mientras

Spanish

Alternative forms

• mientre, mientra (obsolete)

Etymology

From Old Spanish mientras (already sparsely attested in the 13th century), mientra, from an older demientre, domientre, which was influenced by the preposition de and adverbial -s (compare antes, entonces, quizás and Old Spanish nunquas), inherited from Late Latin dum interim. 13th-century Old Spanish generally uses demientre or mientra, but the form mientras gained greater currency in the following centuries.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmjentɾas/ [ˈmjẽn̪.t̪ɾas]
• Rhymes: -entɾas
• Syllabification: mien‧tras

Adverb

mientras

1. meanwhile

Derived terms

• mientras tanto

Conjunction

mientras

1. (with the indicative) while, whilst, as (at the same time as)

   Synonym: en cuanto

   Quédate aquí con los chicos mientras hablo con la gerente.

   Stay here with the kids while I talk with the manager.

   • 2025 July 23, Priscilla Alvarez, “El Gobierno de Trump toma medidas para acelerar la deportación de menores migrantes y les ofrece opción de "autodeportarse"”, in CNN en Español‎^[1], archived from the original on 26 July 2025:

     El Gobierno ha recurrido a las denominadas “autodeportaciones” mientras refuerza la campaña de deportaciones masivas del presidente Donald Trump.

     The government has resorted to so-called "self-deportations" whilst reinforcing President Donald Trump's campaign of mass deportations.

2. (with the subjunctive) as long as, so long as (expressing a condition)

   Synonym: con tal que

   Mientras llueva, me quedaré en casa.

   As long as it rains, I'll stay at home.

3. (with comparatives) however much, however many, “the..., the...” (constructing parallel comparatives)

   Synonyms: cuanto más... más, (Latin America) entre más... más

   Mientras más lo hago, más me gusta.

   The more I do it, the more I like it.

4. (with the indicative) while, whereas (indicating difference)

Derived terms

• mientras que

Descendants

• → Cebuano: mintras

Further reading

• “mientras”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025
• “mientras”, in Diccionario panhispánico de dudas [Panhispanic Dictionary of Doubts] (in Spanish), 2nd edition, Royal Spanish Academy; Association of Academies of the Spanish Language, 2023, →ISBN

Anagrams

• mentiras, mentirás, terminas