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Others may speak and read English __ more or less __ but it is our language nottheirs. It was made in England by the English and it remains our distinctive property, however widely it is learnt or used.

Enoch Powell, Member of British Parliament, 1988

As an independent nation, our honour requires us to have a system of our own, in

language as well as government. Great Britain... should no longer be our standard.

Noah Webster, American Lexicographer, 1789



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are difficult to explain. Although one can search for the earliest written attestation of a givenusage, the term or phrase may have been in use in oral language long before it appeared in printand early published sources may not give many clues as to how the usage came about.

Why, for example, is desarmador and/or desatornillador used more often in some countries thanthe General Spanish word for screwdriver, destornillador , that to some extent is usedeverywhere? All three of these nouns derive from perfectly castizo verbs (desarmar ,desatornillar and destornillar , respectively), and unfortunately, there are many examples such asthis one in which I have no theory that accounts for the regional preferences. In this article, you,the reader, will find hundreds of facts about who says what and where, but only a handful oftheories and partial explanations as to why. Even many basic usage questions are posed that thelimited data collected and sources consulted do not allow me to answer.

Viewing the Spanish language synchronically (at a given point in time), and even diachronically(over a period of time), the name used for many and perhaps most items, tools among them, is

essentially a constant: Martillo is a General Spanish word that “works” everywhere, and has formany centuries. In contrast, words for other items, such as sledgehammers, are geographicvariables: People from different regions call them by different names. In some cases an item’sname may also vary along a social and/or situational axis, or among different professional, ethnicor age groups, and perhaps even between men and women. In this article, however, the primaryfocus will be on the diatopical (geographic) lexical variation among the different Spanish-speaking countries. Relatively little information will be presented regarding regional variationwithin nations, or between the different socioeconomic layers of each society, and noneregarding variation among different ethnic groups, age brackets, or between the two genders. Theamount of data collected in this study was insufficient to draw many conclusions in these areas.However, since the vocabulary involves specific trades, within a given country it is a speaker’soccupation/activities that is probably the most important factor governing a variation that is, in asense, binary in nature: the existence or lack of existence of a specific name or names in a person’s lexical repertoire.

The following topics relating to carpentry, masonry, plumbing, electrical3, farming/gardening,auto mechanics and other trades will be addressed:

A) Tools: 1) screwdriver A - general screwdriver (base terms), 2) screwdriver B - phillipsscrewdriver or phillips-head screwdriver, 3) screwdriver C - slotted screwdriver, flat-headscrewdriver, straight-blade screwdriver, flat-blade screwdriver or standard screwdriver,4) sledgehammer or maul, 5) hacksaw, 6) pliers A - regular pliers, joint pliers, slip-joint pliers or diagonal pliers (standard adjustable, noncutting pliers), 7) pliers B - needlenose pliers or longnose pliers, 8) wrench A - crescent wrench or adjustable wrench, 9) wrenchB - pipe wrench, 10) crowbar, pry bar or wrecking bar, 11) clamp, 12) vise, 13) trowel A- pointing trowel, brick trowel or mason’s trowel, 14) trowel B - finishing trowel, flattrowel, plasterer’s trowel or smoothing trowel, 15) pick or pickax, 16) hoe, 17) drill bit.



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B) Materials, devices and miscellaneous: 1) plywood, 2) tar, 3) sawhorse, 4) form (for pouringconcrete), 5) washer (metal washers for screws and bolts), 6) bearing (ball bearing, roller bearing, etc.), 7) steamroller, 8) screw anchor, 9) tire repair shop.

Usage relating to each of these topics can be considered a dialectological or linguistic labyrinththat spans the entire Spanish-speaking world. The purpose of this article is to present the maze,outline its salient landmarks, and hold out a thread by which you, the reader, can find your wayto some of the exits in most of the Spanish-speaking countries. Each way out can also be viewedas a way in, an entree into a particular aspect of a language variety.

Information on the vocabulary for the items in A) Tools and B) Materials, devices andmiscellaneous above is provided for Spain and the nineteen Spanish American republics, butnone is offered for the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Western Sahara, Morocco, the UnitedStates, Trinidad and Tobago or other countries where Spanish and/or a Spanish-based creole isspoken. Spanish speakers from these countries were not queried on tool-related vocabulary for

two reasons: First, because, with the exception of the United States, I do not have access to a pool of Spanish speakers from these nations, and secondly, because, even if I had, it is not clearhow, if at all, one is to define Philippine Spanish, United States Spanish, etc., especially withregard to lexis. For information on these varieties, see La Lengua Española en Guinea Ecuatorial (Quilis and Casado-Fresnillo),“El español en el mundo: frutos del último siglo decontactos lingüísticos” (Lipski 2005), “La lengua española en los Estados Unidos: avanza a lavez que retrocede” (Lipski 2004a), “Is ‘Spanglish’ the third language of the South? Truth andfantasy about U.S. Spanish” (Lipski 2004b), “The place of Chabacano in the Philippine linguistic profile” (Lipski 2001), and other works by John Lipski, some of which (as of this writing) aredownloadable from his homepage at www.personal.psu.edu-/faculty-/j/m/jml34/ (eliminate thedashes after “edu” and “faculty”), and all of which are listed in its “Publications” section; each,in turn, contains an extensive bibliography.

Information in this paper relating to the topics outlined above in A) Tools and B) Materials,devices and miscellaneous is organized into four sections:

1) Summary2) Terms by Country3) Details4) Real Academia Regional Review

0.1 Summary

The “Summary” sections give a brief overview of the lexical variation that exists with respect tothe items in question.



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0.2 Terms by Country

The “Terms by Country” sections consist of lexico-geographic tables in which I present theterms offered by the Spanish speakers I questioned on usage (this study’s respondents or

informants), next to their countries of origin. The Spanish-speaking countries are listed in anessentially geographical order and the terms offered by respondents are presented in decreasingnumerical order, with the terms offered by the largest number of respondents from each countryappearing first. In these sections, regionally marked usages, i.e. those not part of GeneralSpanish, appear in italics, and usages that are regional and were also given by 50% or more ofrespondents from a particular country (“majority regionalisms”) are written in italics and boldface. When ten or more responses from a given country were obtained, terms that wereoffered by only one or two respondents from that country (“minority responses”) are written insmall print. I have adopted this formatting scheme because I consider each term that is in boldface and italics to be an important regionalism without which a speaker lackscommunicative competence for a specific item in a given country or set of countries. Terms

written in small print, in contrast, can for the time being be given little weight, unless otherstudies demonstrate they are widely used by a particular group or speech community. SeeBolivia in section A13.3 (the pointing trowel) for an example of a term, pato, that was offered byonly two respondents in this study, but a somewhat larger number in a different study.Combining the data from both studies suggests that more field work is needed to determine thecurrency of this usage in Bolivia, and that by no means should it be hastily dismissed.

The number of respondents who were questioned in this project varied as did the number ofthose who were able to answer each question. As a result, the amount of data presented for eachitem and from each country spans a considerable range. My goal was to obtain fifteen responsesfor each item from each of the twenty Spanish-speaking countries whose usage was beingstudied, but in some cases I fell far short of this goal (obtaining only four or five responses froma given country), and in others I exceeded it obtaining over 20 responses. In some instances,even when ten to fifteen responses were obtained for a given country, their distribution was sodisperse as to make it impossible to draw any conclusions about prevailing usage. For example,in section A14.2 (the finishing trowel), ten responses were obtained from Paraguayans, but sixdifferent terms were offered by them and no term was given more than twice. Had I obtainedfifteen responses from each country for each item, this would have been fifteen multiplied by 20countries multiplied by 26 items for a total of 7800 responses, a figure which does not includemultiple responses given by individual respondents to the same item (e.g. people who said ascrewdriver is called a desarmador or a desatornillador ).

In the section on sledgehammers, part of the table reads,

EL SALVADOR almágana (14/16), almádana (2/16), almádena (1/16), mazo (1/16).PERU comba (19/21), mazo (6/21), combo (3/21).

This is to be interpreted as “of the sixteen Salvadorans who were asked to identify thesledgehammer, fourteen offered the term almágana, two gave almádana, one almádena and one



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mazo” and, in the case of Peru, it means that “of the twenty-one Peruvians asked the samequestion, nineteen indicated comba, six mazo and three combo.” In many cases, such as these,some of the people interviewed stated that more than one term was commonly used in theirhomeland for a given item and, therefore, the sum of the ratios is often more than one. The terms

almágana, almádana, almádena, comba and combo appear in italics in the above table becausethey are more regional than mazo, and the terms almágana and comba appear in boldface __ theyare written in both bold and italics __ because they are regional terms that were also given by 50%or more of the respondents queried from El Salvador and Peru, respectively. Under El Salvador,almádana, almádena and mazo appear in small print because they were given by only one or two(out of sixteen) Salvadoran respondents. The word mazo can be considered the General Spanishterm because, while it is the term used by a majority of this study’s speakers in only a handful ofcountries, it was offered as a second or third choice by respondents from most of the remainingSpanish-speaking countries. The words almágana and combo, in contrast, are regionallyweighted terms used primarily by Spanish speakers from northern Central America and theAndean region, respectively (see section A4 below).

I collected much of the data presented in these sections by means of one-on-one, face-to-faceinterviews that consisted of showing the respondent a picture of the tool or other item in questionand asking him or her (usually him) to name the item. Descriptions and comments were alsoused to focus the respondent’s attention on the specific item and in a few cases these verbal cues played a primary role. I also sometimes went about it in the opposite direction, that is, once I hadestablished that a given term is commonly used in a particular country, I might ask people fromthat country, “¿Qué es un(a) ____?,” a question that was often followed by “¿Y cuál es ladiferencia entre un(a) ____ y un(a) ____?”.

My preferred mode of seeking out respondents from specific countries was to visit the waitingrooms of the Spanish-speaking country consulates in San Francisco (California) and New YorkCity, and striking up conversations with people waiting to get a document processed or someother service performed. Occasionally, I would run into Mexicans at the Consulate of ElSalvador and vice versa, but 99% of the time the people I met at the consulates were from thecountry the consulate represented.

For the most part, I found the public in these waiting rooms to be cooperative and willing toanswer questions on usage, and this was especially true of those who had some expertise in particular tool-related topics. Not surprisingly, there were also some who tried to impress mewith knowledge of the subject matter that their answers demonstrated they lacked. I alsoobtained information on tool terminology by going to the parking lot of my local Home Depot 4 store in El Cerrito, California, and interviewing native speakers of Spanish (mostly Mexicansand Central Americans) who were in the stor e’s parking lot waiting to be hired as day laborers.In the case of one country, Ecuador, I also visited hardware stores and construction sites andspoke to carpenters, plumbers and masons, etc. while on a trip there with my family in Decemberof 2004.



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Some of the information I obtained from respondents was not acquired through face-to-faceinterviews, but by written questionnaires, telephone conversations and e-mail correspondence. Ialso did something that many, if not most academic linguists would probably frown upon. I sent pictures of the items in this study to friends and colleagues in different cities in the Spanish-

speaking world and asked them to take the images to hardware stores, construction sites, etc. andask individuals from their local area (ones my contacts thought were knowledgeable about tools)to tell them the names they use for the items. My international contacts would then return thecompleted pictorial questionnaires to me.

This technique has the disadvantage that the researcher conducting the overall study loses controlover the data collection process in that a second party is in effect interviewing a third party. Andother than providing the images to be shown to respondents, I admittedly had little control overthe interviewing techniques and data collection processes employed by those kind enough to helpme; I did not give them detailed instructions on how to obtain the information. Asking foroutside assistance, however, has the advantage of allowing researchers with limited funds and no

academic grants to collect more data, and possibly more accurate data, than they would be ableto had they limited themselves to face-to-face interviews of respondents living in the researcher’shome country. While the ideal scenario would have been for me to personally travel to each ofthe twenty Spanish-speaking countries and visit hardware stores and construction sites to conductmy own interviews in situ, alas, this was not possible or practical due to the limitations on myown resources. Nevertheless, I am heartened by the fact that the information I received fromabroad was largely consistent with the data collected in the United States. In any case, futurestudies will need to be conducted to determine how representative the information presented inthis article is of the usage of Spanish speakers who regularly work with the tools in question.

0.3 Details

The “Details” sections consist of a review of published lexicographical and dialectologicalsources and occasional explanations of the information in the “Terms by Country” sections. Inthe “Details” sections, regional dictionary definitions and other sources are cited and comparedto each other and to the information gathered in this study in an attempt to arrive at anunderstanding of prevailing usage in the different regions of the Spanish-speaking world. Iexamine what other published works have to say about usage in a particular country to see whichinformation provided by the respondents in this study they confirm, which they contradict, andwhich they partly confirm, partly contradict and/or modify. In general, the goal is to identifythose cases in which there appears to be consensus regarding the prevailing usage for a givenitem in a given region, as well as those in which there are conflicting reports about what peoplefrom a particular region say and what they mean.

In these sections, you, the reader, will have the opportunity to observe some of the world’s topSpanish lexicographers go toe to toe, or “mano a mano” as some would say __ perhaps “pluma a pluma” or “teclado a teclado” would be more accurate __ and compare how they handle definingcertain words with regard to both style and content, though the two are sometimes hard toseparate. Compare, for example, the definitions of “sledgehammer,” “pointing trowel” and



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“steamroller” cited in the respective sections of this article and judge for yourself whichlexicographer demonstrates the best combination of marksmanship, conciseness, elegance, and precise imagery. Bear in mind, however, that a definition often has to sacrifice brevity for precision or vice versa and where the proper balance lies is a matter of opinion.

While the outcomes of these dictionary duels are debatable, you will have ringside seats to boutsfeaturing some of the Spanish-speaking world’s most renowned lexicographers such as LuisFernando Lara Ramos and his colleagues from the Colegio de México, Günther Haensch andReinhold Werner and their disciples from the University of Augsburg, and, of course, the RealAcademia’s own team of scholars. You will also be witness to definitions written by severallexicographers whose work is less well known internationally but who are nonetheless highlyskilled in their craft and give those written by Lara Ramos, Haensch and Werner, and the RealAcademia a good run for their money. Some of the definitions you will see, however, are crafted by lesser luminaries whose command of the subject matter and lexicographical skill and style arenot as impressive. The dictionaries cited here are not all of equal quality or sophistication, yet

each has some information to offer on regional tool terminology. Since all of them list their entrywords in alphabetical order, only the Spanish-language term and the work’s abbreviation areindicated, not the corresponding page number.

The published sources I consulted are far from exhaustive, but quite a bit of information onregional usage is cited from the following works that will be abbreviated as follows and whosecomplete bibliographical data appear in References.

DB Diccionario de Bolivianismos. Dora Gómez de Fernández and Nicolás Fernández Naranjo. 1996.

DEArg Diccionario del Español de Argentina / Español de Argentina-Español de España. Günther Haensch and Reinhold Werner. 2000.

DECH Diccionario Ejemplificado de Chilenismos. Félix Morales Pettorino et al. 1984. DECu Diccionario del Español de Cuba / Español de Cuba-Español de España. Günther

Haensch and Reinhold Werner. 2000. DEUMex Diccionario del Español Usual en México. Luis Fernando Lara Ramos. 1996. DH Diccionario Hondureñismos. Rosalío R. Zavala. 2003. (It is not entirely clear why

this dictionary is not called Diccionario de Hondureñismos.) DHAV Diccionario del habla actual de Venezuela. Rocío Núñez and Francisco Javier

Pérez. 1994. DP Diccionario de Peruanismos. Juan de Arona (Pedro Paz Soldán y Unánue). 1974.

(Originally published in 1883 and 1884 in Buenos Aires and Lima.) DRAE Diccionario de la Lengua Española. 22nd edition. Real Academia Española.

2001. DS Diccionario de Salvadoreñismos. Matías Romero. 2003. DTP Diccionario de Términos Panameños. Arnoldo Higuero Morales. 1993. DUEN Diccionario de uso del Español Nicaragüense. Francisco Arellano Oviedo. 2001. DV Diccionario de Venezolanismos. María Josefina Tejera. 1983-1993.



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HEDE El Habla del Ecuador / Diccionario de Ecuatorianismos / Contribución a la Lexicografía Ecuatoriana. Carlos Joaquín Córdova Malo. 1995.

NDCol Nuevo Diccionario de Americanismos. Tomo I. Nuevo Diccionario deColombianismos. Günther Haensch and Reinhold Werner. 1993.

NDCR Nuevo Diccionario de Costarriqueñismos. Miguel A. Quesada Pacheco. 2001. NDU Nuevo Diccionario de Americanismos. Tomo III. Nuevo Diccionario deUruguayismos. Günther Haensch, Reinhold Werner and Úrsula Kühl de Mones.1993. (Volume II of the Nuevo Diccionario de Americanismos series was the Nuevo Diccionario de Argentinismos which was superseded by the DEArg .)

Of the works in the preceding list, the DRAE is the most important and comprehensive generalSpanish-language dictionary in existence. It is written from an essentially Peninsular Spanish perspective on the language, but it attempts to include Spanish American usage as well. The DEUMex is unique in that it is an abridged but general Spanish-language dictionary written froma non-Peninsular vantage point on the language (from a decidedly Mexican perspective) and is

currently, to my knowledge, the only general Spanish-language dictionary that is not told from aPeninsular point of view.

The other dictionaries that stand out from the rest are the four listed above directed by GüntherHaensch and Reinhold Werner. These are contrastive dictionaries that rigorously highlight andexpose that portion of the lexicon of one national variety of the language (Argentine Spanish,Colombian Spanish, Cuban Spanish or Uruguayan Spanish) that functions differently whencompared to a second variety, which we can perhaps call “General Peninsular Spanish.”Although this is an abstraction, the lexicon of General Peninsular Spanish is essentiallyPeninsular Spanish lexicon that is not especially Andaluz, Valenciano, Asturiano, or evenCastilian. Each Haensch and Werner dictionary also explains regional differences within theSpanish American variety being presented, i.e. Oriente Cuban Spanish as opposed to the Spanishof central and western Cuba, or Cuyo Argentine Spanish as contrasted with RioplatenseArgentine Spanish. The research and writing in them is of the highest quality and anyone readingthem can learn a great deal about both the highlighted Spanish American variety of the languageand about Peninsular Spanish. One can only hope that they, or their disciples, will continue withthis project and create contrastive dictionaries for other Spanish-speaking countries as well.

I also occasionally cite two English-language dictionaries for the purpose of inter-languagelexicographical comparison (see References for complete bibliographical data):

AHD The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. 4th edition. JosephP. Pickett. 2000.

EWD Encarta Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language. 2nd edition. Anne H.Soukhanov and Kathy Rooney. 2004.

In addition, I have consulted and cited the twelve works published to date that are the fruit of the Proyecto de estudio coordinado de la norma lingüística culta de las capitales de Hispanoamérica y de España, a project that was initially developed by Juan Miguel Lope Blanch



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of the Instituto de Investigaciones Filológicas of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma deMéxico. In these studies, a dozen or more educated Spanish speakers __ ones with at least acollege education and in many cases also a graduate (postgraduate) or professional degree __ whohad grown up in a particular large city in the Spanish-speaking world, were queried on about

4500 lexical items that included a handful of tools. Half of the respondents were male and halffemale and they belonged to three different generations. The léxico del habla culta studies thatwere consulted are as follows with complete bibliographical data in References:

Léxico del habla culta de México. Juan Miguel Lope Blanch. 1978. Encuestas léxicas del habla culta de Madrid . José C. de Torres Martínez. 1981. Léxico del habla culta de San Juan de Puerto Rico. Humberto López Morales et al. 1986. Léxico del habla culta de Santiago de Chile. Ambrosio Rabanales and Lidia Contreras. 1987. Léxico del habla culta de Granada. Francisco Salvador Salvador. 1991. Léxico del habla culta de La Paz. José G. Mendoza. 1996. Léxico del habla culta de Santafé de Bogotá. Hilda Otálora de Fernández. 1997.

Léxico del habla culta de Buenos Aires. Academia Argentina de Letras. 1998. Léxico del habla culta de Caracas. Mercedes Sedano and Zaida Pérez González. 1998. Léxico del habla culta de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. José Antonio Samper Padilla et al. 1998. Léxico del habla culta de Córdoba, Argentina. María Teresa Toniolo et al. 2000. Léxico del habla culta de Lima. Rocío Caravedo. 2000.

As comprehensive as the pioneering léxico del habla culta studies are, they were of limited usein comparing results to those of this study for several reasons. First, because many of the itemsaddressed in this article, such as the sledgehammer, the crescent wrench, the pipe wrench, thecrowbar and the sawhorse, were not among those tested in the léxico del habla culta studies and,secondly, because some of the tools tested in those studies appeared to be beyond the scope oftheir respondents’ knowledge as evidenced by the low percentage of them who were able toanswer the questions.

It is also hard to tell what some of the tools in the léxico del habla culta studies refer to, orwhether the same item was tested in each study. For example, in the section in each of theseworks on HERRAMIENTAS CASERAS (household tools), item 1403 is called ALICATES andwas tested by means of an illustration that was shown to respondents but is not presented in the books. As a result, it is not clear what type of pliers __ whether slip-joint pliers (noncuttingadjustable pliers), linesman pliers (nonadjustable cutting pliers), needlenose pliers, or some othertype __ were the ones respondents were shown.

One very worthwhile aspect of the léxico del habla culta studies is that they provide a separateresponse for each informant queried. As a result, terms that were given by respondents in thesingular form (e.g. alicate or pinza) are distinguished from ones in the plural form (alicates or pinzas) when speaking of a single pair of pliers. This is important in determining the level ofcompetition between variants, and the existence of different patterns or regional norms as theyrelate to variants. My own tendency, in contrast, is to present forms that were offered byrespondents from the same country, and that I consider to be variants, as a single word with the



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part that varies in parentheses. Examples of this include alicate(s), when respondents from agiven country offered both singular and plural forms, destornillador (de) estrella, when theyindicated destornillador de estrella and/or destornillador estrella (see section A2.2 below), and(llave) pico (de) cotorra, when they said llave pico de cotorra, llave pico cotorra, pico de

cotorra and/or pico cotorra (see section A8.2 below). In a few cases, when I found that somevariants were much more common than others, I have presented separate response data for eachvariant.

Sometimes the name of the category in the léxico del habla culta studies does not seem tocorrespond to the question posed to respondents and/or to the answers they gave. For example, inthe Léxico del habla culta de Caracas (Sedano: 146-147), under item 1101, entitled PALUSTRE (supposedly the pointing trowel), three respondents gave cepillo and one paleta, but the threewho gave cepillo were evidently confused or ignorant about these tools as the same three alsogave cepillo as their response to item 1100, the flat trowel, entitled LLANA. In fact, cepillo refersto neither type of trowel in Venezuela or in any other Spanish-speaking country, but can

designate a “plane” (a tool for smoothing and leveling wood). In the Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 163 and 699), the item entitled LLANA was tested with an illustration, andaccording to its Appendix, the next item, PALUSTRE , was described to respondents as“¿Parecida a la anterior pero de madera? (Palustre).” Yet if we look at the DRAE ’s definition of palustre and the results of the article you are reading, it appears palustre is nowhere used in thesense of a wooden flat trowel or what in Spain, according to the DRAE , is called a fratás. Thus,in the case of some tools, there appears to have been just as much confusion (or more) on the partof the researchers in the léxico del habla culta studies as to the meaning of the terms and theidentification of the items as there was on the part of some of their informants who gave thesame answers for two different categories or were unable to provide a response for one or severalof them.

In the Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 809) and the Léxico del habla culta deCórdoba, Argentina (Malanca: 503), the question posed to respondents corresponding to item3333, entitled TORNILLO, was “¿Y la herramienta compuesta de dos piezas móviles entre lascuales se puede fijar, por ejemplo, una tabla para cepillarla? (Tornillo).” This description isconfusing as it could refer to either a clamp or a vise, and possibly inaccurate in that all vises andmost clamps __ such as a C-clamp, a pipe clamp or a bar clamp __ consist of one fixed and onemovable piece rather than two mobile ones. (In a carpenter’s wood clamp, both ends can betightened simultaneously.) Not surprisingly, some of the answers to this question presented in theLa Paz and Córdoba, Argentina studies, such as tornillo and tornillo de banco, also suggest thatdifferent respondents interpreted the question in different ways. And if you look at item 3333,TORNILLO, in many of the other léxico del habla culta studies (which do not provide thedescription or question that respondents were given), the answers offered, such as tornillo andtirafondo, suggest that the item tested was neither a clamp nor a vise but a screw or some otherfastener. In short, with a number of tool items in the léxico del habla culta studies, it is hard totell what the subject or target was and thus difficult to assess the results.



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As the researchers in the léxico del habla culta studies may have found, and as I increasinglycame to suspect while conducting my own research on both “educated” and “uneducated”respondents (and everything in between), the problem with trying to obtain information abouttools from educated Spanish speakers is deep-rooted. In part, because of the stigma manual labor

has in Hispanic cultures and its relatively low cost in most Spanish-speaking countries, educatedSpanish speakers generally do not fall into the “do it yourself” homeowner category, tend to havelittle interest in carpentry, masonry, electrical, plumbing, gardening, etc. and, consequently, areoften unfamiliar with some of the most basic tools’ names and uses. This is true of manyeducated native speakers of English as well, but my impression is that the percentage of educatedSpanish speakers who have had little or no contact with tools is greater.

Simplifying matters a bit, one need only look at the different roles played and attitudes held byearly English and Spanish settlers to the New World. The Pilgrims who came to English NorthAmerica were interested in working the land and would often kill or drive off any Indians whogot in their way, whereas the Conquistadors arriving in Spanish America did not want to work at

all and were intent on converting and subjugating the Indians they encountered so that theywould do the work for them. With regard to manual labor, basic outlooks among upperclassSpanish Americans have changed little since then and, as a result, educated Spanishspeakers __ like the hablantes cultos interviewed in the léxico de habla culta studies __ are often the“worst people” to ask about tools insofar as their responses tend to be the least authoritative andthe least representative of what folks who know something about tools actually call them. Thisimpression is subjective, as is the notion of what it means to be “culto,” and the words“educated” and “cultured,” like many translated terms, are only partial matches.

The issue of what types of respondents should be tested in a lexical study is open to debate. Onecan argue, as linguists often do, that the usage of all speakers of a language is equally worthy ofstudy. The other extreme is to examine the usage of only those who specialize in the domain orsemantic field being studied to the exclusion of all other groups. There are also intermediate positions, according to which knowledge of most terminology is not viewed as so specialized asto require so-called “experts” but which nonetheless hold that it is more appropriate, fruitful andimportant to query some groups than others. For example, if you are conducting a study on thewords used for school and office supplies, then it makes sense that the people you would be mostinterested in querying are those who teach in schools and universities, or work in offices,including home offices. On the other hand, if your project involves specific tools, then youwould want to know what people who work with them call them, i.e. construction workers,contractors, craftsmen (artisans) and, perhaps to a lesser extent, architects, engineers and do-it-yourself homeowners. In applying this type of semi-selective criteria, researchers would be nomore interested in finding out what obreros or jornaleros call a stapler or a chalkboard eraserthan they would be interested in knowing what psychologists call a C-clamp or a crescentwrench (unless they happen to be psychologists who regularly use these tools to fix and rebuildthings). Thus when the Léxico del habla culta de Caracas study tells us that three out of twelveeducated Caraqueño respondents said a pointing trowel is called a cepillo and eight out of twelveessentially fessed up to the fact that they had no idea what it was called, presenting this datastrictly adheres to the habla culta studies’ goals and guidelines– to find out and divulge the words



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that the habla culta in a given city knows and says – but it is not information that is particularlyuseful to most readers. As a reader, I want to know what Caraqueños who “know” what this toolis called actually call it, not what educated Caraqueños who don’t know call it.

In doing the field work for this study on tool terminology, the criteria I used for selectingrespondents were perhaps logical but admittedly unscientific and imprecise. For example, uponentering a consulate waiting room, I would take a moment to observe the prospects and, giventhe option of questioning a man in a business suit or one wearing work boots, I would choose thelatter; if his boots were beaten up and his hands rough, all the better.

0.4 Real Academia Regional Review

The “Real Academia Regional Review” sections present an evaluation of the twenty-secondedition of the DRAE (published in 2001) and “grade” this dictionary’s definitions of specificterms using the following grading scale:

A Corresponding definition, correct regions. This grade is given when the DRAE definesthe term as used in a particular section of this article and correctly indicates the countriesand/or regions in which the term is used in this sense.

B Corresponding definition, incorrect regions. This grade is given when the DRAE definesthe term as used in the section and specifies a region or regions but does not specify themcorrectly. Its definition either fails to include regions in which the usage occurs orincludes regions where the usage does not occur. However, the grade of B is raised to anA if the DRAE ’s definition is appropriate, “ Amér.” ( América, that is, Spanish-speakingLatin America) is specified in the definition, and the term is used in ten or more (over50%) of the nineteen Spanish-speaking Latin American countries.

C Corresponding definition, no regions specified . This grade is given when the DRAE defines the item in question but does not specify any countries or regions in which theterm is used in this sense. In essence, it fails to identify a regional usage as regional.However, the grade of C is raised to an A if the term is used in at least ten (at least 50%)of the twenty Spanish-speaking countries.

D No corresponding definition. This grade is given when the DRAE does not include in itsdefinition of the term a sense that corresponds to the item in question.

F Term not listed . This grade is given when the DRAE does not list the term at all.

The DRAE ’s definitions themselves are quoted in these sections so that the reader can follow theanalysis that went into their evaluations. However, only terms that were offered by three or morerespondents from at least one country are graded, and definitions of some relevant terms thatwere not offered by respondents are also presented. Thus not all terms offered by respondents aregraded and not all terms whose definitions are quoted were offered by respondents. When, in my judgement, the category under which a definition rightfully falls is debatable, the grade assignedis followed by a question mark; see, for example, porra in section A4.4.

** *



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I will now address the following question relating to Spanish lexical dialectology.

Why is the study of Spanish regionalisms important?

You may be wondering why you should bother learning Spanish regionalisms in the first place.After all, what is so important about learning provincialisms that, if used, could make you soundlike a boorish local yokel? It is certainly true that using language inappropriately, whetherGeneral Spanish anywhere, or a regional variety in the wrong locale, can make one look foolishor worse and that increasing one’s General Spanish vocabulary is extremely important. Indeed,as students or scholars of the Spanish language __ I view the latter as merely more passionateversions of the former __ some would say it is our duty to continually expand our knowledge ofGeneral Spanish vocabulary. But because Spanish is an international language (perhaps thesecond most international language on the planet after English, although French may be able toclaim this honor), to increase our command of General Spanish in its broadest and most general

context, we must learn something about the regional varieties of which it is composed. Thus, tounderstand General Spanish, we need to know what is general and what is regional and, to do so,we must learn something about the regionalisms themselves: what they are, where they are used,and what they mean to those who use them. To some extent, understanding Spanish regionalismsmeans having an international perspective on the language or, looked at from the oppositedirection, even to scratch the surface of international Spanish requires us to learn aspects ofregional Spanish. Without one, we cannot fully understand the other.

All words are not created equal, but many descriptive linguists would say that the names for anitem like the sledgehammer (such as almágana, comba, combo, mandarria, maza, mazo, marro,etc.) can be considered equivalent to the extent that they serve the same communicative functionwithin their respective speech communities. Some prescriptivists and/or normativistas would probably dismiss many of these terms. Lexical dialectologists and other regionalism enthusiasts,however, are often more intrigued by the use of a term like Central America’s almágana orPeru’s comba than by the term mazo that is used in the sense of sledgehammer in so manycountries (see section A4 below), and they might consider mazo to be standard, everyday vanilla-flavor usage, and view almágana and comba as exotic spices, breaths of fresh air that take usaway from the routine and the mundane. Indeed, there are those who revel in almágana andcomba as much as others might reject them, though both reactions are really opposite sides of thesame phenomenon, that is, almágana and comba are only as extraordinary as mazo is ordinary,and mazo can only be held up as more or less “neutral Spanish” usage due to the existence ofmore regionally marked ones. The regional and the general are but reflections of each other.

Oftentimes regionalisms are not used in place of but in addition to General Spanish terms and,therefore, one can argue that the existence of regionalisms in a particular country should beviewed as a sign of linguistic enrichment, dexterity and even virtuosity rather thanimpoverishment. Since some Spanish speakers have both General Spanish destornillador and aregionalism such as desarmador and/or desatornillador in their lexical repertoire and at their



15

linguistic disposal, this view holds that their Spanish is lexically richer and more diverse withrespect to this item than that of speakers who use only one term.

When Anglicisms are involved in this diversity or plurality, however, attitudes among educated

Spanish speakers are often negative. Thus the use of guacha in the sense of arandela (‘washer’)is frowned upon, and the lexical diversity of Spanish speakers who use both terms is not seen asenrichment but as linguistic impoverishment or corruption since the introduction of Anglicismsinto the Spanish language is generally given the pejorative label of “Spanglish” and, in somecircles, is also viewed as yet another manifestation of Anglo and North American attempts atimperialism and cultural domination. Spanish speakers also desire linguistic purity when theymake statements such as “Spanish has arandela; we have no need for the Anglicism guacha.” Ifyou point out the fact that arandela comes from French rondelle (see section B5.4 below), thismay not change their opinion in the least as they will still feel that their language has beenviolated by a word like guacha, but not by arandela. Several reasons may explain this. BothEnglish washer and French rondelle have been adapted to Spanish phonology, but arandela

probably entered the language long before guacha and more Spanish speakers recognize theforeign origin of the Anglicism guacha than that of the Gallicism arandela (which in the processof Hispanization added two more syllables to its French etymon). More importantly, France is nolonger a world power and the number of Anglicisms entering the Spanish language each year ismuch higher than the number of Gallicisms. Anglicisms are viewed with both fascination andalarm, whereas Gallicisms are a mere curiosity. The use of foreign loan words in certain regionsof the Spanish-speaking world raises the question as to why they were introduced (or summonedand actively recruited) there, and why words that are deemed more castizo have been partiallydiscarded, or were never created in the first place.

If your interest as a reader is to develop communicative competence in the topics addressed here,then apart from knowing the most widespread, neutral or General Spanish term for an item, suchas destornillador , mazo and arandela for screwdriver, sledgehammer and washer, respectively,the most important terms/usages to learn in this article are the “majority regionalisms” (thoseoffered by 50% or more of respondents from a given country) that appear in boldface and italics,words like desarmador , almágana, comba, guacha and rondana. We could also call theseregionalisms “mainstream regionalisms” since they are names that are used by a majority of persons in a given speech community but are regional when Spanish is viewed from aninternational perspective. In other words, you cannot consider yourself communicativelycompetent in El Salvador with respect to sledgehammers if you do not know that almágana is themost effective term to use when speaking to Salvadorans about this tool.

Looking at the issue in the opposite direction, terms such as almágana and guacha also serve aslinguistic landmarks or beacons that give listeners clues as to the origin of the people they hearspeak. If you hear someone say almágana when referring to a sledgehammer, or guacha whenreferring to a washer, you can already guess, with a fairly high degree of accuracy, the set ofSpanish-speaking countries that person most likely comes from and eliminate a host of others.The larger the number of common regional equivalences you are familiar with, the more likelyyou will be able to pick out a person’s origin within a few minutes of listening to him or her



16

based on word choice alone. Developing expertise in phonetics and phonology is another way todeduce a speaker’s region of origin although, to some extent, the more educated the speaker is,the less regional will be some of his or her linguistic traits in the case of both lexis and phonology. The beauty of words is that anyone can learn them, whereas to acquire an

understanding of Spanish phonetics and phonology requires some technical training. The key tolearning about regional variation of any type is being a good listener and gaining exposure todifferent varieties of the language.

Mainstream regionalisms like combo or guacha are terms that may be criticized or ridiculed butare not easily ignored or denied within the context of their locale. To do so would be thelinguistic equivalent of denying the existence of Blacks in the Dominican Republic or Indians inBolivia, or disregarding the contributions of non-European cultures to Dominican or Boliviannational culture. This does not mean such attempts at negation do not take place (with race,ethnicity, or language), but they are cases of sticking one’s head in the sand or trying to block outthe sun with one finger.



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A TOOLS

A1 SCREWDRIVER A - GENERAL SCREWDRIVER (base terms)

A1.1 Summary Destornillador can be considered the General Spanish term as it is used, to some extent,throughout the Spanish-speaking world, but in many areas of Spanish America desarmador ,desatornillador and other terms are used more frequently. Desarmador is particularly commonin Mexico, Central America, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia; desatornillador in Chile and also muchof Central America.

Note: Throughout this article, the following formatting conventions will be used in the “Terms by Country” sections:

1) Terms considered regional are written in italics; in section A1.2 below, all words other than“destornillador” are in italics. 2) Regionalisms offered by 50% or more of the respondents from a particular country (majority

regionalisms) appear in boldface and italics; Mexico’s “desarmador” and Costa Rica’s“desatornillador” are examples.

3) Words offered by only one or two respondents from a given country, when ten or more fromthat country were queried (minority responses), are written in small print; Guatemala’s“desatornillador” and Peru’s “entornillador” are examples.

A1.2 Terms by Country (6 terms)

SPAIN destornillador (15/15).MEXICO desarmador (20/20).GUATEMALA desarmador (17/18), desatornillador (2/18).EL SALVADOR desarmador (15/18), desatornillador (8/18), destornillador (1/18).HONDURAS desarmador (8/13), desatornillador (8/13), destornillador (2/13).

NICARAGUA desarmador (9/16), desatornillador (6/16), destornillador (3/16).COSTA RICA desatornillador (10/16), destornillador (8/16).PANAMA destornillador (11/11).CUBA destornillador (16/16).DOMIN. REP. destornillador (15/15).PUERTO RICO destornillador (20/20).VENEZUELA destornillador (17/17).COLOMBIA destornillador (14/19), atornillador (2/19), desarmador (2/19), desatornillador (1/19).ECUADOR desarmador (8/14), destornillador (8/14).PERU desarmador (12/18), desentornillador (5/18), destornillador (3/18),

entornillador (2/18).BOLIVIA desarmador (11/18), destornillador (8/18), desentornillador (4/18),

desatornillador (1/18).



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PARAGUAY destornillador (12/12).URUGUAY destornillador (11/11).ARGENTINA destornillador (20/20).CHILE destornillador (9/17), desatornillador (7/17), atornillador (5/17).

A1.3 Details

General: For information on phillips screwdrivers (screwdrivers used to turn phillips-headscrews) and slotted or flat-head screwdrivers (screwdrivers used to turn slotted or regularscrews), see sections A2 and A3 below, respectively.

Spain: In this study, destornillador was the only Spanish term offered, though a few Catalán-speaking respondents offered the Catalán term, tornabís. The Encuestas léxicas del hablaculta de Madrid (Torres Martínez: 225), the Léxico del habla culta de Granada (Salvador: 700), and the Léxico del habla culta de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (SamperPadilla: 182 and 444) all confirm the overwhelming preference for the term

destornillador by educated Madrileños, Granadinos and Grancanarios. In the first study,all fifteen Madrileños who answered the question indicated destornillador ; in the second,24 Granadinos indicated destornillador and one atornillador ; and in the third, all twelveGrancanarios indicated destornillador and one atornillador as a second choice in thechapter “Profesiones y oficios,” and in the “La casa” chapter, under herramientascaseras, all twelve indicated destornillador .

Mexico: The use of desarmador is confirmed by the DEUMex (Lara Ramos), which defines it as“Herramienta que sirve para apretar y aflojar tornillos; consta de un mango y una puntaque embona en la ranura de la cabeza del tornillo; desatornillador: desarmador de punta plana, desarmador de punta en cruz.” It is unclear whether desatornillador is listed inthis definition of desarmador to indicate that desatornillador is also commonly used inMexico, or simply to include a “foreign” synonym as a point of reference. The fact thatneither desatornillador nor destornillador is listed as a separate entry in the DEUMex,and the data from this study (which produced only desarmador ), suggest that neitherdesatornillador nor destornillador is part of “everyday Mexican Spanish” among“ordinary Mexicans.” This, however, is contradicted by the Léxico del habla culta de México (Lope Blanch: 446), a study in which sixteen educated Mexico City respondentsgave desarmador , ten desatornillador and five destornillador . The small percentage ofLope Blanch’s respondents who indicated destornillador can probably be attributed totheir knowledge of Pan-Hispanic norms, but other questions remain: Is the use ofdesatornillador more common among educated Mexicans than among less educatedones? Has the use of desatornillador in Mexico declined (in favor of desarmador ) between the time Lope Blanch conducted his survey and 2004-2005, when I did mine?

Honduras: The DH (Zavala) does not define desatornillador or desarmador , but does definedesatornillar as “tr. Vulgarismo, por DESTORNILLAR.”

Nicaragua: The DUEN (Arellano Oviedo) confirms the use of both desarmador anddesatornillador , defining the former as “Destornillador” and the latter as “Destornillador. El ladrón forzó la cerradura de la puerta con un desatornillador .”



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Puerto Rico: In the Léxico del habla culta de San Juan de Puerto Rico (López Morales: 157),only three out of twelve respondents answered the question, but all three indicateddestornillador .

Venezuela: In this study, all seventeen respondents indicated destornillador , but in the Léxico del

habla culta de Caracas (Sedano: 183), twelve indicated destornillador and three gaveatornillador . How common is the use of atornillador in Venezuela?Colombia: The Léxico del habla culta de Santafé de Bogotá (Otálora de Fernández: 279)

confirms the use of destornillador among educated Bogotanos as it was the only termoffered by all 25 respondents in that study.

Peru: In the Léxico del habla culta de Lima (Caravedo: 459), six educated Limeños indicateddestornillador , six desarmador and three desentornillador . In this study, in contrast,desarmador was given by four times as many respondents as destornillador anddesentornillador by nearly twice as many as destornillador . However, given that most ofthe people queried in this study were considerably less educated than the respondents ofthe Léxico del habla culta de Lima study (and therefore would be less aware of the

General Spanish term destornillador ), the results of both studies seem to be fairlycongruent.Bolivia: The Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 207) confirms the fact that there is

substantial competition between destornillador and desarmador . Of the twelve educatedPaceño respondents queried in that study, eight gave each of these two terms with manyof them offering both destornillador and desarmador . The percentages offeringdesentornillador __ three out of twelve in that study and four out of eighteen in thisone __ are also quite similar.

Argentina: Both the Léxico del habla culta de Buenos Aires (Academia Argentina de Letras:306) and the Léxico del habla culta de Córdoba, Argentina (Toniolo: 207) confirm theexclusive use of destornillador among educated speakers from both cities asdestornillador was the unanimous choice by all Porteños and Cordobeses (about onedozen of each) that were queried in the two studies.

Chile: The DECH (Morales Pettorino) confirms the use of both desatornillador and atornillador in the sense of screwdriver. It defines desatornillador as “Destornillador; herramienta para atornillar y desatornillar... Var. [variante]: atornillador /. Más usual que la var.castiza.” (It is not entirely clear whether this source is indicating that in Chilean Spanish both desatornillador and atornillador are more common than destornillador , or whetheronly desatornillador is more common.) The Léxico del habla culta de Santiago de Chile (Rabanales: 202) suggests the less frequent use of atornillador and desatornillador among educated Santiaguinos: Of the twelve respondents tested in that study, eleven gavedestornillador , four atornillador and two desatornillador .

Attitudes toward destornillador vs. alternate terms: Linguistic attitudes within a countrynaturally vary from group to group and yet, in some cases, there are widely held beliefsthat on a national level can be considered mainstream. Many Ecuadorans of differenteducational levels indicated to this author that they believe destornillador to be the“correct” term and desarmador to be the “popular” and “incorrect” term. Is this negativeattitude toward terms other than destornillador also prevalent in other countries in whichalternate terms are commonly used, or are desarmador and/or desatornillador , etc.



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accepted in some as standard usage? Based on the definitions quoted above and the(albeit limited) information collected in this study, desarmador seems to enjoy generalacceptance in Mexico and perhaps in Peru and Bolivia as well. In the case of Chile andCentral America, many respondents seemed less confident in their use of alternate terms

and more critical of them.A1.4 Real Academia Regional Review

DRAE grades: atornillador (C), desarmador (B), desatornillador (B), desentornillador (F), destornillador (A), entornillador (F).

DRAE definitions: destornillador , “Instrumento de hierro u otra materia, que sirve paradestornillar y atornillar”; atornillador , “destornillador”; desarmador , “ El Salv., Hond . y Méx.destornillador”; desatornillador , “destornillador. U. m. en América [Usado más en América].”

Questions/Comments: The DRAE indicates that desatornillador is used more in SpanishAmerica than in Spain (“U. m. en América”), which implies that it is also used in Spain to some

extent. Yet no evidence of desatornillador ’s use in Spain was found in the two PeninsularSpanish léxico del habla culta studies, in the Canary Island one, or in this survey. Where inSpain is desatornillador used and by whom?

A2 SCREWDRIVER B - PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER or PHILLIPS-HEAD

SCREWDRIVER

A2.1 Summary

In many areas of the Spanish-speaking world, the modifier de estrella is added to the base termdestornillador , desarmador , etc. to specify a phillips screwdriver. However, in a number ofcountries other modifiers, such as phillips, de cruz or de estría(s), are more common than deestrella.

Note: Since the distribution of the base terms for screwdrivers was addressed in section A1above, the focus in sections A2 and A3 will be on the modifiers or qualifiers that are added to the base terms in order to designate a specific type of screwdriver (phillips or slotted). In sectionA2.2, modifiers other than (de) estrella __ and variants such as (de) punta estrella __ appear initalics, and majority regional modifiers in boldface and italics.

A2.2 Terms by Country (4 modifiers plus variants and c. 18 terms plus variants overall)

SPAIN destornillador (de) estrella (14/15), destornillador de estría (1/15).MEXICO desarmador de cruz (17/20), desarmador de estrella (2/20), desarmador en cruz (1/20).GUATEMALA desarmador de cruz (10/17), desarmador phillips (6/17), desarmador (de)

estrella (4/17), desatornillador de estrella (2/17).



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EL SALVADOR desarmador phillips (14/18), desatornillador phillips (6/18), desarmador decruz (5/18), desatornillador de cruz (2/18), desarmador de estrella (1/18), destornillador

phillips (1/18).HONDURAS desarmador phillips (7/13), desatornillador phillips (6/13), desatornillador de

estrella (2/13), destornillador phillips (2/13), desarmador estrella (1/13). NICARAGUA desarmador de estrella (9/16), desatornillador de estrella(s) (6/16),destornillador de cruz (2/16), destornillador de estrella (1/16).

COSTA RICA desatornillador phillips (10/16), destornillador phillips (8/16).PANAMA destornillador (de) estrella (9/11), destornillador phillips (4/11).CUBA destornillador (de) estría(s) (14/16), destornillador phillips (4/16).DOMIN. REP. destornillador (de) estría(s) (15/15).PUERTO RICO destornillador (de) estría(s) (14/20), destornillador de estrella(s) (5/20),

destornillador de punta (1/20), destornillador tipo phillips (1/20).VENEZUELA destornillador (de) estría(s) (13/17), destornillador de cruz (3/17),

destornillador estrella (1/17).

COLOMBIA destornillador (de) estrella (10/16), desarmador (de) estrella (2/16), desatornilladorde estrella (2/16), destornillador (de) estría (2/16), atornillador de estría (1/16).ECUADOR destornillador (de) estrella (10/14), desarmador (de) estrella (9/14).PERU desarmador (de) estrella (10/16), desentornillador (de) estrella (4/16),

destornillador estrella (3/16), desarmador de cruz (1/16), desentornillador cruz (1/16),

entornillador en cruz (1/16).BOLIVIA desarmador (de) estrella (7/18), destornillador estrella (5/18),

destornillador punta estrella (3/18), desentornillador de estrella (2/18), desarmador

en cruz (1/18), desentornillador punta estrella (1/18), desarmador en cruz (1/18).PARAGUAY destornillador (de) cruz (6/11), destornillador en cruz (2/11), destornillador (tipo)

phillips (2/11), destornillador (de punta) estrella (2/11), destornillador de punta cruz (1/11).URUGUAY destornillador

phillips (10/10).

ARGENTINA destornillador phillips (16/20), destornillador de cruz (1/20), destornillador de punta

en cruz (1/20), destornillador en cruz (1/20), destornillador en cruz phillips (1/20).CHILE destornillador de cruz (6/16), desatornillador de cruz (3/16), destornillador

phillips (2/16), atornillador de cruz (3/16), atornillador de punta (1/16), desatornillador de punta (1/16), desatornillador phillips (1/16), destornillador de cruceta (1/16), destornillador deestrella (1/16).

A2.3 Details

General: Destornillador de estrella and destornillador estrella can be considered variants of eachother, or the latter an abbreviation of the former, and the same applies to other pairs of

terms in which the de is often dropped such as desarmador de estrella - desarmadorestrella, or the more technical sounding destornillador de punta estrella - destornillador punta estrella. Indeed, de-dropping in such adjectival phrases appears to be a general phenomenon that is quite common in Spanish, though under what circumstances it occursneeds to be researched. In the case of the modifier phillips (as in destornillador phillips,desarmador phillips, etc.), alternate pronunciations and spellings are used that can beconsidered variants of each other. Thus destornillador phillips is also written and/or



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pronounced destornillador Phillips, destornillador philips, destornillador filips,destornillador filics, destornillador filix, destornillador filic, destornillador fili, etc. Sincethe word phillips is a foreign word used more in speech than in writing, Spanish speakerswho are unaware of the term’s origin and unfamiliar with English-language orthography

are often unsure of how it should be spelled. (Pero, aunque no sepan inglés, me imaginoque lo escribirán a la inglesa aquellos hispanohablantes que usen el términodestornillador phillips, o desarmador phillips, etc., y también tomen leche de magnesia Phillips.)

Spain: Destornillador (de) estrella was given by all respondents from Peninsular Spain.However, one Canary Islander indicated destornillador de estría, a usage which we notematches that found in many parts of the Caribbean basin. Given the sustained emigrationof Canary Islanders to the Antilles and Venezuela over the last two centuries, some ofwhom also returned to their homeland after an extended stay, resulting in linguistic cross- pollination in both directions (Lipski 1994: 56-61), it would not be surprising if it turnedout that the Canary Islands share the use of destornillador de estría with parts of the

Caribbean. If so, then the question would be who got it from whom: A Caribbean orCanary Island origin? However, we are putting the cart before the horse since the firstquestion is whether or not destornillador de estría is commonly used in the sense of phillips screwdriver in the Canary Islands.

Mexico: The DEUMex, in its definition of desarmador (see section A1.3 above), indicates that a phillips screwdriver is called a desarmador de punta en cruz, but the majority ofrespondents in this study indicated simply desarmador de cruz; the former term appearsto be a more technical (and fancier sounding) variant of the latter.

Dominican Republic: Several respondents gave destornillador tría, which can be considered a phonetic variant (or reduction) of destornillador (de) estría. Given the extremely highrate of elision of syllable- and word-final /s/ that occurs in the Dominican Republic(Lipski 1994: 239), a word like estría is often pronounced etría, which is but a short stepaway from tría. To what extent has this phonetic variant become lexicalized in somespeech communities in the Dominican Republic?

Colombia: The majority of Colombians offered destornillador (de) estrella, but two fromSantander said desatornillador de estrella, another from Santander gave destornilladorestría, one from the Atlantic Coast gave destornillador de estría (which corresponds toAntillean and Venezuelan usage), and an elderly man from Quindío indicatedatornillador de estría.

A2.4 Real Academia Regional Review

DRAE grades: desarmador de cruz (F), desarmador de estrella (F), desarmador estrella (F), desarmador phillips (F), desatornillador de cruz (F), desatornillador de estrella (F),desatornillador phillips (F), desentornillador de estrella (F), destornillador cruz (F),destornillador de cruz (F), destornillador de estrella (F), destornillador estrella (F),destornillador punta estrella (F), destornillador de estría (F), destornillador estría (F),destornillador phillips (F).



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Questions/Comments: The DRAE does not offer its readers any information on the namesfor phillips screwdrivers, and an argument can be made that such information is too technical to be included in a general dictionary. However, the boundary between “technical language” and“general language” is often blurry, or we could say that over time the distance between the two

in many cases tends asymptotically to zero. If we compare the situation within English-languagelexicography, we note that Phillips is defined in the AHD (Pickett) as “A trademark used for ascrew with a head having two intersecting perpendicular slots and for a screwdriver with a tipshaped to fit these slots.” The EWD (Soukhanov) defines “Phillips screw” as “tdmk a trademarkfor a screw with a cross-shaped slot on its head” and “Phillips screwdriver” as “tdmk a trademarkfor a screwdriver that has a cross-shaped tip so that it can be used to turn a Phillips screw.” IfEnglish-language lexicography tells us what a phillips screwdriver is, why should the DRAE takea back seat and not do likewise? While it may not always be an easy task, in some instances it isa good idea to “keep up with the Joneses” (and the Garcías, and the other neighbors in the globalvillage). By all means, take a look around, see what the other guys are doing. Lexicographershave as much to learn from others who speak a different language and come from a different

culture as the rest of us.

A3 SCREWDRIVER C - SLOTTED SCREWDRIVER, FLAT-HEAD

SCREWDRIVER, STRAIGHT-BLADE SCREWDRIVER, FLAT-BLADE

SCREWDRIVER or STANDARD SCREWDRIVER

A3.1 Summary

Plano is the modifier most commonly added to the base term (destornillador , desatornillador ,desarmador , etc.) to specify a slotted screwdriver, although many people refer to it as adestornillador común, a destornillador corriente, or simply a destornillador with no modifieradded since they understand slotted screwdrivers to be the default type. In a number of countries,however, other modifiers such as de paleta or de pala are used more often than plano.

Note: Modifiers other than plano (and variants such as de punta plana), or común, corriente,normal (and other similar “default” modifiers) appear in italics, and majority regional modifiersin boldface and italics.

A3.2 Terms by Country (12 modifiers and c. 30 terms plus variants overall)

SPAIN destornillador plano (10/14), destornillador de punta plana (2/14), destornillador normal (1/14).MEXICO desarmador plano (14/18), desarmador de paleta (2/18), desarmador de pal(it)a (2/18).GUATEMALA desarmador plano (11/14), desarmador (tipo) castigadera (3/14), desarmador de paleta

(1/14), desatornillador tipo castigadera (1/14).EL SALVADOR desarmador plano (11/14), desarmador (corriente) (3/14), desatornillador plano

(3/14), desarmador de pala (1/14), desarmador de plancha (1/14), desatornillador (1/14),

desatornillador de planchita (1/14).HONDURAS desatornillador plano (7/13), desarmador plano (6/13), destornillador plano (2/13).



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NICARAGUA desarmador de ranura (6/14), desatornillador de ranura (3/14), destornillador deranura (3/14), desarmador (1/14), desarmador de raya (1/14), desatornillador común (1/14), desatornillador recto (1/14), destornillador plano (1/14).

COSTA RICA desatornillador plano (7/16), destornillador plano (4/16), desatornillador (corriente)(2/16), destornillador (corriente) (2/16), desatornillador de paleta (1/16), desatornillador de punta plana(1/16).

PANAMA destornillador plano (8/9), destornillador cincel (1/9), destornillador de raya (1/9).CUBA destornillador de paleta (8/16), destornillador (5/16), destornillador plano (4/16).DOMIN. REP. destornillador plano (14/15), destornillador de paleta (1/15).PUERTO RICO destornillador (de) paleta (17/20), destornillador (1/20), destornillador de pala (1/20),

destornillador plano (1/20).VENEZUELA destornillador plano (9/16), destornillador de pala (4/16), destornillador de paleta

(2/16), destornillador punta plana (2/16), destornillador (1/16).COLOMBIA destornillador (de) pala (10/19), destornillador plano (4/19), desarmador de pala (2/19),

destornillador (2/19), atornillador pala (1/19), atornillador plano (1/19), desatornillador de pala (1/19),desatornillador de paleta (1/19).

ECUADOR desarmador plano (8/14), destornillador plano (8/14), destornillador (corriente) (2/14).PERU desarmador plano (9/18), desentornillador plano (5/18), destornillador plano

(3/18), desarmador (2/18), desarmador de punta plana (2/18), entornillador (1/18).BOLIVIA desarmador plano (6/18), destornillador plano (4/18), desarmador (común) (2/18),

desentornillador (clásico) (2/18), destornillador (con) punta plana (2/18), desentornillador plano (1/18),desentornillador punta plana (1/18), desarmador en cuchilla (1/18).

PARAGUAY destornillador plano (6/10), destornillador (simple) (2/10), destornillador chato (1/10),

destornillador de punta chata (1/10), destornillador de punta plana (1/10).URUGUAY destornillador chato (4/11), destornillador plano (4/11), destornillador (común)

(3/11), destornillador de paleta (1/11).ARGENTINA destornillador (común) (5/16), destornillador de punta plana (5/16), destornillador

chato (2/16), destornillador plano (2/16), destornillador de punta chata (1/16), destornillador de hoja plana (1/16).CHILE destornillador (de) paleta (5/17), atornillador (de) paleta (4/17), desatornillador

(de) paleta (4/17), desatornillador (regular) (3/17), destornillador plano (1/17).

A3.3 Details

General: Many Spanish speakers consider the slotted screwdriver to be the standard or defaulttype of screwdriver and refer to it as a destornillador corriente (or desarmador corriente,desatornillador corriente, etc.), as a destornillador común (or desarmador común, etc.), adestornillador normal (desarmador normal , etc.), or simply a destornillador

(desarmador , etc.) with no modifier being added.Mexico: The DEUMex, in its definition of desarmador (see section A1.3 above), indicates that aslotted screwdriver is called a desarmador de punta plana, but the majority ofrespondents in this study indicated simply desarmador plano.

Colombia: Destornillador (de) pala was offered by the majority of respondents, butdesatornillador de paleta was given by one from the Atlantic Coast, and we note that the



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qualifier de paleta matches the usage found in other parts of the Caribbean such as Cubaand Puerto Rico.

United States English: Many English speakers from the United States consider the screwdriver ofthis section to be the standard or default screwdriver (as do many Spanish speakers) and

use no specific name for it other than “screwdriver,” “regular screwdriver,” “normalscrewdriver” or “standard screwdriver,” etc. The term “flat-head screwdriver” (with itsspelling variants “flathead screwdriver” and “flat head screwdriver”) is also usedfrequently in the United States in this sense, but some object to this term claiming that“flat-head” refers to a type of screw that has a flat head and which can be either a phillipsscrew or a regular screw, but does not refer to a type of screwdriver. Some who make thelatter claim prefer the ter m “straight- blade screwdriver” or “flat- blade screwdriver”(again with spelling variants along the same lines as those indicated above for “flat -headscrewdriver”). Others may counter that the terms “flat-head screw” and “flat-headscrewdriver” are unrelated; in other words, that the former refers to a screw with a flathead, which may be a phillips screw or a regular screw, and that the latter refers to a

screwdriver whose shaft ends in a flat head (rather than a pointy phillips head), and thatmay be used with slotted screws regardless of the head’s shape, whether flat-head screws, pan-head screws or screws of some other form. The Home Depot and Ace Hardwarestore online catalogues (at www.homedepot.com and www.acehardware.com,respectively) list only “slotted screwdriver” as the term for the class of screwdriveraddressed in this section, but one can also object to this term since phillips-head screwsalso have slots (just different kinds of slots), and therefore, one can argue that phillips-head screwdrivers are slotted screwdrivers just as much as straight-blade screwdriversare, insofar as both turn “slotted” screws. For this reason, some people prefer the term“single slotted” screw (and screwdriver). Because terminology varies along a specificityaxis, and because it is under no obligation to strictly obey semantic logic, it is hard toreach a consensus on what the “proper” term for this type of screwdriver is even within asingle country.


DRAE grades: atornillador de paleta (F), desarmador castigadera (F), desarmador de pala (F), desarmador de paleta (F), desarmador plano (F), desarmador de ranura (F),desatornillador de paleta (F), desatornillador plano (F), desatornillador de ranura (F),desentornillador plano (F), destornillador chato (F), destornillador de pala (F), destornilladorde paleta (F), destornillador de punta chata (F), destornillador de paleta (F), destornillador de punta plana (F), destornillador de ranura (F), destornillador plano (F).

Questions/Comments: Should the DRAE define the commonly used terms for the slottedscrewdriver? An argument can be made that this is unnecessary since the slotted screwdriver isoften considered to be the standard or default screwdriver. Another reason that may possiblymediate against including a definition of a slotted screwdriver (or of a phillips screwdriver) isthat the most common type of screwdriver is now an adjustable combination screwdriver called a“multi- bit driver” that contains four or more screwdriver heads, blades or bits, typically at leasttwo different sizes of slotted-head and phillips-head bits. In other words, people who use this



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type of screwdriver need to make a distinction between the different types of bits but not thedifferent types of screwdrivers since several types of bits are contained in and used with a singlescrewdriver. Moreover, if we probe a couple of samples from English lexicography, we note thatneither the 2000 edition of the AHD nor the 2004 edition of the EWD define the terms “slotted

screwdriver,” “straight blade screwdriver” or “flat-head screwdriver,” nor do they include a picture of one next to the definition of screwdriver. On the other hand, if the DRAE ’s goal is to be international in scope, as it claims in its preface, then readers should be told what adestornillador de paleta or a desarmador plano, etc. is (with appropriate regional specifications)so that dictionary users will know what’s what and where.

A4 SLEDGEHAMMER or MAUL

A4.1 Summary

Mazo can be considered the most General Spanish term for sledgehammer since it is used in thissense in large areas of the Spanish-speaking world. Almágana and its variants are commonlyused in northern Central America, combo or comba in the core Andean countries of Ecuador,Peru, Bolivia and Chile (and perhaps in western Argentina as well), and mandarria in parts ofSpain and the Caribbean basin. Other terms are used in Spain, Mexico, the Dominican Republic,Colombia, Uruguay and Argentina.

Note: Terms other than mazo (and maceta which refers to a small sledgehammer) appear initalics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.

A4.2 Terms by Country (over 10 terms plus variants)

SPAIN mazo (12/17), maza (4/17), mandarria (3/17), marreta (2/17), maceta (1/17).MEXICO marro (22/25), mazo (6/25), maceta (2/25).GUATEMALA almágana (12/19), mazo (8/19), marro (3/19), almádana (1/19), chambón (1/19).EL SALVADOR almágana (13/16), almádana (2/16), almádena (1/16), armágana (1/16), mazo (1/16).HONDURAS almágana (14/15), mazo (4/15), almádana (1/15).

NICARAGUA mazo (13/13).COSTA RICA mazo (14/14).PANAMA mazo (13/13), maceta (2/13).CUBA mandarria (18/18).DOMIN. REP. mandarria (14/16), marrón (10/16), maceta (5/16).PUERTO RICO marrón (17/18), mazo (2/18).VENEZUELA mandarria (15/15).COLOMBIA porra (15/24), mazo (13/24), maceta (6/24), mandarria (2/24), almádena (1/24),

almuádana (1/24), porro (1/24), porrón (1/24).ECUADOR combo (17/18), mazo (3/18).PERU comba (19/21), mazo (6/21), combo (3/21).BOLIVIA combo (17/17).



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PARAGUAY mazo (9/10), maza (2/10).URUGUAY marrón (8/12), maceta (5/12), mazo (4/12), maza (2/12).ARGENTINA maza (18/20), combo (1/20), maceta (1/20), mazo (1/20), marrón (1/20).CHILE combo (18/18).

A4.3 Details

General: The term mazo was offered in the sense of sledgehammer by a majority of respondentsfrom only five countries, but was given by some respondents in fifteen out of the twentycountries. However, since sledgehammers are closely related to mallets and gavels, etc.,which can also be called mazos, it is possible that some of the respondents in this studyconfused the sledgehammer with one of these similar items. All respondents who offeredmaceta agreed that it refers to a small, short-handled sledgehammer. These “minisledgehammers,” “hand sledges” or “baby sledges” are often wielded with only one handand typically weigh between two and four pounds.

Spain: In this study, mazo was offered in the sense of sledgehammer by the majority ofSpaniards from diverse regions, and maza by four from different regions. Mandarria andmarreta were given by respondents from Galicia, and of these one indicated thatmandarria was the Spanish word for sledgehammer and marreta the Gallego term. The DRAE indicates that mazo refers only to a wooden mallet and includes no sense of maza that corresponds to a sledgehammer (see section A4.4 below). However, the DEArg (Haensch and Werner 2000a), a contrastive dictionary, indicates that both maza and mazo are the Peninsular Spanish equivalents of the Argentine terms for this tool (combo andmaza, see Argentina below). Almádena, almádana and almádina are defined in the DRAE in the sense of sledgehammer (see section A4.4 below), but it is not clear what types ofSpaniards tend to use these terms. Are almádena, almádana and/or almádina used primarily by older Spaniards, by Spaniards from specific regions, or by specialists suchas carpenters, masons or quarry workers, etc.? No doubt there are Spaniards who sayalmádena, almádana and/or almádina, but they appear to be harder to come by than thosethat say mazo and/or maza.

Mexico: The use of marro is confirmed by the DEUMex, which defines it as “Herramientasemejante al martillo, que consiste en una pieza sólida de hierro, rectangular, con los bordes limados, montada en un fuerte mango de madera; se utiliza para romper piedras ogolpear objetos grandes y resistentes.” Mazo is defined similarly in the DEUMex, but itsdefinition indicates it can also refer to a wooden mallet: “Herramienta con que se golpeafuertemente un cuerpo sólido, consistente en un mango largo de madera, al que se insertaen una de sus puntas un bloque cuadrangular pesado y grande, de hierro o de madera.”

Guatemala: A majority of respondents indicated almágana was the only term commonly used, but several stated that a mazo is a small almágana or refers to a rubber mallet.

El Salvador: Almágana was offered by the majority of respondents, but one indicated armágana,which can be considered a phonetic variant of almágana. Exchange of syllable-finalliquids /l/ and /r/ is common both historically and in terms of regionalisms; cf. pairs ofwords such as arveja-alverja (‘pea’), telgopor -tergopol (‘styrofoam’), and pilca- pirca (‘stone wall’). See also Dominican Republic in section B4.3 below.



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Honduras: The DH defines almágana as “Corruptela de ALMADANA” (in that publicationaccent marks were not used with capital letters). In this study, the majority of respondentsindicated that almágana was the only term commonly used in the sense of sledgehammer,though most were persons with limited formal education. Only one Honduran, a college-

educated man, said the “proper term” was almádana, but he admitted this term wasseldom used. In addition, two stated that a mazo is a small almágana, but several otherssaid a mazo is a wooden mallet.

Cuba: The DECu (Haensch and Werner 2000b) confirms the use of mandarria, defining it as“Tipo de martillo muy pesado.”

Dominican Republic: Some respondents stated that a mandarria is a larger sledgehammer than amarrón, but some said the opposite, that a marrón is larger than a mandarria; othersindicated the two terms were synonymous. Do Dominican craftsmen, laborers, and otherswho regularly work with sledgehammers have a uniform understanding of the differencesin meaning between these two terms?

Venezuela: The DHAV (Núñez) confirms the use of mandarria, defining it as “Martillo muy

grande y pesado, provisto de un mango largo, que se maneja con las dos manos y que seemplea, principalmente, en la construcción.” Colombia: Many respondents indicated that both a mazo and a porra refer to sledgehammers, but

one from Cundinamarca indicated that a mazo is a rubber mallet and a porra is asledgehammer; this same respondent also indicated that an almádena refers to asledgehammer that has a point on one end. Almuádana was offered in the sense ofsledgehammer by an elderly man from the department of Quindío.

Ecuador: The HEDE (Córdova Malo) defines combo as “Gran mazo de hierro para quebrantar piedras; macho.”

Peru: Why is comba the dominant term in Peru when combo is dominant in Peru’s Andeanneighbors, Ecuador, Bolivia and Chile? The DRAE indicates that combo derives fromQuechua k’umpa (see section A4.4 below). Is the Peruvian use of comba somehow“closer” to the Quechua source, or are there other reasons that explain this difference?

Bolivia: The use of combo is confirmed by the DB (Gómez de Fernández), which defines it as“2. Almadana.” It is not clear why there is no accent mark on the second a in thedefinition, though it can probably be attributed to a simple typographical error.

Uruguay: The NDU (Haensch and Werner 1993b) defines marrón as “1 Martillo grande y muy pesado que se usa para demoliciones | 2 En los mataderos, mazo con el que se desmaya alas reses antes de sacrificarlas.” In this study, a few respondents indicated that a marrón is a bigger sledgehammer than a mazo.

Argentina: The DEArg defines combo as a General Argentine Spanish term (i.e. without anyregional specification within Argentina) as “Mazo de hierro, con un mango largo paraasirlo, que se emplea en el ámbito de la construcción, generalmente para partir piedras o para demoler” and defines marrón as “3 NEArg [Northeast Argentina] Martillo de grantamaño que se emplea en la industria y en carpintería.” The DEArg indicates that combo and marrón are synonyms of mazo, which is used in Spain, and of maza, which is used in both Spain and Argentina. In this study, however, the majority of Argentines queriedgave only maza, but one from San Juan (in western Argentina) offered combo, and wenote that combo is the predominant usage in much of the Andean region. If combo is



29

commonly used in the sense of sledgehammer throughout Argentina, as the DEArg seemsto claim, why did only one Argentine in this study offer this term? If combo is regionallymarked within Argentina, in what regions is it commonly used?

Chile: The DECH confirms the use of combo, defining it as “Mazo pesado, generalmente de

hierro, provisto de un mango largo y una cabeza con los dos lados planos, igualmenteaptos para golpear...” Related concepts: Is mazo the word for “mallet” (short-handled hammer with a cylindrical head

made of rubber or wood) and for “gavel” (mallet or hammer used by a presiding officeror auctioneer to signal for attention or order) that is used throughout the Spanish-speaking world, or is there regional variation for these items as well?


DRAE grades: almádana (C), almádena (C), almádina (C), almágana (B), comba (D),combo (D), maceta (A), mandarria (B), marro (D), marrón (D), maza (D), mazo (D), porra (C

or D?). DRAE definitions: almádena, “(Del ár. hisp. almátana, y éste cruce del ár. clás. mi’dan yel ár hisp. patána, trasto, cacharro). Mazo de hierro con mango largo, para romper piedras”;almádana, “almádena”; almádina, “almádena”; almágana, “ Hond . almádena”; combo, “(Delquechua k’umpa, mazo de piedra). Am. [América] mazo (|| martillo grande de madera)”; maceta,“2. Martillo con cabeza de dos bocas iguales y mango corto que usan los canteros para golpear elcincel o puntero”; macho2, “(Del lat marcŭlus, martillo pequeño). Mazo grande que hay en lasherrerías para forjar el hierro”; mandarria, “(Quizá del it. dialect. mannara, hacha). Mar .[marina] Martillo o maza de hierro que usan los calafates para meter o sacar los pernos en loscostados de los buques. || 2. Cuba. Tipo de martillo muy pesado”; martinete, “(Del fr. martinet ).2. Mazo, generalmente de gran peso, para batir algunos metales, abatanar los paños, etc.”; maza,“(Del lat. vulg. *mattěa). 2. Instrumento de madera dura, parecido a la maza antigua de combate,que sirve para machacar el esparto y el lino, para otros usos”; mazo, “(De maza). Martillo grandede madera”; porra, “(Del lat. porrum, puerro, por la forma de esta planta). 3. Martillo de cabezasiguales y mango largo algo flexible, que se maneja con las dos manos a la vez.”

Comments: Regardless of which word is selected as the base term to which the remainingsynonyms could be cross-referenced, the sledgehammer should be defined as a type of heavymartillo (hammer), not as a type of mazo (mallet) made of metal as the DRAE has done. Thereare at least two reasons why martillo should be the fulcrum of the definition for thesledgehammer and not mazo. First, because martillo is a General Spanish word that everyoneunderstands to mean the same thing. If you tell Spanish speakers that an almágana, a combo, amandarria, a maza, or a mazo is a heavy martillo, they will instantly understand what you mean.The second reason is that mazo itself is defined in terms of martillo and is described assomething that is strictly made of wood. In the DRAE ’s handling of this item, its lexicographersand/or editors not only demonstrate their lack of familiarity with Spanish American usage (whichis not particularly surprising), but also show themselves to be unaware of the fact that mazo,maza and mandarria can refer to standard sledgehammers (with metal heads) in varieties ofPeninsular Spanish. The DRAE indicates that mandarria is used in the language of sailors(presumably Spanish sailors) to refer to a special type of hammer found on ships, and is also



30

used in the sense of sledgehammer in only one country, Cuba (see definition of mandarria insection A4.4 above). Yet it defines mandarriazo as “Cuba. Golpe que se da con la intención dehacer daño” and “2. coloq. Ven. Golpe dado con una mandarria o con cualquier tipo de martillo.”Sense two of mandarriazo clearly implies that mandarria is used with the meaning of

sledgehammer in Venezuela (which we know to be the case), but the DRAE editors failed tocatch this inconsistency in two definitions that are consecutive (mandarriazo is the very nextentry after mandarria), and thus failed to include “Ven.” in the regional specification of sensetwo of mandarria. This is just sloppy workmanship. Also, the definition of maceta, “Martillo concabeza... que usan los canteros para golpear el cincel o puntero” is too restrictive. To put it in thevernacular, there are lots of folks besides quarry workers and stonemasons who use macetas, andthey use ‘em for poundin’ lots of things that ain’t chisels.

A5 HACKSAW

A5.1 Summary Sierra __ with qualifiers such as de metal , para metal or de arco added for clarification ifnecessary __ is the predominant term in Spain, most Spanish-speaking countries of the SouthernHemisphere, and parts of Central America, that is, in roughly half the Spanish-speaking world. Inthe other half, in most countries of the Caribbean Basin, segueta is the term.

Note: Segueta appears in italics and, where the majority term, in boldface and italics.

A5.2 Terms by Country (2 base terms plus variants)

SPAIN sierra (11/11).MEXICO segueta (19/19).GUATEMALA sierra (13/17), segueta (5/17).EL SALVADOR sierra (16/18), segueta (3/18).HONDURAS segueta (11/16), sierra (5/16).

NICARAGUA sierra (14/15), segueta (3/15).COSTA RICA segueta (13/13).PANAMA segueta (12/12), sierra (2/12).CUBA segueta (16/16).DOMIN. REP. segueta (15/15).PUERTO RICO segueta (18/18).VENEZUELA segueta (13/15), sierra (2/15).COLOMBIA segueta (16/18), sierra (2/18).ECUADOR sierra (12/12).PERU sierra (16/16).BOLIVIA sierra (15/15).PARAGUAY sierra (8/8).URUGUAY sierra (10/10).



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ARGENTINA sierra (15/15).CHILE sierra (15/15).

A5.3 Details

General: In countries where sierra is commonly used in the sense of hacksaw, modifiers such asde arco, de metal , para metal(es), de/para hierro, de/para fierro, de/para acero,cortametales, cortahierro, etc. are added to sierra to the extent people have a need todistinguish hacksaws from other sierras such as power saws ( sierras eléctricas); thediminutive form sierrita is also sometimes used in the sense of hacksaw. The term segueta, in contrast, is already specific in the countries it is used, and does not require amodifier. In more technical and/or specific language, speakers may distinguish betweenthe hacksaw blade (la hoja) and the hacksaw frame (el arco de la sierra or el arco de la segueta), but see Colombia below for another possible scheme. The distinction betweenframe, blade and the two combined, however, is often not made as both items are

typically found and needed in their combined form (neither the frame nor the blade byitself is particularly useful). Thus, people typically say pásame la sierra or pásame la segueta and receive the entire apparatus, though if several different types of sierras areavailable, then speakers from the non- segueta countries would say pásame la sierra dearco or the pásame la sierra de metal , etc., to specify the hacksaw. In section A5.2above, only the short form sierra is presented, not the longer more specific terms such as sierra de arco. See saws in Appendix for other types of saws.

Mexico: The use of segueta is confirmed by the DEUMex, which defines it as “Herramientaconsistente en una hoja, por lo general de acero, recta, angosta y larga con numerososdientes puntiagudos en uno de sus bordes; la cual, sujeta a un armazón en forma demarco, se usa para cortar metal u otros materiales duros...”

Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras & Nicaragua: Varying degrees of competition between sierra and segueta were found in these four countries and, based on the data collected in thisstudy, sierra appears to be more common than segueta in Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua, whereas segueta appears to be more common than sierra in Honduras. Inthese four countries, how common is the use of segueta in the sense of hacksaw vis-à-vis sierra?

Colombia: Most respondents in this study indicated that segueta was the entire hacksaw, but twosaid they understood segueta to refer to the blade only and, when asked what the framewas, one said it was the sierra and the other that it was the marco or the arco.

Spelling of segueta: In countries where segueta is used in the sense of hacksaw, many peoplethink the word is spelled cegueta. This is probably due in part to the fact that the verbs segar and cegar are homophones in Latin American Spanish, and to confusion aboutwhich spelling corresponds to which meaning. Among less educated speakers, zegueta isalso a common spelling.


DRAE grades: segueta (D), sierra (A or D?).



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DRAE definitions: sierra, “Herramienta para cortar madera u otros objetos duros, quegeneralmente consiste en una hoja de acero dentada sujeta a una empuñadura”; segueta, “(De or.inc.) Sierra de marquetería”; marquetería, “(Del fr. marqueterie). Trabajo de ebanistería.”

Comments: The DRAE ’s general, all-purpose definition of sierra does not capture or

encompass the meaning of hacksaw because it describes a saw in which the blade is attached to ahandle, and a hacksaw’s blade is attached to a frame. Compare the AHD’s definition of hacksaw:“A saw consisting of a tough, fine-toothed blade stretched taut in a frame, used for cuttingmetal.” The DRAE needs to include a separate sense corresponding to hacksaw in its definitionsof both sierra and segueta, with appropriate regional specifications, and the DEUMex’sdescription of segueta would be an excellent model to follow.

A6 PLIERS A - REGULAR PLIERS, JOINT PLIERS, SLIP-JOINT PLIERS or

DIAGONAL PLIERS (standard, adjustable noncutting pliers)

A6.1 Summary Alicate(s) or pinza(s) are the most commonly used base terms for these types of pliers in manycountries, tenaza(s) in several Central American countries, and playo in Ecuador.

Note: Terms other than alicate(s) and pinza(s) appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.

A6.2 Terms by Country (4 terms plus variants)

SPAIN alicate(s) (8/11), tenaza(s) (2/11), pinzas (1/11).MEXICO pinza(s) (15/16), tenazas (1/16).GUATEMALA alicate (13/14), tenaza (2/14).EL SALVADOR tenaza(s) (15/15).HONDURAS tenaza (5/6), tenanza (1/6).

NICARAGUA tenaza(s) (10/12), alicate (2/12).COSTA RICA alicate (9/11), pinza (1/11), tenaza (1/11).PANAMA pinza(s) (7/9), alicate (2/9).CUBA alicate(s) (10/16), pinza(s) (5/16), tenaza (1/16).DOMIN. REP. alicate (15/15).PUERTO RICO alicate(s) (18/18).VENEZUELA alicate(s) (16/16).COLOMBIA alicate(s) (14/15), pinzas (1/15).ECUADOR playo (13/14), alicate (7/14).PERU alicate (13/13).BOLIVIA alicate (16/16).PARAGUAY pinza(s) (8/9), tenaza(s) (2/9).URUGUAY pinza(s) (8/9), tenaza (1/9).



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ARGENTINA pinza (13/15), tenaza (2/15).CHILE alicate (13/14), tenaza (2/14).

A6.3 Details

General: Both the singular and plural forms, alicate-alicates, pinza- pinzas and tenaza-tenazas,can refer to a single pair of pliers. In this study, the majority of respondents from mostcountries indicated the singular forms (i.e. alicate, pinza or tenaza) when referring to asingle pair of joint pliers, and in many cases the singular form was the unanimous choice:See GUATEMALA, HONDURAS, COSTA RICA, DOMIN. REP., ECUADOR , PERU, BOLIVIA,ARGENTINA and CHILE in section A6.2 above. However, more research needs to be doneto determine where each is more common and whether or not the singular forms are morefrequent in regions where word-final /s/ tends to be aspirated or deleted such as southernSpain and coastal areas of Spanish America. The modifiers común/comunes,universal(es) or mecánico(s) are sometimes added to alicate(s), pinza(s) and tenaza(s) to

specify joint pliers. In the léxico del habla culta studies, item 1402 is entitled TENAZAS and item 1403 ALICATES , but it is unclear what type of tool respondents were shown ineach case. See, for example, Torres Martínez pp. 224-225, Samper Padilla pp. 182,Otálora de Fernández pp. 341, or López Morales pp. 76.

Mexico: Although the use of pinza(s) in the sense of pliers is confirmed by the DEUMex, itdefines the instrument broadly as “sing o pl 1 Instrumento de distintos materiales yformas, compuesto por dos palancas unidas en un punto, cuyas puntas o extremos se uneno separan bajo la presión de los dedos y que sirve para agarrar algo con fuerza: ‘Aflojo latuerca con las pinzas’, pinzas para las cejas, ‘Se sacó la espina con una pinza’, pinza decirujano, pinzas para colgar ropa.” The fact that the term alicate is not listed in thisdictionary is also noteworthy and suggests that this term is not “usual” in Mexico.

Ecuador : Some Ecuadorans in this study made statements such as “ playo se dice vulgarmente”and described this term as “incorrecto” and “mal formado” and indicated that alicate isthe “correct” and “castizo” term. Others, however, indicated that playo is the only termfor adjustable pliers, whereas alicate(s) are nonadjustable, wire-cutting pliers (“linesman pliers”). Still others, including carpenters, plumbers, and other specialists accepted bothterms and indicated they are synonyms.

Related terms: See pliers in Appendix for information on other types of pliers.


DRAE grades: alicate(s) (A), pinza(s) (A), playo (A or D?), tenaza(s) (A). DRAE definitions: alicate, “(Del ár. hisp. *allaqqát , y este del ár. clás. Laqqāt , tenazas).

Tenaza pequeña de acero con brazos encorvados y puntas cuadrangulares o de forma de conotruncado, y que sirve para coger y sujetar objetos menudos o para torcer alambres, chapitasdelgadas o cosas parecidas. U. m. en pl. [Usado más en plural] con el mismo significado que ensing. [singular]”; alicate de corte, “El que tiene las puntas en forma de cuchillas y se emplea,sobre todo por los electricistas, para cortar cables”; pinza, “(Del fr. pince, tenaza). Instrumentocuyos extremos se aproximan para sujetar algo”; pinzas, “4. Instrumento de metal, a manera de



34

tenacillas, que sirve para coger o sujetar cosas menudas”; tenaza, “(Del lat. tenāces, pl. detenax). Instrumento de metal, compuesto de dos brazos trabados por un clavillo o eje que permiteabrirlos y volverlos a cerrar, que se usa para sujetar fuertemente una cosa, o arrancarla o cortarla.U. m. en pl. con el mismo significado que en sing”; playo, “(Del ingl. pliers). Ecuad . Especie de

tenazas pequeñas, generalmente con ranuras finas en sus extremos.” Comments: Spanish speakers from different regions seem to have different notions ofwhat types of tools the terms alicate(s), pinza(s) and tenaza(s) can refer to, differences that arenot captured by the DRAE ’s definitions of these terms. The DRAE defines playo as a specifictype of small pliers, but based on the Ecuadorans queried in this study, playos seem to come indifferent sizes, both large and small.

A7 PLIERS B - NEEDLENOSE PLIERS or LONGNOSE PLIERS

A7.1 Summary

Pinza and/or alicate, often with a modifier such as de punta or de pico, are the most commonlyused terms for needlenose pliers. Honduras, Nicaragua and Cuba have more regional usages.

Note: Terms other than pinza(s), alicate(s) __ or these terms with modifiers such as de punta, de pico or the less precise eléctrico(s)/eléctrica(s) __ appear in italics, and Honduras and Nicaragua’s picuda(s) in boldface and italics.

A7.2 Terms by Country (4 or 5 base terms and over 20 modifiers plus variants)

SPAIN alicate(s) de punta (6/13), alicate(s) (3/13), alicate de boca plana (1/13), alicate de

electricista (1/13), alicate de punta fina (1/13), alicate para electricidad (1/13), tenazas (1/13).MEXICO pinzas de punta (6/17), pinza(s) de pico (2/17), pinzas eléctricas (2/17), pinzas (1/17),

pinzas de cortar (1/17), pinzas de corte (1/17), pinza de electricista (1/17), pinza de nariz

(1/17), pinzas para alambre (1/17), pinzas para cortar (1/17).GUATEMALA pinza(s) (13/15), alicate (1/15), pinzas de punta (1/15).EL SALVADOR pinza(s) (11/15), tenaza de punta (2/15), alicate (1/15), pinzas de punta (1/15), pinzas

picudas (1/15).HONDURAS picuda(s) (6/11), pinza (2/11), alicate (1/11), tenanza de punta (1/11), tenaza de pico

(1/11). NICARAGUA picuda(s) (8/15), alicate (4/15), pinza (4/15), tenaza de punta (2/15), tenaza

picuda (2/15).COSTA RICA alicate de punta(s) (8/11), alicate de tenaza (1/11), pinzas (1/11), pinza eléctrica (1/11).PANAMA pinza(s) de punta (4/9), alicate de punta (3/9), pinza de pico largo (1/9),

pinza eléctrica (1/9), pinzas narizonas (1/9).CUBA pinza(s) (5/16), pinza (punta) de garza (3/16), alicates de punta fina (1/16), alicate

pinza (1/16), alicate punta de garza (1/16), pinza de corte (1/16), pinza de pico de loro (1/16), pinza punta de ganso (1/16), tenazas (1/16).

DOMIN. REP. pinza (17/18), alicate de pinza (1/18).



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PUERTO RICO pinza(s) (14/20), alicate de punta (2/20), alicate de alambre (1/20), alicate de pinzas

(1/20), pinzas de nariz larga (1/20), pinzas para electricidad (1/20).VENEZUELA pinza(s) (14/16), alicate(s) de punta (3/16), alicate de pinza (2/16).COLOMBIA pinza(s) (12/17), pinza(s) (de) punta (2/17), alicate (1/17), alicate de punta (1/17),

cortapinzas (1/17), pinza cortafrío (1/17).ECUADOR pinza(s) (8/10), alicate (1/10), pinza punta redonda (1/10).PERU alicate de punta(s) (6/15), pinza(s) (5/15), alicate (de) pinza (2/15), alicate eléctrico

(1/15), tenaza (1/15).BOLIVIA alicate (de) punta (8/14), pinza (3/14), alicate con punta (1/14), alicate de punta fina

(1/14), alicate pinza (1/14), lorito (1/14).PARAGUAY pinza(s) (2/9), pinzas de punta (2/9), pinza eléctrica (2/9), alicates de punta

(1/9), pinza puntiaguda (1/9), tenaza (1/9).URUGUAY pinza(s) de punta (3/9), alicate(s) (3/9), pinza (1/9), pinza punta fina (1/9),

pinza puntiaguda (1/9).ARGENTINA pinza de punta (9/13), alicate (2/13), pinza(s) (2/13), pinza de pico fino (1/13).

CHILE alicate de punta(s) (9/15), pinza(s) (5/15), alicate de tenaza (1/15), alicate pinza(1/15).

A7.3 Details

General: Most of the Spanish speakers queried in this study can be divided into two categorieswith respect to the two types of pliers tested. We could call “Type A” those speakers whouse the same base term for needlenose pliers as for joint pliers, but to the former they adda modifier such as de punta or de pico. Such speakers appear to view needlenose pliers asa type of pinza or alicate. “Type B” speakers, in contrast, would be those who use one base term for joint pliers and a different base term for needlenose pliers. They conceivethe two tools differently, that is, they do not view needlenose pliers as a type of joint pliers, as Type A speakers and some speakers of United States English do (who wouldcall joint pliers “regular pliers” or “ordinary pliers”). There also appear to be some Spanish speakers, whom we could call “Type C” speakers, who use one base term for joint pliers and use a compound term for needlenose pliers that has a different base termfrom the one they use for the joint pliers. The key to understanding how the termsalicate(s), pinza(s), etc. function in the different varieties of Spanish, however, may bedetermining the names used for “linesman pliers” (nonadjustable cutting pliers), a typethat, unfortunately, was not tested in this study. See pliers in Appendix.

Type A speakers (same base term for joint and needlenose pliers): Based on the data collected inthis study, Spaniards, Costa Ricans and Bolivians generally call joint pliers alicate(s) andneedlenose pliers alicate(s) de punta or alicate(s) followed by some other modifier.Mexicans and Argentines typically call joint pliers pinza(s) and needlenose pliers pinza(s) de punta or pinza(s) followed by another modifier. (¿Quién dijo que losmexicanos y los argentinos no tienen nada en común?)

Type B speakers (different base term for joint and needlenose pliers): In contrast to Type Aspeakers, this study suggests that Guatemalans, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, Venezuelansand Colombians generally call joint pliers alicate(s) and needlenose pliers pinza(s);



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Salvadorans typically call joint pliers tenazas and needlenose pliers pinza(s); Nicaraguansand Hondurans joint pliers tenazas and needlenose pliers picudas; and Ecuadorans joint pliers playo and needlenose pliers pinza(s). The term picuda(s), however, appears to bean ellipsis of tenaza(s) picuda(s) and therefore, in a sense, Nicaraguans and Hondurans

could be viewed as “Type A.” Type C speakers (different base terms and a modifier is added to needlenose pliers): SomePanamanians in this study called joint pliers pinza(s) and needlenose pliers alicate de punta. More research needs to be done to determine if Type C speakers are predominantin any particular country or region.

United States English: In United States English, there may be a technical difference between theterms “needlenose pliers” and “longnose pliers” (which can also be spelled “needle nose pliers” or “needle-nose pliers” and “long nose pliers” or “long-nose pliers,” respectively)in that “needlenose pliers” have extra thin grippers whereas “longnose pliers” may be amore generic term (“needlenose pliers” would be a type of “longnose pliers”). In practice,“needlenose pliers” is probably the most commonly used term in everyday, nontechnical

language for any pliers that have fairly long thin grippers, wher eas “longnose pliers” isthe term most often used for this general class of pliers in the Home Depot and AceHardware online catalogues at www.homedepot.com and www.acehardware.com,respectively. In these websites, there are pliers called “long needle nose pliers,” “longchain nose pliers” and “curved nose pliers” (with the tips of the grippers offset at anangle), and one company, X2, even manufactures a pair of “long nose slip joint pliers”that do not appear to be very common as many other manufacturers do not seem to makethem.


Questions/Comments: The DRAE does not describe needlenose pliers in its definitions ofany of the terms presented in section A7.2 above. Should it? Using English-languagelexicography as a point of comparison, we note that the EWD also does not define specific typesof pliers. However, near its definition for pliers, it includes illustrations of slip-joint pliers,needlenose pliers and vise grips. The AHD neither defines needlenose or longnose pliers norincludes a picture of them, and an argument can be made that one can deduce the meaning ofthese terms from the meaning of “pliers,” “needle,” “nose” and “long.” The same would apply inSpanish to terms like alicates de punta and pinzas de punta. The problem is that the DRAE seeksto be international in scope and the terms alicate(s) and pinza(s) mean different things todifferent Spanish speakers. Other types of pliers such as “linesman pliers” or “lineman pliers”(nonadjustable or solid-joint cutting pliers) are less transparent because they are associativerather than descriptive and because the association “lineman” or “linesman” (person who repairselectrical or telephone cables) may be less well known than the name of the pliers. Although itwould be helpful if the DRAE provided a picture of the three or four most common types of pliers next to its definition of pliers (with a legend that indicated which is which), if you startdown that path, you must be prepared to seriously address variant terms and regional variation. Itis interesting to note that the AHD and the EWD both define a few types of wrenches (see sectionA9.4 below), but not different types of pliers.



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A8 WRENCH A - CRESCENT WRENCH / ADJUSTABLE WRENCH

A8.1 Summary Llave ajustable and llave inglesa are each used in a dozen or more countries, and llave francesa in at least a half dozen. Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Colombia and Bolivia havehighly regional terms.

Note: Terms other than llave inglesa, llave francesa, llave ajustable (and its variant llave deajuste) appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.

A8.2 Terms by Country (c. 13 terms plus variants)

SPAIN llave inglesa (13/13).MEXICO perica (7/20), perico (7/20), llave perica (6/20), llave (de) perico (2/20).GUATEMALA cangrejo (10/13), llave (de) cangrejo (3/13), llave de graduación (1/13).EL SALVADOR cangreja (13/14), llave cangreja (1/14).HONDURAS llave ajustable (9/9), llave inglesa (1/9).

NICARAGUA (l lave) cr esen (10/11), llave ajustable (2/11).COSTA RICA llave francesa (11/12), llave ajustable (1/12).PANAMA llave de ajuste (4/9), llave inglesa (3/9), llave ajustable (2/9).CUBA llave ajustable (3/10), llave de expansión (3/10), llave de (ex)tensión (2/10), llave

inglesa (2/10).DOMIN. REP. llave ajustable (14/16), (llave) pico (de) cotorra (6/16), crayson (2/16), llave

pico de loro (1/16).PUERTO RICO llave ajustable (6/11), (llave) cresen (3/11), llave de ajuste (1/11), llave inglesa

(1/11).VENEZUELA llave ajustable (8/10), llave inglesa (3/10).COLOMBIA l lave de expansión (14/22), llave alemana (7/22), llave inglesa (5/22), llave

ajustable (2/22), llave expansiva (2/22), llave de extensión (1/22), llave de graduación (1/22),llave de pestón (1/22), llave pico de loro (1/22).

ECUADOR llave francesa (9/10), llave inglesa (2/10).PERU llave francesa (6/11), llave inglesa (5/11), pico de loro (1/11).BOLIVIA l lave cresen (12/16), llave inglesa (5/16), llave crésel (1/16).PARAGUAY llave inglesa (7/8), llave ajustable (1/8), llave francesa (1/8).URUGUAY llave francesa (6/9), llave inglesa (2/9), llave ajustable (1/9).ARGENTINA llave inglesa (12/20), llave francesa (7/20), llave ajustable (1/20).CHILE llave francesa (7/9), llave inglesa (2/9).



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A8.3 Details

General: Given the proper context, terms such as llave ajustable, llave francesa and llaveinglesa, etc. can and often do get reduced to (una/la) ajustable, (una/la) francesa and

(una/la) inglesa, respectively, for the sake of efficiency and under the principle of “entre buenos entendedores, media palabra basta.” In some cases, the ellipsis __ la cresen (Nicaragua) or la perica (Mexico) __ may be more common than the full form (la llavecresen or la llave perica), while in others the derived forms __ la cangreja (El Salvador) orel cangrejo (Guatemala) __ appear to be much more common than their etymologies, lallave (de) cangreja or la llave (de) cangrejo, respectively.

Llave inglesa: Although llave inglesa was offered by respondents from many countries in thesense of crescent wrench, many others stated that llave inglesa refers to a monkeywrench. A monkey wrench (see Figure A8'' in Illustrations) is one in which theadjustment opens and closes along an axis that is parallel to the shaft of the wrench,unlike the crescent wrench in which the adjustment opens and closes along an axis

perpendicular to the shaft. In other words, a monkey wrench functions like a pipe wrench(see Figure A9 in Illustrations), but without the teeth in the gripping mechanism.However, since monkey wrenches are no longer as common as crescent wrenches, theterm llave inglesa now seems to be applied to crescent wrenches in many parts of theSpanish-speaking world, although perhaps not by some professionals who use both typesof wrench and therefore maintain a terminological distinction. The confusion regardingthe meaning of llave inglesa is further complicated by the fact that it can also refer to a pipe wrench. See section A9 below.

Mexico: The use of perico is confirmed by the DEUMex, which defines it as “II 1 Herramientacon que se aprietan o aflojan tuercas, que tiene dos picos curvos, ajustados por un tornillosin fin.” The terms perica and perico are an ellipsis of llave (de) perica and llave (de) perico, respectively, and all of these can be considered variants of each other.

Cuba: Llave ajustable, llave de expansión and/or llave inglesa were the three terms given by themajority of respondents in this study when shown a picture of a crescent wrench.However, the DRAE defines picoloro as the Cuban term for crescent wrench or perhapsmonkey wrench (see section A8.4 below). The DECu, in contrast, seems to define picoloro as “groove joint pliers” or “tongue and groove pliers” (see pliers in Appendix):“Herramienta para aflojar y apretar tuercas, que consiste en unas pinzas largas quesemejan el pico de un loro.” What does picoloro refer to in Cuba and which terms aremost commonly used in Cuba to refer to a crescent wrench?

Dominican Republic: Llave ajustable was given by the largest number of respondents in thisstudy. Llave pico de cotorra, llave pico cotorra, pico de cotorra and pico cotorra (or picocotorra) can be considered variants of each other and, viewed collectively, was thesecond-most frequently offered term.

Colombia: Llave de expansión and llave alemana were the two most frequently offered terms inthis study. One Colombian indicated that llave alemana is the older, more traditional termand is being replaced by llave de expansión.



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Bolivia: Most respondents gave the spelling of llave cresen, but some indicated llave crecen. Theorigin of this term, as we know, is English “crescent wrench” and/or the brand nameCrescent.

Related terms: For information on “flat wrenches” or “rigid wrenches,” see wrench A in

Appendix.United States English: In the United States, “adjustable wrench” is the official term for this typeof wrench, the one that appears in catalogues and on the product packaging, but “crescentwrench” (from the brand name Crescent) is the term most commonly used b y Americansin this sense. An argument can also be made that for Americans “crescent wrench” is amore precise/specific term than “adjustable wrench” since “pipe wrenches” (see sectionA9 below) and “monkey wrenches” (see Figure A8" in Illustrations), though notgenerally called “adjustable wrenches,” are also adjustable.


DRAE grades: ajustable (D), cangreja (D), cangrejo (D), cresen (F), llave ajustable (F),llave alemana (F), llave cresen (F), llave de ajuste (F), llave de expansión (F), llave francesa (F),llave inglesa (A), llave perica (F), llave pico cotorra (F), perica (D), perico (D).

DRAE definitions: llave, “2. Instrumento que sirve para apretar o aflojar tuercas”; llaveinglesa, “Instrumento de hierro de forma de martillo, en cuyo mango hay un dispositivo que, algirar, abre o cierra más o menos las dos partes que forman la cabeza, hasta que se aplican a latuerca o tornillo que se quiere mover”; picoloro, “Cuba. llave inglesa (|| instrumento de hierro para mover tuercas o tornillos).”

Questions/Comments: The DRAE does not define most of the terms used in the sense ofcrescent wrench including such classics as llave ajustable, llave francesa, llave cresen,cangrejo/a and perico/a. Even its definition of llave inglesa, the term that appears to be used inSpain for both crescent wrench and monkey wrench, describes only the latter type. In addition,its definition of picoloro does not match up with the DECu’s definition of the same term (seeCuba in section A8.3 above). ¿Quién tiene la razón aquí, y quién metió la pata? ¿Quién laembarró?

A9 WRENCH B - PIPE WRENCH

A9.1 Summary

Llave inglesa, llave estilson, llave de (or para) tubo(s), and/or llave de plomería (or de plomero)and variants of these are the most commonly used terms.

Note: Terms other than llave inglesa, llave estilson, llave de tubo(s), llave para tubo(s), llave de plomería, and llave de plomero appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface anditalics.



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SPAIN llave (de) grifa (3/8), llave de tubo(s) (3/8), llave de fontanero (1/8), llavede plomería (1/8).

MEXICO (llave) estilson (19/21), llave de pipa (1/21), llave de plomero (1/21).GUATEMALA (llave) estilson (9/12), llave de tubo (3/12).EL SALVADOR (llave) estilson (11/12), llave de cañería (1/12).HONDURAS llave de tubo (6/11), (llave) estilson (3/11), llave inglesa (2/11), llave de agua

(1/11). NICARAGUA (llave) estilson (11/11), llave de tubo (1/11).COSTA RICA l lave (de) cañería (10/16), llave inglesa (4/16), llave de tubería (3/16), llave

de plomería (2/16), llave cabeza de mula (1/16), llave de agua (1/16).PANAMA llave de tubo (6/8), llave de plomería (1/8), llave inglesa (1/8).CUBA (llave) pico (de) loro (5/14), (llave) estilson (4/14), llave inglesa (4/14),

llave de tubo (2/14), llave de plomería (1/14), llave de tubería (1/14).

DOMIN. REP. (llave) estilson (12/14), llave inglesa (2/14).PUERTO RICO l lave de perro (10/15), llave de perra (2/15), llave (de) plomero (2/15), llave inglesa

(2/15), estilson (1/15).VENEZUELA llave de tubo (6/13), llave inglesa (6/13), llave de plomería (1/13), llave para

tubería (1/13).COLOMBIA llave (de) tubo(s) (7/14), llave inglesa (3/14), llave para tubo(s) (2/14), (llave) pico

de loro (2/14), llave de agua (1/14), llave de paso (1/14).ECUADOR llave (de) tubo (8/11), llave inglesa (3/11), llave de tubería (1/11), llave estilson

(1/11), llave para tubo (1/11).PERU (llave) estilson (10/14), llave inglesa (7/14).BOLIVIA (llave) estilson (12/14), llave inglesa (1/14), llave para cañerías (1/14).PARAGUAY llave francesa (3/8), llave de plomero (2/8), llave para cañerías (1/8),

llave para tubos (1/8), llave tuberías de agua (1/8), llave tubo (1/8).URUGUAY llave inglesa (5/6), l lave de caño (3/6).ARGENTINA llave inglesa (5/14), llave para caños (3/14), llave de plomero (3/14), llave

(de) caño (3/14), llave estilson (2/14), llave francesa (1/14).CHILE (llave) estilson (6/13), llave inglesa (6/13), llave francesa (3/13).

A9.3 Details

Llave estilson: Llave estilson derives from the brand name “Stillson” and is often abbreviated toestilson. The term is feminine, una estilson, since the word llave is feminine. Other phonetic/spelling variants that were offered by a few respondents from a number ofcountries included llave estimson and estimson, llave tilson and tilson, and llave tirso andtirso. In addition to phonetic change/distortion, there is also a wide range of spellings thatrespondents offered including stilson, stillson, stylson, etc., and these forms spelled withinitial uppercase s. As is the case with many words of foreign origin that are used more inspeech than in writing, there is a fair amount of linguistic insecurity regarding the writtenform.



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Spain: The use of llave grifa in the sense of pipe wrench is confirmed by the DRAE (see sectionA9.4 below).

Cuba: In this study, picoloro, and its variants llave pico de loro, llave pico loro, and pico de loro,as well as llave estilson (and estilson) and llave inglesa were the terms offered by the

majority of respondents. However, the DRAE and the DECu indicate that picoloro refersto other tools and their definitions contradict each other (see sections A8.3 and A8.4above).

Argentina: In this study, llave para caños, llave de plomero and/or llave inglesa were given bythe majority of respondents in the sense of pipe wrench. The DEArg , however, definesllave prusiana as “Herramienta de metal, que se emplea para enroscar y desenroscarcañerías.” Although not a particularly precise description, this sounds like a pipe wrench.Is it? If so, how common is the use of llave prusiana in this sense vis-à-vis llave paracaños, llave de plomero and llave inglesa?


DRAE grades: estilson (F), llave de cañería (F), llave de caño (F), llave de fontanero (F),llave de perro (F), llave de plomería (F), llave de plomero (F), llave de tubo (F), llave estilson(F), llave francesa (F), llave grifa (C), llave inglesa (D), llave para caños (F), llave pico (de)loro (F), pico (de) loro (D).

DRAE definition: llave grifa, “llave semejante a la inglesa, usada en fontanería.” Comments: The DRAE should provide a full description of llave grifa that is independent

of the term llave inglesa for several reasons. First, llave inglesa means different things todifferent people, and even if we limit ourselves to Peninsular Spanish usage, the term llaveinglesa is often used in Spain to refer to a crescent wrench, which is dissimilar to a pipe wrenchin that the shapes are different and the crescent wrench does not have teeth while the pipewrench does. Also, as a general principle, if you can tell dictionary users exactly what a thing is,you should tell them what it is and not what it is like. In other words, when dictionary users lookup the word llave grifa, they should not be told it is like a llave inglesa, but should be told what allave grifa is. Compare the AHD’s definition of pipe wrench: “A wrench with two serrated jaws,one adjustable, for gripping and turning pi pe.” Voilà, simplicity itself.

A10 CROWBAR, WRECKING BAR, PRY BAR

A10.1 Summary

Pata de cabra (and phonetic variants such as pata cabra, paticabra, etc.) and/or palanca areused in the majority of countries and can perhaps be considered General Spanish terms. Moreregional terms include barra, barreta, pata de chancho and uña. Mexico has a particularlyimpressive arsenal of regional terms and both Mexico and Chile have unique usages not foundelsewhere.



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Note: Terms other than pata de cabra and palanca appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.


SPAIN palanca (7/15), pata (de) cabra (6/15), palanqueta (3/15).MEXICO barra (10/26), chiva (9/26), barreta (7/26), pata (de) cabra (6/26), pata de

chiva (3/26), barra de chiva (3/26), uña (3/26), chiva de barra (2/26), barra deuña (1/26), barreta de uña (1/26), grifa (1/26), palanqueta (1/26), pata de chivo (1/26), pie dechivo (1/26), sacaclavos (1/26), uña de cabra (1/26).

GUATEMALA uña (15/18), barreta (2/18), palanca (1/18).EL SALVADOR barra de uña (13/17), pata (de) cabra (3/17), uña (2/17), llave de uña (1/17), uña

de gato (1/17).HONDURAS barra de uña (6/14), pata (de) cabra (5/14), barra (2/14), sacaclavos (2/14),

palanca (1/14), sacauñas (1/14). NICARAGUA pata de chancho (13/13).COSTA RICA pata de chancho (14/14).PANAMA pata (de) cabra (9/14), palanca (4/14), barra (2/14), barra pata de cabra (2/14).CUBA pata (de) cabra (18/19), palanca (1/19).DOMIN. REP. pata (de) cabra (16/18), pie de cabra (1/18), pies cabra (1/18).PUERTO RICO pata (de) cabra (11/17), barra (de carpintero) (3/17), cuña (3/17), uña

(2/17), palanca (1/17).VENEZUELA pata (de) cabra (15/15).COLOMBIA pata (de) cabra (15/24), palanca (8/24), barra (4/24), palanca pata de cabra

(2/24), barreta (1/24), uña (1/24).ECUADOR pata (de) cabra (15/19), barretilla (3/19), barreta (2/19), llave de uña (1/19),

palanca (1/19), tumbapuertas (1/19), uña de cabra (1/19).PERU pata (de) cabra (12/20), palanca (5/20), barreta (2/20), barretilla (1/20), pata de

gallo (1/20), sacaclavos (1/20).BOLIVIA pata (de) cabra (10/17), barreta (7/17), barreta pata de cabra (1/17), diablo (1/17),

palanca (1/17).PARAGUAY pata (de) cabra (6/9), palanca (4/9), barreta (1/9), barra (1/9), pie de

cabra (1/9).URUGUAY uña (6/9), barra (1/9), barreta (1/9), palanca (1/9), pata de cabra (1/9),

uña de gato (1/9).ARGENTINA barreta (15/22), barra (2/22), palanca (2/22), pata de cabra (2/22), sacaclavos (2/22).CHILE diablo (12/16), diablito (3/16), pata de cabra (3/16), barreta (1/16).

A10.3 Details

General: The term pata de cabra is often pronounced and written in variant forms such as patecabra, paticabra, pat’ecabra, etc. These phonetic/spelling variants are not indicatedin section A10.2 above and are represented there by the one umbrella term pata de cabra.Similar variants may also occur with pata de chancho and pata de chivo, though in thisstudy no modified spellings were offered. Respondents from several countries indicated



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that a ganzúa is a type of small bar that can be used by thieves to break locks and opendoors (perhaps equivalent to what in the United States is called a “jimmy”), but it is notclear how universal the use of ganzúa is in this sense. The DRAE defines palanqueta in away that suggests it may also be a synonym of ganzúa (see section A10.4 below).

Although the term barra was offered by a number of respondents from diverse regions inthe sense of crowbar, many others stated that a barra is not a crowbar but refers to othertypes of bars that do not have a “claw” for removing nails.

Spain: What, if any, are the differences in meaning between and regional distributions of palanca, palanqueta and pata de cabra? Is palanqueta used in the sense of jimmy, as itsname (a diminutive of palanca) implies? Five of the six Spaniards who gave pata decabra were from Galicia, but one was from Valencia. Those who gave palanca did nothail from any single region, which suggests it may constitute General Peninsular Spanishusage.

Mexico: Barra, and its variants, and chiva, and its variants, are the most commonly used terms,and barra de chiva and chiva de barra can be considered variants of both barra and

chiva. One respondent from Puebla indicated that a chiva is smaller than a barra. The DEUMex defines barra as a different tool that does not have a claw for removing nailsand does not define barreta, chiva, pata de cabra or pata de chiva in the sense ofcrowbar. What are the regional preferences within Mexico among the different terms forthis item?

Honduras: Many respondents indicated that a barra de uña and a pata de cabra are synonymous, but one said that a barra de uña is a smaller crowbar than a pata de cabra, and oneindicated that a barra de uña was a “flat bar” (see bars in Appendix).

Costa Rica: The use of pata de chancho is confirmed by the NDCR (Quesada Pacheco), whichdefines it as “[Carp.] Utensilio de trabajo que es de hierro y tiene en un extremo una uñalarga, el cual se utiliza para sacar clavos o desarmar construcciones hechas con tablas.”

Cuba: The DECu confirms the use of pata de cabra, defining it as “Barra corta de acero con unextremo plano y el otro curvo, con una uña en forma de V, que se utiliza generalmente para hacer palanca, p. ej. para abrir una puerta” but does not indicate a PeninsularSpanish equivalent. One respondent indicated that an esparraguillo is a small pata decabra.

Dominican Republic: Pata de cabra was offered by the vast majority of respondents. The twothat offered pie de cabra or pies cabra ( piescabra) were from el Cibao, but several otherCibaeños gave pata de cabra.

Venezuela: The DHAV confirms the use of pata de cabra, defining it as “Herramienta queconsiste en una barra de metal con uno de los extremos terminado en una punta unguladaque se utiliza principalmente en labores de demolición.”

Colombia: Pata (de) cabra and palanca are the two most commonly used terms, and palanca pata de cabra can be considered a variant of both.

Chile: The DECH confirms the use of both diablo and diablito in the sense of crowbar. It listsdiablo as a synonym of diablito, which it defines as “Barreta de fierro provista de unmango largo con un extremo curvado y partido en forma de V, que se emplea como palanca para separar elementos firmemente unidos... ‘Confesó haber asesinado a sucónyuge con un diablito de fierro’... Var [variante]: diablo.” It appears that for some



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Chileans diablo is the unspecified term and diablito a diminutive, whereas for othersdiablito is the base term __ it is a diminutive that has been lexicalized __ and diablitito would be the first-order diminutive form. More research needs to be done on this point and onthe relative frequencies of the two competing unmarked forms.

Related terms: For information on “flat bars” and “nail pullers” (“cat’s paws”), see bars inAppendix.


DRAE grades: barra (D), barra de chiva (F), barra de uña (F), barreta (D), cuña (D),chiva (D), diablo (D), diablito (D), palanca (D), palanqueta (C?), pata de cabra (B), pata dechancho (F), sacaclavos (D), uña (D), uña de cabra (F).

DRAE definitions: palanca, “(Del lat. palanga, y este del gr... garrote). Barra inflexible,recta, angular o curva, que se apoya y puede girar sobre un punto, y sirve para transmitir unafuerza”; barreta1, “Barra o palanca pequeña de hierro que usan los mineros, los albañiles, etc.”;

palanqueta, “(Del dim. de palanca). Barreta de hierro que sirve para forzar las puertas o lascerraduras”; pata de cabra, “3. Perú. Herramienta de hierro usada en albañilería, con dos uñas,que sirve para sacar clavos y palanquear”; pie de cabra, “Palanqueta hendida por uno de susextremos en forma de dos uñas u orejas”; sacaclavos, “herramienta para sacar clavos”; serrucha,“jerg. Hond . ganzúa (|| garfio para abrir cerraduras).”

Comments: Asserting that pata de cabra with the meaning of crowbar is a regionalism ofPeru alone is nothing short of absurd, and what is noteworthy is that the DRAE does not providethe reader with a Peninsular Spanish or a Castilian equivalent of pata de cabra. This combinedwith the fact that the definition of pata de cabra states this tool is used in masonry but not otherfields (such as carpentry, especially demolition) leads one to believe that the DRAE editors/lexicographers who wrote this definition were virtually clueless about what a crowbar isand what the geographic distributions of the terms used for it are. Compare the DHAV ’sdefinition of pata de cabra in Venezuela above, which aptly states that the tool is used indemolition. The DRAE should probably acknowledge pata de cabra as the General Spanish termas it is used in practically all twenty Spanish-speaking countries, including Spain (though perhaps not common in Castilla), and should cross-reference all other terms to pata de cabra,with appropriate regional specifications. The other option would be to define palanca as the baseterm and cross-reference all other terms to it.

A11 CLAMP (such as a “C-clamp,” “pipe clamp” or “bar clamp”)

A11.1 Summary

Prensa __ with modifiers such as manual or de mano, etc. added for clarification __ is the mostcommonly used term.

Terms other than prensa and its variants appear in italics, and Cuba’s sargento in boldface anditalics.



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SPAIN gato (5/11), prensa (de tornillo) (2/11), torniqueta (2/11), torniquete (1/11), torno portátil

(1/11).MEXICO prensa (de mano/manual) (13/14), abrazadera (1/14), gendarme (1/14), prensadora

(1/14), sargento (1/14).GUATEMALA prensa (de mano/manual) (8/11), prensadora (1/11), sargento (1/11), torno (1/11).EL SALVADOR prensa (de mano/manual) (8/12), sargento (3/12), abrazadora (1/12), ajustador

(1/12), prensa de tornillo (1/12).HONDURAS prensa (de mano/manual) (7/7).

NICARAGUA prensa (de mano/manual) (6/8), prensa portátil (1/8), sargento (1/8).COSTA RICA prensa (de mano/manual) (5/11), sargento (5/11), prensa de carpintero (1/11).PANAMA prensa (de mano/manual) (7/8), abrazadera (1/8).CUBA sargento (6/9), presilla (2/9), abrazadera (1/9), torniquete (1/9).

DOMIN. REP. prensa (de mano/manual) (7/11), sargento (6/11).PUERTO RICO prensa (de mano/manual) (7/11), sargento (3/11), prensa de sargento (1/11).VENEZUELA prensa (de mano/manual) (6/10), sargento (2/10), pinza ajustable (1/10), torniquete

(1/10).COLOMBIA prensa (de mano/manual) (10/11), prensa de carpintería (1/11).ECUADOR prensa (de mano/manual) (9/10), prensadora (1/10).PERU prensa (de mano/manual) (7/10), prensadora (2/10), tornillo de presión (1/10).BOLIVIA prensa (de mano/manual) (10/10).PARAGUAY prensa (de mano/manual) (2/7), torniquete (2/7), prensador (1/7), prensa

portátil (1/7), sargento (1/7).URUGUAY prensa (de mano/manual) (5/7), morsa (chica) (3/7).ARGENTINA prensa (de mano/manual) (9/12), morsa (de mano) (2/12), prensa de mordaza (1/12),

sargento (1/12).CHILE prensa (de mano/manual) (9/10), abrazadera (1/10).

A11.3 Details

General: The item tested on respondents was a C-clamp (see Figure A11 in Illustrations). Prensa: The modifiers de mano, manual , portátil and others can be added to prensa to

distinguish “clamps” from “vises” (which are often called prensas de banco or prensasde mesa), and from other meanings of the word prensa. Vises (see section A12 below)are similar to clamps but are attached to a work bench or other structure and generallyhave a larger gripping surface.

Morsa: The DEArg (Argentina) defines morsa as “Especie de prensa pequeña que emplean, entreotros, los carpinteros y los mecánicos, para mantener sujetas las piezas sobre las cualestrabajan” and the NDU (Uruguay) defines morsa almost identically. In this study,however, most Argentines and Uruguayans queried indicated that a morsa generallyrefers to a “vise” rather than a “clamp.” Whether the word generally refers to a clamp, avise, or either one, River Plate Spanish morsa most likely derives from Italian, a language



46

in which mòrsa means clamp or vise: The Vocabolario della Lingua Italiana (Zingarelli)indicates that Italian mòrsa derives from morso from the verb mordere, to bite, anddefines mòrsa as a vise as follows: “[f. sost. di morso (2); 1582] 1 Attrezzo fissato altavalo da lavoro, costituito da una ganascia fissa e una ganascia mobile, le quali blocano,

mediante un dispositivo a vite, il pezzo da lavorare: m. parallela; m. a coda; m. a piede.”The Dizionario della Lingua Italiana (Istituto Geografico de Agostini) defines mòrsa as“1. strumento di ferro o di legno, formato da due ganasce, una fissa e l’altra mobile, conil quale si tiene fermo il pezzo da lavorar e,” which suggests that mòrsa can refer to eithera clamp or a vise. The massive Italian immigration to the Buenos Aires-Montevideoregion at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century also lends credence to thenotion that River Plate Spanish morsa derives from Italian mòrsa. Nevertheless,questions remain such as how, and to what extent, morsa was able to displace words oftraditional Spanish stock such as prensa and torn(ill)o, and how the different termscompete in the interior of Argentina and Uruguay, regions that have less Italian influence.See Argentina and Uruguay in section A14.3 below for a similar case, fratacho/ fretacho.

Sargento: The DECu (Cuba) defines sargento as “Prensa manual que se usa en carpintería paramantener fija una pieza, p. ej. después de que ha sido encolada.” In this study, Cuba wasthe only country from which a majority of respondents, when shown a picture of a C-clamp, indicated it was called a sargento. One Cuban, however, indicated that a presillaC is a C-clamp and a sargento is a pipe clamp. And both an Argentine respondent and aCosta Rican respondent indicated that a sargento refers specifically to a “pipe clamp” butnot to a “C-clamp” (or any other type of clamp). Two Salvadorans, however, stated theycall a C-clamp a sargento, and a third Salvadoran said a sargento is a type of C-shapedspring clamp used by masons for holding forms together (a clamp that works by springaction, not with a screw).

C-clamps: Many respondents indicated that prensa C is used for a C-clamp, and a few indicatedother base terms followed by C , but some indicated prensa G. While it is not particularlyfruitful to argue over whether a C-clamp is shaped more like a C or more like a G, itwould be interesting to find out where the modifier C is more common, where G is morecommon, and where a separate term (such as sargento) is more common.


DRAE grades: gato (C), morsa (B), prensa (A?), sargento (D). DRAE definitions: gato, “4. Instrumento de hierro que sirve para agarrar fuertemente la

madera y traerla a donde se pretende. Se usa para echar aros a las cubas, y en el oficio de portaventanero. || 11. Carp. Instrumento de hierro o de madera compuesto de dos planchas conun tornillo que permite aproximarlas de modo que quede fuertemente sujeta la pieza que se cogeentre ambas”; morsa2, “ Arg . Instrumento que sirve para sujetar piezas que se trabajan encarpintería, herrería, etc., compuesto de dos brazos paralelos unidos por un tornillo sin fin que, algir ar, las acerca”; prensa, “Máquina que sirve para comprimir, cuya forma varía según los usos aque se aplica”; tornillo, “2. Instrumento con que se mantienen sujetas las piezas que se estántrabajando, por medio de dos topes, uno fijo y otro móvil.”



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Questions/Comments: Should gato, morsa, prensa and/or sargento be cross-referenced toeach other? The evidence suggests that at least some of these can refer to the same thing, but youwouldn’t know that from reading the DRAE ’s definitions of these terms. The DRAE indicatesthat the origin of General Spanish morsa1 (the walrus) is Finish or Lap by way of French (“Del

fr. morse, y este del finés mursu o del lapón morssa”), but no etymology is provided for RiverPlate Spanish morsa2 (the tool), which appears to derive from Italian (see Morsa in sectionA11.3 above).

A12 VISE

A12.1 Summary

Prensa – often with the modifiers de banco or de mesa added for clarification – is the mostcommonly used term. Tornillo de banco is also common in a number of countries, and Argentina

and Uruguay have a usage not found elsewhere. Note: Terms other than prensa, prensa de banco, prensa de mesa or prensa with other modifiersappear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.


SPAIN torno (3/7), prensa (de banco/de mesa) (2/7), tornillo (de banco) (2/7), prensa de sujeción (1/7).

MEXICO prensa (de banco/de mesa) (10/13), prensa de tornillo (2/13), tornillo (de presión)

(2/13).GUATEMALA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (9/11), prensador (1/11), prensadora (1/11).EL SALVADOR prensa (de banco/de mesa) (10/10).HONDURAS prensa fija (4/7), prensa (de banco/de mesa) (2/7), prensa de presión (1/7),

prensa estable (1/7). NICARAGUA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (6/7), prensa de yunque (1/7).COSTA RICA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (7/10), prensa de presión (1/10), prensa mecánica (1/10),

tornillo de banco (1/10).PANAMA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (7/7), tornillo de banco (1/7).CUBA torni ll o de banco (11/13), prensa (2/13).DOMIN. REP. prensa (de banco) (5/8), prensa fija (3/8).PUERTO RICO prensa (de banco/de mesa) (11/11).VENEZUELA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (10/12), prensa de presión (1/12), torniquete (1/12), torno

(1/12).COLOMBIA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (9/12), prensa de mordaza (1/12), prensa fija (1/12),

prensa industrial (1/12), prensa para banco (1/12).ECUADOR prensa (de banco/de mesa) (5/9), tornillo de banco (4/9).PERU torni ll o de banco (6/10), prensa (de banco/de mesa) (4/10), prensa de tornillo

(1/10), prensadora de banco (1/10).



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BOLIVIA prensa (de banco/de mesa) (9/10), prensadora (1/10).PARAGUAY prensa (de banco/de mesa) (7/7), tornillo de banco (1/7).URUGUAY morsa (5/8), prensa (4/8), morsa grande (1/8).ARGENTINA morsa (14/15), morsa de mesa (1/15).

CHILE tornillo (de banco/de mesa) (6/10), prensa (de banco/de mesa) (3/10), prensa de tornillo (1/10), tornillo mecánico de banco (1/10).

A12.3 Details

General: In most Spanish-speaking countries, prensa de banco and prensa de mesa are the mostcommonly used terms in general language. To what extent are tornillo de banco or torno more common than prensa in technical language?

Bolivia: The Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 499 and 809) suggests that tornillo (given by seven our of twelve respondents) and prensa (offered by five) are synonyms, but it is not clear from the description respondents were given in that study whether the

tool being discussed was a clamp or a vise. In this study, none of the ten respondentsgave tornillo.


DRAE grades: morsa (B or D?), prensa (A or D?), prensa de banco (F), prensa de mesa (F), tornillo (D), tornillo de banco (A or C?), torno (D).

DRAE definitions: tornillo de banco, “Utensilio usado en carpintería, cerrajería, etc., quese compone de una parte fijada en el banco y otra que se mueve mediante un tornillo, entre lasque sujeta, apretándola, la pieza que se trabaja”; prensa, “Máquina que sirve para comprimir,cuya forma varía según los usos a que se aplica.”

Questions/Comments: The DRAE provides a very precise definition corresponding to“vise” of the term tornillo de banco, but does not list the more widely used terms prensa debanco and prensa de mesa, and its definition of prensa is too general to be of assistance to adictionary user who did not already know what a prensa de banco or a prensa de mesa is.However, one can argue that dictionary users who understand the very general definition provided for prensa can figure out that a prensa de banco refers to a “vise.” How true is this in practice, and how much “figuring out” should a dictionary user be expected to do?

A13 TROWEL A - POINTING TROWEL, BRICK TROWEL or MASON’S TROWEL

A13.1 Summary

Cuchara __ with the modifiers de albañil or de albañilería added for clarification if necessary __ isthe most commonly used term in about half the Spanish-speaking world, but in the other halfmore regional terms are used.



49

Note: Terms other than cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) appear in italics, and majorityregionalisms in boldface and italics.


SPAIN paleta (de albañil/de albañilería) (16/16).MEXICO cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (20/20).GUATEMALA cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (15/15).EL SALVADOR cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (17/17).HONDURAS cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (10/10).

NICARAGUA cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (13/15), palaústre (1/15), paleta (1/15).COSTA RICA cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (11/11).PANAMA palaústre (4/10), palustre (3/10), palajustre (2/10), balaústre (1/10).CUBA cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (15/15).DOMIN. REP. plana (17/17).

PUERTO RICO palaústre (8/13), paleta (3/13), balaústre (2/13).VENEZUELA cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (14/14).COLOMBIA palustre (19/20), palaustre (1/20).ECUADOR bailejo (17/18), balaustre (1/18).PERU badilejo (14/14).BOLIVIA badilejo (11/14), pato (2/14), paleta (1/14).PARAGUAY cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (8/8).URUGUAY cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (10/10).ARGENTINA cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) (20/20).CHILE plana (9/10), cuchara (1/10), paleta (1/10).

A13.3 Details

General: The modifiers de albañil and/or de albañilería are added to cuchara and paleta whenever the speaker feels specification is necessary (since cuchara and paleta arecommonly used with other meanings), whereas the other terms presented in sectionA13.2 above, such as palaústre and badilejo, are specific terms that already refer to pointing trowels without the need for a modifier.

Spain: the DRAE defines paleta and palustre with no regional specification in the sense of pointing trowel (see section A13.4 below), but in this study all respondents offered onlythe former term, as well as the variants paleta de albañil and paleta de albañilería. The Encuestas léxicas del habla culta de Madrid (Torres Martínez: 173) and the Léxico delhabla culta de Granada (Salvador: 236) both confirm the preference for the term paleta by educated Madrileños and Granadinos. In the former, eleven Madrileños indicated paleta and four palustre, and in the latter, nineteen Granadinos indicated paleta, two palustra, two palustre and one repellador . In the Léxico del habla culta de Las Palmasde Gran Canaria (Samper Padilla: 141), in contrast, pala or pala pequeña was given byseven educated Grancanarios, paleta de albañil or paleta pequeña by three, palilla by one



50

and cuchara pequeña by one. How common is the use of pala, palustre and palustra inthe sense of pointing trowel in the different regions of Spain?

Mexico: The use of cuchara is confirmed by the DEUMex, which defines it as “2 Instrumento dealbañilería consistente en una pieza plana y puntiaguda de metal y un mango, que sirve

para poner mezcla y aplanarla.” In this study, cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) was theonly term offered by all twenty respondents, but in the Léxico del habla culta de México (Lope Blanch: 155), ten educated Mexico City respondents indicated cuchara, and ten paleta, in addition to other minority responses. How common is the use of paleta in thesense of pointing trowel in Mexico?

Costa Rica: The NDCR defines cuchara as “[ Alb.] Llana del albañil.” However, all respondentsin this study indicated that a cuchara (de albañil/de albañilería) is a pointing trowel, nota finishing trowel, as the NDCR claims. The NDCR and the DRAE both seem to make thesame mistake (see sections A13.4 and A14 below).

Cuba: The DECu correctly defines cuchara as “Plancha metálica triangular, con mango demadera, que usan los albañiles para remover y aplicar la mezcla” but mistakenly indicates

that llana is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent. Compare the DEArg ’s definition ofcuchara under Argentina below, which correctly indicates that paleta is the PeninsularSpanish equivalent, and the discussion of this issue in section A13.4 below.

Venezuela: The DHAV confirms the use of cuchara, defining it as “Instrumento de albañileríaque consiste en una plancha de hierro, generalmente de forma triangular, provista de unmango o asa que se utiliza para colocar y alisar el yeso o la mezcla sobre ladrillos o paredes.” However, the DV (Tejera) defines cuchara as “Llana o trulla que usan losalbañiles para tender el yeso o mezcla de cal o cemento en las obras,” and it is possiblethis source may have copied this incorrect information from the DRAE (see section A13.4 below and Costa Rica above).

Colombia: The NDCol (Haensch and Werner 1993a) confirms that palustre is the GeneralColombian Spanish term, which it does not define since it indicates that palustre is alsoused in Spain (remember that the NDCol is a contrastive dictionary). This source,however, does define babilejo, palaústre, palaustre, balaustre, balaústre and balustre as“Herramienta de albañil usada para extender la mezcla, consistente en una pala triangularcon un mango perpendicular en la inserción y doblado luego.” The NDCol indicates that palaustre, palaústre, balaustre and balaústre are used in the Atlantic Coast region and inthe department of Norte de Santander, that babilejo is used in the departments ofCaquetá, Cauca, el Huila, Nariño and el Valle, and that balustre is used in Boyacá,Cauca, Cundinamarca, el Huila, Norte de Santander and el Valle. In this study, allColombian respondents gave palustre except for one from the Atlantic Coast who gave palaustre. One respondent from Cundinamarca indicated that balaustre refers to mezcla (‘mortar’). The Léxico del habla culta de Santafé de Bogotá (Otálora de Fernández: 279)confirms the preference of palustre among educated Bogotanos. In that study, tenrespondents indicated palustre, two espátula, two paleta, one pala de albañil and onebalustre, among other minority responses.

Ecuador: The HEDE 5 defines bailejo as “ Norte. Plana, llana, herramienta de los albañiles.” Inthis study, however, respondents from different regions of the country __ not only fromnorthern Ecuador __ indicated that bailejo is used in the sense of a pointing trowel, not a



51

finishing trowel (see section A14 below), except for one from el Carchi (which is in the“Sierra Norte” bordering Colombia), who indicated that balaustre refers to the pointingtrowel.

Peru: The DP (Arona) defines badilejo as “Instrumento primordial del albañil; la llana: he aquí

su verdadero nombre. Nuestro provincialismo ha sido derivado, sin duda, de la palabraespañola badil , que es una cuchara o pala de hierro para remover la lumbre en lachimenea.” In this study, however, no respondent indicated that badilejo refers to thefinishing trowel (la llana, see section A14 below); all said it is a pointing trowel.

Bolivia: The Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 163) confirms the use of both badilejo and pato. Of the nine educated Paceños in that study who answered the question, badilejo and its diminutive form (badilejito) were offered by five and pato or patito by four,among other minority responses.

Argentina & Uruguay: The DEArg (Argentina) defines cuchara (de albañil) and badalejo as“Herramienta de albañilería, empleada para remover y aplicar la mezcla, formada por una plancha triangular y un mango de madera.” The definitions indicate that cuchara (de

albañil) is the General Argentine Spanish term, that badalejo is used in the Northwest ofArgentina, and that paleta is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent. The definition of cuchara(de albañil) in the NDU (Uruguay) is almost identical to the DEArg ’s definition of thisterm. The Léxico del habla culta de Buenos Aires (Academia Argentina de Letras: 112)and the Léxico del habla culta de Córdoba, Argentina (Toniolo: 165-166) both confirmthe use of cuchara (de albañil), which was offered by seven out of ten educated Porteñosin the former study and by five out of ten educated Cordobeses in the latter; threePorteños, however, offered paleta, and three Cordobeses gave pala (de albañil), inaddition to other minority responses.


DRAE grades: badilejo (D), bailejo (D), balaustre (D), balaústre (D), cuchara (D), palaustre (F), paleta (C), palustre (C), plana (D).

DRAE definitions: paleta, “5. Utensilio de palastro, de forma triangular y mango demadera, que usan los albañiles para manejar la mezcla o mortero”; palustre1, “(De pala). Paletade albañil”; llana, “13. Herramienta compuesta de una plancha de hierro o acero y una manija oun asa, que usan los albañiles para extender y allanar el yeso o la argamasa”; badilejo, “(Del dim.de badil ). llana (|| herramienta que usan los albañiles)”; bailejo, “ Ecuad. llana (|| herramientaque usan los albañiles)”; cuchara, “7. Can. y Am. [Canarias y América] llana (|| herramienta queusan los albañiles)”; plana1, “(Del lat. plana). llana (|| herramienta que usan los albañiles).”

Questions/Comments: The DRAE ’s definition of paleta is too restrictive in saying “... ymango de madera...” since not all pointing trowels have handles made of wood. Moreimportantly, the Real Academia is under the mistaken impression that cuchara and bailejo areused in some regions of Spanish America in the sense of finishing trowel ( llana) when, in fact,they refer to the pointing trowel. The DRAE also defines badilejo with no regional specificationin the sense of finishing trowel (llana). Where, if anywhere, is this the case? All evidence in thisstudy indicates that badilejo is used in the sense of pointing trowel in Peru and Bolivia only, and



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nowhere in the sense of finishing trowel. They really dropped the ball and missed the boat on thisone.

A14 TROWEL B - FINISHING TROWEL, FLAT TROWEL, PLASTERER’STROWEL or SMOOTHING TROWEL (trowels with the handle on the top-center

of the blade)

A14.1 Summary

Llana can be considered the General Spanish term, but other words such as plancha, plana and/or flota are more common in many countries.

Note: Terms other than llana appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.Some terms presented in section A14.2 refer to metal trowels and some to wooden ones (see

section A14.3 below).A14.2 Terms by Country (c. 18 terms plus variants)

SPAIN llana (10/13), plancha (2/13), alisador (1/13).MEXICO llana (16/24), plana (8/24), flota (5/24), paleta (2/24), trola (2/24), diana (1/24),

plancha (1/24), planador (1/24).GUATEMALA plancha (10/12), alisador (1/12), aplanador (1/12), repelladora (1/12).EL SALVADOR plancha (11/13), afinador (2/13), plana (2/13), afinadora (1/13), llana (1/13).HONDURAS codal (6/12), plana (6/12), plancha (5/12), planchuela (3/12), alisadora

(1/12). NICARAGUA plana (4/10), llana (2/10), paleta (2/10), afinador (1/10), diana (1/10), plancha (1/10),

repellador (1/10).COSTA RICA llaneta (8/13), plancha (7/13), paleta (2/13).PANAMA llana (8/10), flota (2/10), plana (2/10), paleta (1/10).CUBA flota (8/18), plana (7/18), llana (5/18), frota (2/18), paleta (1/18).DOMIN. REP. flota (15/17), llana (2/17), diana (1/17).PUERTO RICO llana (7/13), flota (3/13), resanadora (2/13), paleta (1/13).VENEZUELA llana (3/9), paleta (3/9), alisador (1/9), frisador (1/9), plancha (1/9).COLOMBIA llana (15/16), paleta (1/16).ECUADOR llana (10/18), paleta (9/18), diana (1/18), plana (1/18), plancha (1/18).PERU plancha (11/16), paleta (5/16), plana (1/16).BOLIVIA plancha (13/16), frotacho (5/16), paleta (2/16), frotador (1/16).PARAGUAY fratacho (2/10), latacho (2/10), llana (2/10), paleta (2/10), plancha (2/10),

alisador (1/10).URUGUAY llana (4/9), fretacho (3/9), fletacho (2/9), fratacho (1/9), frotacho (1/9).ARGENTINA fratacho (10/20), llana (8/20), alisadora (1/20), fletacho (1/20), fretacho (1/20).CHILE llana (9/9), platacho (2/9), patacho (1/9).



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A14.3 Details

General: Here we are combining, if not apples and oranges, at least apples and pears (actuallydifferent varieties of apples and pears), because in many Spanish-speaking

countries

__

perhaps in all

__

one term is used to refer to finishing or flat trowels made ofmetal, and another for ones made of wood. The distinction is significant in that the twotools are used to flatten and smooth out different materials and create different effects.Some masons use wooden flat trowels for coarse smoothing out of concrete on floors orother surfaces, and the metal ones for finer finishes. There are also rubber floats used forsmoothing out the surface of plaster, cement, stucco, grout, etc. The Spanish terms flota and frota (when used in the sense of flat trowel or float) derive from English “float.”

Spain: The DRAE defines llana, plana and trulla in the sense of a metal flat trowel, and fratás inthe sense of a wooden one (see section A14.4 below). Are plana and trulla regionallymarked within Spain? There is evidence that plana may be more common in southernSpain since in the Encuestas léxicas del habla culta de Madrid (Torres Martínez: 173),

fourteen educated Madrileños indicated llana, one pala, and one plana, whereas in the Léxico del habla culta de Granada (Salvador: 236), thirteen respondents indicated plana,eight llana, and one aplanador , among other minority responses; in the Léxico del hablaculta de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Samper Padilla: 141), most respondents wereunable to answer the question, but three educated Grancanarios gave llana, one gave flota as a second choice (his first choice was llana), and one gave alisadora, among otherminority responses.

Mexico: In this study, many respondents indicated that a plana refers to a wooden flat trowel anda llana to a metal one, whereas others said that a flota refers to a wooden flat trowel and allana or a trola to a metal one (trola appears to derive from English “trowel”). Still otherssaid a flota refers to a “float” (see General above). In the Léxico del habla culta de México (Lope Blanch: 154), seven educated Mexico City respondents indicated llana,two pala, one plana and one aplanador , in addition to other minority responses.

El Salvador: Most respondents indicated plancha as the generic term for flat trowels, but onesaid that a llana is a metal one and a plancha a wooden one. Another said a plancha can be made of either metal or wood and that an afinadora is made of metal.

Honduras: Plana, plancha or planchuela refer to a metal flat trowel and codal to a wooden oneaccording to several respondents.

Costa Rica: Llaneta refers to a metal one and plancha to a wooden one according to severalrespondents.

Panama: Most respondents gave only llana, but one indicated that plana refers to a metal one,and llana and flota to a wooden one.

Cuba: The DECu defines flota as “Herramienta de albañil que consta de una plancha con unmango, y que sirve para extender y alisar algunos materiales, especialmente cemento yyeso.” In this study, many respondents confirmed this stating that a flota can refer to anyflat trowel. However, some stated that a flota or frota refers to a wooden one, whereas a plana is a metal one, and one said that a flota is specifically a “float” (see Generalabove). The DECu also defines flotear as “Extender o alisar con la flota un material,



54

especialmente cemento o yeso: ‘una persona flotea un material’.” See cement/plaster (verbs) in Appendix.

Dominican Republic: The vast majority of respondents in this study indicated that flota can referto either a metal or a wooden flat trowel. However, a few said a flota was a wooden one

and a llana or a diana a metal one.Colombia: The Léxico del habla culta de Santafé de Bogotá (Otálora de Fernández: 278)confirms the use of llana in the sense of (some kind of) flat trowel among educatedBogotanos. In that study, twelve indicated llana, three mistakenly gave palustre (some ofwhom also indicated palustre for the pointing trowel), and one said aplanador , amongother minority responses.

Ecuador: Llana refers to a metal flat trowel and paleta to a wooden one according to manyrespondents.

Peru: Plancha refers to a metal one and paleta to a wooden one according to a few respondents.Bolivia: Plancha refers to a metal flat trowel and frotacho or frotador to a wooden one according

to several respondents. The Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 163) seems to

confirm the use of plancha for the metal flat trowel, which was given by fourrespondents; llana was also given by two.Paraguay: Llana refers to a metal one and fratacho or latacho to a wooden one according to a

few respondents. One Paraguayan said he believed latacho to be a deformation of fratacho and that the latter was the “correct” term. What is the origin of latacho?

Uruguay: The NDU defines fretacho as “var fletacho Pequeña tabla de madera pulida, de formarectangular y con un asa en una de sus caras, que se emplea en albañilería para extender yalisar el revoque” and indicates that fratás is used in both Spain and Uruguay in thissense. In this study, respondents indicated that llana refers to a metal finishing trowel and fretacho or (less often) fratacho to a wooden one. No Uruguayan in this study offered orconfirmed the use of fratás, and we note that in the DEArg the same authors of the NDU make no mention of fratás being used in Argentina (see Argentina below), whichsuggests that one would probably be hard pressed to find a Uruguayan who used thisterm.

Argentina: The DEArg defines fratacho, with the regional specifications of “ArgentinaRioplatense,” “Cuyo” and “Nordeste de Argentina,” and fletacho, with the regionalspecifications of “Argentina Central” and “Noroeste de Argentina” as “Pequeña tabla demadera pulida, de forma rectangular y con un asa en una de sus caras, que se emplea enalbañilería para extender y alisar el revoque.” The DEArg also indicates that fratás is thePeninsular Spanish equivalent of Argentine fratacho/fletacho and defines fletachar and fratachar (with the same regional specifications corresponding to fletacho and fratacho)as “Extender y alisar yeso, argamasa o cualquier mezcla sobre una pared con un fletacho/fratacho: alguien fletacha/fratacha una pared ”; enrasar is given as thePeninsular Spanish equivalent. Most respondents in this study indicated that llana refersto a metal flat trowel and fratacho, fretacho or fletacho to a wooden one. Of therespondents in the Léxico del habla culta de Buenos Aires (Academia Argentina deLetras: 112) who were able to answer the question, four offered llana and three fratacho,and in the Léxico del habla culta de Córdoba, Argentina (Toniolo: 165), six indicated fratacho, five llana, three fretacho and one fletacho. However, it appears that neither the



55

respondents in these two studies, nor the researchers conducting them, grasped thedistinction between the metal flat trowel and the wooden one. With regard to the RiverPlate Spanish terms fratacho, fretacho and fletacho, there is evidence to suggest thatthese words derive from Italian. The Dizionario della Lingua Italiana (Istituto

Geografico de Agostini) defines frattàzzo and frettàzzo as “2. tavoletta di legno, quadratao rettangolare, che i muratori usano per spianare sulle pareti la calce fresca,impugnandola per il manico,” and the Vocabolario della Lingua Italiana (Zingarelli)defines frattàzzo and fratàzzo as “Tavoletta rettangolare di legno, con maniglia, usata dalmuratore per spianare la malta con cui si intonaca un muro. SIN. spianatoio.” For anotherexample of a River Plate name for a tool that appears to derive from Italian, see Morsa insection A11.3 above.

Chile: The DECH defines platacho as “alb. Plana o llana rústica de madera: ‘Los maestros sólonecesitan de un platacho, herramienta similar a la que usan los estucadores, y unaespátula’...” and defines platachar as “Pasar el platacho para extender y allanar el yeso ola argamasa: ‘falta platachar las murallas del patio’...” as well as platacheo and

platachada as “alb. Acción y efecto de platachar .” In this study, two respondents alsomade this distinction between llana (metal finishing trowel) and platacho or patacho (wooden one), but none indicated that a platacho could refer to a plana (pointing trowel),as the DECH ’s definition of platacho suggests; see section A13.2, CHILE, above. In the Léxico del habla culta de Santiago de Chile (Rabanales: 158-159), six respondentsindicated llana, three platacho, and five did not answer the question, but the distinction between llana and platacho (metal vs. wooden flat trowel) seems to have been lost on both the respondents and the researchers conducting the study. What is the origin of platacho?

Diana vs. llana: A handful of this study’s respondents offered a term for these items that, to myear, sounded like diana (see MEXICO, NICARAGUA, DOMIN. REP. and ECUADOR in sectionA14.2 above). However, diana is not defined in the DRAE with any meaning related tothose of llana, and what I perceived as a dental stop (phrase-initial /d/) may have actually been an affricate that is “lighter” than the consonantal sounds in English judge, which is a possible realization of phrase-initial /y/. If so, then what I transcribed as diana is really just a phonetic variant of llana. Research by phonologists needs to be done on this point.

Origin of the use of plana in parts of Spanish America: Can the use of plana (= ‘flat trowel’) inMexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Cuba __ and perhaps elsewhere in Spanish America __ beattributed to Andalusian influence? We note that plana, in the sense of flat trowel,appears to be more common in Granada than in Madrid (see Spain above). Andalucista theories of Latin American Spanish generally attempt to explain phonetic and phonological similarities between the speech of Andalucía and that of Spanish Americasuch as: a) aspiration and deletion of word-final and syllable-final s in Andalucía andcoastal Spanish America; b) neutralization of s and z into a single phoneme /s/ inAndalucía and all of Spanish America (historically these were four phonemes in theCastellano dialect that were reduced to two in northern and central Spain and became onein southern Spain); and c) the pronunciation of j and g (followed by e or i) as a simpleaspiration in Andalucía and much of Spanish America. If Andalusian influence canaccount for some phonetic and phonological characteristics of Latin American Spanish,



56

perhaps it can also explain specific shared lexical and semantic features. For an analysisof the andalucista theories of Latin American Spanish, see chapter two of Latin AmericanSpanish, “The linguistic heritage of Spain” (Lipski 1994: 34-62).

A14.4 Real Academia Regional Review DRAE grades: codal (D), diana (D), fletacho (F), flota (B), fratacho (B), fretacho (F),

frotacho (F), latacho (F), llana (A), llaneta (F), paleta (D), plana (C), plancha (D), platacho (F). DRAE definitions: llana, “13. Herramienta compuesta de una plancha de hierro o acero y

una manija o un asa, que usan los albañiles para extender y allanar el yeso o la argamasa”; flota,“8. Cuba. llana (|| herramienta que usan los albañiles)”; plana1, “(Del lat. plana). llana (||herramienta que usan los albañiles)”; trulla2, “(Del lat. trulla). llana (|| herramienta que usan losalbañiles)”; fratás, “(De fratasar ). Arq. Utensilio compuesto de una tabla pequeña y lisa,cuadrada o redonda, con un tarugo en medio para agarrarla. Sirve para alisar una superficieenfoscada, humedeciéndola primero”; fratacho, “Ur. fratás.”

Questions/Comments: The DRAE has properly defined flota, fratacho, plana and llana (albeit in some cases with improper regional specifications), but it has left many SpanishAmerican usages uncovered with respect to these two items. Curiously enough, the DRAE doesnot list fletacho but does define fletachar as “Ur . fratasar.” These and other lacunae (see DRAE grades above) need to be filled. In terms of etymologies, the DRAE indicates that the origin oftrulla is Latin trulla, but the AHD states that English “trowel” derives from Late Latin truella,the diminutive of Latin trua, ladle. Which etymology is more accurate, the DRAE ’s or the AHD’s, or are they essentially equivalent? Also, unless the DRAE ’s etymologists have a bettertheory as to the origin of River Plate Spanish fratacho, fretacho, etc., the etymologies “(Del it. frattàzzo)” or “(Del it. frettàzzo)” should be included in the DRAE ’s definitions of these terms(see Argentina in section A14.3 above).

A15 PICK or PICKAX

A15.1 Summary

Pico is the General Spanish term, but regional terms are common in Mexico, Central America,Puerto Rico, Colombia, Bolivia and Chile.

Note: Terms other than pico appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.Some Spanish speakers use two different base terms for two different types of pickax (seesection A15.3 below).


SPAIN pico (14/14).MEXICO pico (18/21), talache (8/21), talacho (2/21), picoleta (1/21), sacapico (1/21), talacha

(1/21), zapapico (1/21).



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GUATEMALA piocha (14/17), pico (5/17), coba (1/17), piocha de pico (1/17).EL SALVADOR piocha (18/18), pico (5/18).HONDURAS piocha (10/11), pico (3/11).

NICARAGUA piocha (8/12), pico (6/12), coba (1/12).

COSTA RICA pico (10/12), sacho (8/12).PANAMA pico (8/10), piqueta (5/10), zapapico (1/10).CUBA pico (12/15), pico piocha (2/15), picachón (2/15).DOMIN. REP. pico (14/14).PUERTO RICO pico (11/17), picota (7/17), piqueta (2/17), pica (1/17).VENEZUELA pico (13/13).COLOMBIA pica (11/17), pico (7/17), zapapico (2/17), zapapica (1/17).ECUADOR pico (9/11), zapapico (5/11), sacapico (1/11).PERU pico (13/13).BOLIVIA picota (15/17), pico (4/17).PARAGUAY pico (8/8).

URUGUAY pico (9/9).ARGENTINA pico (15/15).CHILE picota (13/15), pico (4/15).

A15.3 Details

General: Some Spanish speakers use two different base terms to distinguish between twodifferent types of pickax. One term is used for a pickax that has a point on one end and anarrow blade on the other (often called a “pick” and used for digging in hard or rockyground or for chipping stone), and another term for a type that has a point on one end anda wider blade on the other (also called a “mattock” and whose wide end is used fordigging in compact soil). In the ensuing descriptions, we will refer to these two types of pickax as “narrow- blade pickax” and “wide- blade pickax,” respectively. The wide-blade pickaxes sometimes have a blade that is more curved than the narrow-blade ones. In thisstudy, these two types of pickax were shown to respondents, but they were notspecifically asked to differentiate between them and many did not. Other types of pickaxes were not targeted in the field work and research needs to be done to determinewhich Spanish speakers use different base terms for different types of pickax and whatthe distinctions are. The léxico del habla culta studies do not indicate what type of pickaxrespondents were shown.

Spain: The Encuestas léxicas del habla culta de Madrid (Torres Martínez: 173), the Léxico delhabla culta de Granada (Salvador: 235-236), and the Léxico del habla culta de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Samper Padilla: 141) all confirm the overwhelming preferencefor the term pico by educated Madrileños, Granadinos and Grancanarios. In the firststudy, fifteen Madrileños indicated pico and one piqueta; in the second, 22 Granadinosindicated pico, two espiocha, and one piquete; and in the third, nine Grancanariosindicated pico and one piqueta, among other minority responses.

Mexico: In this study, pico was the only term given by about half the respondents, but manyothers indicated that a talache, talacho or talacha refer to a wide-blade pickax and a pico



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to a narrow-blade pickax. In the Léxico del habla culta de México (Lope Blanch: 154),sixteen educated Mexico City respondents indicated pico, eleven zapapico and onetalacha. How common is zapapico in Mexico and, if it is common, to what type of pickax does it refer?

Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras & Nicaragua: For El Salvador, the DS (Romero) defines piocha as “Herramienta de albañilería para picar la tierra. Se parece al pico pero sediferencia de él en que éste tiene los dos extremos puntiagudos y la piocha sólo uno y elotro es como hachuela o azadón.” And in this study, many Central American respondentsfrom these four countries confirmed this distinction between piocha (wide-blade pickax)and pico (narrow-blade pickax), while others gave only piocha for both or indicated thatthe two terms are used interchangeably.

Costa Rica: The NDCR defines sacho as “[ Agr .] Pico, instrumento de trabajo agrícola.” In thisstudy, a majority of respondents indicated that sacho and pico are synonyms, but somesaid a sacho is a wide-blade pickax and a pico a narrow-blade one.

Panama: A couple of respondents indicated that a piqueta is a wide-blade pickax and a pico a

narrow-blade one, but others said the two were synonyms.Puerto Rico: In this study, most respondents indicated pico or picota as a generic term, but a fewsaid that a picota is a wide-blade pickax and a pico a narrow-blade one. In the Léxico delhabla culta de San Juan de Puerto Rico (López Morales: 66), only four respondentsanswered the question and all four gave pico. Is picota regionally marked within PuertoRico?

Venezuela: The Léxico del habla culta de Caracas (Sedano: 146) confirms the use of pico, theterm given by all twelve respondents in that study.

Colombia: A majority of respondents in this study gave only pica or pico, but one said that a pica refers to a wide-blade pickax whereas a pico or zapapico refer to a narrow-blade pickax. Is pica used more in some regions of Colombia and pico in others? In the Léxicodel habla culta de Santafé de Bogotá (Otálora de Fernández: 278), sixteen respondentsindicated pica, seven pico, and one zapapico, among other minority responses.

Ecuador: A couple of respondents indicated that zapapico is a wide-blade pickax and pico anarrow-blade one.

Peru: In the Léxico del habla culta de Lima (Caravedo: 183), ten educated Limeños indicated pico, and one zapapico.

Bolivia: The Léxico del habla culta de La Paz (Mendoza: 162) confirms the use of picota, given by eleven out of twelve respondents, but pico was also quite well represented as it wasoffered by ten out of twelve respondents with many indicating both pico and picota. Inthis study, picota was the only term offered by the majority of respondents, with ahandful indicating pico (see section A15.2 above), and the fact that many were noteducated Bolivians might explain the lower representation of General Spanish pico vis-à-vis regionally marked picota.

Argentina: The Léxico del habla culta de Buenos Aires (Academia Argentina de Letras: 112) andthe Léxico del habla culta de Córdoba, Argentina (Toniolo: 165) both confirm theexclusive use of pico as it was the only term given by all dozen or so respondents from both cities.



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Chile: The DECH confirms the use of picota in the sense of pickax, defining it as “Herramientaque se usa para picar la tierra. Consta de un palo en el cual va encajada perpendicularmente una barra de hierro, algo curvada hacia adentro, que remata en puntasaguzadas en un extremo o en ambos...” The Léxico del habla culta de Santiago de Chile

(Rabanales: 158) also confirms the use of picota: Of the seven respondents in that studywho were able to answer the question, all seven gave picota. Among this study’srespondents, picota was also the overwhelming choice, and one indicated that pico couldnot and would not be used in Chile in this sense as this word is taboo. (The DRAE defines pico1 as “18. Chile y C. Rica. pene.” Thus the jokes about how in Chile it is not advisableto use phrases such as llegaron a las cinco y pico.)


DRAE grades: pica (D), pico (A or D?), picota (D), piocha (D?), piqueta (C), sacho (A),talache (F), zapapico (A or C?).

DRAE definitions: pico, “3. Herramienta de cantero, con dos puntas opuestas aguzadas yenastada en un mango largo de madera, que sirve principalmente para desbastar la piedra. || 4.Instrumento formado por una barra de hierro o acero, de unos 60 cm de largo y 5 de grueso, algoencorvada, aguda por un extremo y con un ojo en el otro para enastarla en un mango de madera.Es muy usado para cavar en tierras duras, remover piedras, etc.”; piocha2, “(Del fr. pioche, de pic, pico). Constr . Herramienta con una boca cortante, que sirve para desprender los revoques delas paredes y para escafilar los ladrillos”; sacho, “3. C. Rica. pico (|| herramienta de cantero)”; zapapico, “(De zapa1, pala, y pico1). pico (|| herramienta de cantero). || 2. pico (|| instrumento para cavar)”; azadón de peto and azadón de pico, “zapapico”; piqueta, “(Del dim. de pica1).zapapico.”

Comments: The DRAE defines pico as a stone-chipping tool used by quarry workers orstonemasons with sharp points on each end (sense three), and as a tool that has a blade on onlyone end (sense four). Senses three and four of pico are the only two that define tools, whichmeans that the DRAE ’s definition of pico does not include a sense that corresponds to the wide- blade pickax. In addition, its definition of piocha indicates that it is a different tool from a pico,one used to chip off mortar from walls and bricks. Perhaps in Spain a piocha is a tool used primarily in masonry, but in much of Central America it is generally a wide-blade pickaxcommonly used in agriculture. Also, the DRAE ’s definition of piqueta cross-references thereader to zapapico which, in turn, cross-references the reader to pico without specifying which ofthe two senses of pico (de cantero or para cavar ) the cross-reference refers to, or whether it canrefer to either. That is simply too much legwork for the dictionary user to go through who, afterchasing down two cross-references, is still not exactly sure what a piqueta is. Lastly, it fails totell the reader that pico, pica, picota, piocha and talache can be synonyms. The DRAE needs todo a fair amount of work on these trouble spots to fix them and get this job done right.



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A16 HOE

A16.1 Summary

Azadón is more common than azada in most of Spanish America with the exception of the RiverPlate region and the Antilles. Spain, Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia and possibly Ecuador, Peru andArgentina have more regional terms.

Note: Terms other than azada and azadón appear in italics, and Cuba’s guataca in boldface anditalics. Some Spanish speakers use two different base terms to refer to two different types of hoe(see section A16.3 below).


SPAIN azada (8/13), azadón (5/13), legón (1/13).

MEXICO azadón (16/16), talache (1/16).GUATEMALA azadón (15/15).EL SALVADOR azadón (17/17).HONDURAS azadón (9/9).

NICARAGUA azadón (6/6).COSTA RICA azadón (9/9).PANAMA azadón (7/9), azada (1/9), coa (1/9).CUBA guataca (11/16), azadón (8/16), azada (2/16).DOMIN. REP. azada (14/14), azadón (2/14), legona (1/14).PUERTO RICO azada (12/14), azadón (2/14).VENEZUELA chícora (5/11), escardilla (5/11), azadón (4/11), azada (1/11).COLOMBIA azadón (16/16), recatón (1/16), revolcón (1/16), zapón (1/16).ECUADOR azadón (9/10), lampa (1/10).PERU azadón (5/7), azuela (1/7), lampa (1/7).BOLIVIA azadón (11/12), azada (1/12), azadilla (1/12).PARAGUAY azada (9/9).URUGUAY azada (8/8).ARGENTINA azada (13/16), zapa (4/16), zapín (1/16).CHILE azadón (8/10), azada (2/10).

A16.3 Details

General: To some extent we are mixing, if not apples and oranges here, at least oranges,tangerines and grapefruits, as the above terms can refer to different types of hoes. Thetwo most common types, however, are a narrower-blade hoe used for digging in morecompact ground, and a wider- and shorter-bladed one used for digging in softer soil. The blade of the narrow-blade hoe is often longer and slightly curved, whereas the wide-bladehoe generally has a blade that is shorter, wider and flat. In the descriptions of usage thatfollow, we will call these two types of hoes the “narrow - blade hoe” and the “wide-blade



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hoe,” respectively. Respondents in this study were only shown a picture of a narrow- blade hoe and a major question remains largely unresolved: Which Spanish speakers (i.e.the agricultores, labradores and campesinos, etc. from which regions of the Spanish-speaking world) tend to use one base term for the wide-blade hoe and another for the

narrow-blade hoe, and which generally use the same base term for both and distinguish between them by applying adjectives or other modifiers to them?Spain: The DRAE ’s definition of azada and azadón indicate that both terms can refer to both

narrow-blade and wide-blade hoes. The DRAE also defines almocafre, escardilla,escardillo and legón as types of hoes, in some cases providing a detailed description, andin some cases not (see section A16.4 below). In this study, most respondents indicatedazada and/or azadón, and one gave legón. A few non-Spanish terms were also offeredincluding legoña and eixada (Gallego) and magall (Catalán). See section A16.4 below forthe definitions of other related terms such as alcotana, batidera, etc.

Mexico: The DEUMex defines azadón as “Instrumento de labranza compuesto por una pala dehierro afilada en uno de sus extremos, y que en el opuesto tiene un anillo donde se inserta

un mango con el que forma ángulo agudo. Se usa para quitar las malas hierbas y arrimartierra a las plantas.” It defines azada in terms of azadón as “Herramienta de labranzasemejante al azadón pero de pala más corta y plana; se usa para barbechar terrenos de poca extensión.” In other words, the DEUMex seems to indicate that azadón is thenarrow-blade hoe and azada the wide-blade hoe. The DRAE indicates that in Mexicotalacho refers to a type of azada (see section A16.4 below). See also the DEUMex’sdefinition of coa in Coa below. In this study, all respondents gave azadón when shown a picture of a narrow-blade hoe, except one who indicated that both azadón and talache areused in this sense.

Costa Rica: The NDCR defines paleta as “5. (Zona Noroeste) [ Agr .] Azada larga, empleada paradesherbar y sembrar.”

Cuba: Are azadón and guataca synonyms in Cuban Spanish, or do they refer to different types ofhoes? If they can be synonyms, are they regionally weighted within Cuba? The DECu defines guataca as “Instrumento agrícola formado por un mango de madera largo y finoen uno de cuyos extremos va insertada una lámina rectangular de hierro, con un bordecortante. Se emplea para cavar o remover tierras roturadas o blandas” and indicates thatazada is used in this same sense in Spain and azadón in both Spain and Cuba. The DRAE ,however, states that a guataca is a “short azada” (see section A16.4 below). In this study,several respondents stated that guataca and azadón are synonyms, but one said the guataca has a wider blade. This is consistent with the DECu’s description of the guataca being used to “cavar o remover tierras roturadas o blandas” (emphasis added) since thehoe with the shorter and wider blade is often used for this purpose. One Cuban who saidazadón and guataca are synonyms indicated that the former is used more in the Orienteand the latter more in central and western Cuba, but this was not corroborated by othersin this study.

Dominican Republic: Legona was offered by one respondent in the sense of a small hoe,generally used with one hand, but the majority of Dominicans in this study offered onlyazada. Azada, however, was often pronounced (and even written) (h)azá or (h)asá. Howcommon is this abbreviated pronunciation in other regions of the Spanish-speaking world



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where -ada and -ado can also get reduced to á and ao, respectively, in the speech of someeducated speakers in informal situations and in that of many uneducated speakers in allsituations? The loss of d in the suffix -ado (e.g. cansao < cansado and quedao <quedado), and, to a lesser extent, in words with ada (na < nada) is a general phenomenon

in popular and/or relaxed speech, though it is more common, and more socially accepted,in some regions of the Spanish-speaking world than in others. In the case of theDominican Republic, Lipski states that “Intervocalic /d/ regularly falls in all sociolectsand in all regions” (Lipski 1994: 238). Thus it is possible that for some Dominicans,including educated ones, the full/original azada has become lost and the phonetic change(azada → azá) has undergone lexicalization. If so, one possible explanation for this isthat educated Dominicans, to the extent they hear about hoes at all, hear about them fromDominican campesinos, and what they hear from them is invariably azá. If educatedDominicans also read about azadas, this would provide an alternate model for them tofollow, but insofar as they do not, the model from below they follow is azá. SeeSellalotodo in section B2.3 below for another possible example of this lexicalization.

Venezuela: Are azadón, chícora and escardilla the same tool or different tools in Venezuela?This is, as they say in Venezuelan Spanish, la pregunta de las sesenta y cuatro mil lochas (the sixty-four thousand dollar question). The evidence seems to suggest, but does notdefinitively establish, that the escardilla is a local Venezuelan name for the azadón,whereas the chícora is a somewhat different tool, perhaps a type of shovel. The DHAV defines chícora and chícura as “rur Implemento de labranza compuesto por un palo largode madera y una punta de hierro recta, fuerte y cortante que se utiliza para abrir pequeñoshuecos en la tierra” (is it perhaps what in the Antilles is called a coa?), and definesescardilla as “Instrumento que sirve para escarbar y limpiar la tierra de hierbas.” The DV 6 is more specific, defining chícora and chícura as “Centr Llan Truj Instrumento delabranza que sirve para abrir hoyos en la tierra. Consiste en una pieza de hierro o demadera en forma de pala estrecha y fuerte; esta pala se prolonga en un cabo de madera alque va fijada,” and defines escardilla as “Occ Centr Llan Azadón con la lámina de más omenos 20 centímetros de largo, de forma cuadrangular algo curva. Se usa para remover latierra y para limpiar las siembras de malas hierbas.” Thus the DV seems to indicate thatthe escardilla is a type of hoe, and that the chícora is a type of shovel, but the exactnature of the latter tool is not entirely clear to me. In this study, a number of respondentsindicated that escardilla and azadón are synonyms, one that a chícora is a different typeof hoe than an escardilla, and another that escardilla and chícora are synonyms used indifferent regions of Venezuela. A Google image search of chícora conducted in mid 2005did not turn up any pictures of this tool, but a text search of escardilla and azadón turnedup a number of Venezuelan documents in which the phrases “escardilla o azadón” or“azadón (escardilla)” appeared. For example, the following appears in a documententitled, Capítulo 6 Protección y Sanidad Vegetal, Sección 2 Combate y Control de Malezas: “Es el método de combate de maleza más antiguo usado por el hombre alhacerse sedentario. Consiste en arrancar las malezas alrededor de las plantas de maíz,utilizando las manos o estacas elaboradas con diferentes materiales, o cortarlas conmachete, azadón o escardilla. Este método se continúa usando por agricultores conmenores recursos económicos y/o tecnológicos, sobretodo en pequeñas unidades de



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producción; también lo usan productores medianos cuando se imposibilita, técnica oeconómicamente, la utilización de maquinaria agrícola o la aplicación de herbicidas”(Rodríguez Tineo; emphasis on azadón and escardilla added). There is also evidence tosuggest that chícora may be distinct from escardilla (and, therefore, from azadón) as the

following citation illustrates: “Cabe destacar, que dentro de la actividad de la entregaformal de los títulos de tierras en la zona de Valle de La Cruz, se concedieron 7 microcréditos para fines de producción agrícola, como parte de la ardua labor desempeñada porla Corporación de Desarrollo Agrícola (Cordami), donde también se donaron los kits deherramientas a los labradores del campo, contentivos de sus botas, machete, pico, pala,escardilla, lima y chicora [sic], a manera de facilitar los trabajos correspondientes deestos cultivadores” (“Recorrido por Municipio Páez”; emphasis on escardilla and chicora [chícora] added). How do Venezuelan campesinos conceive of and distinguish betweentheir azadones, chícoras and escardillas?

Colombia: The NDCol defines recatón as “ Ant[ioquia], Cald[as], Quind[ío], Risar[aldas], Valle Instrumento formado por un mango largo de madera, con una paleta cortante de hierro en

uno de sus extremos, usado para hacer hoyos en la tierra y para sembrar.” This samesource indicates that barretón is used in this sense in the departments of Boyacá,Córdoba, Cundinamarca, el Chocó, el Huila, Nariño, Norte de Santander andSantander __ departments which we note are spread out over much of the country __ and thatcavador is used in this sense in the Atlantic Coast region. In this study, all respondentsindicated azadón, and one each indicated recatón (Antioquia, small hoe), revolcón (elValle), and zapón (Risaraldas), departments in the western interior part of the country.

Ecuador: In this study, azadón was given by the majority of respondents when shown a pictureof a hoe, but one serrano said a lampa is a hoe. See information in Lampa below.

Argentina: Most Argentines interviewed in this study gave only azada and said they had neverheard of a zapa. However, one indicated that the azada’s blade and handle form an acuteangle, which makes it ideal for digging, whereas the zapa’s blade and handle form a rightangle and is used to break up dirt. Another stated that an azada is a hoe that has a hole inthe blade, which makes it useful for mixing mortar, whereas a zapa does not have a holein the blade. A third said he thought a zapa had a shorter handle than an azada; a fourththat a zapín is a type of hoe used for mixing mortar.

Coa: The DEUMex (Mexico) indicates that a coa is “similar to an azadón,” defining it as“Instrumento de labranza parecido al azadón, compuesto por un mango largo de maderaunido a una pala de hierro terminada en punta, con uno de sus lados rectos y el otrocurvo.” The DECu (Cuba), in contrast, defines it as “agr Utensilio que sirve para abrirhoyos en la tierra, y que consiste en un palo terminado en punta o engastado en una puntade hierro, a veces en forma de espátula. | 2 hist Palo terminado en punta endurecida alfuego, que usaban para sembrar los indios que poblaban la isla de Cuba.” It appears thatthe Cuban meaning has kept closer to the term’s historical roots, which makes sense sincethe Taínos lived in the Antilles. See also the DRAE ’s description of the diff erent senses ofcoa in section 16.4 below.

Lampa: Luis Cordero’s Diccionario Quichua - Quichua Shimiyuc Panca (a bilingual Spanish-Quichua and Quichua-Spanish dictionary published in Ecuador) defines lampa as aQuichua word meaning, “Azada plana y vertical, de uso común en algunas provincias de



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para la labranza. || 3. Ven. chícora”; escardilla, “(Del dim. de escarda, azadilla). almocafre || 2. And. [Andalucía] Azadilla de boca estrecha y mango corto, menor que el escardillo”; almocafre,“(Quizá del ár. hisp. *abu káff, y este del ár. clás. abū kaff , el de la mano). Instrumento que sirve para escardar y limpiar la tierra de malas hierbas, y para trasplantar plantas pequeñas”; azadilla,

“(Del dim. de azada). almocafre”; escardillo, “Azada pequeña para escardar”; guataca, “Cuba.Azada corta que se usa para limpiar de hierba las tierras”; lampa, “(Del aim. [aimara] lampa). Bol ., Chile, Ecuad. y Perú. azada”; legón, “(Del lat. ligo, -ōnis, azadón). Especie de azadón”; sacho, “(Del lat. sarcŭlum). Instrumento de hierro pequeño y manejable, en forma de azadón,que sirve para sachar”; sachar , “Escardar la tierra sembrada para quitar las malas hierbas, a finde que prosperen más las plantas útiles”; talacho, “ Méx. Especie de azada”; zapa1, “Especie de pala herrada de la mitad abajo, con un corte acerado, que usan los zapadores o gastadores”; zapador , “(De zapar ). Militar perteneciente o encuadrado en unidades básicas del arma deingenieros”; gastador , “3. En los presidios, hombre que va condenado a los trabajos públicos. Ircondenado en calidad de gastador. || 4. Mil. Soldado que se aplicaba a los trabajos de abrirtrincheras y otros semejantes, o bien a franquear el paso en las marchas, para lo cual llevan palas,

hachas y picos.” Comments: The DRAE ’s definitions of azada and azadón are somewhat contradictory.Sense two of azada reads “azadón” and indicates that this tool is distinguished from the azada inthat the blade is somewhat curved and longer than it is wide; sense one of azadón likewiseindicates that the azadón is a tool that is distinguished from the azada. Yet sense two of azada isazadón and sense two of azadón is azada. In other words, although there are two tools that can be distinguished from each other, the two terms, according to the definitions, can not, as bothterms can refer to both tools. The DRAE ’s handling of these two terms also completely glossesover the dialectal differences. More useful and accurate would be to select either azada orazadón and give it two descriptions, one sense describing the wide-blade hoe and the otherdefining the narrow-blade one. It should then define the other word in terms of the first.Selecting azada for primary coverage, its definition could read (using essentially the DRAE ’sown wording), “Instrumento que consiste en una lámina o pala cuadrangular de hierro,ordinariamente de 20 a 25 centímetros de lado, cortante uno de éstos y provisto el opuesto de unanillo donde encaja y se sujeta el astil o mango, formando con la pala un ángulo un tanto agudo.Sirve para cavar tierras roturadas o blandas, remover el estiércol, amasar la cal para mortero, etc.|| 2. Instrumento parecido a éste pero con la pala algo curva y más larga que ancha. Sirve paracavar tierras más duras y para quitar las malas hierbas.” If the same base term is used for narrow- blade and wide- blade hoes, a statement could then be added such as “U. [Usado] en ambossentidos principalmente en Arg., Esp., Par., P. Rico, R. Dom. y Ur.” Azadón could then bedefined as “azada (|| dos instrumentos). U. en ambos sentidos principalmente en Am. Cent., Bol.,Chi., Col., Cu., Ec., Esp., Méx. y Perú.” If applicable, the DRAE editors could also specify theregions of Spain where each term is more prevalent. (However, the DRAE has a disconcertingtendency to give detailed information about regional differences between provinces in Spain, butgloss over regional differences between countries in Spanish America.) Then the remaining moreregional terms, such as almocafre, chícora, guataca, etc. could be defined in terms of azada,with any differences in the tool and appropriate regional specifications indicated. Finally, the DRAE editors should make up their minds whether they want to abbreviate the word“centimeter” as cm or spell it out as centímetro and apply the policy consistently throughout the



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a power cord, and one can only wonder how much longer the berbiquí will continue to be used inthe Spanish-speaking world. (In English this device is called a “brace,” though it is morecommon for people to refer to the set as a “brace-and- bit.”)

B MATERIALS, DEVICES AND MISCELLANEOUS

B1 PLYWOOD

B1.1 Summary

Madera contrachapada is the only term that could be considered General Spanish since itappears to be used, to some extent, throughout the Spanish-speaking world. Plywood , or variantsof this term, are common in about half the Spanish-speaking world, primarily in the northern halfof Spanish America. Other more regionally marked terms include tríplex, triplay, madera

contraenchapada and madera terciada. Note: Terms other than madera contrachapada appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.

B1.2 Terms by Country (c. 15 terms plus variants)

SPAIN contrachapado (5/11), madera contrachapada (3/11), laminado (2/11), madera

laminada (2/11).MEXICO triplay (16/17), madera contrachapada (1/17).GUATEMALA plywood (12/12).EL SALVADOR

plywood (10/10).

HONDURAS plywood (9/9). NICARAGUA plywood (11/11).COSTA RICA plywood (13/13).PANAMA plywood (11/13), madera laminada (2/13), madera contrachapada (1/13).CUBA plywood (15/19), madera contrachapada (4/19), madera laminada (2/19), panel

(1/19).DOMIN. REP. plywood (11/11).PUERTO RICO plywood (12/15), panel (5/15), madera laminada (1/15).VENEZUELA contraenchapado (13/16), madera contraenchapada (3/16).COLOMBIA trípl ex (15/18), madera tríplex (3/18).ECUADOR plywood (8/14), tríplex (5/14), madera tríplex (3/14), contrachapado (2/14),

contraenchapado (2/14), madera contrachapada (2/14).PERU triplay (18/20), plywood (4/20), madera enchapada (1/20), madera laminada (1/20).BOLIVIA venesta (9/10), plywood (1/10).PARAGUAY madera terciada (7/8), plancha terciada (1/8).URUGUAY madera compensada (5/8), compensado (4/8).



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ARGENTINA madera terciada (12/15), madera contrachapada (1/15), multilaminado (1/15),

sandwich de terciada (1/15), terciada (1/15), terciado (1/15).CHILE madera terciada (9/12), madera enchapada (3/12), contrachapada (1/12),

enchapado (1/12), terciado (1/12).

B1.3 Details

Contraenchapado: The DHAV (Venezuela) does not confirm the use of contraenchapado in thesense of plywood, defining it as “Mueble o tabla hecho con algún material más o menosresistente y recubierto con una ca pa delgada de madera.”

Madera terciada: Many respondents from Argentina and Paraguay said that madera terciada refers to plywood, but others described madera terciada as a thin panel that has only onelayer, or a panel that has a veneer surface (like the DHAV ’s description ofcontraenchapado above). Perhaps it can refer to all three.

Plywood : The use of plywood in northern Spanish America is confirmed by a number of

lexicographical sources. The DECu (Cuba) defines plywood as “Conglomerado demadera formado por varias placas delgadas encoladas” and indicates that the word is pronounced “aproximadamente [pléigu], [pléiu] o [pléigud]”; no Peninsular Spanishequivalent is provided. The NDCR (Costa Rica) defines plywood as “(pronunciado pléibud ) Lámina de madera contrachapada.” And the DUEN (Nicaragua), though it doesnot define plywood , does include in an appendix entitled “Siglas y acrónimos actualesmás usuales” the acronym PLYNIC , which is glossed as Plywood de Nicaragua, S.A. Inthis study, the term plywood was offered with a variety of pronunciations and spellingsincluding playwood , playwud , playgu, playwu, pleiwood , pleiwud , pleibud and pleiwu,sometimes with an accent mark on the a or e in the first syllable, and occasionally with anaccent on the u in the second syllable (e.g. pleiwú). All of these spellings are attempts torender graphically what is being pronounced, or efforts to carry over into Spanishelements from the English word “plywood,” or some combination of the two.

Triplay: The DEUMex indicates that triplay refers specifically to three-ply plywood, and definesthis term as “Madera laminada en tres hojas, flexible y resistente, que se usa enconstrucción o para forrar ciertos muebles.” While triplay no doubt derives from English“three-ply (plywood),” in this study many Mexican and Peruvian respondents stated thatthey use triplay generically to refer to any plywood, whether three-ply, five-ply, seven- ply, etc. Respondents also gave a variety of spellings including triply, triplay, triplai,tripley and triplei. Regardless of how it is spelled, the word is pronounced in one of two basic ways: [tri-PLAI] or [tri-PLEI]. One Peruvian indicated that triplay is used more bylay people and plywood more by professionals in the construction industry.Tríplex: Tríplex, and its variant madera tríplex, were found to be used in Colombia andEcuador. Tríplex is also pronounced, and sometimes spelled triples or triple. In Ecuador,tríplex and madera tríplex seem to be more common in the Sierra and plywood more so inthe Costa, but many Ecuadorans from both regions are familiar with both sets of terms.

Related terms: See particle board panels in Appendix for information on other types of panelsused in construction.



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chapopote and brea indicate that the two may be distinct in Mexican usage. Chapopote isdefined in this source as “Sustancia negra, pesada y espesa que forma parte del petróleo;se encuentra en distintos lugares, particularmente en el mar, y se utiliza para asfaltarcaminos, impermeabilizar techos y paredes, etcétera.” Brea, in contrast, is defined as “1

Substancia viscosa de color rojo oscuro que se obtiene por destilación del alquitrán deciertas maderas, del carbón mineral y de otras materias de origen orgánico; es insolubleen agua” and “2 Mezcla de esta sustancia con pez, sebo y aceite que se usa para calafatearlos barcos y hacerlos impermeables.” (It is not clear why the DEUMex sometimes spellsthe Spanish word for “substance” sustancia and sometimes substancia even within thedefinition of the same word!)

Mene: Mene is defined in the DHAV (Venezuela) as “1 coloq Petróleo. /2 coloq Asfalto,” but inthe DRAE as “Ven. Manantial natural de petróleo.” How common are these three uses inVenezuela?

Piche: Piche was offered by two respondents from Galicia, Spain and probably derives fromEnglish “pitch” ( pez, alquitrán).

Sellalotodo: Sellalotodo was given by a few respondents from the Dominican Republic in thesense of a type of liquid tar used as a sealant, but was pronounced sellalotó. SeeDominican Republic in section A16.3 above for information on the elision of intervocalic/d/ and its potential for lexicalization.

Technical terms: Technical terms for tar provided by a small number of respondents fromdifferent countries include emulsión asfáltica, pintura asfáltica and membrana asfáltica.What are the technical distinctions between them?

B2.4 Real Academia Regional Review

DRAE grades: alquitrán (A), asfalto (A), bleque (F), brea (D), chapapote (B), chapopote (B), petróleo (D), sellalotodo (F).

DRAE definitions: alquitrán, “(Del ár. hisp. alqitrán o alqatrán). Producto obtenido de ladestilación de maderas resinosas, carbones, petróleo, pizarras y otros materiales vegetales yminerales. Es líquido, viscoso, de color oscuro y fuerte olor, y tiene distintas aplicacionesindustriales”; alquitrán de petróleo, “El [alquitrán] obtenido por destilación del petróleo. Se usacomo impermeabilizante y como asfalto artificial”; asfalto, “(Del lat. asphaltus, y este del gr. ...).Sustancia de color negro que constituye la fracción más pesada del petróleo crudo. Se encuentraa veces en grandes depósitos naturales, como en el lago Asfaltites o mar Muerto, lo que se llamó betún de Judea. Se utiliza mezclado con arena o gravilla para pavimentar caminos y comorevestimiento impermeable de muros y tejados”; betún de judea and betún judaico, “asfalto”;brea, “Sustancia viscosa de color rojo oscuro que se obtiene haciendo destilar al fuego la maderade varios árboles de la clase de las Coníferas. Se emplea en medicina como pectoral yantiséptico”; chapapote, “(De or. nahua o caribe). Asfalto más o menos espeso que se halla enMéxico, las Antillas y Venezuela. || 2. Cantb. y Gal. [Cantabria y Galicia] alquitrán. || 3. coloq. Ven. Sustancia viscosa de cualquier tipo extendida por el suelo”; chapopote, “(Del nahuachapopotli). Méx. chapapote (|| asfalto)”; pez elástica, “Mineral semejante al asfalto, pero menosduro y bastante elástico.”



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Comments: The DRAE makes a distinction between brea (a dark red substance derivedfrom wood) and alquitrán (a dark substance derived from wood, coal, petroleum and othermineral or vegetable matter), a distinction that does not appear to be made by most Spanishspeakers who use either brea or alquitrán for black tar. What the DRAE fails to capture is that, in

the everyday usage of the different regions, terms such as alquitrán, brea, chapapote, chapopote and bleque can refer to the same thing. Alquitrán, alquitrán de petróleo and brea should be givenfull descriptions, and the remaining terms should be cross-referenced to them.

B3 SAWHORSE

B3.1 Summary

Burro is the most commonly used term in about twelve countries and caballete in seven. InSpanish America, the dividing line or isogloss seems to lie somewhere between Lima and

Guayaquil. In Ecuador and points north of Ecuador, burro is more common. From Peru to thesouth, caballete is more common. Banco is also used in the sense of sawhorse in many parts ofthe Spanish-speaking world.

Note: Terms other than burro, caballete and banco (and variants of these) appear in italics; CostaRica’s burra appears in boldface and italics.


SPAIN caballete (11/16), borriqueta (2/16), burro (2/16), banco (1/16), burra (1/16), caballo

(1/16), pato (1/16).MEXICO burro (16/21), banco (7/21), caball(it)o (4/21).GUATEMALA burro (14/18), burrito (2/18), caballo (2/18), banco (1/18).EL SALVADOR burro (9/15), banco (6/15), burrito (3/15), banquito (2/15), burro de trabajo (1/15),

sentadera (1/15).HONDURAS burro (9/10), banco (1/10).

NICARAGUA burro (11/13), burra (3/13).COSTA RICA burra (9/12), burro (3/12), banco de carpintería (1/12).PANAMA burro (8/10), burro de mesa (1/10), caballete (1/10), caballo (1/10).CUBA burro (11/14), caballete (4/14), banco (3/14).DOMIN. REP. burro (10/14), banco (8/14).PUERTO RICO burro (9/15), caball(it)o (de trabajo) (4/15), banco (de soporte) (2/15), caballete

(1/15).VENEZUELA burro (11/13), banco (1/13), caballete (1/13), caballo (1/13).COLOMBIA burro (12/14), banco para carpintería (1/14), burriquete (1/14), caballete (1/14).ECUADOR burro (10/12), caballete (3/12), banco (1/12).PERU caballete (12/15), burro (2/15), caballito (2/15), banco (1/15).BOLIVIA caballete (13/14), caballito (1/14).PARAGUAY caballete (7/7).



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colocar a diferentes alturas por medio de clavijas. Sirve para sujetar y tener en alto una de lascabezas del madero que se ha de aserrar, haciendo descansar la otra en el suelo”; burra, “5. C. Rica. burro (|| armazón para sujetar un madero que se asierra)”; caballete, “(Del dim. decaballo). 4. asnilla (|| sostén portátil)”; caballo, “4. burro (|| armazón para sujetar un madero que

se asierra)”; palomilla, “9. Armazón de tres piezas en forma de triángulo rectángulo, [sic] quesirve para sostener tablas, estantes u otras cosas.” Questions/Comments: The DRAE defines asnilla and caballete with one description (a

four-legged sawhorse), borrico and borriquete with another (what appears to be a type of three-legged sawhorse), and burro, burra and caballo with a third (what appears to be a type of two-legged sawhorse used for cutting wood such that one end of the wood is placed in the sawhorseand the other end rests on the ground). Do Spaniards who work with different types of sawhorsesgenerally use these different names to refer to these types? These distinctions may correctlydescribe Peninsular Spanish technical usage, but fail to paint an accurate picture of SpanishAmerican usage in which, for example, burro and caballete can be synonyms but are regionallyweighted terms: speakers tend to prefer one term over the other depending on geographic region.

B4 FORM (for pouring concrete)

B4.1 Summary

Encofrado is the General Spanish term, but in a number of countries other words such as cimbra,encajonado, encajuelado, forma, formaleta or tablero, etc. are used more often than encofrado.

Note: Terms other than encofrado appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface anditalics.


SPAIN encofrado (9/11), molde (2/11).MEXICO cimbra (11/25), forma (9/25), encajonado (5/25), cajón (3/25), dala

(3/25), ármex (2/25), molde (2/25), caja (1/25), entarimado (1/25).GUATEMALA formaleta (9/14), forma (2/14), cajón (1/14), encajuelado (1/14), molde (1/14).EL SALVADOR molde (7/14), encajonado (3/14), moldura (3/14), forma (2/14), formaleta (2/14),

cajón (1/14).HONDURAS encofrado (4/8), encajuelado (3/8), forma (2/8), formaleta (2/8).

NICARAGUA formaleta (12/12).COSTA RICA formaleta (10/11), molde (1/11).PANAMA formaleta (6/7), encofrado (1/7).CUBA encofrado (11/13), molde (1/13), forma (1/13).DOMIN. REP. molde(n) (8/13), cana(s)to (3/13), cana(s)ta (2/13), cajón (1/13), encofrado (1/13),

marco (1/13).PUERTO RICO molde (8/10), formaleta (2/10), cajón (1/10).VENEZUELA encofrado (12/12).



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COLOMBIA formaleta (9/11), encofrado (1/11), molde (1/11).ECUADOR encofrado (12/15), tablero (6/15).PERU encofrado (9/9).BOLIVIA encofrado (5/6), encajonado (1/6).

PARAGUAY encofrado (5/5).URUGUAY encofrado (4/4).ARGENTINA encofrado (10/14), molde (3/14), encajonado (1/14).CHILE molde (3/7), encofrado (2/7), moldaje (1/7), forma (1/7).

B4.3 Details

General: In the technical language of each country, how (if at all) are different base termsapplied to different types of forms? These include forms for foundations, forms forsidewalks and other slabs, forms for columns, and suspended forms such as those used to build an upper floor of a building.

Mexico: The DEUMex describes cimbra as “Armazón o molde de madera, de fierro u otrosmateriales sobre el que se lleva a cabo el colado de concreto o cemento de un techo o una bóveda y que se retira una vez que ha fraguado y endurecido.” This indicates that inMexico cimbra is a type of form used to build an upper storey of a building, a vault, orsome other suspended structure, rather than to build a foundation. (The DRAE , incontrast, defines cimbra as a “centering”; see section B4.4 below.) The DEUMex alsodefines the verb cimbrar as “Colocar las cimbras en una construcción...” That encofrado is not listed as an entry in this dictionary also lends credence to the notion that it is not part of “el español usual en México” and yet, if cimbra is only used in the restricted senseof a suspended form, what terms in Mexico are applied to the form used for a foundationand/or other forms that fall outside of the restrictions outlined in the DEUMex’sdefinition of cimbra? In this study, some respondents indicated that cimbra refers only toraised forms (up in the air, like that described in the DEUMex’s definition), but otherssaid cimbra can refer to any form used for pouring concrete. The use of forma in thegeneral sense of form was also given by a nontrivial percentage of respondents. It should be noted, however, that most Mexicans queried on this topic (and on all topics in thisstudy) were Mexicans living in the United States either temporarily or semi-permanently.Given its similarity to English “form,” is forma a term commonly used in this sense inMexico, or is it only used by Mexicans living in the United States who have beeninfluenced by the English word “form”? Since many generations of Mexicans haveworked in the construction industry in the United States, some of whom returned toMexico, I suspect it is common in Mexico as well. We note that another meaning of theword forma, which also resembles English “form” in form and in meaning, is defined bythe DEUMex as “9 Hoja de papel impresa con las instrucciones que deben seguirse y losdatos que se requieren para efectuar algún trámite.” This suggests that forma in the senseof “form to fill out” (in other words, more or less equivalent to formulario) is not anAnglicism that only uneducated Mexicans living in the United States use, as some havealleged, but is part of mainstream Mexican Spanish, though its use is no doubt criticized by some Mexicans. It is possible that the use of forma, in the sense of a form for pouring



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concrete is also part of Mexican Spanish, either general or regional, and is not limited tothe language of Mexicans living in the United States. If so, is its use in Mexico due to theinfluence of English “form,” is it the result of a narrowing of a more general sense of forma (molde en que se vacía y forma algo), or a combination of the two factors? The

Nuevo Diccionario de Americanismos e Indigenismos (Morínigo) defines dala as “ Méx.Viga de cemento armado, encajada en una pared, a lo largo, para darle mayorresistencia.” Were the three Mexicans who gave dala in the sense of form confused (ormisunderstood by me), or is dala used by some Mexicans in the sense of form?

Costa Rica: The NDCR confirms the use of formaleta, defining it as “[ Alb.] Armazón de maderaque sirve de molde para construir una viga o cualquier cosa de cemento” and defines formaletear as “tr. Hacer formaletas.”

Panama: Panameñismos (Isaza Calderón) also confirms the use of formaleta, defining it as“Molde de diversas formas y tamaños dentro del cual se vacía el hormigón.”

Dominican Republic: Many respondents in this study said molden rather than molde, though inreality the pronunciation was often somewhere between molden and moiden. The moide

and moiden pronunciations were given mostly, but not exclusively, by respondents fromthe Cibao. Is the addition of a word-final n to molde, and to other words ending inunstressed e, common in other Spanish-speaking countries? Compare the use of naiden (nadie) that is common in parts of rural Mexico (and perhaps elsewhere). In the case ofnaiden, there is metathesis of d and i to form naide __ which is a popular form of nadie inmany parts of the Spanish-speaking world (Lipski 1994: 148) __ and, in addition, an n isadded to the unstressed word-final vowel e, just as in the case of molden/moiden (<molde). The addition of this [n] in the Dominican Republic may also be a case of“hypercorrection” since phrase-final and word-final /n/ is sometimes elided in thiscountry (Lipski 1994: 238). The neutralization of syllable-final liquids /l/ and /r/ in favorof /l/ (whereby words such as alma and arma both sound like alma) is widespread in theDominican Republic and elsewhere in the Hispanic Antilles (Lipski 1994: 231-232, 239,332-333), and, at the vernacular level, the vocalization of these liquids (such that alma and arma both sound like aima, or somewhere in between alma and aima) is common inmost of the northern half of the Dominican Republic (Lipski 1994: 239). Dominicansthemselves sometimes refer to the pronunciation of words like aima (alma) and mujei (mujer ) as “hablar con la i.” In the case of cana(s)to and cana(s)ta, several respondents pronounced these words with no aspiration (or [s]) that I could perceive, but the presenceof /s/ may have been marked by a compensatory lengthening of the preceding vowel.Research needs to be done to determine the extent to which the aspiration or elision of s in canasto and canasta may have become lexicalized giving canato and canata (perhaps pronounced canaato and canaata), respectively. For information on these issues and adiscussion of the possible causes of the vocalization of liquid consonants in theDominican Republic (including theories on a possible African, Haitian, Canary Islandand/or Murcian origin), see “Nuevas perspectivas sobre el español afrodominicano”(Lipski 2004c).

Puerto Rico: The majority of respondents indicated molde, but one said a formaleta is a formused for pouring a sidewalk and a molde one for a building’s foundation.



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Colombia: The NDCol defines formaleta as “Molde para hacer tapias, adobes, ladrillos o tejas. |Armazón metálico o de madera que sostiene el peso de un arco o de otra construcción, entanto ésta no se halla en condiciones de sostenerse a sí misma”; cimbra is offered as thePeninsular Spanish equivalent for sense two. Thus this source states that formaleta can

refer to a form or mold for making bricks, tiles, etc. (sense one) and to a “centering” orframe that holds up an arch or other suspended structure while it is being built (sensetwo). In this study, however, a majority of respondents indicated that formaleta can referto a form for pouring concrete.

Ecuador: The term tablero was offered by Ecuadoran masons from the Costa all of whomindicated tablero and encofrado are synonyms and that the former is used more oftenthan the latter. Is tablero also used in the Sierra in the sense of form?

Argentina: The majority of respondents indicated encofrado, a few molde, and one said molde isthe form by itself and encofrado or molde encofrado is the form once it is filled withconcrete.

Related concept: The DECu defines zapata as “En un edificio, parte subterránea que sirve de

soporte a la construcción” and indicates that cimiento is an equivalent used in Spain andCuba. In this study, Dominicans and Puerto Ricans also confirmed the use of zapata inthe sense of foundation.


DRAE grades: cimbra (D), dala (D), encajonado (D), encajuelado (F), encofrado (A), forma (D), formaleta (B), molde (D), tablero (D).

DRAE definitions: encofrado, “(Del part. de encofrar ). Molde formado con tableros ochapas de metal, en el que se vacía el hormigón hasta que fragua, y que se desmonta después”; cimbra, “(De or. inc.; cf. cat. cíndria). 2. Constr . Armazón que sostiene el peso de un arco o deotra construcción, destinada a salvar un vano, en tanto no está en condiciones de sostenerse por símisma”; dala, “(Del fr. dalle, y este del neerl. daal , tubo). Mar . Canal de tablas por donde salía ala mar el agua que achicaba la bomba”; forma, “3. Molde en que se vacía y forma algo”; formaleta, “(Del cat. formalet , arco de medio punto). Armazón que sostiene un arco. || 2. C. Rica. Armazón de madera con que se construye una viga o cualquier pieza de cemento”; molde, “(Delcat. ant. motle). Pieza o conjunto de piezas acopladas en que se hace en hueco la forma que ensólido quiere darse a la materia fundida, fluida o blanda, que en él se vacía, como un metal, lacera, etc.”; zapata, “8. Cuba. Zócalo de fábrica en que se apoya una pared o tabique.”

Questions/Comments: Formaleta and the other commonly used regional synonyms (suchas cimbra, forma, encajonado, encajuelado, molde and tablero) should be cross-referenced toGeneral Spanish encofrado. We also note that the DRAE ’s definitions of cimbra (sense two) and formaleta (sense one) are very similar to each other and correspond to what in English is called a“centering” (defined by the AHD as “A temporary, usually wooden framework on which an arch,vault, or dome is supported during construction”). Can cimbra and formaleta be synonyms inPeninsular Spanish usage? If so, they should be cross-referenced.



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B5 WASHER (metal washers for screws and bolts)

B5.1 Summary

Arandela is the most commonly used word for metal washers (used with screws and bolts) inover half the Spanish-speaking world and can be considered the General Spanish term. Guacha,and its variants, are used in five countries, and Ecuador, Bolivia and Chile have unique usagesnot common in any other country.

Note: Terms other than arandela appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface anditalics. The item addressed in this section is the metal washer used with screws and bolts, not therubber or plastic washer used in plumbing. See washers in Appendix for some limitedinformation on the regional variation in the names for the latter type.


SPAIN arandela (15/15).MEXICO rondana (19/23), arandela (3/23), guacha (1/23), guasa (1/23).GUATEMALA guasha (7/14), roldana (5/14), rondana (2/14), arandela (1/14), guacha (1/14).EL SALVADOR guacha (12/15), arandela (4/15), guasha (1/15).HONDURAS guacha (13/13).

NICARAGUA arandela (12/12).COSTA RICA arandela (13/13), guacha (1/13).PANAMA guacha (9/13), arandela (6/13), guasha (2/13).CUBA arandela (17/17).DOMIN. REP. arandela (14/14).PUERTO RICO arandela (18/18).VENEZUELA arandela (15/15).COLOMBIA arandela (22/22), guasa (1/22).ECUADOR anillo (10/22), arandela (10/22), rodela (10/22).PERU guacha (16/21), arandela (5/21), anillo (3/21), guasha (1/21).BOLIVIA bolanda/volanda (11/14), arandela (4/14).PARAGUAY arandela (6/6).URUGUAY arandela (12/12).ARGENTINA arandela (20/20).CHILE golilla (18/18).

B5.3 Details

General: The modifiers plano and de presión get added to the base terms for metal washers whenone wants to refer specifically to “flat washers” (arandela plana, guacha plana, etc.) vs.“spring washers” or “cut washers” (arandela de presión, guacha de presión, etc.). Theterms guacha, guasha and guasa are also sometimes written with initial hu (e.g. huacha)or, less often, with an etymological w (wacha), but in section B5.2 above they are spelled



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with initial gu because this appears to be the most common spelling and for the sake ofuniformity. In the case of loan words ( préstamos) and also with popular and vulgarlanguage, Spanish continues to grapple with the issue of how the phoneme /g/ whenfollowed by a semi-vowel [u] should be represented graphically, whether by gu, hu or

(less often) w. Although this ambivalence occasionally crops up in word-internal positions __ aguate-ahuate, aguautle-ahuautle and güegüenche-huehuenche areexamples __ it is especially frequent word-initially, as the following pairs of termsillustrate: güisqui-whisky, guácala-huácala, guaco-huaco, guachar-huachar , guaje-huaje, guarache-huarache, guaso-huaso, güevada-huevada, güevón-huevón, güevonada-huevonada, güisquil -huisquil , güillín-huillín, güilo-huilo, güipil -huipil , güiro-huiro and güero-huero. With the exception of huaso, and the gü spellings in the words derivingfrom huevo, all of the preceding terms are listed with both variants in the DRAE . In thecase of some of these pairs, one spelling is generally preferred over the other – Mexican güero (‘blond’) is rarely spelled huero – while in that of güisqui-whisky, Hispanized orCastilianized güisqui may be preferred in Spain and etymological (English) whisky or

whiskey in Spanish America. The gü spelling is also used to represent cases in which the phonemes /g/ and /b/ when followed by the semi-vowel [u] and (generally) /e/ getneutralized in favor of /g/, especially, though not exclusively, in popular language. This isreflected in a number of nonstandard spellings used to depict uneducated speech such asagüelo (< abuelo), güeno (< bueno), güelta (< vuelta) and güey (< buey). See “El españolque se habla en el Salvador y su importancia para la dialectología hispanoamericana”(Lipski 2000) for a detailed description of this neutralization and a discussion of its phonological causes.

Spain: The DRAE defines rondana without regional specification as more or less a synonym ofarandela (see section B5.4 below), but in this study respondents offered only arandela.In Spain, how common is rondana in the sense defined by the DRAE and, how is itdistinguished from arandela?

Mexico: The use of rondana in the sense of metal washer is confirmed by the DEUMex, whichdefines it as “Pequeña pieza circular y delgada, como un disco, generalmente de metalcon un agujero en el centro, que se utiliza para que haya un ajuste perfecto entre unatuerca y un tornillo.” Interestingly enough, the DEUMex defines arandela somewhatdifferently as “Pieza metálica en forma de disco con una perforación en el centro, que seutiliza para impedir el roce entre dos piezas de una máquina, para afianzar o apretar algo,como un tornillo, para impedir filtraciones de líquidos entres dos piezas, etcétera.” In thisstudy, the majority of Mexican respondents indicated that rondana is the only termcommonly used in the sense of metal washer. The DEUMex indicates that rondanas areused “para que haya un ajuste perfecto entre una tuerca y un tornillo” but, as anyone whohas used metal washers knows, they serve other purposes as well, such as to distribute the pressure of a bolt’s head or nut over a larger surface area and thus prevent them fromdigging into and damaging the surface of the material that is being bolted down.

Guatemala: Why did English “washer” get Hispanized to guacha with a ch sound in mostSpanish-speaking countries that have taken the loan word from English (El Salvador,Honduras, Panama, Peru), but in Guatemala guasha seems to be the most common pronunciation? Is it because the sh sound is common in Quiché and other indigenous



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languages of Guatemala, and therefore Guatemalans, unlike most Spanish speakers, hadno trouble maintaining the sh sound of English “washer” since it was already part of their phonetic repertoire? If so, is guasha also used in some regions of Peru (such as theHighlands) that also have a substrate language with an sh sound, Quechua? If not, why

not? See Panama below.El Salvador: The DS confirms the use of guacha, which is defined as “(léx. mec. [léxico demecánicos]) Arandela o especie de empaque que se pone entre la cabeza de un tornillo yla pieza en la cual se mete. Sirve para que zoque mejor el tornillo.” We note that the DRAE defines the verb zocar as “Guat ., Hond . y Nic. apretar (|| oprimir),” but it wouldappear that zocar is also used this way in El Salvador.

Panama: The use of guacha is confirmed by the DTP (Higuero Morales), which defines huacha as “Arandela. Proviene del término inglés washer ” and guacha as “Ver huacha.” In thisstudy, two respondents gave the pronunciation guasha, but indicated they would spell theword guacha. This is consistent with the fact that some Panamanians pronounce theaffricate ch as a fricative sh sound, especially word-internal intervocalic ch’s (Lipski

1994: 299). In other words, some Panamanians would say guasha, but write the wordwith a ch just as they would say mushasho but would write muchacho. In Guatemala, incontrast, many people say and write the word guasha. More research needs to be doneconcerning this point. See Guatemala above.

Colombia: All of the respondents in this study indicated arandela as the term for metal washersin general, except for one, a building engineer, who stated that arandela is the flat orregular washer and guasa de presión the cut washer. See, however, the NDCol ’sdefinitions of guasa and empaque under washers in Appendix.

Ecuador: Rodela is more common in the Sierra and anillo more so in the Costa. Arandela is usedin both regions, but is less popular than rodela and anillo in their respective regions.(Both anillo and rodela could be considered majority regionalisms in their respectiveregions, Costa Ecuatoriana and Sierra Ecuatoriana, respectively.)

Bolivia: Is the proper spelling volanda or bolanda? In this study, eight out of eleven Boliviansindicated they believed bolanda was the correct spelling while three preferred volanda,which is certainly not enough data to draw conclusions about prevailing usage. However,from an etymological standpoint, volanda is probably the “correct” s pelling since theword most likely has the same origin as volandera, which the DRAE defines as “(Del lat.volandus, part. fut. pas. de volāre, volar)... 5. Rodaja de hierro que se coloca comosuplemento en los extremos del eje del carro para sujetar las ruedas.” If a majority ofeducated Bolivians believe the word is spelled bolanda, but based on etymology the wordshould be spelled volanda, should we say the majority is “wrong” and try to change their practice by including only the word volanda in dictionaries and teaching only thisspelling to students, or should we go with prevailing usage and admit bolanda? Or should both variants be listed in dictionaries and the matter explained in a “usage note”? Likemany language-planning issues, this is a philosophical as well as a linguistic question.

Chile: The DECH confirms the use of golilla and indicates that arandela is less commonly usedin the sense of metal washer. It defines golilla as “Anilla, volandera, estornija o arandela plana y sin hilo que se emplea para ajustar un perno o una tuerca y evitar que deterioren



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la superficie del material al que va adherida... Más usual que los sins. [sinónimos]académicos.”


DRAE grades: anillo (D), arandela (A), bolanda (F), golilla (A), guacha (F), guasa (D), guasha (F), huacha (F), rodela (D), roldana (A), rondana (C), volanda (F).

DRAE definitions: arandela1, “(Del fr. rondelle). Pieza generalmente circular, fina y perforada, que se usa para mantener apretados una tuerca o un tornillo, asegurar el cierrehermético de una junta o evitar el roce entre dos piezas”; rondana, “Rodaja de plomo o cueroengrasado, agujereada en el centro, que se utiliza para asiento de tuercas y cabezas de tornillos”; golilla, “Chile. rondana”; roldana, “2. Guat . rondana.”

Comments: The DRAE does not cross-reference rondana to arandela and defines the twosomewhat differently when, in fact, they can be synonyms. It also cross-references golilla androldana to rondana instead of to General Spanish arandela. With the exception of golilla and

roldana, the DRAE provides no information on the terms’ regional distributions.

B6 BEARING (ball bearing, roller bearing, etc.)

B6.1 Summary

Rodamiento and cojinete can be considered General Spanish terms for ball bearing __ rodamiento more so than cojinete __ but most countries have a more regional term that in everyday language isused more often than either of these two. Balero is used in Mexico and El Salvador, balinera inColombia and several Central American countries, caja de bola(s) in the Antilles, and rulemán or rulimán in a number of South American countries. Costa Rica, Venezuela and Peru haveunique usages not found elsewhere.

Note: Terms other than rodamiento and cojinete appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface and italics.


SPAIN rodamiento (9/10), cojinete (3/10).MEXICO balero (14/17), rodamiento (2/17), rulimán (2/17), balinera (1/17).GUATEMALA cojinete (8/10), balinera (1/10), rulemán (1/10).EL SALVADOR balero (13/13).HONDURAS balinera (12/12).

NICARAGUA balinera (13/13).COSTA RICA rol (11/12), balinera (2/12), cojinete de rodamiento (1/12).PANAMA balinera (13/13).CUBA caja de bola(s) (19/20), cojinete (3/20), rodamiento (2/20).DOMIN. REP. caja de bola(s) (20/20), roberi (5/20).



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PUERTO RICO caja de bola(s) (16/17), cojinete (1/17), rodamiento (1/17).VENEZUELA rolinera (14/16), cojinete (1/16), rodamiento (1/16), rulinera (1/16).COLOMBIA balinera (22/24), rodamiento (4/24).ECUADOR rul imán (20/21), rodamiento (5/21).

PERU rodaje (17/21), rodamiento (2/21), rulimán (2/21).BOLIVIA rodamiento (14/15), rulimán (1/15).PARAGUAY rulemán (7/11), rúleman (4/11), cojinete (2/11).URUGUAY rulemán (12/12), rodamiento (1/12).ARGENTINA rulemán (18/20), rodamiento (3/20), bolillero (2/20), cojinete (2/20), rúleman

(2/20).CHILE rodamiento (18/18), cojinete (1/18).

B6.3 Details

General: The item tested on respondents was the ball bearing, the most common type of bearing.

However, a few indicated that the base terms they offered for ball bearings are also used, perhaps with modifiers, to refer to other types of bearings as well. Research needs to bedone to determine how other types of bearings such as roller bearings or needle bearingsare called in different regions, whether by the same base term as those listed in sectionB6.2 above, possibly with a different modifier, or by another term. For example, if a cajade bolas is a ball bearing in the Antilles, would a roller bearing there be a caja derodillos, a caja de bolas de rodillos, a caja de bolas con rodillos, or perhaps some otherterm that is not derived from caja de bolas? Other terms such as balero and balinera thatderive from a word for ball (bala and balín, respectively) pose similar questions, thoughthe DEUMex’s definition of balero seems to resolve the matter in the case of Mexico (seeMexico below). In the case of General Spanish rodamiento, which specific term for ball bearing is more common or preferred (and where), rodamiento de bolas or rodamiento abolas?

Mexico: The use of balero in the sense of ball bearing is confirmed by the DEUMex, whichdefines it as “( Mec) Rodamiento con el que se protege de la fricción un eje o una flechaque rota; está formado por cierta cantidad de balines colocados entre dos pistas circularesy concéntricas.” The definition goes on to describe two other types of bearings, balerosde agujas (needle bearings) and baleros de rodillos (roller bearings). The fact that neitherrodamiento, nor cojinete is listed as a separate entry in the DEUMex also suggests thatbalero is really the only term for this item that is part of “el español usual en México.”

El Salvador: The DS defines balero as “(léx. mec.) Cojinete o pieza en que se apoya un eje paragirar. 2. Bolitas de acero que en forma de anillo ayudan al movimiento circular de una pieza. 3. Rodo.” Although sense three of the definition is not very clear, by rodo theauthor of the DS appears to be referring to rodillo, which the DRAE def ines as “4. Piezade metal, cilíndrica y giratoria, que forma parte de diversos mecanismos.” In this study,all respondents offered balero for the ball bearing, but several indicated that balinera refers to the circular part of the device that is inside the bearing.



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Nicaragua: The DUEN confirms the use of balinera, defining it as “Dispositivo formado por doscilindros metálicos entre los cuales se coloca una corona de bolas que sirven para elrodamiento.”

Cuba: The DECu confirms the use of caja de bolas, defining it as “Cojinete formado por dos

cilindros concéntricos entre los cuales se intercala una corona de bolas que pueden girarlibremente en cualquier maquinaria.” Dominican Republic: All respondents offered caja de bola(s), though in this survey it was more

often pronounced caja de bola (this was also true for Cuba and Puerto Rico). However, ahandful of Dominicans also gave roberi and, of these, a couple said it was a roller bearing, and one (each) said it was a ball bearing with smaller balls, a more technical(shop-talk) synonym of caja de bola, or the part of the ball bearing that turns. Howeverroberi is used, English “ball bearing” appears to be its origin.

Colombia: The NDCol confirms the use of balinera, defining it as “Dispositivo mecánico,consistente en una corona de bolas de acero contenidas entre dos anillos, fijo el uno a uneje y el otro a una rueda” and indicates that cojinete and rodamiento de bolas are the

Peninsular Spanish equivalents.Paraguay, Uruguay & Argentina: The DEArg (Argentina) defines rulemán, with the alternate pronunciation of rúleman, as “Pieza que cumple las funciones de cojinete, formada poraros metálicos concéntricos entre los que se intercala una corona de bolillas de acero, quegira libremente” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanish equivalent is rodamiento debolas. In other words, it indicates that a rulemán or rúleman is specifically a ball bearing(as opposed to other types of bearings such as roller bearings). The definition of rulemán in the NDU (Uruguay) is almost identical to the DEArg ’s definition of this term. Howcommon is the pronunciation of this term with the stress on the first syllable (rúleman) ascompared to the stress on the third syllable (rulemán) in each of the three countries? See Rulimán vs. Rulemán/ Rúleman below. The DEArg also defines buje as “Pieza en la quese apoya y gira el eje de una maquinaria,” and indicates that it is synonymous withcojinete de una pieza, which is used in Argentina and Spain, but the DRAE lists buje as aGeneral Spanish term (see section B6.4 below).

Rulimán vs. Rulemán/ Rúleman: Why did the spelling with an i of rulimán evolve in Ecuador(and perhaps in Peru and Bolivia as well) when the spelling with an e (rulemán or perhaps rúleman) is used in the River Plate region? We note that rulemán is closer inspelling to its French etymon, roulement ; that French roulement has a secondary stress onthe first syllable; and that in rapid speech Spanish rulemán sounds just like rulimán. One possible explanation for the spelling preferences in different Spanish-speaking countriesis that rulemán took root in Argentina and Uruguay (and by extension in Paraguay) because more people in Buenos Aires and Montevideo were familiar with French and,when Hispanizing the word, they kept the e thus partially retaining the French spelling. InEcuador, on the other hand, the word entered Spanish primarily through word of mouthand was simply written as heard, rulimán, without paying attention to the French spelling.The fact that rulemán can be pronounced rúleman in River Plate Spanish also supportsthe notion of a stronger French influence there. See Paraguay, Uruguay & Argentinaabove.



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Related terms: What are all the terms for the balls of ball bearings, such as balines, municiones,bolitas, chibolitas, etc., and how, if at all, are they regionally distributed?


DRAE grades: balero (F), balinera (B), caja de bolas (F), cojinete (A or D?), rodaje (D),rodamiento (A), rol (D), roberi (F), rolinera (F), rulemán (A), rulimán (F).

DRAE definitions: rodamiento, “ Mec. Cojinete formado por dos cilindros concéntricos,entre los que se intercala una corona de bolas o rodillos que pueden girar libremente”; cojinete,“5. Mec. Pieza o conjunto de piezas en que se apoya y g ira el eje de un mecanismo”; balero derodamiento, “ Méx. Rodamiento a bolas”; balinera, “(De balín). Nic. rodamiento”; buje, “(Dellat. buxis, caja). cojinete (|| pieza en que se apoya y gira un eje)”; rulemán, “(Del fr. roulement ). Arg ., Par . y Ur . rodamiento.”

Comments: With respect to this item, the DRAE has described usage fairly accurately inabout half the Spanish-speaking world, most notably Spain, the Southern Cone and possibly

Mexico (it should, however, define balero more generally, without the qualifier de rodamiento), but the DRAE is pretty much in the dark with regard to usage in the rest of the Spanish-speakingworld.

B7 STEAMROLLER

B7.1 Summary

Aplanadora is the General Spanish term commonly used in all of Spanish America with the possible exception of the Dominican Republic. Spain has a unique term not common elsewhere.

Note: Terms other than aplanadora appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldface anditalics.


SPAIN apisonadora (9/10), aplanadora (1/10).MEXICO aplanadora (13/14), plancha (2/14), compactadora (1/14).GUATEMALA aplanadora (9/10), apalmazador (1/10), rolo (1/10).EL SALVADOR aplanadora (7/7).HONDURAS aplanadora (6/8), aplanador (1/8), compactadora (1/8).

NICARAGUA aplanadora (9/10), planadora (2/10).COSTA RICA aplanadora (12/13), planadora (1/13).PANAMA aplanadora (7/7), rodillo (1/7).CUBA aplanadora (10/12), cilindro (aplanador) (4/12), planadora (1/12).DOMIN. REP. rodillo (13/14), aplanadora (2/14), planadora (1/14).PUERTO RICO aplanadora (14/21), rolo (6/21), cilindro (4/21), aplanador (1/21), planadora

(1/21).



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VENEZUELA aplanadora (6/8), compactador (1/8), rodillo compactador (1/8).COLOMBIA aplanadora (13/16), compactador(a) (2/16), cilindradora (1/16), motoniveladora (1/16).ECUADOR aplanadora (8/11), rodillo (5/11), planadora (1/11).PERU aplanadora (8/11), rodillo (3/11), compactadora (1/11).

BOLIVIA aplanadora (9/10), compactadora (1/10).PARAGUAY aplanadora (5/7), compactador (1/7), rodillo (1/7).URUGUAY aplanadora (6/6).ARGENTINA aplanadora (14/14).CHILE aplanadora (10/12), bicicleta del alcalde (1/12), compactadora (1/12), rodillo (1/12).

B7.3 Details

Compactador(a): The terms compactadora or compactador were offered by a handful ofrespondents from different countries in the sense of steamroller. However, many otherrespondents indicated that a compactador(a) is not a steamroller but a vibrating machine

(also called a vibradora, according to some) that is used to further compact the groundafter the steamroller has gone over the terrain. A Google image search of compactadora conducted in mid 2005 turned up mostly pictures of machinery other than steamrollers,though at least one was of a machine that looked similar to a steamroller but appeared tohave grooves in the wheels. Is the use of compactador(a) in the sense of steamroller prevailing usage in some circles? This question needs to be researched.

Mexico: In this study, all respondents gave aplanadora and a couple also indicated that plancha was used in this sense. The DEUMex, however, lists only plancha, which is defined as “3 Máquina provista de un gran rodillo metálico, muy pesado, que se hace pasar sobre latierra de una calle, un terreno, etc., para aplanarla y darle firmeza; aplanadora” and doesnot list aplanadora as a separate entry. The fact that aplanadora is not an entry in the DEUMex is somewhat odd since it is not a dictionary solely of Mexican regionalisms buta general dictionary written from the Mexican perspective, and since aplanadora, in thesense of steamroller, seems to be more “mainstream Mexican usage” than plancha. Howcommon is the use of plancha as compared to aplanadora in the sense of steamroller inMexico?

Guatemala: Although the majority of respondents indicated aplanadora, one gave apalmazador ,and we note that the DRAE defines the verb apelmazar as “(De pelmazo). 2. tr. El Salv., Hond . y Nic. apisonar.” Where else in Central America (and perhaps elsewhere) mightapelmazador(a) and/or apalmazador(a) be used in the sense of steamroller?

El Salvador: The DS confirms the use of aplanadora, defining it as “Máquina con rodillos pesados, usada en la construcción de calles para alisar y compactar el suelo.”

Nicaragua: The DUEN also confirms the use of aplanadora, defining it as “Máquina de gran peso que se usa en la pavimentación o reparación de carreteras y calles.”

Costa Rica: Aplanadora was offered by the majority of respondents in this study. However, the NDCR does not list aplanadora and defines planadora as “Vehículo que con un cilindrode hierro en la parte delantera sirve para aplanar las calles.” Perhaps this is because theauthor does not consider aplanadora to be especially regional or Costa Rican. Howcommon is planadora vis-à-vis aplanadora in Costa Rica?



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Cuba: The DECu confirms the use of both aplanadora and cilindro, defining them as “Máquina provista de rodillos grandes y pesados, que se emplea para apisonar y alisar calles,caminos y terrenos” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanish equivalent is apisonadora.

Venezuela: The DHAV confirms the use of aplanadora, defining it as “Máquina con ruedas a

modo de rodillos grandes y pesados, usada en la construcción y reparación de vías públicas.” Colombia: The NDCol defines cilindradora as “Máquina locomóvil, con ruedas a modo de

rodillos grandes y pesados, usada en la construcción y reparación de vías públicas,” anddefines aplanadora almost identically. The DRAE also confirms the use of cilindradora in Colombia (see section B7.4 below). In this study, however, only one Colombian wasfound who acknowledged the use of cilindradora in the sense of steamroller, and heindicated it was an old term that is no longer common in his country. A Google search ofthe terms cilindradora and pavimento, however, produced several texts, not all fromColombia, in which the former term appears with the meaning of steamroller. Forexample, the following quotation is from the technical specifications of a public works

project: “A lo largo de andenes, muros, cabezotes, sardineles y otros lugares inaccesiblesa la cilindradora, la mezcla se compactará cuidadosamente mediante el uso de pisones demano calientes o compactadores mecánicos que apliquen una compresión equivalente”( Alcaldía Mayor de Cartagena de Indias; emphasis on cilindradora added). Interestinglyenough, a very similar quotation was found in what may be a Mexican Internet documentauthored by an Argentine called Pavimentos which states: “En las zonas inaccesibles parala cilindradora se obtendrá la compactación de la mezcla mediante compactadores portátiles mecánicos adecuados” (Liberatore). The question remains as to how frequentthe use of cilindradora is in the sense of steamroller (or some other type of compactingroller machine) in Colombia and beyond.

Ecuador: The HEDE confirms the use of aplanadora, defining it as “Rodillo, máquina movida por motor que lleva un pesado rodillo para compactar o aplanar el suelo destinado a calle, plaza, carretera, pista, etc.; apisonadora.” The HEDE does not define rodillo, but the preceding definition seems to confirm the data from this study, which indicate that rodillo is used in Ecuador in the sense of steamroller.

Argentina & Uruguay: The DEArg (Argentina) and the NDU (Uruguay) both confirm the use ofaplanadora, which they define as “Máquina con tracción propia, provista de rodillosgrandes y pesados, que se emplea para apisonar y alisar calles, caminos y terrenos engeneral” and indicate that apisonadora is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent. OneArgentine respondent indicated that rodillo macizo refers to one of the heavy wheels ofthe aplanadora.

Chile: The DECH confirms the use of aplanadora, defining it as “Apisonadora; máquinalocomóvil armada sobre rodillos grandes y pesados que se utiliza para apisonar y aplanarcalles, caminos y terrenos... Sin. [sinónimo] bicicleta del alcalde, 1a acep. No es usual elsin. académico” (i.e. apisonadora is not common in Chile), and it defines bicicleta delalcalde as “fest. [festivo] fam. [familiar] Aplanadora...” In this study, one respondentalso indicated that bicicleta del alcalde is used as a humorous and colloquial equivalentof aplanadora.



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DRAE grades: apisonadora (C), aplanadora (A), cilindro (B), planadora (B), rodillo (D),rolo (D).

DRAE definitions: apisonadora, “Máquina automóvil que rueda sobre unos cilindros muy pesados, y que se emplea para allanar y apretar caminos y pavimentos”; aplanadora, “ Am.apisonadora (|| máquina)”; cilindradora, “Col . apisonadora (|| máquina)”; cilindro, “8. Cuba.apisonadora (|| máquina)”; planadora, “C. Rica. apisonadora (|| máquina)”; rodillo, “2.Cilindro muy pesado de piedra o de hierro, que se hace rodar para allanar y apretar la tierra o para consolidar el firme de las carreteras”; rodo, “Cilindro muy pesado para allanar el suelo.”

Questions/Comments: The DRAE states accurately that aplanadora is used in SpanishAmerica, but needs to fine-tune the definitions and/or regional specifications of some of theother terms so that the dictionary user is provided correct information about where terms such asrodillo and planadora are commonly used in the sense of steamroller. Apisonadora would be anexcellent candidate to receive the “ Esp.” (España) regional specification, a designation which

appears in the DRAE ’s list of abbreviations but needs to be used much more liberally. The phrase“sobre unos cilindros muy pesados” that appears in the DRAE ’s definition of apisonadora doesnot accurately describe those steamrollers that have just one of these cilindros or rodillos in thefront end of the machinery and have rubber tires (or some other locomotion device) in the rearend. The definitions of aplanadora in the DEArg (“provista de rodillos grandes y pesados”), the DHAV (“con ruedas a modo de rodillos grandes y pesados”) and the DECH (“armada sobrerodillos grandes y pesados”) suffer from the same limitation. See Figure B7 in Illustrations andthe DEUMex’s, the NDCR’s and the HEDE ’s definitions of plancha, planadora and aplanadora in section B7.3 above to confirm this.

B8 SCREW ANCHOR

B8.1 Summary

Tarugo appears to be the most commonly used term, followed by taco.

Note: Terms other than tarugo and taco appear in italics, and majority regionalisms in boldfaceand italics.


SPAIN taco (6/11), tarugo (2/11), expansión (1/11), tojino (1/11), tugino (1/11).MEXICO taquete (10/10).GUATEMALA tarugo (6/7), taquete (1/7).EL SALVADOR ancla (6/6).HONDURAS taco fícher (4/4).

NICARAGUA espiche (5/8), expansor (1/8), taco de expansión (1/8), tarugo (1/8).COSTA RICA espánder /expánder (9/10), tarugo (1/10).



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PANAMA taco (9/10), anclaje de plástico (1/10), casquillo (1/10).CUBA expansión (5/7), taco (2/7).DOMIN. REP. tarugo (10/10).PUERTO RICO expansión (12/12).

VENEZUELA ramplú (12/16), ramplug (2/16), ramplún (2/16), ramplex (1/16), ramplux (1/16).COLOMBIA chazo (12/12).ECUADOR taco físher/taco fícher (7/8), tarugo (3/8), taco (1/8).PERU tarugo (9/10), taco (1/10).BOLIVIA ramplú (5/9), tarugo (3/9), ramplug (1/9).PARAGUAY tarugo (5/5).URUGUAY taco físher (6/7), taco (de fijación) (2/7), tarugo (1/7).ARGENTINA tarugo (15/15), taco físher (5/15), físher (1/15).CHILE tarugo (9/9).

B8.3 Details

Ancla(je): The word anclaje (anclaje plástico, anclaje metálico, etc.) appears to be a technicalGeneral Spanish term for this item, as it appears in web sites from different Spanish-speaking countries. See, for example, “Hilti Española S.A.” (Spain), “Boletín deAclaraciones No. 0164-2 Licitación Pública Internacional...” (Honduras) and “Durlock”(Argentina) in References. Is the use of anclaje and ancla (see EL SALVADOR in sectionB8.2 above) in the sense of screw anchor a calque of English “(screw) anchor,” or does itrepresent a parallel development that is unrelated to the evolution of the meaning ofanchor in English?

Chazo: The NDCol (Colombia) defines chazo as “Pedazo o taco de madera que se introduce enuna pared para fijar algo en él.” Although chazo no doubt still has this meaning, the termnow also refers to the factory-made plastic screw anchor. Some Colombians, includingcollege-educated ones, believe this word is spelled chaso.

Ramplú or ramplug : The DHAV (Venezuela) confirms the use of ramplug , defining it as “Pieza,generalmente de plástico, que se empotra en una pared para sujetar clavos o tornillos.” Inthis study, the majority of Venezuelans indicated that ramplú was both the spoken andwritten form of the word, but one stated that the term should be written ramplug but isgenerally pronounced as if written ramplú. The origin of ramplú and ramplug , also usedin Bolivia, may be English “raw plug” or “raw plug anchor.” (See, for example, “ErMaracucho Rajao... Conozca sobre la Real Academia del Habla Maracucha. Vocablos deuso comun en Maracaibo y zonas circunvecinas” and María Julia Brunette’s Diccionariode Construcción, among other Internet sources.)

Taco físher , taco fícher , etc: These terms most likely derive from a brand name (Fisher?). TheHonduran respondents (only four) pronounced the word as if spelled taco fícher ; theArgentines and Uruguayans taco físher ; and the Ecuadorans were mixed, some pronouncing it with an affricate ch and some with a fricative sh sound. A few Ecuadoransand Hondurans left out or elided the r of físher/fícher , but in all cases, the stress was onthe first syllable, [FI-cher], [FI-che], [FI-sher] or [FI-she]. How should this word bespelled? Fícher and físher are possibilities, but Hispanizing the word into River Plate



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Spanish could also yield fíyer or fíller since y and ll (which correspond to a single phoneme in most of the Spanish-speaking world including the River Plate region) are pronounced there like the g in English beige, or as an sh sound.

Taquete: The use of taquete in Mexico in the sense of screw anchor is confirmed by the

DEUMex, which defines it as “Pedazo cilíndrico y pequeño de madera, plástico o metal,que se encaja en un hueco hecho para tal efecto en una pared para luego fijar a él clavos,tornillos, etc. de los que se han de colgar o fijar objetos pesados...” Tarugo, however, isdefined in the DEUMex as a different object, made exclusively of wood, in which screwsare not inserted: “2 Pedazo de madera corto y grueso que sirve como pieza de sostén orefuerzo en obras de carpintería...”


DRAE grades: ancla (D), chazo (D), espiche (D), expánder (F), expansión (D), ramplú (F), taco (A or C?), taco físher (F), taquete (F), tarugo (D).

DRAE definitions: chazo

2

, “nudillo (|| zoquete de madera)”; nudillo, “3. Arq. Zoquete o pedazo corto y grueso de madera, que se empotra en la fábrica para clavar en él algo; como lasvigas de techo, marcos de ventana, etc.”; espiche, “(Etim. disc.). 2. Estaca pequeña que sirve para cerrar un agujero, como las que se colocan en las cubas para que no salga el líquido o en los botes para que no se aneguen”; taco, “14. coloq. Trozo de madera o de plástico, de forma más omenos alargada, que se empotra en la pared para introducir en él clavos o tornillos con el fin desostener algún objeto”; tarugo, “Trozo de madera o pan, generalmente grueso y corto. || 5. ElSalv. y Nic. Pedazo de madera, trapo u otro material que sirve para tapar un agujero.”

Comment: The DRAE lists older, more traditional senses of chazo, espiche, taco andtarugo (such as wooden plugs) that can be viewed as antecedents of the modern screw anchor, but it needs to update its definitions of these and other terms so that this modern sense is alsocovered.

B9 TIRE REPAIR SHOP

B9.1 Summary

Most Spanish-speaking countries have a regional name for (generally small) shops that fix and/orretread tires.

Note: Regional words appear in italics and where they are the majority terms, in boldface anditalics.


SPAIN no specific regional term (6/6).MEXICO vulcanizadora (13/15), talachera (7/15), vulka (2/15).GUATEMALA pinchazo (10/11), reencauchadora (1/11).



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EL SALVADOR llantera (6/8), llantería (2/8).HONDURAS llantera (9/9).

NICARAGUA vulcanizadora (9/9).COSTA RICA no specific regional term (5/8), llantera (2/8), reencauchadora (1/8).

PANAMA no specific regional term (4/6), llantero (1/6), reencauchadora (1/6).CUBA ponchera (6/6).DOMIN. REP. gomera (9/15), gomero (8/15), gomería (3/15).PUERTO RICO gomera (6/7), no specific regional term (1/7).VENEZUELA cauchera (11/11).COLOMBIA montallantas (4/7), vulcanizadora (3/7), reencauchadora (1/7).ECUADOR vulcanizadora (10/10).PERU vulcanizadora (4/7), llantería (3/7), reencauchadora (1/7).BOLIVIA l lantería (8/8), gomería (2/8), parchadora (1/8).PARAGUAY gomería (5/5).URUGUAY gomería (5/5), recauchutadora (1/5).

ARGENTINA gomería (9/9).CHILE vulcanización (9/9).

B9.3 Details

General: The terms presented in section B9.2 above were the ones offered with the meaning of atire shop that is generally a small family-owned business. Larger garages or factorieswhere tires are retreaded are often called reencauchadoras, recauchadoras orrecauchutadoras, depending on which base verb (reencauchar , recauchar orrecauchutar ) is used; see retread in Appendix for limited information on the distributionof these verbs, and the DRAE ’s definition of reencauchadora in section B9.4 below.However, a handful of respondents, a minority in each case (see section B9.2 above),indicated that the terms reencauchadora or recauchutadora are used in the sense of thesmall tire repair shops. In Spain, Costa Rica and Panama, a majority of respondents gaveno specific (short) name for this type of shop, but some gave longer descriptive namessuch as taller de reparación de llantas, taller de neumáticos y recauchutados, etc. In anumber of Spanish-speaking countries where llantera is not commonly used in the senseof a small tire repair shop, this term is used to refer to larger businesses that sell andinstall tires, rims, hubcaps, etc. and do balancing and alignment of tires but do notnecessarily fix flats.

Spain: Do these types of shops exist in Spain and, if so, how common are they and what are theycalled? It is noteworthy that the DRAE does not indicate a compact Peninsular Spanishequivalent of llantera, nor does it provide one for sense two of gomería (see section B9.4 below). Also suggesting a lack of a Peninsular Spanish equivalent is the fact that neitherthe DECu nor the NDCol provides one for the Cuban and Colombian names for this item(see Cuba and Colombia below). However, the DEArg indicates that taller devulcanización is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent of Argentine gomería (see Argentina& Uruguay below).



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Mexico: Half a dozen respondents said that vulcanizadora and talachera both refer to tire repairshops, and a couple also indicated that vulka, spelled with a k , is the short form forvulcanizadora. Many other Mexicans, however, stated that a talachera is a morerudimentary shop that only fixes flats but does not do retreading, whereas a

vulcanizadora is a larger, higher-tech operation that also does retreading. Still others saida talachera is a shop that does any type of minor car repairs, or even minor repairs of anysort, and that the expression hacer talacha can mean fixing flats or doing general repairs.The following examples, provided by respondents in this study, suggest that hacertalacha and talachar can refer to work in general: “Ayer estuve en la talacha hasta las 12de la noche.” “– ¿Adónde van? – A talachar (a trabajar).” The DEUMex does not listtalacha, talachera, talachar or talache (see section A15 - pick/pickax above).

Guatemala: The Guatemalan use of pinchazo in the sense of tire repair shop is an example ofmetonymy in which a word for ‘(tire) puncture’ has come to be used to refer to somethingassociated with tire punctures, namely, the shop that fixes them. This usage is confirmed by the following citations from Guatemalan Internet documents, although the fact that

pinchazo appears in quotation marks in the first example may suggest that someGuatemalans are not entirely comfortable with it: “A pocos pasos, entre ambasedificaciones hay un ‘pinchazo’, uno de estos hospitales de llantas que abu ndan encaminos y calles del país” (Hernández), and “Como también se tiene alguna pequeñaindustria, un taller de herrería en el cual se ocupa el señor, o pone un pinchazo cerca del paso de la carretera, se pone una venta de helados, de aguas, entonces hay no soloactividades agrícolas pecuarias en la comunidad campesina, también se incursiona enactividades comerciales y servicios...” (Galicia; emphasis on pinchazo added).

Cuba: The DECu defines ponchera as “Taller en el que se arreglan los ponches de losneumáticos” and defines ponche as “2 Pequeño orificio en un neumático, causadogeneralmente por un objeto punzante, que produce pérdida de aire.” It indicates that thePeninsular Spanish equivalent of Cuban Spanish ponche (sense two) is pinchazo, but provides no Peninsular Spanish equivalent for ponchera which (like the data in thisstudy) suggests that there may not be one. The DECu also defines vulcanizadora andrecapadora as “Taller en que se vulcanizan/recapan los neumáticos.”

Dominican Republic: The majority of respondents in this study said that both gomera and gomero can refer to a tire repair shop, and that gomero could also refer to the man whofixes tires. A few indicated that gomería refers to a tire repair shop, but others said thiswas a place that sells tires but does not repair them.

Venezuela: The DHAV confirms the use of cauchera, defining it as “Establecimiento dedicado alexpendio, montaje y reparación de → cauchos” and defines caucho as “Neumático quese coloca en las ruedas de los vehículos automotores y de otros, como por ej. una bicicleta.” The DV does not define cauchera in the sense of tire repair shop, but doesdefine cauchero as “2. Persona que cambia y repara neumáticos.”

Colombia: The NDCol defines montallantas as “Lugar donde se arreglan y montan losneumáticos de los vehículos” and indicates that vulcanizadora is used in this same sensein the departments of Cauca, Nariño and el Valle (southwestern Colombia), and thatllantería is used in the Atlantic Coast region.



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Ecuador: The HEME defines llantera as “Fábrica de llantas o neumáticos. // Establecimiento enel que se reparan llantas y tubos neumáticos. cf. vulcanizadora,” but since vulcanizadora is not listed as an entry in this dictionary, it is not clear where, or in what definition, thereader is being directed to make this comparison.

Peru: One respondent indicated that a llantería is a smaller, more primitive tire repair shop than avulcanizadora.Uruguay & Argentina: The DEArg (Argentina) and the NDU (Uruguay) confirm the use of

gomería, which they define as “Taller de venta, reparación y vulcanización deneumáticos para vehículos automotores” and the former indicates that taller devulcanización is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent.

Chile: The DECH defines vulcanización as “2. fig. [figurado] Establecimiento donde sevulcaniza: ‘Una vulcanización y nueve restaurantes’...” but it is not clear from thisdefinition whether these establishments retread tires, fix flats or do both, or what is meant by the abbreviation “fig.” Perhaps the DECH writers mean that the use of vulcanización to refer to one of these shops is figurative insofar as such shops do not actually vulcanize

rubber but just fix tires. In other words, the regional meaning of vulcanización may beanother example of a type of metonymy in which the name of a process, vulcanization, isapplied to another related meaning, fixing and retreading tires. See Guatemala above.

Related terms: A number of the terms for tire repair shops derive from words that are regional orhave regional meanings ( ponche, talacha or vulcanizar ), while others derive from a wordfor tire that is regionally weighted (llanta, goma or caucho). The terms used for tire puncture/flat tire, such as pinchazo, pinchadura and ponche, also appear to be regionallydistributed and/or used differently in different countries. For information on the regionaldistribution of the words for tire, see “Car terminology in the Spanish-speaking world”(Moskowitz: 338).

United States English: Small low-tech tire repair shops, like those found in Latin America, arenot common in the United States, and therefore there is no United States Englishequivalent other than “tire repair shop” or some other descriptive term.


DRAE grades: cauchera (D), gomera (D), gomería (A), llantera (B), llantería (D),montallantas (F), pinchazo (D), ponchera (D), talachera (F), vulcanización (D), vulcanizadora (F).

DRAE definitions: gomería, “ Arg., Bol., Par. y Ur. Lugar de venta o reparación deneumáticos”; llantera2, “ Ecuad . Fábrica de llantas (|| neumáticos). 2. Hond . Establecimiento quese dedica a arreglar pinchazos de las llantas (|| neumáticos)”; reencauchadora, “ Á. Andes [áreade los Andes], El Salv., Guat . y Hond . Instalación industrial para recauchutar llantas o cubiertasde automóviles, camiones, etc.”; vulcanizar , “2. tr. Cuba y Nic. Reparar neumáticos.”

Comment: The DRAE is almost entirely in the dark on usage as it relates to tire repairshops. Is this because the phenomenon is not common in Spain?



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APPENDIX: ADDITIONAL TOPICS

The following is a small selection of miscellaneous Spanish lexical dialectology topics relatingto carpentry, masonry, plumbing, heating, electrical, auto mechanics, and other trades in which

tools, construction, repairs and maintenance play a role. The issues have not been thoroughlyexamined in this study (either through field research or by reviewing existing literature), and are presented merely to call attention to their existence as possible dialectal and/or lexicographicaltopics that await in-depth investigation.

Note: A country followed by a question mark means that in this study only one or tworespondents from that country gave a particular response.

auto body shop / body shop. What are the names in Spanish for shops (garages) that fix the body of a vehicle, especially after it has been in an accident? They often do car paintingand detailing as well. Only a handful of respondents were queried on this topic, but their

responses varied: latería and hojalatería (Mexico), latonería (Venezuela), taller decarrocería and chapería (Argentina), taller de chapa y pintura (Uruguay), taller deenderezado y pintura (Costa Rica), taller de latonería y pintura (Colombia). The DHAV confirms the use of latonería in Venezuela, defining it as “2 Taller donde se repara lacarrocería de los vehículos automotores.”

balance / balancing. The NDCR (Costa Rica) defines balancear as “tr. [ Aut .] Ajustar las ruedasde un vehículo para que giren correctamente” whereas the DRAE provides only a generaldefinition of balancear : “tr. Igualar o poner en equilibrio, contrapesar.” A cursory surveyof Spanish Americans suggests that balanceo is widely used in Spanish America in thesense of balancing in phrases such as alineación y balanceo (‘balancing and alignment’),whereas a Spaniard indicated that the Peninsular Spanish equivalent would be alineación y equilibrado. However, the question remains as to who says balanceo, who saysequilibrado, and who uses other phrases. Other issues include whether or not someSpanish Americans say alineamiento instead of alineación for alignment and whethersome say balanceo y alineación instead of alineación y balanceo.

bars. What terms are used in Spanish for a “flat bar” (sometimes called a “wonder bar”) and a“nail puller” (often called a “cat’s paw”)? A flat bar is a type of wrecking bar with a clawused for prying and pulling nails that has a flat shaft. The advantage a flat bar has over acrowbar or regular wrecking bar, which has a round or hexagonal shaft, is that the formerdoes less damage to the wood or other surface in which the nail is lodged when extractingthe nail from it; the flatbar’s disadvantage is that it is not as strong as a crowbar. A “nail puller” or “cat’s paw” is a bar in which the claw is ta pered and at a right angle to theshaft. One uses it with a hammer to extract imbedded nails and it damages the wood. Forinformation on crowbars/wrecking bars, see section A10 above.

blocks (for building). The DEUMex defines tabique as “Cualquier pieza de caras rectangulareshecha de arcilla cocida que se usa como material de construcción: una pared detabiques.” Tabique is one of the most popular building materials used in Mexico amongthose who are not affluent. What are all the regional names in Spanish for all of thedifferent types of cement or clay building blocks in all of the different regions?



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bolt. The DEArg defines bulón as “Tornillo grande, con tuerca fuerte y resistente” and indicatesthat the Peninsular Spanish equivalent is perno. What other terms are used for “bolt”other than tornillo and perno, and what are their distributions?

brakes, shocks, mufflers (and various other regional Anglicisms that refer to car parts). The DS

(El Salvador) defines chocausol , chocacsol and chocansol as “(léx. mec. [léxico demecánicos]) Amortiguador. Del inglés shock absorber .” What other regional Anglicisms,such as las brecas and los breques (los frenos), and el mofle or la mufla, etc. (el silenciador ), are used and where?

break down. The DRAE defines encangrejar as “prnl. coloq. Cuba. Dicho de un mecanismo, deun motor, etc.: Dejar de funcionar” and this is confirmed by the DECu, which defines theverb as “coloq Dejar de funcionar un vehículo automotor: un vehículo automotor seencangreja. | 2 coloq Presentar deficiencias en su funcionamiento un sistema, unmecanismo o un motor: algo se encangreja.” The DECu indicates that cancanear andencasquillarse are also used colloquially in Cuba in sense two (algo cancanea, algo seencasquilla).

ceiling. Are cielo raso (or cielorraso) and the less technical and more ambiguous techo useduniversally in the sense of ceiling? In Ecuador, the term tumbado is used in this sense.Where else is tumbado used, and what other regional terms exist? Techo raso, plafond or plafón? What else and where?

cement or concrete. The DRAE defines concreto2 as “(Del ingl. concrete.) Am. hormigón (||mezcla de piedras, cemento y arena),” which suggests that concreto is not commonlyused with this meaning in Peninsular Spanish. The sense “ Am. hormigón (|| mezcla de piedras, cemento y arena)” should probably also be added to the definition of cemento,which in many varieties of Latin American Spanish can, like cement in English, refer tothe powder used to make concrete, the powder plus the water and sand, etc. that is theconcrete or mortar used in masonry, and this mixture once it has hardened. The DRAE also defines mazacote with no regional specification as “hormigón (|| mezcla compuestade piedras, cemento y arena).” Where is this term commonly used? The DUEN (Nicaragua) defines caliche as “Pasta de cemento con que se juntan los ladrillos de un piso o pared.” Is this term used elsewhere in this sense? It would be interesting todetermine, throughout the Spanish-speaking world, the relative frequencies of concreto,hormigón, cemento and mazacote in the sense of concrete, and mezcla, mortero andargamasa in the sense of mortar. In English, “mortar” often refers to “concrete” to whichlime or a latex-based substance has been added so that it will have greater bonding properties. Mortar is used for patching, pointing and binding bricks, blocks, stones, etc.;concrete (usually “reinforced concrete” = hormigón armado or concreto armado) is for pouring forms.

cement/plaster (verbs). The DRAE defines the following verbs that could mean to cement or plaster, some with regional specifications, some without: enlucir (with no regionalspecification), “tr. Poner una capa de yeso o mezcla a las paredes, techos o fachadas delos edificios”; enrasar , “2. tr. Arq. Hacer que quede plana y lisa la superficie de una obra. Enrasar una pared, un piso, un techo”; fratasar , “(De or. inc.). tr. Igualar con el fratás lasuperficie de un muro enfoscado o jaharrado, a fin de dejarlo liso, sin hoyos niasperezas”; fratachar and fletachar , “tr. Ur. fratasar”; frisar 2, “(Del lat. *frictiāre,



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frotar). 2. tr. Ven. En albañilería, dar a una pared friso (|| capa de mezcla con cemento)”;tarrajear , “ Perú. Enlucir con cemento.” What other regional verbs are out there, andwhat do they mean? Which are (regional) synonyms?

cement mixer. The DECu (Cuba) defines concretera as “Máquina para hacer concreto” and

indicates that hormigonera is used in this sense in Spain and Cuba. In this study, thefollowing terms were offered by persons from the following countries: batidora (decemento/de concreto) (Costa Rica, Panama), concretera (El Salvador, Panama?, Cuba,Ecuador), hormigonera (Spain, Uruguay, Argentina), ligadora (de cemento/de concreto) (Dominican Republic), mezcladora (de cemento, de concreto, and/or de hormigón) (all ofSpanish America), mixiadora (Honduras), revolvedora (de cemento/de concreto) (Mexico), tolvo de mezclado (Colombia?), trompo, trompo mezclador and/or trompo deconcreto (Cuba, Venezuela, Colombia, Chile). What are the frequencies of each term ineach country?

cement mixing truck or ready mix truck . In this study, many of the same terms found to beused in the sense of cement mixer were also offered for a cement mixing truck. The

following were given for a cement mixing truck by respondents from the followingcountries (some are popular terms, some are more “official-sounding” technical terms), but research needs to be done to determine what all the terms are and which are mostcommon in each country: camión de cemento/camión de concreto (Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia), camión concretera (Cuba?),camión concretero (Colombia, Peru, Chile), camión de hormigón (Spain), camiónhormigonera (Spain, Bolivia, Chile), camión hormigonero (Argentina, Chile), camiónmezclador (de cemento, de concreto, de hormigón) (Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru,Paraguay, Chile), camión mezcladora (de cemento, de concreto, de hormigón) (PuertoRico, Ecuador, Peru), camión trompo (Chile), cementera (Venezuela?), concretera (ElSalvador, Panama, Cuba, Puerto Rico), concretero (Peru), chimbo (Honduras, popular),chompipa (Costa Rica, popular), hormigonera (Spain, Bolivia, Uruguay, Argentina),ligadora (de cemento) (Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico), mezclador(a) (de cemento, deconcreto, de hormigón) (Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador), míxer (Colombia,Ecuador, Peru), revolvedora (de cemento, de concreto) (Mexico), troc de cemento ortruck de cemento (Puerto Rico), troca de cemento (Mexico?), troque de cemento (Mexico?).

chisel (for cutting metal). The DRAE defines cortafrío as “Cincel fuerte para cortar hierro frío agolpes de martillo” and defines cortafierro as “ Arg ., Par . y Ur . cortafrío.”

drafting table. The DRAE defines restirador as “ Méx. Mesa o tablero para estirar el papel enque se dibuja” and the DEUMex defines it as “Mesa alta, de superficie amplia ygeneralmente inclinada, o capaz de inclinarse en diversos ángulos, que utilizan losdibujantes y arquitectos para colocar el papel sobre el que trabajan.” What other terms doSpanish speakers other than Mexicans use to refer to a drafting table? Mesa de dibujo?The DRAE defines tablero as “8. Mesa grande de trabajo, como la del delineante o elsastre.”

extension cord. The DECu (Cuba) defines extensión as “Cable que se conecta al cable de unaparato eléctrico para cubrir la distancia hasta el enchufe” and indicates that alargador isthe Peninsular Spanish equivalent. The DRAE defines extensión as “8. Cuba y Méx.



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alargador (|| pieza que sirve para alargar).” Several Argentines indicated that inArgentina prolongador is used in this sense. Which terms are generally applied to anextension cord in which countries?

fire extinguisher. The DECu defines extinguidor and extinguidor de incendios as “Aparato de

forma cilíndrica, que contiene en su interior una sustancia que evita la combustión y quese emplea para combatir incendios” and indicates that extintor (de incendios) is thePeninsular Spanish equivalent and is also considered the “official term” in Cuba as well.The DEArg defines extinguidor (de incendios) and matafuego in identical terms.

float (of a tank, e.g. of the toilet). The DECu defines flotante as “Dispositivo que sirve paradetener la entrada de un líquido en un depósito cuando éste alcanza su altura máxima”and indicates that flotador is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent. This information is alsoconfirmed in the DRAE ’s definitions of flotador and flotante. But looking at the questionglobally, who says flotante, who says flotador , and who says something else?

furnace / heater / boiler (heating systems of a house or building). The DRAE defines caldera as“2. Recipiente metálico dotado de una fuente de calor, donde se calienta el agua que

circula por los tubos y radiadores de la calefacción de un edificio.” Calentador appears to be a General Spanish term that could refer to a heater or a furnace, but many Mexicans inthe United States use the word calentón in this sense (a taboo word in some countries). Isthis term also used in Mexico in this sense? The DEUMex defines only calentador in away that could refer to furnace, heater or radiator: “3 Aparato doméstico, fijo o portátil,que calienta la temperatura ambiental; generalmente funciona por electricidad o gas;radiador.”

gear. The DRAE defines engrane as “ Méx. En una máquina, rueda dentada” and the DEUMex defines it as “Rueda dentada que sirve para transmitir un movimiento de rotación a otrarueda semejante con la que se ajusta, como en el mecanismo de los relojes.” It seems theengrane in Mexico is part of the engranaje.

hardware store (or type of hardware store). The DEUMex defines tlapalería as “Tienda en laque se venden utensilios para electricidad, albañilería, plomería, carpintería y para otrosoficios semejantes; ferretería: ‘Compré la pintura en la tlapalería de la esquina’, ‘Mihermano trabaja en una tlapalería’.” The DRAE defines tlapalería as “(Del nahuatlapalli, líquido de fuego, y -ería). Méx. Tienda de pintura, donde también se vendenmateriales eléctricos y herramientas.” Research needs to be done to determine how, if atall, Mexican usage distinguishes between the terms ferretería and tlapalería. What othercountries have another way of saying hardware store?

hinge. The DRAE defines bisagra as “(De or. inc.). Herraje de dos piezas unidas o combinadasque, con un eje común y sujetas una a un sostén fijo y otra a la puerta o tapa, permiten elgiro de estas” and defines gozne as “(De gonce). Herraje articulado con que se fijan lashojas de las puertas y ventanas al quicial para que, al abrirlas o cerrarlas, giren sobreaquel. || 2. Bisagra metálica o pernio.” Although both bisagra and gozne are listed asGeneral Spanish terms in the DRAE , albeit with slightly different definitions, the issue iswhether, in everyday language, both terms are used everywhere with more or less equalfrequency in the sense of hinge, or whether there are semantic distinctions or regional preferences between them.



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hot water heater. The DEArg defines termotanque as “Artefacto de gas, con un termostato, que permite calentar varios litros de agua y mantenerla a una determinada temperatura para,mediante cañerías, distribuirla en una vivienda” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanishequivalent is calentador . The DEArg also defines calefón as “Aparato de gas o

electricidad, que sirve para calentar el agua que se distribuye por cañerías a la cocina o al baño de una casa” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanish equivalents are calentador and termo. The DRAE defines calefón as “ Arg ., Bol ., Par . y Ur . Aparato a través de cuyoserpentín circula el agua que se calienta para uso generalmente doméstico.”

hub (of a wheel). The DEArg (Argentina) and the NDU (Uruguay) define maza as “Centro de larueda de un vehículo” and indicate that cubo is used in this sense in Spain as well as inArgentina and Uruguay.

intercom. The DEArg defines conmutador as “Aparato que, en oficinas, hoteles, etc., sirve para poner en comunicación las distintas dependencias entre sí o con la red general” andindicates that centralita is the Peninsular Spanish equivalent. The DECu indicates thatcentralilla and pizarra are the Cuban Spanish equivalents and defines them in very

similar terms. jackhammer. The AHD (United States) defines jackhammer as “A hand-held machine fordrilling rock and breaking up pavement or concrete, operated by compressed air.” In thisstudy, a number of terms were offered by large numbers of Spanish speakers fromcountries that pertain to at least two noncontiguous geographic regions (such as theAntilles, the Andes, Mexico, Spain, etc.). Given their fairly broad distribution and thefact that they sound fairly “official” and “technical” rather than “quaint” or “regional,”there is reason to believe the following terms/usages may be part of General Spanish:martillador de aire, martillo de aire, martillo de aire comprimido, martillo hidráulico,martillo neumático, martillo perforador , perforadora, perforadora neumática, taladrohidráulico, taladro mecánico, taladro neumático. Some respondents, a minority, believethe term neumático (as in martillo neumático, taladro neumático, etc.) should be spelledwith an initial p, pneumático, but the majority indicated neumático. In contrast to the firstgroup of terms for jackhammer listed above, some of the following may be regionaland/or popular terms, as they were offered by a much smaller number of Spanishspeakers who came from far fewer countries: chicharra (Nicaragua, Costa Rica),chipijama / chipihamer / chipihamel (Cuba, Puerto Rico; from English chippinghammer ), demoledor de piso hidráulico (Puerto Rico), guagua (Chile), martillo de calle (Chile), martillo demoledor (Spain), martillo de taladrar (Cuba), martillo pilón (Spain),martillo rompepavimentos (Spain), muleta (Honduras), perforador (Paraguay), perforador neumático (El Salvador), rompepavimentos (Peru), rotohammer ([rotojámer]El Salvador), taladradora (Spain), taladro de aire (Spain), taladro de demolición (Panama), yakama (Panama, from English jackhammer ). None of the above terms,neither the more general nor the more regional ones, is listed in the DRAE with themeaning in question. Does the fact that the jackhammer is not defined in the DRAE underany of the terms listed above constitute an unacceptable lexicographical lacuna, or is thisabsence justified since the terms are compounds whose meaning is more or less the sumof their constituent parts? The argument that some of these terms are deducible andtherefore superfluous may not hold up to scrutiny since to say that a martillo neumático is



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simply a special type of martillo (a compressed-air martillo) is not that much more persuasive than saying a “jackhammer” is a special type of “hammer.” Neither a martilloneumático nor a “jackhammer” is really a type of hammer at all, and therefore, one cannot assume that the dictionary user will be able to deduce the meaning of the compound

terms from their component parts.lot. The NDCol defines lote as “Cada una de las partes en que se divide un terreno destinado a laedificación” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanish equivalents are parcela and solar and that the latter term is also used in the Atlantic Coast region of Colombia. However,the DRAE defines lote in this sense without any regional designation. How frequent is theuse of lote, parcela and solar in the different varieties of Spanish, and how do theirmeanings vary?

machete. Regional names for (different kinds of) machetes include catana (Northeast Argentina,according to the DEArg ), and colín, cuma and paila (Nicaragua, according to the DUEN ).There are undoubtedly dozens of regional Spanish names for different kinds of machete, but what are they, what types of machetes do they refer to, and where are they used?

meter (gas meter, electric power meter, etc.). The DRAE defines medidor as “3. Am. Contadorde agua, gas o energía eléctrica” and the DEArg defines medidor as “Dispositivo quesirve para medir el consumo de gas, luz o agua en una vivienda” and indicates that thePeninsular Spanish equivalent is contador . The DECu indicates that contador and metrocontador are used in this sense in Cuba as well as reloj in the case of the electric meter.

nipple. The NDCR (Costa Rica) defines niple as “Tubo que sirve para unir dos tubos” and the AHD (United States) defines “nipple” as “3b. A pipe coupling threaded on both ends.”Where else is niple (and variants such as niplo, neplo, etc.) used, and where are more“castizo” terms used such as tubo de conexión or boquilla de conexión, etc.

(electrical) outlet. The DRAE defines tomacorriente as “ Am. En instalaciones eléctricas,dispositivo donde se inserta la clavija” and toma as “6. Lugar por donde se deriva unacorriente de fluido o electricidad.” It seems many Spanish Americans use tomacorrientes (with an s at the end) in this sense and it appears that Spanish speakers on both sides ofthe Atlantic use enchufe to refer to both the plug and the outlet.

(electrical) plug. The DRAE defines enchufe as “5. Electr . Dispositivo formado por dos piezasque se encajan una en otra cuando se quiere establecer una conexión eléctrica.” The DECu defines enchufle as “Dispositivo que conecta un aparato eléctrico a una redeléctrica” and indictes that enchufe is used in Spain and Cuba in this same sense. Whereelse is enchufle commonly used in the sense of plug, and how is its use socially stratifiedin different regions?

particle board panels. What are the different names for “particle board panel” (often called“particle board”)? This is a construction material made of ground up wood that is not asstrong or as expensive as plywood (see section B1 above). The terms madera prensada,madera triturada, madera aglomerada, aglomerado and conglomerado were all offered by Spanish speakers from diverse regions and may be General Spanish usages. SomeArgentines indicated that madera enchapada refers to a particle board that has a high-quality wood veneer surface; others said this is madera terciada (see section B1 above).Chileans offered cholguán in the sense of particle board, which is defined in the DECH as “ Madera prensada de pino insigne que se fabrica en forma de planchas, moliéndola en



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máquinas especiales y mezclándola con resinas... Procede del topónimo Cholguán,localidad del depto. de Yungay en Ñuble, que es donde principalmente se fabrica.” The DRAE defines cholguán as “Chile. Madera prensada de pino, en forma de planchas.” OneArgentine, a building engineer, stated that in Argentina fibrofácil , also called guillermina,

refers to a type of panel made with saw dust, whereas aglomerado refers to a particle board panel made of virutas (wood shavings or chips). What semantic differences exist between the above terms, and which are most common in which countries?

panels (other types). What are the names of other types of panels used in construction? The DEArg (Argentina) defines machimbre as “Pieza de madera alargada y de poco grosor,con una ranura a lo largo de uno de sus lados y una lengüeta a lo largo del otro, para serensamblada con piezas similares.” Respondents from several other Spanish Americancountries also described machimbre in the sense of tongue-and-groove boards or panels.One Argentine stated that durlock refers to sheetrock.

pliers. What terms are used in Spanish for “groove joint pliers” or “tongue and groove pliers”(also called “Channellock pliers,” “pump pliers” or “water pump pliers), and where?

These are adjustable, noncutting pliers in which the grippers are curved and offset to oneside. They generally have more adjustment than regular “joint pliers” or “slip -joint pliers,” but can be used for many of the same types of tasks (see Figures A6 and A6' inIllustrations and section A6 above). This topic was not researched extensively but a fewrespondents offered pico (de) loro, alicate(s) pico (de) loro and pinza(s) pico (de) loro inthis sense. What are “linesman pliers” called in Spanish? These are nonadjustable, cutting pliers (see Figure A6" in Illustrations). A website that shows images and indicatestechnical names in Spanish for a selection of different types of pliers is www.jvm.es/jv-ali-cates. Among the pliers and related tools shown are different types of “needlenosetype pliers” (such as alicates punta redonda, alicates boca plana, alicates cigüeña recto,alicates cigüeña curvo), “cutting pliers” (such as alicates corte lateral , alicates corte frontal , alicates corte sueco), wire-strippers ( pelacables), “locking pliers” (mordazas de presión) __ in United States English generally called by the most popular brand name“vise-grips” __ and “bolt-cutters” (cizallas; these are not pliers at all but are used to cut padlocks and other metal bars). However, given that this website is from Spain, one mustwonder to what extent these terms are universal and to what degree they primarilyrepresent Peninsular Spanish usage. For information on “needlenose pliers,” see sectionA7 above.

power plant (and other types of industrial plants). The DECu defines planta eléctrica as“Establecimiento industrial destinado a la producción de energía eléctrica mediante latransformación de otros tipos de energía” and indicates that central eléctrica is used inthis same sense in both Spain and Cuba. The DEArg indicates that usina eléctrica is theArgentine equivalent; its definition is identical to the DECu’s definition of plantaeléctrica. The DRAE defines usina as “(Del fr. usine). Arg ., Bol ., Chile, Col ., Par . y Ur .Instalación industrial importante, en especial la destinada a producción de gas, energíaeléctrica, agua potable, etc.” The DEUMex defines planta as “IV Instalación en la que se produce energía o se fabrican ciertos productos: una planta de luz, planta textil, planta petroquímica.” However, perhaps planta eléctrica is not as regional as the DECu seemsto suggest, given that the DRAE defines planta as “10. Fábrica central de energía,



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instalación industrial.” In any case, the question remains as to which terms are most commonly used for power plants (and other types of industrial plants) in which countries.

retread (verb). With regard to the retreading of tires, the NDCol (Colombia) definesreencauchar as “Recubrir con una solución de caucho las llantas de un vehículo para

evitar su desgaste” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanish equivalent is recauchutar ,and that vulcanizar is used in both Spain and Colombia in this sense. The DECu (Cuba),however, defines vulcanizar and recapar as “Cubrir con caucho la parte exter ior de unneumático” and indicates the Peninsular Spanish equivalent is recauchutar . And the DUEN (Nicaragua) defines vulcanizar as “tr. Reparar neumáticos.” This is confirmed bythe DRAE , which defines vulcanizar as “tr. Combinar azufre con goma elástica para queesta conserve su elasticidad en frío y en caliente” and “2. tr. Cuba y Nic. Repararneumáticos.” In other words, the DRAE indicates that in General Spanish vulcanizar refers to the rubber manufacturing process but not to repairing or retreading of tires. The DRAE also states that reencauchar is used in Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras,Peru and Venezuela in the sense of recauchutar , which it defines with no regional

specification as “Volver a cubrir de caucho una llanta o cubierta desgastada.” The DRAE also lists recauchar in this sense with no regional specification. The DUEN (Nicaragua)defines rencauchar as “recubrir de caucho la llanta gastada.” No doubt this “alternate”way of spelling reencauchar is not uncommon given that reencauchar and rencaucharsound identical in rapid, and perhaps even in normal speech (i.e. not “spelling beespeech”). We note that the DRAE no longer places an accent mark on demonstrative pronouns (like esta in the definition of vulcanizar above, “para que esta conserve suelasticidad”) unless there is a risk of amphibology, that is, ambiguity. However, manyeducated Spanish speakers disapprove (or are unaware) of this reform, continue to useaccent marks on demonstrative pronouns such as ésta and éste, and correct and/orcriticize those who do not.

saw. For information on hacksaws, see section A5 above. In this study, numerous respondentsfrom all twenty Spanish-speaking countries indicated that serrucho refers to the standardmanual wood saw, consisting of a broad, usually tapered blade, no frame, and a handle atone end. However, finer distinctions such as a “cross-cut saw” (used to cut against thegrain of the wood) or a “rip saw” (for cutting parallel to the grain) were not researched,nor were other types of manual wood saws such as a “backsaw” (“A saw that isreinforced by a metal band along its back edge” AHD; it is often used with a miter boxfor making precise cuts), a “coping saw” (“A light handsaw with a slender bladestretched across a U-shaped frame, used for cutting designs in wood” AHD), a “bucksaw” (handsaw with a blade stretched across a frame for cutting branches or logs), or a“two-man saw” (large handsaw with a handle at each end for cutting logs). Would a backsaw be a sierra de lomo or a serrucho de lomo, or some other term? The DRAE defines a serrón as “Sierra larga con un mango o manija en cada extremo” (two-mansaw). Research also needs to be done to determine the regional distributions and differentmeanings of the verbs aserrar , aserruchar , serrar and serruchar . Serruchar also has animportant regional meaning, which the DRAE defines as “2. Ecuad ., El Salv., Hond ., Pan., Perú, P. Rico. y Ur . Trabajar secretamente en contra del prestigio o posición dealguien.” I know this usage to be very common in Ecuador, having lived there, but could



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it be common in Uruguay and not in Argentina (it has been confirmed to me byArgentines), in Puerto Rico and not the Dominican Republic, in El Salvador, Hondurasand Panama, but in none of the other Central American countries? Cuesta creerlo.

sawdust. Is aserrín the predominant term in most if not all of Spanish America and serrín the

most common one in Spain, or is the situation more complicated than that? The HispanicAntilles may be an exception to this rule for in the Léxico del habla culta de San Juan de Puerto Rico (López Morales: 158), serrín and aserrín were each given by five out oftwelve respondents.

septic tank and cesspool. The DRAE defines pozo negro as “El que para depósito de aguasinmundas se hace junto a las casas, cuando no hay alcantarillas” and defines pozo ciego as “ Arg . pozo negro.” The NDU indicates that pozo ciego is used in this sense inUruguay as well. Which terms are most common in each country? See wastewater below.

shovel (or type of shovel). The NDCol defines garlancha as “Cund[inamarca], Huila, Tol[ima] Variedad de pala pequeña, usada especialm. en albañilería.”

shower hose, shower head and shower. The DEArg defines duchador as “Dispositivo de metal

o de plástico, de forma alargada, que tiene en un extremo una flor

1

y que, mediante unamanguera o tubo flexible, se conecta con una canilla o cañería y sirve para ducharsedirigiendo manualmente la salida de agua” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanishequivalent is ducha de teléfono. Since we are discussing showers, shower heads andshower hoses, we also note that the DEUMex defines regadera as “1 Utensilio provistode multitud de perforaciones que se coloca en la punta de un tubo de agua corriente paraque ésta salga a presión y en varios chorros, particularmente el que se pone a cierta alturaen un baño y sirve para bañarse: darse un baño de regadera, ponerle una regadera al fregadero” and “2 Lugar del baño, generalmente aislado por una cortina, donde se colocaeste utensilio y donde uno se baña: meterse a la regadera, ‘Sufrió un accidente en laregadera’.” Is regadera used in preference to ducha in the sense of shower elsewhere inthe Spanish-speaking world, besides Mexico?

skylight. The DRAE defines claraboya as “(Del fr. claire-voie, y este del lat. clara via). Ventanaabierta en el techo o en la parte alta de las paredes” and tragaluz as “Ventana abierta enun techo o en la parte superior de una pared, generalmente con derrame hacia adentro.” Neither term is listed with any regional specification or cross-referencing, and yet the twodefinitions are tantalizingly close; claraboyas obviously also have derrame haciaadentro. What semantic distinctions do Spanish speakers make between them __ we noteAntonio Buero Vallejo’s play was called El tragaluz, not La claraboya __ and are the termsused more in some regions than in others?

spare parts, spare tires, etc. The DEUMex defines refacción as “Pieza que sirve para sustituir aotra semejante en una máquina; pieza de repuesto: refacciones automotrices, falta derefacciones, llanta de refacción”; the DRAE indicates that refacción is also used inHonduras in this same sense of recambio or repuesto. Is refacción used elsewhere in thissense? The DEArg defines refacción as “Acción de arreglar o componer algo viejo odeteriorado, especialmente una casa o un edificio” and indicates that the PeninsularSpanish equivalent is restauración. However, refacción is really a repair and is notsynonymous with restauración. The DRAE defines refacción, with no regionalspecification, as “2. Compostura o reparación de lo estropeado,” which leads one to



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believe that this usage may be universal rather than regional. Is it general, as the DRAE seems to indicate, or is it regional, as Haensch and Werner claim?

switchman. The DECu defines cambiavía as “Empleado que se ocupa de los cambios de agujaen las vías de ferrocarril” and indicates that guardagujas is the Peninsular Spanish term.

The DRAE , in turn, defines cambiavía as “(De cambiar y vía). Col ., Cuba y Méx.guardagujas.” The DEArg defines cambista and guardahilos as “Empleado ferroviario,que recorre los rieles y hace los cambios necesarios para que el tren pueda cambiar devía” and indicates that cambiador , cambiavía and guardagujas are used in Spain, and that guardagujas, guardahilos and cambista are used in Argentina. It would be interesting toknow which term, guardagujas or cambiavía, is more common in Mexico, especiallysince there is a well known short story called “El Guardagujas” by the Mexican writerJuan José Arreola. (Because it is not a costumbrista story, even if cambiavía were morecommon in Mexico than guardagujas, it makes sense that Arreola would have opted forthe General Spanish term.) Looking at the issue from a pan-Hispanic perspective, whatare the relative frequencies of all of the different terms used in the sense of switchman in

all of the different Spanish-speaking countries?tape measure. To what extent are cinta métrica, metro and/or centímetro General Spanish termsfor tape measure? Which terms refer to which type of tape measures in which countries(e.g. the kind carpenters use vs. ones used by tailors and seamstresses)? The DRAE lists güincha as “(Voz quechua) Bol . cinta métrica.” What other terms are out there?

thread (of a screw or bolt). Rosca is the General Spanish term, but hilo is defined in the DECH as “fig. Borde en espiral que sirve para encajar y desencajar un tornillo, perno, tuerca,cañería, etc...”

tool. Herramienta is the General Spanish term for “tool,” but the DRAE defines fierro as “3. C. Rica. herramienta (|| instrumento de trabajo).” Yet there is anecdotal evidence to suggestthat this usage is common in other Spanish-speaking countries (besides Costa Rica) suchas Ecuador, Peru and Chile. Where else is fierro used in this sense?

walls (stone walls, brick walls, masonry walls) and fences. The DRAE defines barda2 with noregional specification as “(De or. inc.) Seto, vallado o tapia que circunda una propiedad” but the DEUMex defines barda as “Muro de piedra, adobe, ladrillo, etc. que sirve paraseparar un terreno o una construcción de otros y para protegerlos o aislarlos.” Is the latterusage distinctly Mexican, or is it found elsewhere, and if so, with what frequency indifferent regions? There is evidence to suggest that the use of barda in this sense is muchmore common in Mexico than in other countries where people would just call this type ofwall a muro, a pared , or perhaps a tapia, a tapial or a verja. The léxico del habla culta studies address the issue of ‘wall’ in item 1125, and those of ‘fence’ and ‘metal fence’ initems 1427 and 1126, respectively. Nonetheless, more research needs to be done todetermine how different Spanish speakers use and interpret terms such as cerca, cercado,cerco, enrejado, medianera, reja, tapia, tapial , valla, vallado and verja.

washers (e.g. rubber or plastic washers used in plumbing). The DRAE defines junta as “7. Piezade cartón, cáñamo, caucho u otra materia compresible, que se coloca en la unión de dostubos u otras partes de un aparato o máquina, para impedir el escape del cuerpo fluidoque contienen” and zapatilla as “4. Pieza de cuero, goma, etc., que sirve para mantenerherméticamente adheridas dos partes diferentes que están en comunicación, como



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cañerías, depósitos, etc.” The DRAE also defines empaque as “3. Col., C. Rica y Hond .zapatilla (|| pieza para mantener herméticamente adheridas dos partes diferentes).” The NDCol defines guasa as “Pequeña pieza en forma de disco de metal o de goma, con unorificio en el medio, que se utiliza, p. ej., como zapatilla de una llave o grifo” and

indicates that it is a synonym of what in Spain and Colombia is called arandela (?). The NDCol also defines empaque as “Anillo de cuero, goma u otra materia compresible quese coloca en la juntura de dos piezas, p. ej. en los grifos y cañerías, para evitar queescapen los fluidos” and indicates that it is a synonym of what in Spain is called a junta.With regard to washers used in plumbing, initial evidence from this study suggests thatempaque may be used in much of Spanish America, junta and zapatilla in Spain, zapatilla in the Antilles, and cuerito in Argentina. For information on metal washers(used with screws and bolts), see section B5 above.

waste water. The DRAE defines agua residual as “La que pr ocede de viviendas, poblaciones ozonas industriales y arrastra suciedad y detritos. U. m. en pl. [Usado más en plural]” anddefines aguas negras as “aguas residuales.” The DRAE also defines aguas albañales as

“Cuba. aguas residuales” and aguas servidas as “ Arg ., Perú y Ur . aguas residuales.” Itappears that the term aguas servidas is used in many more countries than just these three, but which terms are used with which frequencies in which countries? See septic tank above.

winch. The NDCol defines hüinche and güinche as “Máquina de varios tipos, consistentefundamentalmente en un cilindro en el cual se arrolla un cable, soga o cadena para elevaro mover pesos” and indicates that cabrestante is used in this same sense in Spain andColombia. The DRAE defines guinche (with no diéresis or umlaut on the u) as “ Arg ., Bol ., Cuba y Ur . grúa (|| máquina para levantar y trasladar cargas).” If the initial soundof the Spanish word which derives from English “winch” is labial like the sound of the w in English “weather” or labial and palatal similar to the sound of the gw in English“Gwen,” then a diéresis on the u seems to be necessary on the spelling with a g ( güinche), but superfluous on the spelling with an h, since hüinche would be pronouncedthe same as huinche. If the initial sound is velar (like the g in English “gift”), then guinche is the logical spelling. See section B5.3, General, above for a discussion ofspelling issues involving gu/gü vs. hu.

wrench A - flat wrenches or rigid wrenches. Like crescent wrenches (see section A8 above),flat wrenches are used to turn nuts and bolts, but unlike crescent wrenches, flat wrenchesdo not adjust and, as a result, are generally sold in an entire set. Three common types offlat wrenches are the “open-end wrench” (one having fixed open jaws), the “closedwrench,” “box wrench” or “box-end wrench” (one with enclosed heads inside of whichare gripping angles), and the “combination wrench” or “combo wrench” (one with a boxend and an open end on opposite sides of the same wrench, with both ends usually thesame size; see Figure A8' in Illustrations). Combo wrenches are actually the mostcommon type of flat wrench. The “open-end wrench” seems to correspond to what the DRAE calls a llave de tuerca, which it defines as “Herramienta en forma de horquilla,que sirve para apretar o aflojar las tuercas en los tornillos.” In this study, the followingterms were offered by respondents from the following countries for “open-endwrenches”: llave abierta (Honduras?, Panama, Cuba?, Dominican Republic), llave boca



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fija (Colombia, Paraguay?), llave de boca (Panama?, Colombia?, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia,Uruguay?, Argentina), llave de cola (Guatemala), llave de perno (Bolivia), llave de punta (Chile), llave de tuerca(s) or llave tuerca (Costa Rica, Cuba?, Dominican Republic,Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Ecuador?, Uruguay, Chile), llave española (Cuba, Dominican

Republic?), llave fija (Spain, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama?,Puerto Rico, Venezuela?, Colombia, Bolivia?, Paraguay?, Uruguay, Argentina), and llave para tuercas (Colombia). The following terms were offered for “closed wrenches”: llave(de) corona (Honduras, Costa Rica, Ecuador), llave de estrella (Colombia?), llave deestrías (Puerto Rico?), and llave estriada (Argentina?). And for “combination wrenches”respondents offered llave mixta, llave combinada and llave de combinación; researchneeds to be done to determine if any of the latter three terms are regionally weighted.

wrench B - lug wrench or tire wrench. The NDCol (Colombia) defines cruceta as“Herramienta en forma de cruz, usada para ajustar las tuercas que aseguran las ruedas delos automóviles” and indicates that the Peninsular Spanish equivalent is llave de ruedas.The DEArg defines llave en cruz as “Herramienta de metal, en forma de cruz, que se

emplea para sacar y ajustar los tornillos de las ruedas de un automóvil o vehículo decarga.” The Diccionario de Guatemaltequismos (Morales Pellecer) defines llave dechuchos as “herramienta que se usa para aflojar o apretar los chuchos (V.) de las llantas”and defines chucho as “tuerca de los tornillos que sujetan las ruedas de un carro.” The NDCR (Costa Rica) defines llave de rana as “Llave en forma de cruz con abultamientosen cada extremo por donde se ajustan las tuercas de las ruedas de los automóviles.” Andthe DHAV (Venezuela) defines llave de cruz as “Herramienta de metal formada por dos barras de hierro o acero cruzadas entre sí con una pieza en cada uno de sus extremosespecial para tuercas, que se utiliza principalmente para cambiar las ruedas de losautomóviles.” In this study, llave (de) cruz was also offered by some Hondurans and Nicaraguans in this sense. What are the equivalents of tire wrench or lug wrench in theother Spanish-speaking countries?

wrench C (other types of wrenches). The DEArg defines llave California as “Herramienta dehierro o acero, con muescas y agujeros, que se usa en el campo para estirar el alambre yajustar tornillos” and one Argentine in this study indicated that a llave cocodrilo is a V-shaped flat wrench with grippers (like those on a jar-opener) that is used on ships toadjust large nuts and lugs. Other types of wrenches that were not researched at all in thisstudy include “allen wrenches,” “chain wrenches,” “locking wrenches,” “ratche twrenches,” “socket wrenches” and “torque wrenches.” A description of each of these can be found at www.acehard-ware.com.

NOTES

1. From Abstract. I would like to express my appreciation to Lucrecia Hug, Clary Loisel andSharlee Merner Bradley for editing earlier drafts and making valuable suggestions, as well as toVirginia Navarro for going out of her way to put me in contact with informants/respondents forthis study. I would also like to thank all those who generously gave of their time to answerquestions on usage. In addition to the works that appear in References below, information on

http://www.acehard-ware.com/






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items in other domains or semantic fields whose names in Spanish vary by region is found in thefollowing works by Andre Moskowitz:

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: wild kingdom.” Proceedings of the 45th Annual

Conference of the American Translators Association, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, October13-16, 2004. Marian S. Greenfield, comp. American Translators Association, 2004. 169-228.

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: back to basics.” Proceedings of the 44th AnnualConference of the American Translators Association, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.A., November 5-8, 2003. Scott Brennan, comp. American Translators Association, 2003.287-343.

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: la ciudad y los fueros.” Proceedings of the 43rd AnnualConference of the American Translators Association, Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A., November 6-9, 2002. Scott Brennan, comp. American Translators Association, 2002.353-399.

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: folks.” Proceedings of the 42nd Annual Conference ofthe American Translators Association, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A., October 31- November 3, 2001. Thomas L. West III, comp. American Translators Association, 2001.268-301.

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: kids’ stuff.” Proceedings of the 41st Annual Conferenceof the American Translators Association, Orlando, Florida, U.S.A., September 20-23,2000. Thomas L. West III, comp. American Translators Association, 2000. 328-366.

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: food and drink.” Proceedings of the 40th AnnualConference of the American Translators Association, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.A., November 3-6, 1999. Ann G. Macfarlane, comp. American Translators Association,1999. 275-308.

“Topics in Spanish lexical dialectology: the home.” Proceedings of the 39th Annual Conferenceof the American Translators Association, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, U.S.A., November 4-8, 1998. Ann G. Macfarlane, comp. American Translators Association,1998. 221-253.

“Fruit and vegetable terminology in the Spanish-speaking world: regional variation.” Proceedings of the 38th Annual Conference of the American Translators Association, SanFrancisco, California, U.S.A., November 5-9, 1997. Muriel M. Jérôme-O’Keeffe, comp.American Translators Association, 1997. 233-261.

“Clothing terminology in the Spanish-speaking world: regional variation.” Proceedings of the37th Annual Conference of the American Translators Association, Colorado Springs,Colorado, U.S.A., October 30-November 3, 1996. Muriel M. Jérôme-O’Keeffe, comp.American Translators Association, 1996. 287-308.

“Car terminology in the Spanish-speaking world.” Proceedings of the 36th Annual Conference ofthe American Translators Association, Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.A., November 8-12,1995. Peter W. Krawutschke, comp. American Translators Association, 1995. 331-340.

“Contribución al estudio del español ecuatoriano.” Unpublished M.A. thesis. Department ofRomance Languages and Literatures, University of Florida. Gainesville, Florida, U.S.A.1995.



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“A box of office supplies: dialectological fun.” The Georgetown Journal of Languages & Linguistics. Vol 1.3. Ed. Richard J. O’Brien, S.J. 1990. 315-344.

2. From Introduction (Section 0). Spanish speakers have not been extensively surveyed in this

study regarding the names for the claw of a hammer, but preliminary information suggests thatthe term for this item may also vary. Investigation needs to be done to determine who says la uñadel martillo, who says la oreja del martillo, who says la pata de cabra del martillo, and whouses other terms.

3. From Introduction (Section 0). The term electrical is defined in the American Heritage Dictionary (Pickett), the Encarta Webster’s Dictionary (Soukhanov), and the New Oxford American Dictionary (McKean) with various adjectival senses relating to electricity, but in noneof these sources is it defined as a noun with the meaning of “electrical system,” “wiring andother electrical work” or “electrical department.” While one may certainly object to the use ofelectrical as a noun on the grounds that the suffix -al is adjectival, I believe this is a gap in

English-language lexicography that needs to be filled since electrical can be a noun as thefollowing exam ples illustrate: “The inspection will cover all major elements of the homeincluding the grounds, the exterior, the electrical , the plumbing, the heating and air, thestructural components, the foundation and/or basement, the interior trim, flooring,kitchen/appliances, bathrooms, and much more...” (“Safe and Sound Home Inspections, Inc.”;emphasis on electrical added), and “The Ferrari management went in and completely gutted theassembly lines, staging and work areas. They tore it all out – the electrical , the plumbing, theworks...” (Mandarano; emphasis on electrical added). Electrical in these examples appears to bean ellipsis of “electrical system,” but grammatically the word is functioning as a noun just like plumbing , heating , air , and foundation. Similarly, if you go into a hardware store and ask anemployee where you can find, say, wire nuts, he or she may very well give you an answer suchas “That’s over in electrical . All the way down the aisle, then make a...” In this case, electrical isan ellipsis of “electrical department.” The process by which adjectives get converted into nounsis quite common and productive in English. Consider such ubiquitous examples as e-mail (‘an e-mail message’) and voice-mail (‘a voice-mail message’). Who among us can say with a straightface that he or she has never heard phrases like, “She left me a voice -mail”? And in the future, Isuspect there will probably be fewer and fewer of us who can say we have never used such phrases in our own speech and even writing. A more recent example of this linguistic processnow frequently used by “computer people” (who in the United States seem to be an increasinglylarge percentage of the population) is the use of the noun work-around in the sense of “a strategyor technique used to work around some problem or difficulty.” Here, work-around is an ellipsisof work-around strategy, work-around technique, etc.

4. From Introduction (Section 0.2). The Home Depot was a large chain home-improvement storein the United States at the end of the second millennium A.D. and the beginning of the thirdoffering a broad selection of products and low prices, though sometimes limited advice orguidance from its personnel on where to find things or what was required for the job. The HomeDepot epitomized one-stop shopping in that customers who did not have a truck could rent one atthe store by the hour in order to haul away their building materials. And for those contractors or



108

homeowners in need of inexpensive day labor, Home Depot stores in many states had the addedallure of allowing guys, immigrants, without whom the construction industry (among others)would literally grind to a halt, to hang out in their parking lot in the hopes of being hired.

5. From Section A13.3, Ecuador. It is somewhat odd that the HEDE (Córdova Malo), in itsdefinition of bailejo, should refer to “Norte” as a region of Ecuador as it is more typical to speakof two separate zones, the “Costa Norte” and the “Sierra Norte,” which geographically, culturallyand phonologically have little in common. There may not be complete agreement, however, onhow the regions of Ecuador are to be defined. For example, El Gran Libro de la Cocina Ecuatoriana (Rojas: 4, 28, 92, 112, 144, 160, 176, 189) divides the country into eight regionsconsisting of the following provinces: Costa Norte (Esmeraldas and Manabí), Costa Sur (Guayas,los Ríos and el Oro), Sierra Norte (el Carchi and Imbabura), Sierra Central (Pichincha, Cotopaxi,Tungurahua, Chimborazo and Bolívar), Austro (Cañar and Azuay), Sierra Sur (Loja), Oriente(Zamora Chinchipe, Morona Santiago, Pastaza and Napo) and the Galápagos. Lipski (1994: 247-249), however, viewing Ecuador from the point of view of phonology, distributes the provinces

into the following six regions: Coastal Region (Esmeraldas, Guayas, Los Ríos, Manabí), Extreme North-Central (el Carchi), Central Highlands (from Imbabura to Chimborazo), Cañar and Azuay(that is, Rojas’ Austro), Loja (Rojas’ Sierra Sur), and the Amazonian Region (what Ecuadoranscall el Oriente). Aside from omitting the coastal province of el Oro, which does not greatly affectthe overall division, the main difference is that Lipski’s “Sierra Central” includes Imbabura,since the speech of this province shares some phonological traits with that of Quito and pointsfarther south, whereas for Rojas this province is part of the Sierra Norte. With regard to theOriente, we also note that the Amazonian province of Napo was recently divided into three new provinces: Napo, Orellana and Sucumbíos.

6. From Section A16.3, Venezuela. According to the list of abbreviations on pages LXXV-LXXVI of the Diccionario de Venezolanismos (Tejera), “Centr ” refers to the Centro or Región Central,consisting of the Distrito Federal, i.e. Caracas, and the states of Miranda, Aragua and Carabobo,“ Llan” refers to the (Venezuelan) Llanos, consisting of the states of Cojedes, Portuguesa,Barinas, Apure, Guárico and the western part of the state of Anzoátegui, “Truj” refers to the stateof Trujillo, and “Occ” refers to the Región Occidental, consisting of the states of Zulia, Yaracuy,Falcón and Lara.

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