"Pen" in Spanish

Quick Answer

Pen in Spanish can be la plumaor el bolígrafo. And that’s not all! When used as a verb, it can mean escribiror componer. Read on to find out more about how to say pen in Spanish, as well as pen-related vocabulary and phrases!

fountain pen

Pen in Spanish: Pen as a Noun

As a noun, pen in Spanish can be la plumaor el bolígrafo, two very different writing tools. Are you talking about a fountain pen? For many Spanish speakers, that’s a pluma. Instead, if you're referring to a ballpoint pen, then you may want a bolígrafo. You'll also need to keep in mind that different words for pen are used in different Spanish-speaking regions. Let’s see how to say pen in Spanish in different parts of the Spanish-speaking world!

Spanish	Writing Tool	Region
la birome	ballpoint pen	River Plate
el boli	ballpoint pen	Spain
el bolígrafo	ballpoint pen	most Spanish-speaking countries
el esfero	ballpoint pen	Colombia, Ecuador
la lapicera	fountain pen or ballpoint pen	South America
el lapicero	fountain pen or ballpoint pen	Andes, Central America
la pluma	fountain pen or ballpoint pen	Mexico

In Mexico and Spain, un lapicero is a pencil, not a pen!

Let's take a look at some examples.

examples
¿Tenés una birome de más? Dejé la mía en casa. Do you have an extra pen? I left mine at home.
El abogado usó su pluma de oro para firmar el contrato. The lawyer used his gold pen to sign the contract.
Me compré un paquete de esferos de gel para colorear. I bought a set of gel pens for coloring.

But wait…doesn’t pluma mean feather? Indeed it does! Back in the 6th century, when people started writing with ink, they used bird feathers, or quills.

Pen in Spanish: Pen as a Verb

Pen in Spanish can also be a verb. In this case, it can be translated as escribiror componer. For example:

examples
Este autor ha escrito algunos de los textos más exhaustivos sobre el tema. This author has penned some of the most thorough essays on the subject.
Alicia compuso la letra de un tema muy conocido. Alicia penned the lyrics of a very popular song.

Pen in Spanish: Phrases with Pen

Let's take a look at some phrases that use the word pen in English and how we say them in Spanish:

Spanish	English
la errata	slip of the pen
el escrito difamatorio	poison-pen letter
La pluma vale más que la espada.	The pen is mightier than the sword.

examples
La carta firmada por los vecinos logró que no derribaran ese edificio histórico. ¡La pluma vale más que la espada! The letter signed by all the neighbors blocked the historical building from being knocked down. The pen is mightier than the sword!

Pen in Spanish: Vocab Related to Pen

Here you’ll find a list of some useful words related to pens and other writing tools:

Spanish	English	Region
la cartuchera	pencil case	Panama, River Plate
el crayón	crayon
la goma de borrar	eraser
la lapicera	pencil case	Mexico
el lápiz	pencil
el marcador	felt-tip pen or marker	Latin America
el plumier	pencil case	Spain
el plumón	felt-tip pen or marker	Latin America
el rotulador	marker
el sacapuntas	pencil sharpener

Pen in Spanish: Beyond Writing Utensils

horse in pen A pen in English can also refer to an enclosure, as well as to the act of enclosing something. Let's see how to say pen in Spanish in these senses!

Spanish	English
la jaula	pen, cage
el corral	livestock pen
encerrar	to pen, to put in a pen or cage
acorralar	to pen, to put in a pen or corral

examples
Los caballos están descansando en el corral. The horses are resting in the pen.
El vaquero acorraló a las vacas en el mismo corral que las ovejas. The cowboy penned the cows in the same pen as the sheep.