Spanish Conversation · Level 19
90 words
Spanish word
meridiano
Pronunciation
IPA/meɾiˈðjano/
Meaning
- masculine nounmeridian
Example
El meridiano divide la Tierra en hemisferios oriental y occidental.
The meridian divides the Earth into the eastern and western hemispheres.
More examples
En el mapa, el meridiano indica la longitud de un lugar.
On the map, the meridian indicates the longitude of a place.
Core concept
Semicircular line running from the North Pole to the South Pole that marks a longitude and anchors time references.
Similar words
longitud: Angle measured east or west that specifies how far a location is from the prime meridian.
latitud: Angle measured north or south from the equator that locates a place's latitudinal position.
paralelo: Circular line running east-west and parallel to the equator that marks equal latitudes.
eje: Straight imaginary line through Earth connecting poles around which the planet rotates.
Definition in Spanish
Semicírculo imaginario que va de un polo al otro y sirve para situar longitudes y fijar referencias horarias en mapas y en la navegación.
Word origin
Comes from Latin meridianus, from meridies 'midday', and originally named the line where the sun crosses the meridian at noon, later applied to lines of longitude.
Usage tips
- When explaining local clock time or time zones in Spanish, speakers often use huso horario or hora local instead of meridiano.