What does acto in Spanish mean?

What is the meaning of the word acto in Spanish? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use acto in Spanish.

The word acto in Spanish means act, action, function, ceremony, act, civic ceremony, conciliation act, awards ceremony, act of faith, act of justice, launch ceremony, intentional act, Freudian slip, parapraxis, heroic act, right after, immediately after, sexual intercourse, have sex, carry out the act, instantly, on the spot, in the middle of, make an appearance, compensation for death while in the line of duty, first act. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word acto

act, action

nombre masculino (acción)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Soy mayor de edad y responsable de mis actos.
I am an adult and I'm responsible for my acts (or: actions).

function, ceremony

nombre masculino (hecho solemne)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
El acto se hará en el salón principal del castillo.
The function (or: ceremony) will be held in the main hall of the castle.

act

nombre masculino (parte de obra de teatro)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Me fui del teatro al finalizar el segundo acto.
I left the theater after the second act ended.

civic ceremony

(conmemoración civil)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
En el acto cívico de hoy se conmemora el Día de la Independencia.
Independence Day is being commemorated today in the civic ceremony.

conciliation act

locución nominal masculina (der: proceso conciliatorio oral)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

awards ceremony

(materialización de entrega)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

act of faith

(acto de confianza)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Contratar a dos novatos para esta tarea tan delicada fue un verdadero acto del fe por parte del jefe.
Taking on two novices for such a delicate task was a true act of faith by the boss.

act of justice

(acción de respuesta)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

launch ceremony

(para dar a conocer) (new release, launch)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
El autor dará un discurso en el acto de presentación de su nuevo libro.
The author will give a speech at the launch ceremony for his new book.

intentional act

locución nominal masculina (delito con alevosía)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
La sentencia fue más severa porque el juez consideró el acto doloso.
The sentence was more severe because the judge considered it an intentional act.

Freudian slip, parapraxis

locución nominal masculina (Psicología: desliz)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Creo que el lapsus verbal de José es un acto fallido que revela lo que hay en su inconsciente.
I think that José's faux pas is a Freudian slip, revealing the contents of his unconscious.

heroic act

(acto valiente)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
En un acto heroico, Ana arriesgó su propia vida para salvar al bebé que iba a ser arrollado por un auto.
In a heroic act, Ana risked her own life to save a baby about to be run over by a car.

right after, immediately after

locución adverbial (justo después)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
La estrella subió al escenario; acto seguido, el público comenzó a aplaudir y gritar.
The star took the stage and immediately thereafter the audience started to applaud and shout.

sexual intercourse

(formal (coito)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Durante el acto sexual, la producción de ciertas hormonas aumenta.
The production of certain hormones rises during sexual intercourse.

have sex

locución verbal (formal (tener coito)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")
Ambos amantes se abrazaron tras consumar el acto.

carry out the act

locución verbal (formal (llevar a cabo) (literal)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")
Consumaron el acto de profanación de la tumba al mutilar el cadáver.

instantly, on the spot

locución adverbial (inmediatamente)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
Lamentablemente, debido al fuerte impacto, los tres ocupantes del coche fallecieron en el acto.
Regrettably, because of the strong impact, the three occupants of the car died immediately.

in the middle of

locución adverbial (en el momento central)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
Se le olvidaron las líneas en pleno acto.
They forgot their lines in the middle of the play.

make an appearance

locución verbal (brevemente)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Sólo voy a ir a la fiesta para hacer acto de presencia.

compensation for death while in the line of duty

(der: por deceso en accidente laboral)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

first act

(primera parte de obra)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

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Related words of acto

Do you know about Spanish

Spanish (español), also known as Castilla, is a language of the Iberian-Romance group of the Romance languages, and the 4th most common language in the world according to Some sources, while others list it as a 2nd or 3rd most common language. It is the mother tongue of about 352 million people, and is spoken by 417 million people when adding its speakers as a language. sub (estimated in 1999). Spanish and Portuguese have very similar grammar and vocabulary; The number of similar vocabulary of these two languages is up to 89%. Spanish is the primary language of 20 countries around the world. It is estimated that the total number of speakers of Spanish is between 470 and 500 million, making it the second most widely spoken language in the world by number of native speakers.