Spanish Words That Start With J | List & Examples
There are many words that start with J in Spanish. Some may be familiar to English speakers (e.g., “jardín,” “jueves,” and “jugar”), but others won’t be.
Below, you’ll find lists of some adjectives, nouns, verbs, and other words that start with J in Spanish.
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Spanish adjectives that start with J
Some Spanish adjectives that start with J are:
- Jabonoso: soapy
- Jacarandoso: merry; jolly
- Jactancioso: boastful
- Jadeante: panting; out of breath
- Jalisciense: of or from from the Mexican state of Jalisco
- Jamaicano: Jamaican
- Jamonero: of or relating to ham
- Japonés: Japanese
- Jaquecoso: tedious; annoying
- Jaranero: fond of parties
- Jaranista: fond of parties (mostly used in Mexico)
- Jarocho: of or from the Mexican state/city of Veracruz
- Jingoísta: Jingoist (agressively patriotic or nationalistic)
- Jipi: hippie; bohemian
- Jocoso: funny; tongue-in-cheek
- Jodido: screwed; messed up (sometimes considered vulgar)
- Jordano: Jordanian
- Jorobado: hunchbacked; hunched
- Josefino: of or from San Jose, Costa Rica
- Joven: young; youthful
- Jovial: jovial; cheerful
- Jubilado: retired
- Jubilante: jubilant
- Jubilatorio: related to retirement
- Jubiloso: jubilant; joyful
- Judeocristiano: Judeo-Christian
- Judicial: judicial
- Judío: Jewish
- Juerguista: fun-loving; pleasure-seeking
- Jugoso: juicy; succulent
- Juguetón: playful; frisky
- Juncal: reedy; dashing
- Jurídico: legal
- Justiciero: tough; strict; righteous
- Justificable: justifiable
- Justo: fair; just; right; exact
- Juzgador: judgmental
No me cae nada bien; es jingoísta, juzgador, jactancioso y jaquecoso. [I really don’t like him; he’s jingoistic, judgmental, boastful, and annoying.]
Moreover, Spanish proper adjectives are not capitalized like their English counterparts. For example, in the sentence above, “the man from San Jose” is “el hombre josefino,” and not “el hombre Josefino.”
Spanish nouns that start with J
These are some Spanish nouns that start with J. When nouns refer to people, they sometimes change grammatical gender. In this list, such nouns are marked with an “/a” ending.
- Jabalí: wild boar
- Jabón: soap
- Jabonera: soap dish
- Jactancia: arrogance; disdain
- Jacuzzi: jacuzzi
- Jade: jade
- Jaguar: jaguar
- Jai alai: jai alai (Basque sport)
- Jaima: tent; canopy
- Jainista: Jainist
- Jalapeño: jalapeño pepper
- Jamaica: Jamaica
- Jamaicano/a: Jamaican person
- Jamón: ham
- Japón: Japan
- Japonés/a: Japanese person or language
- Jardín: garden
- Jardinero/a: gardener
- Jarra: pitcher; jug
- Jarrón: vase; urn
- Jaula: cage
- Jazz: jazz
- Jazzista: jazz player
- Jefe/a: boss; chief
- Jengibre: ginger
- Jerarquía: hierarchy
- Jesús: Jesus
- Jipi: bohemian; hippie
- Jirafa: giraffe
- Jolgorio: celebration; shindig
- Jordania: Jordan
- Jordano/a: Jordanian person
- Jornada: day; session; conference
- Jornada completa: full-time working day
- Jornada escolar: school day
- Jornalero/a: day laborer
- Joroba: hump (on back or camel)
- Jota: the letter J
- Joven: young person; youth
- Joya: jewel; gem
- Joyería: jewelry; jewelry store
- Joyero/a: jeweler
- Jubilación: retirement
- Jubileo: jubilee
- Judío/a: Jew
- Juego: game; gambling; set (e.g., of sheets)
- Juerga: party; bender
- Jueves: Thursday
- Juez/a: judge
- Jugador: player
- Jugo: juice
- Juguete: toy
- Juguetería: toy store
- Julio: July
- Junio: June
- Junta: board; council; committee
- Junta directiva: board of directors; governing board
- Jurado: jury
- Juramento: oath
- Jurisdicción: jurisdiction
- Justicia: justice
- Justificante: doctor’s note; written proof
- Juzgado: court; tribunal
- Juzgamiento: judgment
Un jabalí merodeaba en el jardín del joyero, comiéndose los jalapeños y el jengibre que el jardinero había plantado en junio. [A wild boar was roaming in the jeweler’s garden, eating the jalapeños and ginger that the gardener had planted in June.]
Spanish verbs that start with J
Spanish verbs that start with J include:
- Jabonar: to soap; to lather
- Jabonarse: to soap or lather yourself
- Jactarse: to boast; to brag
- Jadear: to pant; to gasp
- Jalear: to sic on (for dogs); to cheer on (for people)
- Jalonar: to mark (stages or milestones)
- Jamar: to stuff yourself
- Jaquear: to check (in chess); to harass
- Jaranear: to party
- Jeringar: to inject
- Jipiar: to moan; to groan; to whine
- Joder: to annoy; to screw over (vulgar)
- Jorobar: to pester; to bug
- Jubilar: to force someone into retirement to get rid of
- Jubilarse: to retire
- Jugar: to play (game or sport)
- Juguetear: to play with something to entertain yourself
- Juntar: to join; to put together; to collect; to gather together
- Juntarse: to meet up; to get together
- Juramentar: to swear in
- Jurar: to swear (an oath)
- Justificar: to justify
- Justificarse: to make excuses
- Juzgar: to judge
Después de jugar toda la tarde, los niños se fueron a jabonarse en el baño mientras sus padres juntaban los juguetes y jadearon del cansancio. [After playing all afternoon, the kids went to soap themselves in the bath while their parents gathered the toys and panted from exhaustion.]
For example, in the above example “jubilarse” becomes “se jubiló” (third person singular in the single past tense).
Other Spanish words that start with J
Some Spanish adverbs that start with J are:
- Jamás: never; ever
- Jocosamente: humorously
- Jovialmente: jovially; cheerfully
- Judicialmente: judicially
- Junto: nearby; close by
- Jurídicamente: juridically; legally
- Justamente: justly; exactly
- Justificadamente: justifiably
- Justo: just; exactly
- Justo ahora: just now
- Justo a tiempo: just in time
- Justo después: just after
Below are two Spanish prepositions that start with J:
- Junto a: next to; by someone’s side
- Junto con: with; accompanied by; in conjunction with
Finally, there are some common Spanish exclamations that start with J:
- ¡Ja!: Ha! (expresses laughter or mockery)
- ¡Jesús!: Jesus! Good heavens! (also used as “God bless you” after someone sneezes)
- ¡Jo!: Oh man! Jeez!
- ¡Jopé!: Shoot! Crap!
- ¡Joder!: Shit! Damn it! (vulgar; more common in Spain)
- ¡Jolín!: Darn! Jeez!
Spanish words with other letters
If you’re looking for Spanish words that start with another letter, you can visit one of our other articles.
| Spanish words with A | Spanish words with F | Spanish words with L | Spanish words with Q | Spanish words with V |
| Spanish words with B | Spanish words with G | Spanish words with M | Spanish words with R | Spanish words with W |
| Spanish words with C | Spanish words with H | Spanish words with N | Spanish words with S | Spanish words with X |
| Spanish words with D | Spanish words with I | Spanish words with O | Spanish words with T | Spanish words with Y |
| Spanish words with E | Spanish words with K | Spanish words with P | Spanish words with U | Spanish words with Z |
