-ada
Spanish, suffix/ˈada/
-ada is spelled A-D-A (3 letters) and appears 4.4 times per million words in written Spanish, the 13,207th most frequent Spanish word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). -ada is a Spanish feminine suffix meaning “forms words, derived from nouns, signifying a group (i.e. it forms collective nouns)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is also a feminine singular of -ado: used with a stem to form the feminine singular past…. The Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) defines it as “Forma sustantivos femeninos con el significado de "gran cantidad o conjunto" de lo indicado por la base”.
What does -ada mean in English?
suffix
- 1
feminineforms words, derived from nouns, signifying a group (i.e. it forms collective nouns)
vaca (“cow”) + -ada → vacada (“herd”)
- 2
feminineforms words, derived from nouns, corresponding to -ful (as much as something will hold)
cuchara (“spoon”) + -ada → cucharada (“spoonful”)
- 3
feminineforms words indicating a period of time
otoño (“autumn”) + -ada → otoñada (“autumn-time”)
- 4
feminineforms words, derived from nouns, indicating a blow with the named object
palma (“palm”) + -ada → palmada (“slap”)
- 5
feminineforms words indicating action
zanca (“leg”) + -ada → zancada (“stride”)
- 6
feminineforms words indicating abundance or excess
río (“river”) + -ada → riada (“flood”)
suffix
- 1
femininefeminine singular of -ado: used with a stem to form the feminine singular past participle of regular -ar verbs
abrogar (“to abrogate”) + -ada → abrogada (“abrogated, abolished”)
Source: English Wiktionary, Spanish section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Spanish dictionaries define it
noun: 1. Nombre de pila de mujer.
suffix: 1. Forma sustantivos femeninos con el significado de "gran cantidad o conjunto" de lo indicado por la base. 2. Forma sustantivos femeninos con el significado de "contenido lleno de" lo indicado por la base. 3. Forma sustantivos femeninos con el significado de "periodo" de lo indicado por la base. 4. Forma sustantivos femeninos con el significado de "golpe o acción típica" de un sustantivo base, a veces con sentido peyorativo..
The definition in the Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario), in Spanish.
Source: Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
How do you pronounce -ada?
- /ˈada/
- [ˈa.ð̞a]
- [ˈað̞a]
Sources: English Wiktionary, Spanish Wiktionary (Wikcionario) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to -ada
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is -ada in Spanish?
-ada appears 4.4 times per million words in written Spanish.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).