Pescado
 

This is a discussion thread for the Daily Spanish Word for April 25, 2008

pescado -masculine noun (el), fish [Note that when a fish is dead, it's pescado and when it's alive it's a pez]. Look up pescado in the dictionary

Me gusta comer pescado.
I like to eat fish.

You can also note that pescado is the past participle (participio pasado) of the verb pescar (to fish).
I would say that you use pescado when you are at the market, at the pescadería, or at the table about to eat fish.
If I found a dead fish at the seashore, I would say un pez muerto.

An expression I love: si algo smells fishy: hay gato encerrado.

Yes, pescado is the flesh of the fish, used for food.

In English, we say fish for a live fish, a dead fish, and its flesh. However, we do use a different word to describe the flesh of some animals:
pig = pork
cow = beef
calf = veal
sheep = mutton
deer = venison

The words for the flesh of these animals come from French roots (the Norman conquest). The animal names come from Anglo-Saxon roots.

This is a good discussion.

live fish in the water = pez (vivo)
dead fish that has died of a natural cause, or a predator etc.(hasn't been caught) = pez muerto
live fish that has been caught = pescado *
dead fish that has been caught = pescado
fish meat = pescado

Am I right about all the above?

The easiest way to remember this is to think of pescado as a "fished" or caught fish, whether or not it's alive, dead, or cooked and ready to be eaten.

* When I say 'live fish that has been caught', I mean for example si alguien pesca varios pescados pero los pone en una cubeta para transportarlos vivos para matarlos justo antes de prepararlos para que la carne sea más fresca. O algo así. Pero la pregunta es: si yo pesco un pescado, ya lo pesqué pero aún no lo mato, ¿ya es un pescado y no un pez verdad?