Spanish word of the week: Nochebuena

This week’s Spanish word of the week takes a festive turn with Nochebuena.

Nochebuena is a noun that means  Christmas Eve (literally, ‘good night’) and you can find out how to pronounce it here:

function playAudio(url) { new Audio(url).play(); }

Nos reunimos en Nochebuena. We get together on Christmas Eve.
la cena de Nochebuena Christmas Eve dinner

Most Spanish and Latin American families eat their Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve, or Nochebuena, unlike families in the States or the UK, who usually eat their Christmas dinner on Christmas Day (el día de Navidad).

Traditional Latin American Christmas Eve celebrations also include going to Midnight Mass, la Misa del Gallo, named after the rooster (or gallo) that heralds the break of day.

Come back next week to learn a new word!

Other Articles

Spanish words of the week: velo or vela?

Here are two more superficially similar Spanish nouns with different uses: 'velo' (masculine) and 'vela' (feminine). Read More

Spanish words of the week: cero or cera?

¡Tres, dos, uno, cero! (Three, two, one, zero!) It’s time to polish up our knowledge of the different meanings of the Spanish nouns cero (masculine) and cera (feminine). You can listen to the pronunciation of cero (masculine) here: Cero with an -o… Read More

Spanish words of the week: helado or helada?

Time to get the cold, hard facts on another pair of Spanish nouns which differ superficially only in ending and gender. This week it’s the turn of the masculine 'helado' and the feminine 'helada'. Read More