juego béisbol
/xweɡo beisbol/from spelling rules
To say "I play baseball" in Spanish, use juego béisbol.
juego béisbol tells someone that baseball is a sport you play.
What does it mean word for word?
juego means "I play" and béisbol means "baseball".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain people usually put the word for "to the" between the verb and the sport. In much of Latin America juego béisbol without it is common.
How does it change in a sentence?
juego is a stem changing verb form, so the vowel changes to ue when stressed. The word for "I" is not needed because juego already shows the subject.
How do you pronounce it?
The j in juego is a rough h sound from the back of the throat.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use the verb meaning to play an instrument for sports. Spanish uses juego for games and sports.
When do people say it?
Baseball is very popular in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua and Mexico.
Did you know?
- The word juego is a close relative of the English word 'joke'. Both descend from the Latin jocus, which referred to a jest or a game.
- In countries like the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, baseball is so central to identity that it is often called the deporte nacional or national sport, outweighing soccer in popularity.
- In many Spanish-speaking Caribbean countries, people refer to the sport as pelota, which literally means 'ball', rather than using the word béisbol.
Example conversation
María and Daniel are talking about their plans for the weekend.
- MaríaDaniel, ¿quieres ir al juego béisbol?Daniel, do you want to go to the baseball game?
- DanielSí, me encantaría ir contigo.Yes, I would love to go with you.
- MaríaEl juego béisbol empieza a las seis.The baseball game starts at six.
- DanielPerfecto, nos vemos allá entonces.Perfect, I'll see you there then.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries béisbol, juego, CC BY-SA 4.0.
