In Spanish, you talk about five degrees below zero with phrases like cinco grados bajo cero or estamos a menos cinco grados.
If you have seen a weather app show “5 below” and then typed “5 Below in Spanish” into a search box, you are not alone. English and Spanish handle negative temperatures with patterns that do not match word for word.
This guide shows what “5 below” means, how to say it for weather, money, and levels, and when you should leave “Five Below” as a store name without translating it. By the end, you will feel ready to talk about frosty mornings or falling prices with phrases that sound natural.
What 5 Below Means Before You Translate It
The same text “5 below” can point to several ideas. Most learners think first of the thermometer, yet English speakers also use it for money, rankings, or the discount store “Five Below”. Before picking a Spanish phrase, you need the context clear.
5 Below As A Temperature
On a weather forecast, “5 below” usually means five degrees below zero. In many English speaking places that can be Fahrenheit, while most Spanish speakers think in Celsius. When the temperature is under zero, standard Spanish uses expressions like cinco grados bajo cero or menos cinco grados. Style notes from FundéuRAE, which works with the Royal Spanish Academy, recommend these forms and advise against redundant versions like menos cinco grados bajo cero, where the negative idea appears twice.
5 Below As Price Or Level
In shops or news reports, “5 below” can point to an amount under a limit. A sign might say “5 below retail”, or a report might mention “5 points below average”. Spanish handles that sense with phrases such as cinco por debajo de, cinco menos que, or in finance, cinco puntos por debajo de. The little word that follows will change the meaning, so thinking about “below what?” helps you pick the right version.
5 Below As A Store Name
In North America, “Five Below” is also the name of a discount chain. When you refer to the store itself, Spanish speakers almost always keep the English brand. You might hear people say la tienda Five Below or simply Five Below, without translation, because brand names usually stay as they are.
Using 5 Below In Spanish For Weather And Temperature
Most searches for “5 Below in Spanish” come from learners who want to talk about freezing days. So let us start with the thermometer cases where people talk about five degrees below zero.
The Core Phrases For Negative Temperatures
When the temperature is under zero, Spanish gives you two common patterns:
- Estamos a cinco grados bajo cero. – “It is five degrees below zero.”
- Estamos a menos cinco grados. – “It is minus five degrees.”
Guides on correct Spanish style explain that both structures are accepted. They also point out that forms with a double negative, like menos quince grados bajo cero, sound redundant and are better avoided when you talk about the weather.
Weather teaching resources from institutions such as Instituto Cervantes show many examples with grados bajo cero. You will see sentences like Hoy estamos a dos grados bajo cero or La temperatura bajará hasta cinco grados bajo cero, which match what you hear in news bulletins.
Word Order And Prepositions That Sound Natural
A helpful detail is the little preposition a before the number. Weather reports in Spanish often start with estamos a, estará a, or la temperatura llegará a. So you could say:
- Mañana estaremos a cinco grados bajo cero.
- En la cumbre estaban a menos cinco grados.
- Durante la noche bajó a tres grados bajo cero.
Vocabulary sites that teach how to talk about the weather, such as SpanishLearningLab, mix verbs like hacer, estar, and haber with temperature numbers to give a clear picture of the forecast.
Fahrenheit Versus Celsius And How To Clarify
If you chat with friends from Mexico or Spain about “5 below”, they will probably think in Celsius. If the context uses Fahrenheit, adding the unit avoids confusion. You can say menos cinco grados Fahrenheit or cinco grados bajo cero Fahrenheit. For scientific texts, you can also name Celsius with grados Celsius or simply rely on the symbol °C when you write.
| English Temperature Idea | Natural Spanish Phrase | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| It is five below. | Estamos a cinco grados bajo cero. | Esta noche estaremos a cinco grados bajo cero. |
| It is minus five degrees. | Estamos a menos cinco grados. | En la montaña están a menos cinco grados. |
| Temperatures below zero. | Temperaturas bajo cero. | Se esperan temperaturas bajo cero en la región. |
| Five degrees below zero Celsius. | Cinco grados bajo cero Celsius. | La carretera está helada a cinco grados bajo cero Celsius. |
| A few degrees below zero. | Unos grados bajo cero. | Por la mañana estaremos a unos grados bajo cero. |
| Drop to five below. | Bajar hasta cinco grados bajo cero. | La temperatura puede bajar hasta cinco grados bajo cero. |
| Stay around five below. | Mantenerse en torno a cinco grados bajo cero. | El termómetro se mantendrá en torno a cinco grados bajo cero. |
Talking About 5 Below For Prices And Levels
Now shift from weather to numbers in charts, bills, or rankings. When English speakers mention “5 below” in those settings, they usually have a reference point in mind. Spanish mirrors that idea with clear prepositions.
Price And Money Examples
If a product is five dollars under a usual price, you might say in English that it is “5 below list price”. Spanish would describe that as cinco dólares por debajo del precio de lista. Another option is cinco dólares menos que followed by the reference.
Financial news in Spanish often use structures such as puntos por debajo de to show index changes.
- Las acciones cerraron cinco puntos por debajo del máximo histórico.
- El tipo de cambio se mantiene cinco centavos por debajo de ayer.
- El descuento deja el precio final cinco euros por debajo del original.
Scores, Levels, And Rankings
“5 below average” shows up in grade reports, sports scores, and rating scales. Spanish would turn that into cinco puntos por debajo del promedio or cinco unidades por debajo de la media. The expression still relies on por debajo de, yet the noun after that preposition changes with the field.
You might hear:
- El equipo terminó cinco puntos por debajo del líder.
- Su nota quedó cinco puntos por debajo del aprobado.
- La humedad está cinco unidades por debajo de lo normal.
When 5 Below Is The Store Five Below
If a friend asks about shopping at “5 Below”, they might be talking about the discount store. In that case you are dealing with a brand name. Spanish speakers tend to keep such names in English, even when the rest of the sentence is in Spanish.
In a chat you might say Vamos a Five Below después del trabajo or Compré estos guantes en Five Below. Some speakers add a generic noun and say la tienda Five Below, yet they still pronounce the brand in a way close to English. Trying to translate the name as Cinco Bajo would sound odd and would not match what people see on the sign above the door.
| Context | Spanish Expression | Quick Example |
|---|---|---|
| Weather forecast | Estamos a cinco grados bajo cero. | Mañana estaremos a cinco grados bajo cero. |
| Short weather note | Estamos a menos cinco grados. | Afuera estamos a menos cinco grados. |
| Store name | Five Below | Voy a Five Below a comprar bufandas. |
| Price under a limit | cinco dólares por debajo de | El precio quedó cinco dólares por debajo del original. |
| Score below average | cinco puntos por debajo del promedio | El índice cayó cinco puntos por debajo del promedio anual. |
| Measurement below target | cinco unidades por debajo de | La presión está cinco unidades por debajo de lo esperado. |
Common Mistakes With 5 Below In Spanish
Once you see the main patterns, it becomes easier to avoid errors that mark you as a beginner.
Mixing Temperature And Level Patterns
Students sometimes say cinco grados por debajo de cero. Native speakers understand this, yet weather style guides prefer either cinco grados bajo cero or menos cinco grados. Reserve por debajo de for money, levels, and rankings, where you always need a noun after the preposition.
Adding Too Many Negative Markers
Another frequent mistake is doubling the negative meaning, as in menos cinco grados bajo cero. Recommendation bodies explain that this sounds repetitive. Pick either menos cinco grados or cinco grados bajo cero and your sentence will look cleaner on the page.
Translating The Store Name
Trying to call the shop Cinco Bajo does not match real usage. In Spanish you keep the English brand and adjust only the rest of the sentence. Treat “Five Below” the same way you would treat “Starbucks” or “Target”.
Mini Practice With 5 Below In Spanish
To close, here are short practice lines that show “5 below” in action. Read each English sentence, then check the Spanish version and repeat it aloud a couple of times.
- It is five below tonight. → Esta noche estamos a cinco grados bajo cero.
- The price is five below the usual rate. → El precio está cinco dólares por debajo de la tarifa habitual.
- The team finished five below the leader. → El equipo terminó cinco puntos por debajo del líder.
- We are meeting at Five Below. → Quedamos en Five Below.
- Yesterday it was five below in the village. → Ayer estaban a cinco grados bajo cero en el pueblo.
If you keep these patterns close, you will handle “5 below” with ease whether you talk about icy roads, sale signs, or your next trip to the store.
References & Sources
- FundéuRAE.“bajo cero”Guidance on correct expressions for temperatures below zero and avoidance of redundant forms like double negatives.
- Poemas del Alma – Taller de lengua.“Cómo expresar correctamente las temperaturas”Explains when to use grados bajo cero and menos X grados for negative temperatures.
- Instituto Cervantes.“El clima y sus palabras”Activity sheet with examples of vocabulary and structures used to talk about the weather in Spanish.
- SpanishLearningLab.“Hablando sobre el clima en español”Lesson that presents common verbs and phrases for describing weather and temperatures in Spanish.