Spanish word

moler

Pronunciation

IPA/moˈleɾ/

Meaning

  • verbgrind

Example

Necesito moler los granos para el café.

I need to grind the beans for coffee.

Illustration for moler (grind)

More examples

¿Puedes moler la carne para las albóndigas?

Can you grind the meat for the meatballs?

Core concept

A millstone crushing grain into flour.

Common phrases

  • moler café

    grind coffee

  • moler granos

    grind grains

  • moler carne

    grind meat

Similar words

triturar: Breaks hard materials into small fragments or grit using tools.
machacar: Pounds or crushes items forcefully until their shape is smashed or pulped.
picar: Cuts or chops food into small pieces with a knife or blade.
desmenuzar: Crumbles or teases a solid into loose flakes or crumbs by hand or utensil.

Definition in Spanish

Transformar materia sólida en polvo o en partículas muy finas por trituración o molido, por ejemplo para preparar café.

Word origin

From Latin mola 'millstone', the verb is historically tied to molino 'mill' and to molido 'ground' in Spanish.

Usage tips

  • The verb also appears in expressions like moler a palos meaning to beat someone severely, so context decides whether the sense is literal grinding or figurative crushing.

Other meanings

  • crushverb

Related words

  • molinomillnoun
  • molidogroundadjective
  • molinillosmall grindernoun

Word lists with this word