April 28, 2021 by Luis F. Dominguez Spanish Vocabulary 0 comments

Jewelry in Spanish: A Vocabulary Guide

Jewelry in Spanish is full of dazzling color, shine, and style.

If you want to learn about the value and symbolism of jewelry in Latin America and discover cool facts about the jewelry industry, you’ve come to the right place.

Keep reading for the ultimate vocabulary guide to jewelry in Spanish. I’ll introduce you to a veritable gold mine of jewelry-related nouns, verbs, and adjectives.

Why Learn About Jewelry in Spanish?

Learning a new language involves developing different skills (speaking, listening, reading, and writing), while being introduced to a new grammar system and acquiring new vocabulary.

Growing your vocabulary in your target language is crucial to your language learning process. While vocabulary isn’t everything, if you don’t know the words, how are you going to speak the language?

For that reason, we’ve published a series of posts here at Homeschool Spanish Academy where you can learn Spanish vocabulary by area of knowledge—music, math, or accoun ting, for instance. Today, it’s time to dive into vocabulary related to jewelry in Spanish.

Value and Symbolism of Jewelry in Latin America

Originally, in the territory that is now Latin America, the value and meaning of jewelry was different from what it is today. Precious metals such as silver and gold weren’t as valuable as they are now.

The indigenous cultures that populated these lands before the arrival of Europeans valued other materials as much or more than gold. Artifacts made of jade or adorned with quetzal feathers, for example, had a strong symbolism and were valuable.

Cocoa beans, on the other hand, were held in high regard for their exchange value, as they were used as a form of currency.

Obviously, all that changed when the Spaniards colonized Latin America and imposed their beliefs and values system. Since then, artifacts made of silver, gold, and the gemstones valued in the West have become the most sought-after pieces of jewelry.

5 Cool Jewelry Facts

Before we get into full jewelry in Spanish mode, I thought you may find these facts interesting:

The oldest jewelry artifacts are 90,000 years old.
India and China are the two largest gold consumers in the world.
South Africa is the largest gold producer in the world.
Mexico is the largest silver producer in the world.
Diamonds are more than a billion years old.

Jewelry in Spanish

Now, it’s time to talk about jewelry in Spanish and learn related vocabulary. I’ve classified it into nouns, verbs, and adjectives to help you navigate the terms.

Nouns

Let’s start with the most common nouns about jewelry in Spanish.

Forms

First, let’s take a look at the names of some of the most popular pieces of jewelry in Spanish:

el collar	necklace
el brazalete, la pulsera	bracelet
el anillo	ring
el anillo de compromiso	engagement ring
el anillo de bodas	wedding ring
los gemelos, las mancuernillas	cufflink
los aretes	earrings
el reloj	watch
el colgante, el dije, el pendiente	pendant
la tiara	tiara
el medallón	medallion
el pasador	barrette
la horquilla	hairpin
la hebilla del cinturón	belt buckle
la cadena de corbata	tie chain
el alfiler de solapa	lapel pin
el broche	brooch
el alfiler	pin
el piercing	piercing
la cadena	chain
el clip de corbata	tie clip
la corona	crown
la diadema	diadem
la tobillera	anklet
el amuleto	amulet
el guardapelo	locket

Metals

Now, it’s time to learn the names of common metals used for jewelry in Spanish:

el oro	gold
la plata	silver
el platino	platinum
el bronce	bronze
el cobre	copper
el níquel	nickel
el peltre	pewter
el tungsteno	tungsten
el acero inoxidable	stainless steel
el paladio	palladium
el latón	brass
el rodio	rhodium
el titanio	titanium

Gemstones

Precious and semi-precious gemstones are key in the world of jewelry in Spanish. Let’s learn some of the most popular ones:

el diamante	diamond
la turquesa	turquoise
el topacio	topaz
la esmeralda	emerald
el rubí	ruby
el zafiro	sapphire
la amatista	amethyst
el jade	jade
la obsidiana	obsidian
el ónix	onyx
la turmalina	tourmaline
el lapislázuli	Lapis lazuli
el circón	zircon
el ópalo	opal
el jaspe	jasper
la ágata	agate
el cuarzo	quartz
el ojo de tigre	tiger’s eye
la tanzanita	tanzanite
el ámbar	amber
el copal	copal
el coral	coral
el marfil	ivory
la perla	pearl
el nácar	nacre
el azabache	jet
el granate	garnet
la amazonita	amazonite
la aventurina	aventurine
la azurita	azurite
el cristal	crystal
la fluorita	fluorite
la malaquita	malachite
la selenita	selenite
la sodalita	sodalite

Miscellaneous Jewelry in Spanish Nouns

Here are other nouns that don’t fit into the categories above.

las joyas, las alhajas	jewelry
la joyería	jewelry store
el joyero	jeweler, jewelry maker
el orfebre	goldsmith
el platero	silversmith
el lapidario	lapidary
la bisutería	imitation jewelry, craft jewelry
el catálogo	catalog
el peso	weight
los gramos	grams
las cuentas, los abalorios	beads
el diámetro	diameter
el diseño	design
las gemas, las piedras preciosas	gemstones
la piedra	stone
los metales preciosos	precious metals
el metal	metal

Verbs

The following list includes some of the most used verbs in the field of jewelry in Spanish:

tallar	to carve
grabar	to engrave
soldar	to solder
pulir	to polish
barnizar	to varnish
extraer	to extract
enchapar	to plate
cortar	to cut
diseñar	to design
moldear	to mold
comprar	to buy
pagar	to pay
vender	to sell
importar	to import
exportar	to export

Adjectives

To conclude this ultimate guide about jewelry in Spanish, let me introduce you to some useful adjectives:

hermoso	beautiful
elegante	elegant
fino	fine
hecho a mano	handmade
grueso	thick
pesado	heavy
ligero	light
largo	long
corto	short
brillante	shiny, bright
importado	imported
genuino	genuine
original	original
claro	clear
oscuro	dark
opaco	opaque
barato	cheap
caro	expensive
pagado	paid
vendido	sold
comprado	bought
entregado	delivered

Para Cerrar con Broche de Oro

This is a classic Spanish expression similar to the English saying, “to end on a high note” or “to top it all off.” The Spanish version is particularly significant here. It actually means “to close with a golden brooch”!

Remember to practice your newly acquired vocabulary about jewelry in Spanish. It’s the only way to actually integrate these terms into your growing Spanish vocabulary. Sign up for a free class with one of our certified, native Spanish-speaking teachers from Guatemala, and start talking about jewelry in Spanish today!

learn spanish online — *Sign up for your* *FREE TRIAL CLASS* *today!*

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Luis F. Dominguez

Freelance Writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

Luis F. Domínguez is a freelance writer and independent journalist interested in travel, languages, art, books, history, philosophy, politics and sports. He has written for Fodor’s, Yahoo!, Sports Illustrated, Telemundo, and Villa Experience, among other brands of print and digital media in Europe and North America.

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