Skip to content

ensayo

essay

noun en-SAH-yoh Less Common

Also means

rehearsal

Usage Note

Ensayo covers a literary or academic essay and also a rehearsal (ensayo general = dress rehearsal). The verb ensayar means both 'to rehearse' and 'to essay/attempt.' In science, ensayo clínico is a clinical trial. The two senses ('trying out' an idea vs. 'trying out' a performance) share the same root.

Examples

"Escribió un ensayo sobre la identidad."

Natural Translation

He wrote an essay on identity.

Free starter pack

Building your Spanish vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common Spanish words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore Spanish by topic