In a previous entry of this blog, you may have noticed the Spanish word debate and thought it referred to a debate. In fact, it has a similar meaning but in the context is best translated as a discussion. Debate is just one example of a "fickle friend," a word in Spanish that looks like an English word and can mean the same as the English word but doesn't always. Our list of fickle friends has been one of the most popular features on this site. Also popular has been our list of false friends, which almost never mean the same as the English words they look like.
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Comments
Two dictionaries I consulted has debate as a meaning of “debate” in Spanish. RAE has similar definition.
They also noted that “discussion” is a more informal definition of the Spanish “debate.”