pueblo
/ˈpweblo/masculine
In Spanish, 'town' can be translated as pueblo, ciudad or villa.
Meaning: settlement (noun)
Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| pueblo | /ˈpweblo/ | masculine |
| ciudad | /θjuˈdad/ /sjuˈdad/ |
feminine |
| villa | /ˈbiʝa/ | feminine |
These words are used to refer to human settlements. Pueblo is the most common way to refer to a small, rural or traditional settlement.
Which one should you use?
Use ciudad when referring to a large city and pueblo when referring to a small town or village. While pueblo refers to a small settlement, it can also mean 'the people' or 'a nation' depending on the context.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural of pueblo is pueblos, the plural of ciudad is ciudades and the plural of villa is villas.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈpweblo/
Did you know?
- The word pueblo is etymologically linked to the word for 'army' in Proto-Italic, as it originally referred to a large body of people.
- Depending on the country, the word pueblo is often used to describe an indigenous ethnic group or community.
- While villa translates to 'town', in many Spanish-speaking countries it specifically refers to a luxury vacation home or a suburban estate.
Examples in context
- Sal de la ciudad.Leave town.This sentence is useful for the command to leave the town using ciudad.Tatoeba #6681942 by arh, translation #2111624 by CK
- La ciudad es bella.The town is beautiful.This sentence is useful for describing a beautiful town using ciudad.Tatoeba #1307073 by marcelostockle, translation #1164891 by cntrational
- Tom dejó el pueblo.Tom left town.This sentence is useful for stating that someone left a town using pueblo.Tatoeba #3104329 by marcelostockle, translation #2244692 by CK
- Visité un hermoso pueblo en el norteI visited a beautiful town in the north
- Nos mudamos a una nueva localidadWe moved to a new town
- Voy a salir esta noche al puebloI'm going out to the town tonight
- Me encanta ir de vacaciones a un pueblitoI love going on vacation to a small town
- El casco antiguo de Granada es encantadorThe old town of Granada is charming
- Hoy visité un pintoresco pueblo en el norte de España.Today I visited a picturesque town in northern Spain.
- Estoy emocionado por mudarme a una nueva localidad para comenzar una nueva etapa en mi vida.I'm excited to move to a new town to start a new chapter in my life.
- En mi opinión, las ciudades grandes tienen mucho más que ofrecer que los pueblos pequeños.In my opinion, big cities have much more to offer than small towns.
- 364 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alejandro and Elena are talking about a weekend trip.
- AlejandroMe gusta mucho este pueblo.I like this town very much.
- ElenaEs un pueblo muy tranquilo, Alejandro.It is a very quiet town, Alejandro.
- Alejandro¿Quieres visitar el pueblo mañana?Do you want to visit the town tomorrow?
- ElenaSí, me encantaría ir contigo.Yes, I would love to go with you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “town” translations and entries pueblo, ciudad, villa, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ciudad, pueblo, villa, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
