencio.You are right, I will keep quiet.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries santa, tierra, CC BY-SA 4.0.
