despensa

• dispensa

Attested since circa 1300. A semi-learned borrowing from Late Latin dispensa, from Latin dispendere.

• IPA^(key): [desˈpensɐ]

despensa f (plural despensas)

1. (archaic) expenses
   • 1305, A. López Ferreiro, editor, Galicia Histórica. Colección diplomática, Santiago: Tipografía Galaica, page 496:

     Et mando que baa por min huun ome en rromaria a santa Maria de Rocamador por mia alma et lle den dozentos mrs. para despensa et cen soldos para offerir a o altar de Santa Maria et cento cinquaenta soldos para dar a os pobres pelo camiño

     I order that a man goes in pilgrimage in my name and for my soul to Saint Mary of Rocamadour; and they must give to him two hundred maravedis for expenses and a hundred solidi as offering to the altar of Saint Mary and a hundred and fifty solidi for giving to the poors along the way

2. pantry, larder
   • 1373, E. Cal Pardo, editor, Colección diplomática medieval do arquivo da catedral de Mondoñedo, Santiago: Consello da Cultura Galega, page 191:

     Item duas arquas grandes para ceuada et hua enna despensa et hua sen cubertura

     Item, two large arks for barley and one in the pantry [or larder] and one without cover

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

From Old Galician-Portuguese despesa, despensa, from Late Latin dispensa, from Latin dispendere. Doublet of despesa and dispensa.

• Homophone: dispensa
• Hyphenation: des‧pen‧sa

despensa f (plural despensas)

1. pantry

Semi-learned borrowing from Latin dispēnsa, from dispēnsō (“to dispense, to distribute”).

• IPA^(key): /desˈpensa/ [d̪esˈpẽn.sa]
• Rhymes: -ensa
• Syllabification: des‧pen‧sa

despensa f (plural despensas)

1. pantry, larder

   Synonym: (Mexico) alacena

• “despensa”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024