una cerveza
/una θeɾbeθa/from spelling rules
In Spanish, one beer is una cerveza.
While una cerveza literally means 'one beer', it is the standard way to order 'a beer' in a restaurant or bar. For a more formal way to ask, you can say Me gustaría una cerveza, por favor. (I would like one beer, please).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Argentina, the term una birra is often used in informal settings. In the Dominican Republic and parts of the Caribbean and Central America, una fría is commonly used to mean 'one cold one' instead of una cerveza. In Chile, the phrase una chela is sometimes used informally. In Spain, people often use the colloquial word una caña to refer to a small glass of draught beer.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word for beer, cerveza, is a feminine noun, so the number one must take the feminine form una.
How do you pronounce it?
/una θeɾbeθa/
Did you know?
- The informal term una birra used in Argentina is a direct loanword from the Italian word 'birra', reflecting the massive Italian immigration to the region.
- The colloquial Chilean term una chela is believed by some linguists to be an onomatopoeic word mimicking the sound of the beer bottle opening or the drink being poured.
- The word una comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *óynos, which is a distant relative of the English word 'one', showing how ancient mathematical concepts are preserved in modern Spanish.
Examples in context
- Él se acabó de beber una cerveza y pidió otra.He finished drinking one beer and ordered another.Tatoeba #1016987 by Shishir, translation #427769 by witbrock
- "Quisiéramos una cerveza." "¿Solo una cerveza?""We'd like a beer." "Just one beer?"Tatoeba #1928693 by marcelostockle, translation #1858675 by CK
- ¡Una cerveza, por favor!One beer, please!Tatoeba #927350 by mrc3306, translation #926952 by zvaigzne
- Buenas tardes, ¿me puede servir una cerveza, por favor?Good afternoon, can you serve me one beer, please?
- Hola, ¿me das una chela bien fría, por favor?Hi, can you give me one cold beer, please?
- ¡Claro, aquí tienes tu cerveza!Sure, here's your beer!
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Lucía are ordering drinks at a bar.
- DanielHola, quiero una cerveza, por favor.Hello, I want one beer, please.
- Lucía¿Solo una cerveza para ti, Daniel?Just one beer for you, Daniel?
- DanielSí, solo una cerveza por ahora.Yes, just one beer for now.
- LucíaPerfecto, yo pediré la mía ahora.Perfect, I will order mine now.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cerveza, una, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
