Usage Note
Tigre is masculine for the animal; the female is tigresa. In informal Latin American Spanish tigre can also be used figuratively for a fierce or dangerous person. The phrase tigre de papel ('paper tiger') — borrowed from the English/Maoist idiom — describes something that looks powerful but is weak.
Examples
"El tigre descansa en la sombra."
Natural Translation
The tiger rests in the shade.

Free starter pack
Building your Spanish vocabulary?
Get the 100 most common Spanish words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.
Related Words
Explore Spanish by topic
SpanishNow
6 min read