presa

See also: Presa, preša, and présa

English

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Italian presa (“capture, seizure”).

Noun

presa (plural presas)

1. (music) A symbol, such as ※ or :S:, used to indicate where a voice is to begin singing in a canon or round.

Etymology 2

From Spanish presa (“dam”), related to the above.

Noun

presa (plural presas)

1. (Southwestern US) A temporary dam, dyke or reservoir.
   • 1970, William T. Sanders, The Teotihuacan Valley project final report, pages 285–286:

     They are equalled in their productive capacity only by the highest terraces on the slopes of Cerro Gordo in the same region, and their production approaches that of the irrigated lands in the Lower Valley. The significance of the presas for agriculture stems from the humidity retention capacity they possess and their ideal location for trapping both soil [...] and water. [...] it is very rare that a crop is lost in the presas [...] Maize is planted as early as February in some presas. Special planting techniques are also applied to the presas to make available subsoil moisture.

   • 1999, Catholic Southwest, volumes 10-14, page 109:

     Tijerina also provides descriptions of the presas or clay reservoirs that provided water for all living creatures, and [...]

Anagrams

• rapes, après, Pears, prase, as per, Spera, apers, spaer, RESPA, pears, Spare, après-, reaps, præs., apres, parse, Rapes, Earps, Asper, aprés, spear, Spear, Peras, spare, asper, pares, sarpe

Albanian

Noun

presa

1. inflection of presë:
   1. definite nominative singular
   2. indefinite nominative/accusative plural

Asturian

Etymology

Inherited from Latin prēnsā.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɾesa/ [ˈpɾe.sa]
• Rhymes: -esa
• Syllabification: pre‧sa

Noun

presa f (plural preses)

1. man-made water ditch or canal

   Synonyms: ñora, calce

Adjective

presa

1. feminine singular of presu

References

• “presa”, in Diccionariu de la llingua asturiana [Dictionary of the Asturian Language] (in Asturian), 1st edition, Academy of the Asturian Language [Asturian: Academia de la Llingua Asturiana], 2000, →ISBN
• García Arias, Xosé Lluis (2002–2004), “presa”, in Diccionario general de la lengua asturiana [General Dictionary of the Asturian Language] (overall work in Spanish), Editorial Prensa Asturiana, →ISBN

Basque

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pres̺a/ [pre.s̺a]
• Rhymes: -es̺a, -a
• Hyphenation: pre‧sa

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *per-?

Proto-Indo-European *pres-der.

Proto-Italic *pres-

Latin premō

Latin pressa

Old Spanish priesa

Spanish prisabor.

Basque presa

Borrowed from Spanish prisa (“hurry”).

Noun

presa inan

1. hurry

Declension

Declension of presa (inan a-stem)

	indefinite	singular	plural	proximal plural
absolutive	presa	presa	presak	presok
ergative	presak	presak	presek	presok
dative	presari	presari	presei	presoi
genitive	presaren	presaren	presen	preson
comitative	presarekin	presarekin	presekin	presokin
causative	presarengatik	presarengatik	presengatik	presongatik
benefactive	presarentzat	presarentzat	presentzat	presontzat
instrumental	presaz	presaz	presez	presotaz
inessive	presatan	presan	presetan	presotan
locative	presatako	presako	presetako	presotako
allative	presatara	presara	presetara	presotara
terminative	presataraino	presaraino	presetaraino	presotaraino
directive	presatarantz	presarantz	presetarantz	presotarantz
destinative	presatarako	presarako	presetarako	presotarako
ablative	presatatik	presatik	presetatik	presotatik
partitive	presarik	—	—	—
prolative	presatzat	—	—	—

Etymology 2

Etymology tree

Latin prēnsa

Spanish presabor.

Basque presa

Borrowed from Spanish presa (“dam”).

Noun

presa inan

1. dam
2. reservoir

Declension

Declension of presa (inan a-stem)

	indefinite	singular	plural	proximal plural
absolutive	presa	presa	presak	presok
ergative	presak	presak	presek	presok
dative	presari	presari	presei	presoi
genitive	presaren	presaren	presen	preson
comitative	presarekin	presarekin	presekin	presokin
causative	presarengatik	presarengatik	presengatik	presongatik
benefactive	presarentzat	presarentzat	presentzat	presontzat
instrumental	presaz	presaz	presez	presotaz
inessive	presatan	presan	presetan	presotan
locative	presatako	presako	presetako	presotako
allative	presatara	presara	presetara	presotara
terminative	presataraino	presaraino	presetaraino	presotaraino
directive	presatarantz	presarantz	presetarantz	presotarantz
destinative	presatarako	presarako	presetarako	presotarako
ablative	presatatik	presatik	presetatik	presotatik
partitive	presarik	—	—	—
prolative	presatzat	—	—	—

Further reading

• “presa”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
• “presa”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern) [ˈpɾe̞.zə]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ˈpɾə.zə]
• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˈpɾɛ.zə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia, Northwestern) [ˈpɾe.za]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Etymology 1

Nominalization of the feminine past participle of prendre (“to take”).

Noun

presa f (plural preses)

1. taking, grabbing, seizing
2. capture
3. something taken, e.g.:
   1. dose (of medicine)
   2. recording (of audio or video)
   3. prey
4. (law, war, nautical) prize of war (neutral or enemy ship carrying weapons, seized during wartime)
5. (law, war) angary
6. (law, war) property seized under the right of angary
7. electrical connection
8. device or cable used to make an electrical connection
9. power outlet
10. electrical plug
11. (electricity) ground
12. dam, barrage
13. diversion (of a river)
14. water diverted or retained behind a dam
15. sluice
16. hardening or binding (of an adhesive)
17. (climbing) hold (for feet or hands)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

presa f (plural preses)

1. female equivalent of pres (“prisoner”)

Participle

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of pres

Adjective

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of pres

Further reading

• “presa”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “presa”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “presa” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “presa”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

Cebuano

Etymology

From Spanish fresa, from French fraise, from earlier fraige, from Latin frāga, plural of frāgum.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: pre‧sa

Noun

presa

1. any member of the genus Fragaria
2. the fruit of this plant; strawberry

Synonyms

• estroberi

Galician

Etymology

Feminine of preso (“imprisoned; captured; bound; prisoner”), from Latin prehensus (“seized”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɾesa/ [ˈpɾe.s̺ɐ]
• Rhymes: -esa
• Hyphenation: pre‧sa

Noun

presa f (plural presas)

1. a handful
   • 1390, José Luis Pensado Tomé, editor, Os Miragres de Santiago. Versión gallega del Códice latino del siglo XII atribuido al papa Calisto I, Madrid: C.S.I.C, page 1:

     vn rromeu alamã cõ outros de sua cõpana tomou hũa grã presa de dineiros de prata et ofereçeos sobre la cousela da cabeça de Santiago

     a pilgrim from Germany, with others from his group, took a large handful of silver coins and offered them over the receptacle of the head of [the statue representing] Saint James

   Synonyms: manchea, manda

2. dam

   Synonyms: encoro, represa

   1. canal
      • 1382, M. Mar Graña Cid (ed.), Las órdenes mendicantes en el obispado de Mondoñedo. El convento de san Martín de Villaoriente (1374-1500). Ferrol: Estudios Mindonienses, page 181:

        et doutra parte departese porla agoa que vay porla presa do moyno de Veyga

        and in the other side it limits by the water that runs by the canal of the mill of Veiga

   2. reservoir
3. catch (something which is captured or caught)

   Synonym: botín

4. prey

   Synonym: prea

5. female equivalent of preso (“female prisoner”)

Related terms

• prender
• preso

Adjective

presa

1. feminine singular of preso

Participle

presa

1. feminine singular of preso

References

• Seoane, Ernesto Xosé González; Granja, María Álvarez de la; Agrelo, Ana Isabel Boullón (2006–2022), “presa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval [Dictionary of dictionaries of Medieval Galician] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Barreiro, Xavier Varela; Guinovart, Xavier Gómez (2006–2018), “presa”, in Corpus Xelmírez: corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval [Corpus Xelmírez: linguistic corpus of Medieval Galicia] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Santamarina, editor (2006–2013), “presa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Santamarina, Ernesto X. González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “presa”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “presa”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpre.za/, (traditional) /ˈpre.sa/
• Rhymes: -eza, (traditional) -esa
• Hyphenation: pré‧sa

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Adjective

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

Participle

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

Etymology 2

Deverbal formed with the feminine past participle of prendere (“to take”).

Noun

presa f (plural prese)

1. (sports, wrestling) grip, hold, grasp, grip
2. capture
3. pinch (small quantity)
4. outlet (passage allowing the escape of something)

   presa elettrica ― socket (literally, “electrical outlet”)

   presa d'acqua ― water outlet

   presa del gas ― gas outlet

Anagrams

• Serpa, Sprea, aspre, parse, persa, raspe, saper, serpa, spare, spera

Portuguese

Etymology

Feminine of preso (“imprisoned; captured; bound; prisoner”), from Old Galician-Portuguese preso, from Latin prehēnsus (“seized”), perfect passive participle of prehendō (“to seize; to catch”).

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈpɾe.zɐ/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈpɾe.zɐ/

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ezɐ
• Hyphenation: pre‧sa

Noun

presa f (plural presas)

1. prey (that which may be seized by animals)
2. prey (animal that is eaten by another living being)

   Synonym: caça

   Antonym: predador

3. fang (long pointed tooth)

   Synonym: canino

4. tusk (pair of teeth that extend outside the mouth of some animals)

   Synonym: marfim

5. booty (loot attained by plundering)

   Synonyms: despojo, espólio, butim

6. female equivalent of preso (“female prisoner”)
7. (climbing) climbing hold, handhold

Derived terms

• presa fácil

Adjective

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

Related terms

• apreensão
• prender
• preso

Participle

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

Further reading

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

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French presser.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /preˈsa/

Verb

a presa (third-person singular present presează, past participle presat) 1st conjugation

1. to press

Conjugation

    conjugation of presa (first conjugation, -ez- infix)

infinitive			a presa
gerund			presând
past participle			presat
number		singular			plural
person		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
indicative		eu	tu	el/ea	noi	voi	ei/ele
	present	presez	presezi	presează	presăm	presați	presează
	imperfect	presam	presai	presa	presam	presați	presau
	simple perfect	presai	presași	presă	presarăm	presarăți	presară
	pluperfect	presasem	presaseși	presase	presaserăm	presaserăți	presaseră
subjunctive		eu	tu	el/ea	noi	voi	ei/ele
	present	să presez	să presezi	să preseze	să presăm	să presați	să preseze
imperative		—	tu	—	—	voi	—
	affirmative		presează			presați
	negative		nu presa			nu presați

Further reading

• “presa”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2026

Spanish

Etymology

Inherited from Latin prēnsa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɾesa/ [ˈpɾe.sa]

• Audio (Venezuela):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -esa
• Syllabification: pre‧sa

Noun

presa f (plural presas)

1. reservoir, dam
2. piece of meat
3. portion or piece of food
4. capture
5. prey
6. stolen good
7. sluice (artificial passage of water)
8. weir

Derived terms

• perro de presa
• presa de hielo
• presa fácil (“pushover, easy prey, easy pickings”)

Related terms

• prender
• preso

Noun

presa f (plural presas)

1. female equivalent of preso

Adjective

presa

1. feminine singular of preso

Further reading

• “presa”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), 24th edition, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 30 October 2026
• “presa”, in Diccionario de americanismos [Dictionary of Americanisms] (in Spanish), Association of Academies of the Spanish Language [Spanish: Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española], 2010

Tagalog

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *dʰreh₂ǵ-der.?

Proto-Indo-European *sróh₂gsder.?

Proto-Italic *frāgom

Latin frāga

French *fraige

French fraisebor.

Spanish fresabor.

Tagalog presa

Borrowed from Spanish fresa, borrowed from French fraise (“strawberry”), from earlier *fraige, from Latin frāga, from Proto-Italic *frāgom, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreh₂ǵ- (“berry”), or possibly from Proto-Indo-European *sróh₂gs (“grape”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈpɾesa/ [ˈpɾɛː.sɐ]
• Rhymes: -esa
• Syllabification: pre‧sa

Noun

presa (Baybayin spelling ᜉ᜔ᜇᜒᜐ)

1. alternative form of presas