¡Odio la carne de cerdo!
I hate pork!
For some people this is the one meat that never goes on the plate, and carne de cerdo is its full name.
From Babe, el puerquito valiente · Spanish audio
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "pork" in Spanish
el cerdo
nounmasculinethe meat: carne de cerdoMexico: puerco
"Pork" in Spanish is el cerdo, or in full la carne de cerdo. The same word names the animal, the pig. In Mexico you'll hear puerco (carne de puerco), and in Chile and Peru chancho.
Hear "cerdo" in real movie scenes
One person who hates it, one who orders it. Each video starts and stops on that line.
¿Tiene el especial de cerdo con poca grasa?
Do you have the low-fat pork special?
At a food truck, this is how you ask for a lighter pork dish. De cerdo after the dish tells you which meat it is.
From Piensa como hombre · Spanish audio
Pork on the menu
Three regional names for the meat, and three cuts you'll see on menus.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| la carne de cerdo | pork |
| la carne de puerco | pork, in Mexico |
| la carne de chancho | pork, in Chile and Peru |
| la chuleta de cerdo | pork chop |
| las costillas de cerdo | pork ribs |
| el lomo de cerdo | pork loin |
Tip: El jamón and el chorizo are usually made from pork, so mention them too if you don't eat it.
Grammar: el cerdo, la carne de cerdo
Four points for ordering, buying and turning it down.
Animal or meat
el cerdo is the pig. The meat is la carne de cerdo, but on a menu or at the butcher's, cerdo alone means the meat.No article after de
carne de cerdo, costillas de cerdo, el especial de cerdo. The de phrase works like an English adjective: pork ribs.Carne decides the gender
In la carne de cerdo, the main noun is carne, so adjectives are feminine: La carne de cerdo está rica.Say it right
SEHR-doh in Latin America. In most of Spain the c sounds like English th: THEHR-doh. The d is soft.Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
No como carne de cerdo.
I don't eat pork.
Quiero un kilo de carne de cerdo.
I'd like a kilo of pork.
¿Tiene el especial de cerdo con poca grasa?
Do you have the low-fat pork special?
¡Odio la carne de cerdo!
I hate pork!
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗cerdo carne (meaning pork meat)
✓carne de cerdo
The main noun comes first, and de links it to the animal.
✗No me gusta cerdo
✓No me gusta el cerdo
With gustar, a food in general takes the article.
✗La carne de cerdo está rico
✓La carne de cerdo está rica
Carne is feminine, so the adjective is too.
Practice: 3 quick exercises
Free, and you don't need an account.
1 of 3 · Watch and choose
What do you hear in the video?
The other 22 exercises on this topic are in the app.
How to remember it
Cerdo sounds like "sir dough". Picture a pig in a top hat, Sir Dough, standing next to the meat counter.
Questions about "pork" in Spanish
How do you say pork in Spanish?
Cerdo, or carne de cerdo for the meat. In Mexico people say puerco, and in Chile and Peru chancho.
How do you say "I don't eat pork" in Spanish?
No como carne de cerdo, or just No como cerdo.
Is cerdo the animal or the meat?
Both. El cerdo is the pig, and on a menu it means pork. A piglet is el cerdito.
