presa

From Italian presa (“capture, seizure”).

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.

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

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 [...]

• 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

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

Borrowed from Spanish prisa (“hurry”).

presa inan

1. hurry

Borrowed from Spanish presa (“dam”).

presa inan

1. dam
2. reservoir

• “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

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

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

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)

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

presa f (plural preses)

1. female equivalent of pres (“prisoner”)

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of pres

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of pres

• “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, 2025.
• “presa” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “presa” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

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

• Hyphenation: pre‧sa

presa

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

• estroberi

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

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

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”)

presa

1. feminine singular of preso

• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “presa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Xavier Varela Barreiro, Xavier Gómez Guinovart (2006–2018) “presa”, in Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, 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 Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé 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

• IPA^(key): /ˈpre.za/, (traditional) /ˈpre.sa/^[1]
• Rhymes: -eza, (traditional) -esa
• Hyphenation: pré‧sa

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

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

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

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

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”).

• Hyphenation: pre‧sa

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

• presa fácil

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

presa f sg

1. feminine singular of preso

Borrowed from French presser.

• IPA^(key): /preˈsa/

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

1. to press

• “presa”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2025

From Latin prēnsa.

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɾesa/ [ˈpɾe.sa]

• Audio (Venezuela):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -esa
• Syllabification: pre‧sa

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

presa f (plural presas)

1. female equivalent of preso

presa

1. feminine singular of preso

• “presa”, 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
• “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