espera

See also: esperá, espéra, espèra, and esperà

Asturian

Verb

espera

1. third-person singular present indicative of esperar
2. second-person singular imperative of esperar

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern) [əsˈpe̞.ɾə]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Central) [əsˈpe.ɾə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia, Northwestern) [esˈpe.ɾa]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Verb

espera

1. inflection of esperar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Galician

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /esˈpɛɾɐ/

Verb

espera

1. inflection of esperar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /isˈpɛ.ɾɐ/, /esˈpɛ.ɾɐ/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /isˈpɛ.ɾɐ/, /esˈpɛ.ɾɐ/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /iʃˈpɛ.ɾɐ/, /eʃˈpɛ.ɾɐ/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /(i)ʃˈpɛ.ɾɐ/

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛɾɐ
• Hyphenation: es‧pe‧ra

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *speh₁-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *spéh₁s

Proto-Italic *spēs

Old Latin spēs

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu.

Proto-Italic *-ājō

Proto-Italic *-āō

Old Latin -ō

Old Latin *spēsō

Latin spērāre

Old Galician-Portuguese asperar

Portuguese esperardeverb.

Portuguese espera

Deverbal from esperar.

Noun

espera f (plural esperas)

1. wait (time spent waiting)
2. ambush (wait for someone in order to attack them)

   Synonym: esperinha

Derived terms

• compasso de espera
• em espera
• esperinha
• sala de espera

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

espera

1. inflection of esperar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Further reading

• “espera”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “espera”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /esˈpeɾa/ [esˈpe.ɾa]
• Rhymes: -eɾa
• Syllabification: es‧pe‧ra

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *speh₁-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *spéh₁s

Proto-Italic *spēs

Old Latin spēs

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu.

Proto-Italic *-ājō

Proto-Italic *-āō

Old Latin -ō

Old Latin *spēsō

Latin sperō

Old Spanish esperar

Spanish esperardeverb.

Spanish espera

Deverbal from esperar. Compare English desperate.

Noun

espera f (plural esperas)

1. wait

   sala de espera ― waiting room

Derived terms

• compás de espera
• en espera
• sala de espera

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

espera

1. inflection of esperar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Further reading

• “espera”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025