01
der Spanier
Spaniard
A male person who has Spanish citizenship or comes from Spain.
example
Mein neuer Kollege ist Spanier und kommt aus Madrid.
My new colleague is a Spaniard and comes from Madrid.
der Spanier
Spaniard / adjustable wrench
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Word family
'Der Spanier' (the Spaniard) is derived from the country name 'Spanien' (Spain). To talk about things or qualities from Spain, you use the adjective 'spanisch' (Spanish).
EXAMPLE
Der Maler Picasso war Spanier.
The painter Picasso was a Spaniard.
Context clue
You can clearly recognize the rarer meaning 'Schraubenschlüssel' (wrench) from context. If the topic is tools, repairs, a workshop, or manual work, it probably does not refer to a person.
EXAMPLE
Kannst du mir den Spanier geben? Ich muss diese Schraube festziehen.
Can you give me the adjustable wrench? I need to tighten this screw.
Register and region
The use of 'Spanier' (adjustable wrench) for a wrench is colloquial and common regionally. It is not the standard-language word for this tool.
EXAMPLE
In der Werkstatt fragte der Mechaniker nach einem Spanier.
In the workshop, the mechanic asked for an adjustable wrench.
Compare with
Spanier vs Franzose
Frenchman / adjustable wrench
'der Franzose' and 'der Spanier' are formed in a similar way and normally refer to men by their origin or citizenship: from France or from Spain. In this use, they are not synonyms; they differ by country. They can be confused because both are nationality words and work in the same way. In addition, both can also refer to an adjustable wrench; however, this meaning is rarer and regional for 'Spanier'. In everyday life, without special context, the word almost always means the person.
Spanier
Beim Stadtfest habe ich einen Spanier kennengelernt, der in Madrid wohnt.
At the town festival, I met a Spaniard who lives in Madrid.
Franzose
Der Franzose aus meiner Sprachgruppe kommt aus Lyon.
The Frenchman in my language group comes from Lyon.
In real life
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