Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| almuerzo | /alˈmweɾθo/ /alˈmweɾso/ |
Latin America, masculine |
| comida | /koˈmida/ | Spain, feminine |
| yanta | /ʝanta/ (from spelling rules) | dialectal |
| lonche | /ˈlont͡ʃe/ | Latin America, masculine |
| lonch | /lont͡ʃ/ (from spelling rules) | Latin America, masculine |
| lunch | /ˈlont͡ʃ/ /ˈlant͡ʃ/ |
masculine |
almuerzo is used to mean a meal around midday. When referring to "the lunch," use the masculine article el with almuerzo. For the related action of eating lunch, you can use the verb almorzar or the verbs lonchear and lonchar.
Which one should you use?
almuerzo is the standard term used in Latin America for the midday meal, whereas in Spain, comida is the most common way to refer to the main midday meal. Because comida is a feminine noun, you must use the feminine article la when referring to "the lunch" (la comida).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
lonche is an informal anglicism used in many parts of Latin America to refer to a packed lunch or a quick midday meal.
Is it said differently in some regions?
almuerzo is used in Latin America. comida is used in Spain. lonche and lonch are used in Latin America. yanta is a dialectal form.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb almorzar is a stem-changing verb where the o changes to ue in many conjugations, such as yo almuerzo.
How do you pronounce it?
/alˈmweɾθo/
When do people say it?
When someone is eating, you can say buen provecho to mean "enjoy your meal" or ¡que aproveche! to mean "bon appétit". There is also a Spanish proverb, "Barriga llena, corazón contento", which means "Full stomach, happy heart."
Did you know?
- The word almuerzo shares a distant ancestor with the English word 'mordant', which comes from the Latin root meaning 'to bite'.
- The Spanish phrase ¡que aproveche! is a common way to say 'enjoy your meal', but it literally translates to 'may it profit you'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the midday comida is the largest meal of the day and is often followed by a brief nap called a siesta.
Examples in context
- Te debo un almuerzo.I owe you a lunch.This sentence is useful for expressing a debt involving almuerzo.Tatoeba #2502598 by marcelostockle, translation #2389602 by CK
- Es hora del almuerzo.It's lunch time.This sentence is useful for stating the time for almuerzo.Tatoeba #1327438 by hayastan, translation #433692 by CK
- La comida está lista.Lunch is ready.This sentence is useful for stating that comida is ready.Tatoeba #2052064 by marcelostockle, translation #3560086 by lys1123
- ¿A qué hora es la comida?What time is lunch?
- ¿Trajiste lonche hoy?Did you bring lunch today?
- Vamos a comer a la hora del almuerzoLet's eat at lunchtime
- Vamos a almorzar después de mediodíaWe'll have lunch after midday
- ¿Almorzamos juntos? ¡Que aproveche!Shall we have lunch together? Enjoy your meal!
- 201 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
María and Alejandro are in the office during the break.
- María¿Ya comiste tu almuerzo, Alejandro?Have you eaten your lunch yet, Alejandro?
- AlejandroNo, todavía no he almorzado.No, I haven't had lunch yet.
- MaríaVamos a la cafetería entonces.Let's go to the cafeteria then.
- AlejandroMe parece una excelente idea.That sounds like an excellent idea.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lunch” translations and entries almuerzo, comida, yanta, lonche, lunch, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries almuerzo, comida, lonche, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
