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Mantequilla

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Desmond
November 28, 2014, 01:37 PM
Using online translations this is butter but seems long for butter. Is this an amalgamation of words? I am learning the language and I am interested in the forming of words especially if it helps to learn other words.

Rusty
November 28, 2014, 03:00 PM
Polysyllabic words are not unusual in Spanish.

Mantequilla means butter in most of the Spanish-speaking world. With a little knowledge about diminutive suffixes, it's easy to see the connection between mantequilla and manteca (lard).

In Argentina, by the way, their word for butter is manteca and their word for lard is grasa. Everywhere else, that means animal fat or grease.