Spanish word

plata

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈplata/

Meaning

  • feminine nounmoney

Example

¿Tienes plata para el almuerzo?

Do you have money for lunch?

Illustration for plata (money)

More examples

¿Me puedes prestar plata hasta mañana?

Can you lend me money until tomorrow?

Core concept

Flat silver plate.

Common phrases

  • prestar plata

    lend money

  • pedir plata

    ask for money

  • cobrar plata

    receive money

Similar words

dinero: Broad, standard money used to buy things and settle accounts.
efectivo: Immediate cash: bills and coins available for direct payment.
moneda: Coins as physical metal money circulating in the economy.
pasta: Slangy, very informal reference to money, used jokingly or familiarly.

Definition in Spanish

Metal precioso de color blanco brillante; por extensión coloquial, dinero o cantidad de dinero.

Word origin

Derived from Old French plate and medieval Latin platta 'flat metal plate', the term first referred to silverware and then to silver coinage, which produced the figurative sense of money.

Usage tips

  • Plata usually functions as a mass noun for money (tengo plata, not tengo platas) and therefore appears more in spoken regional usage than in formal texts.

Other meanings

  • silvernoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word