Multilingual Vocab Practice
(Here’s a vocab list to help you talk about your furry/scaly/feathered friends. This was my favorite list to make so far!
Note: For the most part, I have given the masculine version of each animal. In general, feminization of each animal in Spanish and French is pretty simple (see the end of the post for further explanation). However, some animals have unique words for each gender (like “cow” and “bull”). In those cases, I have listed the alternative names underneath the more commonly used word.
I also have the baby version of different animals listed directly underneath the adult version in some cases.
As usual, most adjectives are given in the masculine singular form.)
English | español | français | Deutsch
bad dog! | ¡perro malo! | mauvais chien ! | böser Hund!
can I pet (your dog)? | puedo acariciar a tu perro? | Je peux caresser votre chien ? | Darf ich Ihren Hund streicheln?
good boy! | *¡buen perro! | *bon chien ! | Guter Hund!
good girl! |* ¡buena perra! | *bonne chienne ! | gute Hündin!
good doggy! | ¡buen perrito! | bon chiot ! | Gutes Hundchen!
miaow! | miau | miaou ! | Miau!
woof-woof! | ¡guau-guau! | ouaf-ouaf | Wau-Wau!
animal | el animal | l’animal | das Tier
belly | el vientre | le ventre | der Bauch
bird | el pájaro | l’oiseau | der Vogel
bug | el bicho | l’insecte | der Fehler
cage | la jaula | le cage | der Käfig
canary | el canario | le canari | der Kanarienvogel
cat | **el gato | **le chat | **die Katze
kitten | el gatito | el chaton | das Kätzchen
cat food | la comida para gatos | la nourriture pour chat | das Katzenfutter
chinchilla | la chinchilla | le chinchilla | die Chinchilla
claw | la garra | la griffe | die Klaue
collar | el collar (de perro) | le collier (de chien) | der (Hunde)halsband
cow | la vaca | la vache | die Kuh
bull | el toro | le taureau | der Stier
dog | **el perro | **le chien | der Hund
puppy | el perrito | le chiot | der Welpe
dog food | la comida para perros | la nourriture pour chien | das Hundefutter
doggy door | la puerta para perros | la porte chien | die Hundetür
ear | la oreja | l’oreille | das Ohr
feather | la pluma | la plume | die Feder
ferret | el hurón | le furet | das Frettchen
fin | la aleta | l’aileron | die Flosse
fish | ***el pez | le poisson | der Fisch
fish food | la comida para peces | la nourriture pour poissons | das Fischfutter
fish tank | la pecera | l'aquarium | das Aquarium
foot | el pie | le pied | der Fuß
friend | el amigo/la amiga | l’ami/l’amie | der Freund/die Freundin
fur | el peláje | la fourrure | das Fell
gecko | el gecko | le gecko | der gecko
gerbil | el jerbo | la gerbille | die Rennmaus
goat | el cabro | la chèvre | Ziege
guinea pig | el conejillo de indias | le cochon d’Inde | das Meerschweinchen
hamster | el hamster | le hamster | der Hamster
hermit crab | el cangrejo ermitaño | le crabe ermite | der Einsiedlerkrebs
hoof | el casco | le sabot | der Huf
horse | el caballo | le cheval | das Pferd
foal | el potro | le poulain | das Fohlen
leash | la correa | la laisse | die Leine
litterbox | la caja de arena | le bac à litière | die Katzentoilette
lizard | el lagarto | le lézard | die Eidechse
mouse | el ratón | la souris | die Maus
nose | la nariz | le nez | die Nase
owner | el dueño/la dueña | le propriétaire/la propriétaire | das Herrchen/das Frauchen
parakeet | el periquito | la perruche | der Sittich
parrot | el loro | le perroquet | der Papagei
paw | la pata | la patte | die Pfote
pet | la mascota | l'animal de compagnie | das Haustier
pig | el cerdo | le cochon | das Schwein
piglet | el cerdito | le porcelet | das Ferkel
pony | el pony | le poney | das Pony
rabbit | el conejo | le lapin | der Hase
bunny | el conejito | le lapin | das Häschen
rat | la rata | le rat | die Ratte
scale | la escama | l’écaille | die Schuppe
service animal | el animal de servicio | l'animal d'assistance | das Diensttier
sheep | la oveja | le mouton | das Schaf
lamb | el cordero | l’agneau | das Lamm
snake | la serpiente | le serpent | die Schlange
tail | la cola | la queue | der Schweif
tarantula | la tarántula | la tarentule | die Tarantel
turtle | la tortuga | la tortue | die Schildkröte
veterinarian | el veterinario | le vétérinaire | der Tierarzt
weasel | la comadreja | la belette | der Wiesel
whisker | el bigote | la moustache | die Schnurrhaar
wing | ****el ala | l’aile | der Flügel
to bark | ladrar | aboyer | bellen
to bathe (the dog) | bañar (al perro) | se baigner (le chien) | (den Hund) baden
to bite | morder | mordre | beißen
to crawl | gatear | ramper | kriechen
to cuddle (the animal) | acurrucarse (al animal) | câliner (l'animal) | kuscheln (das Tier)
to escape | escapar | échapper | fliehen
to feed (the pet) | alimentar (a la mascota) | nourrir (l’animal) | (das Haustier) füttern
to fetch (the stick) | traer (el palo) | chercher (le baton) | (den Stock) holen
to fly | volar | voler | fliegen
to gallop | galopar | galoper | galoppieren
to growl | gruñir | grogner | knurren
to hiss | sisear | feuler | zischen
to hop | dar saltitos | sautiller | hüpfen
to howl | aullar | hurler | heulen
to jump | saltar | sauter | springen
to kick | patear | botter | treten
to leap | brincar | bondir | springen
to lick | lamer | lécher | lecken
to love (my cat) | amar (a mi gato) | aimer (mon chat) | lieben (meine Katze)
to meow | maullar | miauler | miauen
to moo | mugir | meugler | muhen
to neigh | relinchar | hennir | wiehern
to neuter | castrar | châtrer | kastrieren
to pet | acaricar | caresser | streicheln
to play (with dogs) | jugar (con perros) | jouer (avec des chiens) | (mit Hunden) spielen
to play fetch | jugar a la pelota | jouer chercher | fetch spielen
to purr | ronronear | ronronner | schnurren
to ride (the horse) | montar (al caballo) | monter (à cheval) | (das Pferd) reiten
to run | correr | courir | rennen
to scratch | arañar | griffer | kratzen
to sing | cantar | chanter | singen
to sniff | olfatear | renifler | schnüffeln
to spay | esterilizar | stériliser | sterilisieren
to squawk | graznar | glousser | quaken
to squeak/squeal | chillar | piailler | quieksen
to swim | nadar | nager | schwimmen
to take care of (my dog) | cuidar de (mi perro) | prendre soin de (mon chien) | auf (meinen Hund) aufpassen
to train | adiestrar | entraîner | trainieren
to trot | trotar | trotter | traben
to tweet | piar | pépier | piepen
to wag (her tail) | menear (la cola) | remuer (la queue) | (mit den Schweif) wedeln
to walk | caminar | marcher | laufen
to walk (the dog) | pasear (al perro) | promener (le chien) | (mit dem Hund) spazieren gehen
to whine | gimotear | gémir | jaulen
bad | malo | mauvais | schlecht
beautiful | hermoso | beau/belle | schön
big | grande | gros | groß
cute | lindo | mignon | süß
feathered | plumado | à plumes | gefiedert
fluffy | mullido | duveteux | flauschige
friendly | amigable | amical | freundlich
furry | peludo | velu | pelzig
nice | bonito | gentil | nett
scaly | escamoso | écailleux | schuppig
scary | espantoso | effrayant | unheimlich
skittish | asustadizo | capricieux | scheußlich
small | pequeño | petit | klein
smart | inteligente | intelligent | schlau
*Note that “good boy/girl!” is not really used in Spanish and French to address dogs the way it is in English. They usually just say “good dog”.
**In Spanish, most animals can be feminized by replacing “el” with “la” (or “un” with “una”) and adding an “-a” at the end of the word, or by replacing the last vowel with “-a”. So, if you have a female cat, you can call her “una gata” instead of “un gato”. A female dog would be “una perra”.
**In French, most animals can be feminized by replacing “le” with “la” (or “un” with “une”) and adding an “-e” at the end of the word. Usually, the last consonant will have to be doubled as well. So, if you have a female cat, you can call her “une chatte” instead of “un chat”. A female dog would be “une chienne”.
**In German, most people use the feminine version of cat, “die Katze”, to refer to cats in general. To talk about a male cat (usually a tomcat) specifically, you can say “der Kater”.
***Don’t refer to someone’s pet fish as “el pescado”. That’s the word for fish that you eat. It would be like calling someone’s pet pig “pork” or someone’s pet cow “beef”.
****Like “el agua”, “el ala” is actually a feminine word that uses the article “el” simply because it sounds better. For example, if you wanted to talk about a bird’s red wing, you would refer to it as “el ala roja”.