100+ Spanish Sound Effects (Onomatopoeia)

How many Spanish onomatopoeias do you know? How often do you use them? They are, after all, necessary elements of any language. Onomatopoeias are words that phonetically imitate, resemble, or suggest the sound that they describe. 

Woof! Meow! Splash! 

With these three little words, you can almost see a dog chasing a cat, and then the cat falls into a pool. Do you see? 

They’re also fun! 

And onomatopoeias are not just sound effects. They’re often verbs and can even convey emotion:

Wah!

That’s a baby crying. They might be sad, hungry, sick, or in pain.

Can you think of others? How do you spell the sound of laughter? “Haha,” right? In Spanish it’s jaja.

There are dozens of fun, original, and inventive onomatopoeias in Spanish. Native Spanish speakers use them all the time, and they can help you improve your fluency and even become a better storyteller. 

So, tap on your screen or click on your mouse to keep reading. Here are 100+ Spanish onomatopoeias or sound effect words in Spanish!

Spanish Onomatopoeia and Sound Effects

Not all onomatopoeias are born equal. The truth is, you’re not going to use all of them while speaking and writing; it’s very uncommon to hear some of these or even find them in a text. So, I divided this list into three categories: 

1. useful for speaking
2. useful for writing, and 
3. useful for listening and creative writing. 

Though naturally, they’re interchangeable, it’s more likely that you’d want to imitate the sound of a car’s engine or a door slamming than a cricket’s chirp.

Download a free PDF with all of the tables included in this blog post.

Spanish Onomatopoeia Useful for Speaking

The first category is devoted to objects’ sound effects. Learn these, practice them, and next time you’re speaking with a Spanish speaker, try to incorporate them into your speech.

Objects Sound Effects 

Recommended: How To Use Visual Aids for Spanish Learning

Spanish Onomatopoeia Useful for Writing (and Speaking)

Here are where things change a bit. While some of these verbs’ sound effects might mimic or imitate an action in English, the Spanish translation of these words doesn’t necessarily do that. 

They are, well, just words. 

They are verbs that often don’t sound anything like the action they represent. Chillar, for example, pronounced “chee-yahr,” sounds nothing like something squeaking.

You can and will find yourself often using these while speaking too.

Verbs Sound Effects 

Recommended reading: Vocabulary Guide to Origami in Spanish

Spanish Onomatopoeia for Listening and Creative Writing

Unless you’re working with children, it’s unlikely you’ll use these in everyday conversations. However, it might be a great listening exercise to creatively match these onomatopoeias to what you hear in real life. 

Also, writers and poets often use these inventive words. For example, have you heard of the K’iche’ Maya poet Humberto Ak’abal? 

He famously used onomatopoeias in his idiosyncratic and snappy poems, like in El Caminante.

Recommended reading: 5 exceptional poets from Latin America

Animal Onomatopoeias

Recommended reading: Tropical Animals in Spanish

People Onomatopoeias

Now that you know what onomatopoeias are and can use them when you talk, you’re ready to become one of the 580 million people in the world who speak Spanish!

Recommended reading: How Many People Speak Spanish in the World?

Start Speaking Spanish Today in Live Classes 

See? Onomatopoeias and sound effects can help you sound more like a native Spanish speaker, but everyone needs classes, lessons, and practice to truly become fluent. So sign up for a free trial class at Homeschool Spanish Academy, and boom, you’re on your way to start learning this wonderful language. Our certified Spanish teachers teach our curriculum every month, and our classes are available for kids and adults alike.

Join one of the 40,000 classes that we teach each month and you can experience results like these

“This is the best way for your kid to learn Spanish. It’s one-on-one, taught by native Spanish speakers, and uses a curriculum.”

– Sharon K, Parent of 3

“It’s a great way to learn Spanish, from native Spanish speakers in a 1-on-1 environment. It’s been fairly easy to schedule classes around my daughter’s other classes. The best value for us has been ordering multiple classes at a time. All the instructors have been great!”

– Cindy D, Parent of 3

“HSA offers very affordable, quality, one on one classes with a native speaker. My son has greatly benefited from taking classes. We have seen his confidence increase as well as his pronunciation improve, because he learns from a native Spanish speaker. HSA has quick, personal customer service. Our family has been very pleased with our experience so far!”

– Erica P. Parent of 1

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J.A. García

Freelance Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

I am a Guatemalan bilingual fiction writer, translator, and journalist. In my spare time I like to read, play video games, and do sports. I’m a fan of historical fiction, family sagas, and graphic novels. I’m left-handed, a failed drummer, an amateur goalkeeper, and I drive a 1988 Subaru J10.

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