How to Say "Chicken" in Spanish

pollo

/ˈpoʝo/masculine

The Spanish word for chicken is pollo.

pollo is the standard term used when referring to chicken as food or meat.

Meaning: bird (noun)

Which one should you use?

While pollo is used to refer to chicken as food, gallina is used when referring specifically to the female bird or a hen.

The plural form of pollo is pollos.

/ˈpoʝo/

If you confuse pollo with poyo, you are talking about a stone bench or a low platform instead of a bird.
In some Spanish-speaking regions, calling someone a pollo can be a way to describe them as a naive or inexperienced person.
The word pollo comes from the Latin word pullus, which more generally referred to any young animal, not just birds.

Me gusta el pollo.
I love chicken.
This sentence is useful for expressing a preference for the food pollo.
Tatoeba #1258417 by hayastan, translation #620111 by ulyssemc1
El pollo estaba seco.
The chicken was dry.
This sentence is useful for describing the quality of the food pollo.
Tatoeba #5012128 by Shishir, translation #5011515 by Hybrid
Comí deditos de pollo.
I ate chicken nuggets.
This sentence is useful for describing a food item containing pollo.
Tatoeba #4505690 by cueyayotl, translation #1933697 by Scott
En el restaurante, por favor, me gustaría pedir pollo asado.
At the restaurant, please, I would like to order roasted chicken.
La receta de pollo al horno de mi abuela es deliciosa.
My grandmother's roasted chicken recipe is delicious.
En la granja, las gallinas ponen huevos frescos todos los días.
In the farm, the hens lay fresh eggs every day.
86 more sentences on Tatoeba

Daniel and Sofía are deciding what to cook for dinner.

Sources

Wiktionary, “chicken” translations and entries pollo, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries pollo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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