Today’s Spanish word of the day is “auto”.
It’s a masculine noun meaning “car”, and is short for “automóvil” (“automobile”).
The word “auto” is used to mean “car” in the Southern Cone countries (Chile, Argentina and Uruguay). Other countries use other terms for “car”: In Spain they say “coche”, whereas in Mexico, Central America, Peru and Colombia they say “carro”.
Like the English word “automobile”, Spanish “automóvil” is a compound word formed from the Greek autos (“self”) and Latin mobilis (“moveable”).
Example sentences
Mi auto no arranca.
My car won’t start.
Mi auto está en el taller.
My car is at the workshop.
Compraron un auto nuevo el mes pasado.
They bought a new car last month.
¿Puedes prestarme tu auto?
Can you lend me your car?
Mi auto es tan viejo que tiene fotos de cuando era un caballo.
My car is so old it has photos of when it was a horse.
