Usage Note
Ballena is the generic word for whale. The ll is pronounced like a 'y' in standard Castilian and Latin American Spanish (bah-YEH-nah). Historically the word also referred to whalebone (baleen), hence ballena appears in older texts about corsets. The blue whale is ballena azul.
Examples
"Vimos una ballena desde el barco."
Natural Translation
We saw a whale from the boat.

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