Spanish Weather Vocabulary: Weather Words in Spanish

Spanish Weather Vocabulary

Start with the most common words, then expand your knowledge with intermediate and advanced vocabulary.

Beginner (A1)

heat el calor
sky el cielo
cold el frío
ice el hielo
winter el invierno
autumn el otoño
sun el sol
weather el tiempo
summer el verano
wind el viento
season la estación
rain la lluvia
snow la nieve
cloud la nube
spring la primavera

Elementary (A2)

rainbow el arco iris
overcast el cielo cubierto
forecast el pronóstico
sunshine la luz del sol
thunder el trueno
breeze la brisa
fog la niebla
temperature la temperatura
storm la tormenta

Intermediate & Advanced (B1-C1)

shower el chubasco
climate el clima
hail el granizo
lightning el rayo
thermometer el termómetro
frost la helada
humidity la humedad
drizzle la llovizna
mist la neblina
heatwave la ola de calor
pressure la presión
gust la ráfaga
sleet el aguanieve
cyclone el ciclón
smog el esmog
front (weather front) el frente
hailstone el granizo
hurricane el huracán
dew el rocío
typhoon el tifón
tornado el tornado
atmosphere la atmósfera
low pressure la borrasca
flood la inundación
precipitation la precipitación
drought la sequía
blizzard La ventisca
avalanche el alud
high pressure el anticiclón
barometer el barómetro
monsoon el monzón

Practice What You've Learned

Review your Spanish weather vocabulary and test your knowledge with interactive practice.

Ready to take the quiz?

Put your new weather vocabulary into practice and see how many words you can remember.

Take the quiz

Practice with flashcards

Review Spanish weather vocabulary and strengthen your memory with interactive flashcards.

Open flashcards

Example Sentences

In proper context. With highlighted verbs and adjectives.

Beginner & Elementary (A1-A2)

Essential weather verbs and descriptive adjectives for everyday conversation.

Hoy llueve mucho en la ciudad. It is raining a lot in the city today.
En verano hace mucho calor. In summer it is very hot.
La nieve cae despacio sobre la montaña. Snow is falling slowly on the mountain.
El viento sopla con fuerza esta tarde. The wind is blowing strongly this afternoon.
El sol brilla en el cielo azul. The sun is shining in the blue sky.
El tiempo está nublado por la mañana. The weather is cloudy in the morning.
El aire de la mañana está muy frío. The morning air is very cold.
Hoy tenemos un día bastante caluroso. Today we have a quite hot day.
El cielo está totalmente despejado hoy. The sky is completely clear today.
La brisa del mar es muy fresca. The sea breeze is very cool.

Intermediate & Advanced (B1-C1)

Advanced weather verbs and precise atmospheric adjectives.

El meteorólogo pronostica chubascos para este fin de semana. The meteorologist predicts showers for this weekend.
La humedad aumenta antes de una tormenta fuerte. Humidity increases before a heavy storm.
El huracán causó inundaciones en toda la región costera. The hurricane caused flooding throughout the coastal region.
La presión atmosférica bajó rápidamente durante la borrasca. Atmospheric pressure dropped rapidly during the storm.
El anticiclón provoca un tiempo estable y seco. High pressure causes stable and dry weather.
La lluvia torrencial causó problemas en el tráfico urbano. The torrential rain caused traffic problems in the city.
El viento helado convirtió la carretera en una pista de hielo. The icy wind turned the road into an ice rink.
El clima en esta zona costera es extremadamente húmedo. The climate in this coastal zone is extremely humid.
El tornado dejó un rastro devastador a su paso. The tornado left a devastating path in its wake.
Un chubasco intempestivo sorprendió a los excursionistas en la montaña. An unseasonal shower caught the hikers by surprise on the mountain.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently asked questions about Spanish weather expressions and usage

In Spanish, the verb hacer (to make/do) is used for most natural weather sensations instead of 'to be'.

Hace frío — It is cold.
Hace calor — It is hot.
Hace viento — It is windy.
Hace buen / mal tiempo — The weather is good / bad.
Hace sol — It is sunny.

While hacer expresses physical sensation, haber and estar describe observable states or atmospheric phenomena.

Use hay for visible weather phenomena: Hay niebla (There is fog), Hay tormenta (There is a storm).
Use estar with adjectives or continuous actions: Está nublado (It is cloudy), Está lloviendo (It is raining), Está despejado (It is clear).

Spanish makes a clear distinction between daily weather and overall climate conditions.

El tiempo refers to day-to-day or current atmospheric conditions (e.g., ¿Qué tiempo hace hoy? - What is the weather like today?).
El clima refers to long-term climatic patterns of a geographic region (e.g., El clima mediterráneo es seco en verano - The Mediterranean climate is dry in summer).

To discuss temperature, use specific verbs and prepositions like estar a or tener.

Use estar a to state current degrees: Estamos a veinte grados (It is twenty degrees).
Use bajo cero for sub-zero temperatures: Hace cinco grados bajo cero (It is five degrees below zero).
Use la ola de calor to describe an extended period of hot weather.

Weather vocabulary varies across Spanish-speaking countries, especially for rainfall and temperature drops.

Light drizzle is called llovizna in general Spanish, sirimiri in Northern Spain, and garúa in Peru and Argentina.
A sudden heavy shower is chubasco in Spain, aguacero across Latin America, and chaparrón in the Southern Cone.
An unexpected cold wave is an ola de frío in Spain, but called friaje or surazo in parts of South America.

Spanish Weather Vocabulary