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"Ditch" is a noun which is often translated as "la zanja", and "trench" is a noun which is often translated as "la trinchera". Learn more about the difference between "ditch" and "trench" below.
ditch(
dihch
)A noun is a word referring to a person, animal, place, thing, feeling, or idea (e.g., man, dog, house).
1. (channel)
a. la zanja (F)
(f) means that a noun is feminine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).
He didn't see the ditch along the path and tripped and broke his leg.No vio la zanja en el camino, se tropezó y se rompió la pierna.
b. la acequia (F) (for irrigation)
(f) means that a noun is feminine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).
The contaminated fertilizer from the fields uphill polluted the ditches that provide water for my farm.El fertilizante contaminado de los campos de arriba contaminó las acequias que proporcionan agua a mi granja.
c. la cuneta (F) (on the roadside)
(f) means that a noun is feminine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).
The police officer asked my father if he was drunk when he crashed into the ditch.El policía le preguntó a mi padre si estaba borracho cuando se estrelló en la cuneta.
A transitive verb is a verb that requires a direct object (e.g., I bought a book.).
2. (colloquial) (to abandon)
A word or phrase that is commonly used in conversational speech (e.g., skinny, grandma).
a. deshacerse de
The drug dealers ditched their weapons and drugs before the police arrived.Los narcotraficantes se deshicieron de sus armas y drogas antes de que llegara la policía.
b. botar (Latin America)
Regionalism used in Latin America: all the countries in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Does not include Spain.
The thief ditched the gloves and crowbar he used to break into the car.El ladrón botó los guantes y la palanca que usó para forzar el carro.
c. plantar (colloquial)
A word or phrase that is commonly used in conversational speech (e.g., skinny, grandma).
When my younger sister and her friends started to get on our nerves, we ditched them at the bowling alley and went to a club.Cuando mi hermana menor y sus amigas empezaron a irritarnos, las plantamos en la bolera y nos fuimos a una discoteca.
d. descartar
If we ditched our plans every time we failed, we would never get anything done.Si descartáramos nuestros planes cada vez que fracasamos, nunca terminaríamos nada.
An intransitive verb is one that does not require a direct object (e.g., The man sneezed.).
3. (aviation)
a. hacer un amaraje
When he saw the signal indicating that his last engine stopped working, the pilot had to ditch.Cuando vio la señal que indicaba que el último motor había dejado de funcionar, el piloto tuvo que hacer un amaraje.
trench(
trehnch
)A noun is a word referring to a person, animal, place, thing, feeling, or idea (e.g., man, dog, house).
1. (military)
a. la trinchera (F)
(f) means that a noun is feminine. Spanish nouns have a gender, which is either feminine (like la mujer or la luna) or masculine (like el hombre or el sol).
Life in the trenches during World War I was nightmarish.La vida en las trincheras durante la Primera Guerra Mundial era una pesadilla.
2. (ditch)
3. (geography)
A transitive verb is a verb that requires a direct object (e.g., I bought a book.).
4. (military)
a. cavar trincheras en
The troops used special tools for trenching the battlefields.Las tropas utilizaban herramientas especiales para cavar trincheras en los campos de batalla.
b. hacer trincheras en
The soldiers had to trench the fields as soon as they arrived there.Los soldados tenían que hacer trincheras en los campos apenas llegaban.
a. cavar zanjas en
After the gardener trenched the ground, he placed boards to walk on.Después de cavar zanjas en la tierra, el jardinero colocó tablas para caminar.
b. hacer zanjas en
We need to trench this ground before we start cultivating.Tenemos que hacer zanjas en el terreno antes de empezar a cultivar.
a. atrincherar
The soldiers trenched the command post.Los soldados atrincheraron el puesto de mando.
