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estadounidense

American (from the US)

adjective eh-stah-doh-oo-nee-DEHN-seh Common

Origin: From Estados Unidos ('United States') + the suffix -ense.

Usage Note

Estadounidense is the preferred term in formal and journalistic Spanish for a person or thing from the United States, avoiding the ambiguity of americano, which technically covers anyone from the Americas. It is long but widely used; the informal shorthand norteamericano is also common. The form is the same for masculine and feminine (el/la estadounidense).

Examples

"El actor estadounidense ganó el premio."

Natural Translation

The American actor won the award.

Literal Translation

The actor American won the award

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