caballito de mar
/kabaʝito de maɾ/from spelling rulesmasculine
The English phrase sea horse is caballito de mar in Spanish. If unsure, use caballito de mar. Wiktionary also lists hipocampo and caballito marino.
Meaning: fish (noun)
Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| caballito de mar | /kabaʝito de maɾ/ (from spelling rules) | masculine |
| hipocampo | /ipoˈkampo/ | masculine |
| caballito marino | /kabaʝito maɾino/ (from spelling rules) | masculine |
In Spanish, you can refer to the sea horse using a common name or a technical term. The most frequent way to refer to this fish in everyday conversation is caballito de mar or caballito marino.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase caballito de mar literally translates to 'little horse of sea'. The word caballito is formed using the diminutive suffix -ito to create the name of the animal.
Which one should you use?
Caballito de mar and caballito marino are common names used in everyday speech. In contrast, hipocampo is the scientific or technical term for the sea horse.
How does it change in a sentence?
To form the plural caballitos de mar, you only pluralize the noun caballito to caballitos and leave the phrase de mar unchanged.
How do you pronounce it?
/kabaʝito de maɾ/
Did you know?
- The technical term hipocampo is shared with human anatomy, as the hippocampus in the brain is named for its similar shape to a sea horse.
- The word caballito is used in Spanish to describe a 'wheelie' performed on a bicycle or motorcycle.
- The suffix -ito in caballito does not just indicate size, but often adds a sense of endearment or cuteness to the animal.
Examples in context
- Me encanta observar los caballitos de mar en el acuario.I love watching the sea horses in the aquarium.
- ¡Qué lindo ese pejepuerco! ¿Sabías que tienen una cola prensil?How cute is that sea horse! Did you know they have a prehensile tail?
- Vi un caballito de mar en la playa.I saw a sea horse at the beach.
- El caballito de mar es muy pequeño.The sea horse is very small.
- ¿Es ese un caballito de mar?Is that a sea horse?
Example conversation
Mateo and Sofía are looking at a nature documentary together.
- MateoMira, Sofía, hay un caballito de mar allí.Look, Sofía, there is a sea horse there.
- SofíaEs un caballito de mar muy bonito.It is a very beautiful sea horse.
- MateoMe encanta cómo se mueve el caballito de mar.I love how the sea horse moves.
- SofíaSí, Mateo, es un animal fascinante.Yes, Mateo, it is a fascinating animal.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “sea horse” translations and entries caballito de mar, hipocampo, 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 caballito, de, hipocampo, mar, marino, CC BY-SA 4.0.
