animal atropellado
/animal atɾopeʝado/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'roadkill' can be translated into Spanish as animal atropellado.
In Spanish, you typically include the noun 'animal' because there is no single-word equivalent for 'roadkill' that functions as a noun in the same way. This phrase refers to an animal that has been killed by a road vehicle.
Meaning: animal killed by a road vehicle (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the noun animal and the past participle atropellado, which means 'struck by a vehicle'.
Which one should you use?
While animal atropellado is a general term, bicho atropellado is an informal alternative. Note that bicho atropellado may not be suitable when referring to larger animals, such as deer.
How does it change in a sentence?
To express the plural 'roadkill' when referring to multiple animals, both the noun and the adjective must be pluralized to animales atropellados. When referring to a single instance, you would say un animal atropellado.
How do you pronounce it?
/animal atɾopeʝado/
Did you know?
- The word animal shares its distant roots with the Latin word anima, which means 'soul' or 'breath'. This suggests that the word originally described a creature possessed of a life-giving breath.
- While atropellar specifically means to be hit by a vehicle in the context of roadkill, it can also describe a person acting in a rushed and disorganized way.
- If a person is the one hit by a car, Spanish speakers use the same verb atropellar, whereas English usually uses 'hit' or 'struck' for humans and 'roadkill' only for animals.
Examples in context
- Ayer pasamos por un bicho atropellado cerca del pueblo.Yesterday we passed by some roadkill near the town.
- Vimos un animal atropellado en la carretera.We saw an animal killed by a vehicle on the highway.
- Es un animal atropellado por un camión.It is an animal killed by a truck.
- Hay un animal atropellado cerca de la curva.There is an animal killed by a car near the curve.
Example conversation
María and Javier are driving through a rural area.
- María¿Qué es eso en el asfalto?What is that on the asphalt?
- JavierParece un animal atropellado, María.It looks like an animal killed by a car, María.
- MaríaQué mala suerte para ese animal.What bad luck for that animal.
- JavierSí, hay que tener mucho cuidado al conducir.Yes, one must be very careful when driving.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries animal, atropellado, CC BY-SA 4.0.
