papas

potatoes

noun PAH-pahs Rare

Origin: From Quechua papa.

Usage Note

Papas is the standard Latin American term for potatoes; in Spain the word is patatas. The Quechua origin reflects the fact that the potato was domesticated in the Andes. The singular papa is also informally used in Latin America to mean 'dad' (short for papá), so context matters.

Examples

"Las papas fritas son muy populares en todo el mundo."

Natural Translation

French fries are very popular all over the world.

Literal Translation

The fried potatoes are very popular in all the world.

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