The coronavirus is one of the greatest challenges humankind has ever faced. Because of that, we are being bombarded with words such as "virus," "disease," "quarantine," and "pandemic." But, do you know how to say all those words in Spanish? In this lesson, we will review some of the most important nouns associated with the current coronavirus. But first, let's take a closer look at the word coronavirus in Spanish.

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The rules of the noun Coronavirus

In Spanish, the word coronavirus is a masculine noun made of two words: corona (crown) and virus (virus). However, keep in mind that coronavirus is just one word so there's no need for spaces or hyphens between the words that make up this noun.

Apart from that, it is worth mentioning that the word coronavirus in Spanish is the same in both the singular and the plural. Let's take a look:

El coronavirus es un virus contagioso

Coronavirus is a contagious virus

Los coronavirus son virus contagiosos

Coronaviruses are contagious viruses

From the example above, you can also see that the word virus in Spanish is the same in the singular and plural. In fact, this word belongs to a group of nouns ending in 'S' or 'X' that are the same in the singular and plural in Spanish.

With that being said, let's take a look at some of the words that you need to keep in mind in the context of the coronavirus.

Top nouns related to coronavirus

For talking about coronavirus, here are some of the most common nouns. Let's take a look.

Brote (outbreak)

Crisis (crisis)

Vivimos en tiempos de crisis.

We live in times of crisis.

Caption 3, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 2

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Cuarentena (quarantine)

Desinfectante (disinfectant)

Mirá, ni siquiera uso el alcohol como desinfectante.

Look, I don't even use alcohol as a disinfectant.

Caption 81, Muñeca Brava - 18 - La Apuesta

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In this caption, we also highlighted another very used word nowadays: alcohol (alcohol).

Enfermedad (illness, disease)

Por una enfermedad o por un trastorno.

Due to an illness or due to an imbalance.

Caption 50, Raquel - Visitar al Médico

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Se controla que no tienen ninguna enfermedad.

They check [to make sure] that they don't have any disease.

Caption 60, Rosa - Laguna Fuente de Piedra

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Jabón (soap)

Aquí está nuestro mejor amigo: el jabón.

Here's our best friend: soap.

Caption 18, Ana Carolina - Artículos de aseo personal

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Mascarilla (mask)

Another term commonly used when talking about the masks people use to protect their mouths and noses is "tapaboca" or "tapabocas".

Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS)

This is the Spanish name for the World Health Organization (WHO)

Pandemia (pandemic)

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization officially declared the coronavirus a pandemic. The Spanish term for pandemic is pandemia. Keep in mind that there is a difference between epidemia (epidemic) and pandemia (pandemic). While the former relates to the spread of a disease in a country, the latter refers to the spread of a disease throughout the world.

El mundo se enfrenta ahora a una pandemia sin precedentes.

The world is now facing an unprecedented pandemic.

Caption 12, El Coronavirus - Introducción y vocabulario

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Prueba (test)

The word "prueba" is probably the best one for the test that people take in order to find out if they have coronavirus. However, some people prefer to use similar terms such as "test" or "muestra".

Recesión (recession)

According to several experts, even in the most optimistic of scenarios, many economies will be heading to a recession after the coronavirus crisis is over.

...que fue cuando en España entró la recesión en el sector de la construcción.

...which was when in Spain the recession in the construction sector began.

Caption 5, Leif - El Arquitecto Español y su Arte

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Teletrabajo (remote working)

Transmisión (transmission)

Virus (virus)

"El coronavirus es un virus contagioso".

"The coronavirus is a contagious virus."

Caption 27, El Coronavirus - Introducción y vocabulario

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There are many more words that are used in the context of the coronavirus disease. However, if you want to follow the news in Spanish, there is a good chance of coming across some of the terms we just reviewed. Please, take the necessary protection during this difficult time and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.