Spanish word

búho

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈbuo/

Meaning

  • masculine nounowl

Example

Anoche vi un búho en el árbol del parque.

Last night I saw an owl in a tree in the park.

Illustration for búho (owl)

More examples

El búho sale de noche para cazar.

The owl goes out at night to hunt.

Core concept

A dusk-hunting bird with big forward-facing eyes and silent flight.

Common phrases

  • ver un búho

    see an owl

  • búho nocturno

    nocturnal owl

Similar words

lechuza: Nocturnal bird with a rounded facial disk and a broad, flat face for locating prey by sound.
mochuelo: Small night-active bird that hunts insects and small prey, often seen at dusk or dawn.

Definition in Spanish

Designa a un pájaro nocturno de ojos vivos y vuelo silencioso, conocido por cazar al anochecer.

Word origin

Búho comes from Latin bubo 'owl', with the vowel sequence adapting in medieval Spanish to produce the modern stressed form búho.

Usage tips

  • In speech, u and o form separate syllables (bú-ho), so the acute accent indicates stress on the first syllable and prevents a diphthong.

Other meanings

  • horned owlnoun

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