Spanish word

ostra

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈostɾa/

Meaning

  • feminine nounoyster

Example

Me gustan las ostras.

I like oysters.

Illustration for ostra (oyster)

More examples

En el restaurante pedimos ostras crudas con limón.

At the restaurant we ordered raw oysters with lemon.

Core concept

Two-hinged marine shell enclosing soft edible flesh.

Common phrases

  • ostras crudas

    raw oysters

  • ostras con limón

    oysters with lemon

  • ostras frescas

    fresh oysters

Similar words

marisco: Seafood sold for consumption, covering shellfish and other edible marine animals.
almeja: Shellfish that lives buried in the seabed and is eaten by opening its shell.
mejillón: Bivalve often fixed to hard surfaces and harvested in clusters for food.
molusco: Any soft-bodied invertebrate of the mollusk group, including shell-bearing and shell-less forms.

Definition in Spanish

Molusco bivalvo marino comestible con dos valvas que protege un cuerpo blando, consumido frecuentemente crudo o cocinado.

Word origin

Spanish ostra comes from Latin ostrea, ultimately from Greek ostreon meaning shell.

Usage tips

  • Restaurant orders usually include an article (una ostra, las ostras), and note that ¡ostras! is also an interjection meaning 'darn' or 'wow', not the food.

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