murciélago
/muɾˈθjelaɡo/masculine
The English word 'bat' (the small flying mammal) is translated into Spanish as murciélago. It is also spelled murciégalo. Wiktionary also lists ratón volador and morciguillo.
Meaning: small flying mammal (noun)
Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| murciélago | /muɾˈθjelaɡo/ /muɾˈsjelaɡo/ |
masculine |
| ratón volador | /raˌtom bolaˈdoɾ/ | masculine |
| murciégalo | /muɾˈθjeɡalo/ /muɾˈsjeɡalo/ |
masculine, vernacular, alternative form |
| morciguillo | /moɾθiɡiʝo/ (Spain, from spelling rules) /moɾsiɡiʝo/ (Latin America, from spelling rules) |
masculine |
| murceguillo | /muɾθeɡiʝo/ (Spain, from spelling rules) /muɾseɡiʝo/ (Latin America, from spelling rules) |
masculine |
| panarra | /paˈnara/ | masculine |
| chinacate | /t͡ʃinaˈkate/ | masculine |
| vespertilio | /bespeɾtiljo/ (from spelling rules) | masculine |
The term refers to the small flying mammal. While murciélago is the standard word, you may also see the descriptive phrase ratón volador used to name the same creature.
Which one should you use?
murciélago is the standard term for the animal, whereas ratón volador serves as a descriptive alternative.
Is it said differently in some regions?
murciégalo is a vernacular alternative spelling of murciélago.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
All forms listed for the animal are masculine nouns. Note that the related verbs fonguear (to take a turn at hitting a ball with a bat) and batear (to hit) are distinct from the noun for the animal.
How do you pronounce it?
/muɾˈθjelaɡo/
Did you know?
- The word murciélago is often used in Spanish word games because it is one of the few words that contains all five vowels.
- The standard word murciélago is actually a linguistic fossil that translates to 'blind mouse' in Vulgar Latin.
- Because the word ratón is used for both the animal and a computer mouse, the phrase ratón volador sounds like a 'flying computer mouse' to a modern speaker.
Examples in context
- ¿Eso es un murciélago?Is that a bat?This sentence is useful for asking if an object is a murciélago.Tatoeba #506782 by Shishir, translation #67124 by CK
- Esto es un murciélago.This is a bat.This sentence is useful for identifying that something is a murciélago.Tatoeba #9177168 by ignacio, translation #9176947 by CK
- Un murciélago mordió a Tom.Tom was bitten by a bat.This sentence is useful for describing an action involving a murciélago.Tatoeba #5566227 by swyter, translation #5373389 by Hybrid
- Los murciélagos son mamíferos que vuelan durante la noche.Bats are mammals that fly during the night.
- 11 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Alejandro are walking in a park at dusk.
- ElenaMira, hay un murciélago volando allí.Look, there is a bat flying there.
- AlejandroEs muy rápido, no lo veo bien.It is very fast, I cannot see it well.
- ElenaEl murciélago sale siempre al anochecer.The bat always comes out at dusk.
- AlejandroTienes razón, Elena.You are right, Elena.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bat” translations and entries murciélago, ratón volador, murciégalo, panarra, chinacate, 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 murciélago, ratón, ratón volador, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
