alarma

alarm

noun ah-LAHR-mah Rare

Origin: From Italian all'arme ('to arms'), a military call to action.

Also means

alert

Usage Note

Alarma covers a burglar alarm (alarma antirrobo), a fire alarm (alarma de incendio), and figurative alarm or worry (cundió la alarma, 'alarm spread'). The phrase dar la alarma means 'to raise the alarm'. Note that despite ending in -a, the word is feminine and does not take the article el before it (unlike agua, alma, etc.).

Examples

"La alarma sonó a medianoche."

Natural Translation

The alarm went off at midnight.

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