Cruz de navajas Mecano Translation Meaning and Lyrics
Meaning
The song 'Cruz de navajas' by 'Mecano' means 'Razor cross' in English.
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Lyrics and Translations
'Cruz de navajas' human translated and annotated. Look for notes about interesting vocabulary, language constructions, idioms, changes to transcribed words, grammar rules and general info that our members have discovered
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Typing Test: 33
Voice Test:
Preposition | Determiner | Numeral | Verb | Determiner | Noun | Preposition | Determiner | ||
a | las | cinco | cierra | la | barra | de | el 9 | ||
at | the | {{cln|es|cardinal numbers}} five | transitive to close, to shut | the | bar {{q|a counter, or simply a cabinet, from which alcoholic drinks are served in a private house or a hotel room.}} | of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner) | Masculine singular definite article; the. | ||
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb cerrar | |||||||||
At | the | five | closes | the | bar | of | the | 33 | |
9,10 “El 33” was a bar in Madrid, Spain, which was famous thanks to its debauchery. “El 33” always had neighborhood confrontations between the people who was Franco conservationist and the people who celebrated the fall of the regime. There were always police raids in the street nearby “El 33” |
Free Translation: At five o'clock closes the bar of El 33







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Conjunction | Proper noun | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Numeral | ||
pero | Mario | sale | hasta | las | seis | ||
but | {{given name|es|male|eq=Marius}} | to go out, leave, to depart, to head out | until | the | {{cln|es|cardinal numbers}} six | ||
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb salir | |||||||
But | Mario | does not leave | until | the | six | . |
Free Translation: But Mario doesn't leave until six.






Typing Test: ,
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Conjunction | Conjunction | Adverb | Verb | Verb | Noun | Verb | |||
y | si | encima | tiene | hacer | caja | despide | |||
and | if | additionally | transitive to have, possess, to be (a condition or quality) | to do | cash register, register, cash box | reflexive, with “de” To say goodbye (to someone). | |||
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb tener | Infinitive | 2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb despedir | |||||||
And | if | additionally | he has | to do | cash register | say goodbye | , |
Free Translation: And if it's his turn to balance the cash box forget it,







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Adverb | Adverb | Verb | Preposition | Noun | |||
casi | siempre | hace | de | día | |||
almost | always | reflexive to become; to get | of (indicates the subject or cause of the adjective) | day, daytime (the part of the day between sunrise and sunset) | |||
3rd Person Singular Indicative Present of the verb hacer | |||||||
it is Almost | always | of | day | . |
Free Translation: He almost always has to work until the morning.





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Conjunction | Proper noun | Adverb | Verb | Adjective | Preposition | Noun | ||
mientras | María | ya | ha | puesto | en | pie | ||
with the indicative while, whilst (at the same time as) | {{given name|es|female|eq=Mary|from=Hebrew}}. | already, yet | auxiliary verb taking past participle to build various perfect tenses to have | standing | in, at, on | foot (of a person) | ||
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb haber | ||||||||
While | Maria | has already | standing | on | her feet | , |
Free Translation: While Maria is already awake,






Typing Test: ,
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Verb | Verb | Determiner | Noun | Verb | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | |
ha | hecho | la | casa | ha | hecho | hasta | el | café | |
auxiliary verb taking past participle to build various perfect tenses to have | to make (something) | the | house | auxiliary verb taking past participle to build various perfect tenses to have | to make (something) | even | Masculine singular definite article; the. | coffee | |
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb haber | Pastparticiple Singular Masculine of the verb hacer | 2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb haber | Pastparticiple Singular Masculine of the verb hacer | ||||||
She has | made | the | house | , | she has | made | even | the | coffee |
Free Translation: She has done the housework, she has even made the coffee






Typing Test: .
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Conjunction | Pronoun | Verb | Adjective | Adjective | |
y | ella | espera | medio | desnudo | |
and | she, her (used subjectively and after prepositions) | transitive to wait to, wait for, await | half, half a/an | naked, nude, undressed | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb esperar | |||||
And | she | awaits | half | naked | . |
Free Translation: She awaits him half naked.





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Proper noun | Verb | Adjective | Conjunction | Verb |
Mario | llega | cansado | y | saluda |
{{given name|es|male|eq=Marius}} | intransitive to arrive, get (to) | tired, sleepy | and | to greet |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb llegar | 2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb saludar | |||
Mario | arrives | tired | and | greets |
Free Translation: Maria arrives tired and greets her






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Verb | Noun | Conjunction | Adjective | Noun | |
quiere | cama | pero | otro | variedad | |
to desire, to want, to want to | bed | but | other, another | variety | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb querer | |||||
He wants | bed | but | other | variety | . |
Free Translation: He wants bed but other kind.






Typing Test: ,
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Conjunction | Proper noun | Pronoun | Verb | Determiner | Noun | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | |
y | María | se | moja | las | ganas | en | el | café | |
and | {{given name|es|female|eq=Mary|from=Hebrew}}. | {{n-g|Also used to convey the meaning of the English passive voice in the third person and with}} {{l|es|usted}} ''and'' {{l|es|ustedes}}. | to make wet, to wet | the | desire, wish, want | in, at, on | Masculine singular definite article; the. | coffee | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb mojar | |||||||||
And | Maria | gets wet | the | desire | in | the | coffee | , |
Free Translation: While Maria restrain her desire in the coffee,






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Noun | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | Adjective | |
magdalena 1 | de 2 | el 3 | sexo 4 | convexo 5 | |
cupcake | of (indicates the subject or cause of the adjective) | Masculine singular definite article; the. | sex (the act) | convex | |
Cupcake | of | the | convex sex | . | |
1 “Magdalenas” Also know as muffins or cupcakes. “Magdalenas” is a word used commonly in Spain. “Magdalenas” can also refer to the biblical character “Maria Magdalena” who cried the most the death of Jesus. In Spain and Latin-American there is a colloquial expression that says “Llora como una Magdalena” that can be translated as “Cries like a Magdalena” meaning that it cries a lot with profound pain and sentiment. |
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5 Having an outline or surface curved like the exterior of a circle or sphere |
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1,2,3,4,5,6 "Magdalenas del sexo convexo” is the iconic sentence in this classic song from Mecano, it is a magnificent way to put into lyrics the pain of Maria, and what she’s feeling. A way to interpret the lyrics is that Maria is crying (or suffering internally) like a Magdalena because the convex sex “Mario” will not want to be with her (because he’s always tired because of his job). She can’t find a way to make Mario be with her in bed and make love. If you are interested there’s a discussion of this matter on WordReference |
Free Translation: Convex sex muffins.





Typing Test: ,
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Adverb | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | Preposition | Determiner | Adjective | Noun | |
luego | a | el | trabajo | en | un | grande | almacén | |
then (afterward) | to | Masculine singular definite article; the. | work, job | in, at, on | a | {{q|after the noun or predicatively}} big, large | warehouse | |
Then | to | the | work | in | a | big | warehouse | , |
Free Translation: Then to work in a big warehouse,






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Conjunction | Verb | Adverb | Verb | Adjective | Conjunction | Determiner | Noun |
cuando | regresa | no | haber | más | que | un | somier 8 |
when | intransitive to return, go back, come back | not | impersonal:in third person singular only to exist; “there is”, “there are” (hay); “there was”, “there were” (había) | more, any more | that | a | base of the bed, bedframe |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb regresar | Infinitive | ||||||
When | he returns | there is nothing | more | that | a | bed | |
8 “Somier” from the French word “Sommier” is a conjunct between the bed (the mattress) and its base. |
Free Translation: When he returns there is nothing else but a bed






Typing Test: .
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Adjective | Pronoun | Preposition | Noun | ||
taciturno | que | por | turno | ||
taciturn, quiet, silent | that; whom | via, through, by (indicating the means of something) | turn (chance to use (something) shared in sequence with others) | ||
Taciturn | that | use | by | turns | . |
Free Translation: Taciturn that is use in turns.







Typing Test: ,
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Noun | Preposition | Noun | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | |
cruz | de | navaja | por | un | mujer | |
cross | of (indicates the subject or cause of the adjective) | razor | for, for the sake of, on behalf of (indicating doing something for someone's benefit) | a | woman | |
Cross | of | razors | for | a | woman | , |
Free Translation: Razor cross for a woman,






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Voice Test:
Noun | Adjective | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Noun |
brillo | mortal | despuntan | a | el | alba |
sheen, luster, gleam, glitter, gloss, sparkle, glistening | deadly | to stand out (excel) | at | Masculine singular definite article; the. | dawn |
2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb despuntar | |||||
Deadly glitters | stand out | at | the | dawn |
Free Translation: Deadly glitters shine at dawn






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Noun | Pronoun | Verb | Preposition | Noun |
sangre | que | tiñen | de | malva |
blood | that; whom | to color, dye, stain | of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner) | mauve |
2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb teñir | ||||
Bloods | that | dye | of | mauve |
Free Translation: Bloods that dye of mauve






Typing Test: 33
Voice Test:
Conjunction | Adverb | Conjunction | Verb | Verb | Noun | Preposition | ||
pero | hoy | como | ha | habido | redada | en | ||
but | today | as, since (being that) | impersonal:in third person singular only to exist; “there is”, “there are” (hay); “there was”, “there were” (había) | impersonal:in third person singular only to exist; “there is”, “there are” (hay); “there was”, “there were” (había) | raid (by police, military) | in, at, on | ||
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb haber | Pastparticiple Singular Masculine of the verb haber | |||||||
But | today | as | there | was | raid | in | el | 33 |
8,9 “El 33” was a bar in Madrid, Spain, which was famous thanks to its debauchery. “El 33” always had neighborhood confrontations between the people who was Franco conservationist and the people who celebrated the fall of the regime. There were always police raids in the street nearby “El 33” |
Free Translation: But today there was a raid on El 33








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Proper noun | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Numeral | Preposition | Numeral | |
Mario | vuelve | a | las | cinco | menos | diez | |
{{given name|es|male|eq=Marius}} | to return, to revert | at | the | {{cln|es|cardinal numbers}} five | minus | {{cln|es|cardinal numbers}} ten | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb volver | |||||||
Mario | returns | at | the | five | minus | ten | . |
Free Translation: Mario leaves at five minus ten.








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Preposition | Adjective | Noun | Adjective | Preposition | Determiner | Adverb | Adverb | Verb | |
por | suyo | calle | vacío | a | lo | lejos | solo | ve | |
through, out, via (indicating movement) | His, hers, its, to her. | street | empty | at | (neuter definite article used to make abstract nouns from adjectives); the | far | only, solely, just | to see (literally) | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb ver | |||||||||
Through | his | empty street | at | the | far | is only | seem |
Free Translation: Through the empty street in the distance, it only can be seen





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Preposition | Determiner | Noun | Verb | Noun | |||
a | un | pareja | comiendo | beso | |||
to | a | couple | to eat | kiss | |||
Simple Gerund of the verb comer | |||||||
To | a | couple | kissing | . |
Free Translation: A couple kissing.






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Conjunction | Determiner | Adjective | Proper noun | Verb | Verb | |
y | el | pobre | Mario | quiere | morir | |
and | Masculine singular definite article; the. | {{q|before the noun}} poor (pitiable, pitiful) | {{given name|es|male|eq=Marius}} | to desire, to want, to want to | to die | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb querer | Infinitive | |||||
And | the | poor | Mario | wants to | die |
Free Translation: And poor Mario wants to die






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Conjunction | Verb | Preposition | Verb | |
cuando | acerca | para | descubrir | |
when | reflexive to approach, to get close, to come | to, in order to, so, for (expressing the ''intended purpose of an action'') | to discover | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb acercar | Infinitive | |||
When | he approach | to | discover |
Free Translation: When he approach to discover






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Conjunction | Verb | Proper noun | Preposition | Noun | |
que | es | María | con | compañía | |
that | to be (essentially or identified as). | {{given name|es|female|eq=Mary|from=Hebrew}}. | with | company | |
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb ser | |||||
That | is | Maria | with | company | . |
Free Translation: That is Mary with someone






Typing Test: ,
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Noun | Preposition | Noun | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | |
cruz | de | navaja | por | un | mujer | |
cross | of (indicates the subject or cause of the adjective) | razor | for, for the sake of, on behalf of (indicating doing something for someone's benefit) | a | woman | |
Cross | of | razors | for | a | woman | , |
Free Translation: Razor cross for a woman,






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Voice Test:
Noun | Adjective | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Noun |
brillo | mortal | despuntan | a | el | alba |
sheen, luster, gleam, glitter, gloss, sparkle, glistening | deadly | to stand out (excel) | at | Masculine singular definite article; the. | dawn |
2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb despuntar | |||||
Deadly glitters | stand out | at | the | dawn |
Free Translation: Deadly glitters shine at dawn






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Noun | Pronoun | Verb | Preposition | Noun |
sangre | que | tiñen | de | malva |
blood | that; whom | to color, dye, stain | of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner) | mauve |
2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb teñir | ||||
Bloods | that | dye | of | mauve |
Free Translation: Bloods that dye of mauve






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Preposition | Proper noun | Numeral | Noun | |||
sobre | Mario | tres | cruz | |||
over, above, on, upon, atop | {{given name|es|male|eq=Marius}} | {{cln|es|cardinal numbers}} three | cross | |||
Over | Mario | three | crosses | . | ||
3,4 “De bruces” Is a colloquial expression used in Spain and Latin-American and it means “to fall to the floor suddenly”, “To meet someone suddenly” For example, “Me fui de bruces contra el piso” – “I fell and hit hard to the floor” |
Free Translation: Three crosses fell on Mario







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Pronoun | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | Determiner | Pronoun | Adjective | Verb | ||
una | en | la | frente | la | que | más | dolió | ||
one (an indefinite plural pronoun using a singular feminine item, used for females) | in, at, on | the | anatomy forehead, brow | the | that; whom | most | transitive to hurt; to ache | ||
2nd Person Singular Indicative Preterite Polite of the verb doler | |||||||||
One | in | the | forehead | , | the | that | hurt the most | . |
Free Translation: One in the forehead, that was the most painful.






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Adjective | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | Determiner | Pronoun | Verb | |||
otro | en | el | pecho | la | que | mató | |||
other, another | in, at, on | Masculine singular definite article; the. | chest; the front of the thorax | the | that; whom | to kill, slay | |||
2nd Person Singular Indicative Preterite Polite of the verb matar | |||||||||
Another | in | the | chest | , | the | one that | kill him | . |
Free Translation: Another in his chest, that killed him.






Typing Test: :
Voice Test:
Conjunction | Adjective | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | |
y | otro | miente | en | el | noticia | |
and | other, another | to lie (say something untrue) | in, at, on | Masculine singular definite article; the. | news, piece of news | |
2nd Person Singular Imperative Affirmative Tuteo of the verb mentir | ||||||
And | another | lies | in | the | news | : |
Free Translation: And another that lies in the news:







Typing Test: "
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Numeral | Noun | Preposition | Adjective | Noun | |
dos | drogadicto | en | pleno | ansiedad | |
{{cln|es|cardinal numbers}} two | drug addict | in, at, on | full (containing the maximum amount possible) | anxiety | |
Two | drug addict | in | full | anxiety |
Free Translation: Two drug addicts in full anxiety





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Verb | Conjunction | Verb | Proper noun | ||
roban | y | matan | Mario | ||
to rob | and | to kill, slay | {{given name|es|male|eq=Marius}} | ||
3rd Person Plural Indicative Present of the verb robar | 2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb matar | ||||
Robbed | and | killed | Mario | Postigo |
Free Translation: Robbed and killed Mario Postigo






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Conjunction | Adjective | Noun | Verb | Noun |
mientras | suyo | esposa | es | testigo |
with the indicative while, whilst (at the same time as) | His, hers, its, to her. | wife | to be (essentially or identified as). | witness (someone who sees something) |
2nd Person Singular Indicative Present Polite of the verb ser | ||||
While | his | wife | is | witness |
Free Translation: While his wife witness





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Preposition | Determiner | Noun | |
desde | el | portal | |
from (a location) | Masculine singular definite article; the. | architecture portal; porch | |
From | the | porch |
Free Translation: From the porch




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Preposition | Preposition | Noun | Preposition | Noun | Preposition | Determiner | Noun | ||
en | de | cruz | de | navaja | por | un | mujer | ||
in, at, on | of (indicates the subject or cause of the adjective) | cross | of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner) | razor | for, for the sake of, on behalf of (indicating doing something for someone's benefit) | a | woman | ||
Instead | of | cross | of | razors | for | a | woman | , |
Free Translation: Instead of razor cross for a woman,






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Noun | Adjective | Verb | Preposition | Determiner | Noun |
brillo | mortal | despuntan | a | el | alba |
sheen, luster, gleam, glitter, gloss, sparkle, glistening | deadly | to stand out (excel) | at | Masculine singular definite article; the. | dawn |
2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb despuntar | |||||
Deadly glitters | stand out | at | the | dawn |
Free Translation: Deadly glitters shine at dawn






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Voice Test:
Noun | Pronoun | Verb | Preposition | Noun |
sangre | que | tiñen | de | malva |
blood | that; whom | to color, dye, stain | of; ’s; (used after the thing owned and before the owner) | mauve |
2nd Person Plural Indicative Present Polite of the verb teñir | ||||
Bloods | that | dye | of | mauve |
Free Translation: Bloods that dye of mauve



Review
“Cruz de navajas” is a beautiful yet sad song from the Spanish Pop band, Mecano, it was released in the summer of 1986 in Spain and it was a success on radio shows. “Cruz de navajas” is considered one of the most incredible songs from Spain of the '80s.
This song is full of sad messages and tells us a story of infidelity and monotony. Mario and Maria are a couple or are married, that isn’t specified but they live together, from the lyrics we can define that they love each other, but Mario works all night and when he comes back, he’s too tired to look for Maria and her wellbeing. Maria is a housewife that spends all day alone, doing the housework and waiting for Mario to come, she is young and as natural she has sexual desires and need, she dresses sexy for Mario but he’s tired from his job.
Their relationship is monotone and apparently, there is nothing they can do. Time passes, and one day there is a police raid where Mario works making him come back home early than expected. He was walking alone through the street when suddenly, at the distance, he saw a couple kissing, he got nervous as the image of the persons was getting clearer. Sadly, his eyes weren’t deceiving him and what he was seeing was right: Maria was having an affair and kissing him.
Maria and his lover got surprised seeing Mario and what the lyrics tell us next is a sad conclusion to Mario's story.
Mario received three crosses, as a punishment or a painful and cruel reward, one on his forehead, making allusion to his mind, the pain of seeing his wife with another man, that was the one who hurt him the most. A second, a strike into his chest when Marias’s lover attacked him, killing him in the act, and a third cross, which was Maria lying to the news saying Mario was robbed and killed by drug addicts.
Now, speaking of the lyrics and learning, “Cruz de navajas” is an easy song to understand, there are a few rhymes that play with complex sentences but there aren’t many and most of the phrases are easy to understand with simple Spanish knowledge, also, Mecano sings the song slow and with delicacy so listeners won’t miss a detail.
If you liked “Cruz de navajas” and wish to listen and learn with a similar lyrics song we recommend you to check “No te contraron mal” by Christian Nodal.
Submitted by user: ANITA
Average Ratings
Most people find the song lyrics easy to understand lyrics, lyrics sung very slowly and it has very easy to remember verbs and nouns.
Most words used are in very common daily usage.RAE
References
RAE Based on a median word frequency of 541 using the frequency database from the Royal Spanish Academy (La Real Academia Española)
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