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pelota

ball

noun peh-LOH-tah Less Common

Usage Note

Pelota is the general word for a ball used in sport or play, covering everything from a tennis ball to a handball. In Spain it also lends its name to the Basque sport pelota vasca. Colloquially, hacerle la pelota a alguien means to flatter or suck up to someone — a false-friend trap since 'ball' in polite English has no such meaning.

Examples

"El niño lanzó la pelota al aire."

Natural Translation

The boy threw the ball into the air.

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