Mi deporte favorito es el baloncesto
/mi depoɾte faboɾito es el balonθesto/from spelling rules
To say "my favorite sport is basketball" in Spanish, use Mi deporte favorito es el baloncesto.
A native speaker might more naturally say Me encanta el baloncesto to express that they love the sport.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase follows a literal structure of "My sport favorite is the basketball", as adjectives in Spanish typically follow the noun they modify.
Which one should you use?
In many parts of Latin America, people use el básquetbol instead of el baloncesto.
How do you pronounce it?
/mi depoɾte faboɾito es el balonθesto/
Did you know?
- The word baloncesto is a semantic calque of the English word 'basketball'. It combines balón for 'ball' and cesto for 'basket'.
- In Spanish, the word balón refers specifically to a larger, inflated ball used for sports like basketball or soccer. A smaller ball would be called a pelota.
Examples in context
- Mi deporte favorito es el baloncesto. Me encanta ver los partidos de la NBA en la televisión los fines de semana.My favorite sport is basketball. I love watching NBA games on television during weekends.
- ¡El baloncesto es mi deporte favorito! No hay nada como jugar con amigos en la cancha del parque.Basketball is my favorite sport! There's nothing like playing with friends at the park court.
- Dile a ella que mi deporte favorito es el baloncesto.Tell her that my favorite sport is basketball.
- Aunque me gusta el fútbol, mi deporte favorito es el baloncesto.Although I like soccer, my favorite sport is basketball.
Example conversation
Javier and Elena are talking about their hobbies at a cafe.
- Javier¿Cuál es tu deporte preferido?What is your preferred sport?
- ElenaMe gusta el tenis, ¿y tú?I like tennis, and you?
- JavierMi deporte favorito es el baloncesto.My favorite sport is basketball.
- Elena¡Qué bien! A mí también me gusta mucho.That's great! I like it a lot too.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries baloncesto, deporte, el, es, favorito, mi, CC BY-SA 4.0.
