semilla

See also: Semilla

Spanish

Etymology

Probably from a derivative of Latin semen (“seeds”).

Corominas proposes Latin *sēminia, plural of *sēminium, through a Mozarabic xeminio.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /seˈmiʝa/ [seˈmi.ʝa] (most of Spain and Latin America)
IPA^(key): /seˈmiʎa/ [seˈmi.ʎa] (rural northern Spain, Andes Mountains, Paraguay, Philippines)
IPA^(key): /seˈmiʃa/ [seˈmi.ʃa] (Buenos Aires and environs)
IPA^(key): /seˈmiʒa/ [seˈmi.ʒa] (elsewhere in Argentina and Uruguay)

Audio: (file)

Rhymes: -iʝa (most of Spain and Latin America)
Rhymes: -iʎa (rural northern Spain, Andes Mountains, Paraguay, Philippines)
Rhymes: -iʃa (Buenos Aires and environs)
Rhymes: -iʒa (elsewhere in Argentina and Uruguay)

Syllabification: se‧mi‧lla

Noun

semilla f (plural semillas)

seed (of a plant)

Descendants

→ Cebuano: semilya
→ Portuguese: (dialectal) semilha (“potato”)
→ Tagalog: semilya (“sperm, semen”)

Further reading

“semilla”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024