Spanish word

muñeca

Pronunciation

IPA/muˈɲeka/

Meaning

  • feminine noundoll

Example

Compré una muñeca para mi hija.

I bought a doll for my daughter.

Illustration for muñeca (doll)

More examples

Se torció la muñeca al caer.

He twisted his wrist when he fell.

Core concept

Child's human-shaped doll.

Common phrases

  • jugar con muñecas

    play with dolls

  • regalar una muñeca

    give a doll

  • muñeca de trapo

    rag doll

Similar words

muñeco: Toy in the shape of a human or character, commonly poseable and used as a figure.
juguete: Plaything or object intended for entertainment and play across all ages.
marioneta: Puppet moved by strings or rods to animate characters during a staged performance.

Definition in Spanish

Palabra polisémica que designa un muñeco o una muñeca como juguete humanoide y, por homonimia, la muñeca como articulación; en el habla coloquial funciona también como apelativo afectuoso.

Word origin

Spanish muñeca comes from medieval Iberian muñecca plus the diminutive suffix -eca 'little person', originally applied to small figures and later extended to the wrist and informal terms of endearment.

Usage tips

  • The letter ñ represents a palatal 'ny' sound, so writing or pronouncing it as plain n looks like a misspelling to native speakers and changes the sound of muñeca.

Other meanings

  • wristnoun

Related words

  • muñecomale dollnoun
  • muñequitolittle dollnoun

Word lists with this word